So about this week!

This week came with a bang of disappointments! Matter of fact to many to name.  Hump day I felt my lowest. This month has been super slow. Yes, I have had some huge accomplishments but I guess I still expect my days to be cracking.  Perhaps this is evaluation time, time to take an inventory of what needs to stay and what needs to go. Time to take advantage of some good napping, laughing and maybe some crying to cleanse this soul.  Im gonna use this time to clear out some clutter and meditate on God and his goodness. Start getting ready for an amazing 2016. Rotating crops and preparing my soil for a great harvest. So in closing down time means get it together for some positive change. We can all be better!
Cleo

The company you keep!

     In order to grow into your flowering state that prepares you to feed the world you must be fed the proper nutrients to flourish. The foundation, the dirt must be mineral rich, composted from a combination of ingredients, generational secrets, ancestral mojo that propels the seed to germinate. The pouring of one of God's most sacred creations water has to be given as if to hand feed it as if it was a new born baby! The water has to be good water, clean water and has to be administered everyday! The food, the fertilizer for continued growth and strength is as important as the soil and the water! The seed may grow but without the right FOOD the plant can be weak and never produce the right FRUIT. Placement and environment is vital as well. To many weeds, chokes the life of the plant prohibiting it to thrive. To many other plants can rob it's nutrients producing weak crops. Just the right company can compliment, enhance and feed a plant. There is the sun, humidity and oxygen all agents for strong stock.

     Now that I'm in my fresh years, the years of the best fruit to come. Before my harvest  it is important for me to decide what and who I must continue to be in company with because what I put in my soil right now is super important.  I would like the fruit I produce to be super rich in nutrients. The conversations we have, the hugs we share, the laughter we create, the experiences that produce the tears that cleanse.  The action behind all of it. The support, the loving and encouraging words, the showing up and being present. The ability to be selfless and access that special something in us that makes you check in, that connection of spirit. This post isn't meant to be super DEEP or soul shaking just saying it becomes important to be aware of the company you keep. Everyone doesn't always show up and sometimes that's a good thing. In order for us to be fresh, thrive and be healthy we need a great, loving, healing environment to do so!

peace
love
blessings
Cleo Cartel`

The Garden of Life! 2015 Im back

okay so I really believe that I should share this. self discovery, transparency and growing is what it is all about!

So, here we go! and if you don't want to grow or what ever your hangup is we perhaps shouldn't be friends. Have a nice one.

My first year of cultivating a garden/farm. What I learned about myself. TRUTH 
THIS GARDENING THING FULL TIME IS NO JOKE. I learned that I am somewhat lazy, a procrastinator, impatient, inconsistent at times, moody! What it has taught me is more patience, a more loving spirit, more patience, sitting still, connecting with my god source, meditating on and with God, forgiving, letting go, when something has served it's purpose and it's time to go, let it go. 

Taught me how I can tighten up a lot of area's in my other businesses. Funny thing about plants they don't lie, you can lie to them and neglect them, pretend your gonna be this earthy, aggy, universal spirit until that one crop dies from neglect and your lie and then another and another and then your garden screams "Do I have your attention now"?
Shows you in your face kind of how you are in your relationships. You nurture them they thrive, you abuse them they die!
Becoming this amazing gardener was impossible due to my own health not being optimal? You want healthy fruit but your not fit enough to tend the farm, the farm of love, the farm of life? My garden asked me almost everyday "who are you Cleo Cartel". I had no idea what I was embarking in on this experience, I was just being obedient to spirit.
The only experience I had in this gardening game was tending to my fathers plants in his greenhouse as a chore and watching my grandmothers in their gardens. I got it, by golly I got it granny. I get what kept you grounded, literally! Why you never let anything sway you from what was real FRUIT! Im laughing and crying as a write this thinking how far i've come and how far i've got to go.
I don't profess to be a super genius by far, thought I knew a few things. Come to find out, I have much, much more to learn and experience. This IS my story, my shit, my journey so don't get it twisted you don't have to apply this to any part of your being but me personally this here Garden has made me better. peace

He love's me He love's me not!

I remember thinking when I was a younger babe, I will have an amazing life, beautiful family and a wonderful home! I saw all the tv shows, picture books and magazine depict these images and therefore I was sold on it. I also grew up in a picturesque home myself,  mom and pop and dad and step mom! Im guessing that having morals has not been the key to having a successful partnership in anything! Business, nope! Friendship, nope! Spiritual, nope!  Relationships, hell no! So, lets rethink this I thought a long the way, but I don't want to be dogmatic or corrupt, mean or cruel, ahhhh or the worse to me a USER in order for me to have working relationships. So let me not get ahead of myself because this post is about something a little different than the picture I'm painting, don't want to confuse you yet I did need to state the above facts for you to understand where I'm going with this! As I sip on my cocktail

yes one was needed as I get real personal with this one. By the way Shellback clear rum is amazing,  yes it is. Back to the post. Ahhh yes He love's me, He love's me not! I had the worst marriage ever. I am ok to say it now and it's the truth. Our friendship was great, marriage a parade of booooooo's! We had absolutely no business getting married! But we let all the things that people say are great reasons to get married, marry us!  Religion, waited to have sex after we were married, credit and money was cool, purchased a home together, all the shit you think is supposed to hold you down. Well I'm here to tell you straight with no chaser, literally, not!  None of that shit matters and I mean none of it, if the people involved don't love God, themselves and EACH OTHER!  Sounds simple right, I know everything always does. 

     LOVE, is unconditional and should be non emotional!  Love, has nothing to do with what I will and will not do for you. It's not a tool, commerce, exchange for goods or items!

