I’m excited to tell you about a super sweet book! And you will have the chance to win it + have a phone conversation with one of the authors! How cool is that?
The book is called, A Little Book about Something Much Bigger: The Gift of a Spiritual Practice, and it’s written by best friends, Victoria Cryder and Lois Hughes.
This book is sweet, profound, loving, joyful, spiritual, and amazing. If you have been wanting to create space in your life for your own spiritual practice, this book will definitely help you on your journey. There are so many ways to get in touch with our inner wisdom and tap into the divine energy that is always around us. And what Victoria and Lois offer in their book are some practical tips for doing exactly that. They prove that wisdom doesn’t need to be long-winded or heavy-handed. They get right to the point in their heartfelt style of writing and help us get to a deeply centered space where we can listen to our soul, honor our presence in this world, and live from a place of love and gratitude.
I had the chance to sit down with them and ask a little more about their book and how it came to be.
Enjoy the interview and then make sure to enter the giveaway at the end!
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I think it’s wonderful that two best friends wrote such a beautiful book together! Can you share a bit about your friendship?
Victoria Cryder
We grew up five miles apart from each other and went to the same pediatrician, but didn’t meet until well into adulthood. When we did, we quickly became friends and discovered that we shared a passion for travel. That discovery led to the creation of At Your Leisure, a small company (just the two of us) that specialized in planning honeymoons and personalized European itineraries for clients.
After a number of years, life moved us in new directions. We closed the travel business but remained best friends. Now, almost twenty years later, we find ourselves in a new partnership together, that of writing books. As we continue to navigate our lives – with two homes in Connecticut, two marriages and four kids in different phases of life between us – we have embarked on a journey to live a spiritually-based life and to share what we’ve learned with others.
What inspired you to write this book together?
Lois Hughes
We really wanted to share what we had learned and experienced with other women. We wanted to share the tools that have created such profound shifts in our own lives. It’s our hope that this book will guide others to step into their own power and connect to the Divine.
Can you tell us about your spiritual journey – how you began, your beliefs, and your individual practices?
It really began with Victoria. Six years ago, she began reading books on spirituality and never stopped! Inspired by what she read, she trained in various spiritual traditions and energy healing modalities. During this period of time, she began sharing what she was learning with Lois. Somewhat apprehensive at first, Lois soon realized that spirituality had nothing to do with religion. As she began to open her heart, and as she began studying and practicing herself, her life began to transform. Both of us are deeply committed to our spiritual practice and use all of the tools we write about.
Which of the practices listed in the book are your favorites?
Beginning each day at our personal altar in prayer and meditation – and ending the day writing in our gratitude journals.
How do you define the soul?
The soul is your true essence and spirit that was created long before you arrived here in physical form and will continue to live on long after you leave this physical world. It is eternal.
What does your soul want you to know?
The soul wants each of us to know that in every moment we are one with the Divine. That it is the place from which we receive our true guidance. That we must live from that place.
Because May is our Month of Meditation here on Soul Speak, could each of you please share your meditation practices with us?
We have found that keeping it short and simple works well for us. The most important thing is to make sure that you quiet your mind every day and be open to receiving the guidance the Universe is always sending you. Breath work is an essential part of any meditative practice.
Lois writes:
I meditate for ten minutes in the morning at my personal altar in the bedroom. I sit before it, light a candle and ask God to join me. When I feel God’s presence, I begin to meditate.
Victoria writes:
I prefer to meditate two or three times a day for five minutes at a time. My favorite is a walking mediation. When I walk in solitude, I can truly quiet my mind and feel Divine presence. Guided meditations on CD have also been a favorite, especially when I was first starting out.
I love how you alternate sharing your personal stories in each chapter. Was it difficult to share such deep, personal parts of yourselves?
This really was the hardest part of writing the book. Our personal tales may be rather short and to the point, but they reveal very intimate parts of some of the places we’ve been in our lives. We realized rather early on that, in order to help others who might be struggling, we really had to dig deep and give of ourselves. This meant going into our shadows and sharing them with the world.
You write about the difference between intentions and goals: intentions come from the heart and goals come from the mind. I love that! Do you set daily intentions or do you set them when you feel called to do so?
The most important thing to remember about intentions is that they come from the heart and reflect who you are, not what you do. We set our main intentions for the year on New Year’s Day and refer to them often. In addition, we set intentions when we feel inspired to do so. It may be on a particular day at the start of a new project. It’s all about following your own heart. There really is no right or wrong way to do this.
Victoria mentioned that Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) is a great way to release limiting beliefs and stale emotions. For those of us who are just learning about this, where would you suggest we go to learn more about it? How has it helped you in your own life?
YouTube is a great resource. It has lots of “tapping” videos that are very instructional and will help you get started. You can learn lots about the process from Carol Look, an EFT master. Visit her webpage and subscribe to her newsletter here. Nick Ortner is the producer of “The Tapping Solution,” a documentary that came out a few years ago. Order the movie online or take a look at his great website here. As the number of EFT practitioners is growing rapidly, you’re sure to find one in