It is however energy, food/nutrients, necessary, a life line, motivation, encouragement and support!

When you know that there is love the environment is a thriving, anything is possible because there is a wonder that exist that can carry you further than one can imagine. LOVE is GOD! We all know when that is present in your spirit, soul and heart all things are possible!

     So in my release of this loveless relationship (give thanks) I had my aha moment ( for the record, I dislike that saying, but any who) what if you took some time Cleo to re-discover what was missing and what it is you will need to have better relationships altogether!  Yes, let's do that! For two years I was an understudy of Love (that will be another blog)! In short what I learned, love only needed me!  I was busy looking for reciprocation, kinda needy(hey the truth hurts)because that was what I was taught love should be like an exchange, you love me, I love you!  Our whole entire worlds would crash if and when we tell someone I love you and they don't say it back. New day, uh hello. I will never wait again for the "right time to tell someone you love them and then die if they don't say it back"! Yeah, so never doing that again!

     I began to think about a mother and a child in the womb  the child knows nothing of this love but the mother automatically loves her unborn child not looking for anything in exchange, it's actually impossible because that child hasn't been born to display any feeling yet. Thats super unconditional love! Haaaa! So I said to myself, self my next intimate relationship I will love him like an unborn baby, no expectations! Guess what, it was amazing! It was the best relationship I ever had.  Because I decided it wasn't that important to have conditional Love. It was most important that I was the Love! He saw that and caught on. No traditional mess. Just unconditional love. No picking daises running around singing he love's me, he love's me not.  I love'd me and then love'd him! ahhhhh, life is good!

don't forget the three L's love, life and laughter!

What do you hide behind?

     My granny used to say, "honey there is not enough makeup in the whole wide world to hide the pain in your eye's"! I would hear her say that to my aunts as they tried to mask the heartbreak of a relationship gone bad.  Today it seems like everyone is hiding behind something.  A computer screen, designer shades, tinted windows of a fancy car or a big house in a gated community! You ever think (well let's say your the one in the conversation or relationship telling the absolute truth) does anyone even care about having authentic conversations or relationships that may show the transperency and vulnerability in one's core shell to be seen. Should we even be having thought provoking communication with individuals who don't care enough to let us be our authentic selves even if that means we are having an off day. So if everyone that we surround our selves with has to make it a point to be "ON" all the time or even fake just to be appealing how healthy is that?  Why do we hide at all? Aren't we loved enough to just be ourselves, what ever that is! Well what ever environment you foster is what you will most likely be or become. If it's a bunch of material ladened energy pushed, what happens when you can no longer produce that, are you still acceptable, RELEVANT?  I guess that's why we have so many toxic sayings like, fell off, wack, no longer hot, how old are they! Yes, this may be a lot to think about since we don't like to think anymore especially if it means we will have to do some work to do better! Here is a thought though, I am going to make a conscious effort to do and be me, on and off! Believing that the cats I run with will be like, I'm cool with that, Cleo is just being her authentic self!
peace love laughter and good living!

What makes you feel good!

You know sometimes you have to get up out of the bed and say, today I am going to do what feels good to me! Making sure that your spirit and soul is fed is an essential part of your daily get down! Sometimes I just like to lay there in my bed with some soft music playing and think, meditate on what I would like to be and what is possible to be.  Some may say I don't have the luxury of time for that and I say to you that is not a truth! Wake up earlier  or go to bed earlier so you can spend some mind time alone. I love massages and they're so affordable, especially a foot massage. I love museums and galleries. Creative energy stimulates my mind and excites my inner freshness! I love window shopping and a good lunch with a crazy fun friend! You don't always have to spend a lot of money to feel good either. You can go to a poetry reading or a book signing! Making love is an excellent feel good exercise or cuddling is another way to get those feel good endorphins going, those can last all day well into the week! Community work is an excellent way to get that smile on and not just yours but others, so get out and volunteer! What I'm saying is you have the right to feel good! Now go out and figure what it takes to get you there everyday! 3L's love life and laughter!

Life really is like a box of chocolates!

On this beautiful Wednesday God gave most of us life but on this day he called home an amazing being, "The Great Dr. Maya Angelou"! Today we all will say that we were glad to have been in the presence of someone so brilliant! With every written word momma Maya captivated audiences and held minds and hearts in the palm of her hands.  A lyricist, griot, word maverick, mother of nation, queen and warrior! She had the energy of a fearless goddess entertaining the likes of champs, presidents, activists and royalty! Without a doubt she was a voice for women of a darker hue as well as voice for the voiceless! Speaking truths of struggle, real beauty and sometimes the pain of "Black America" as some would call and see it! With over 50 years of remarkable written works, Dr. Angelou traveled and lectured extensively almost up until she was called home!

Below are some interesting facts about mother Maya!

Multi-talented barely seems to cover the depth and breadth of Maya Angelou's accomplishments. She is an author, actress, screenwriter, dancer and poet. Born Marguerite Annie Johnson, Angelou had a difficult childhood. Her parents split up when she was very young, and she and her older brother, Bailey, were sent to live with their father's mother, Anne Henderson, in Stamps, Arkansas.

As an African American, Angelou experienced firsthand racial prejudices and discrimination in Arkansas. She also suffered at the hands of a family associate around the age of 7: During a visit with her mother, Angelou was raped by her mother's boyfriend. Then, as vengeance for the sexual assault, Angelou's uncles killed the boyfriend. So traumatized by the experience, Angelou stopped talking. She returned to Arkansas and spent years as a virtual mute.

We will keep her son and grandson in our prayers and her extended family, friends and fans!

God bless you love, see you on the other side!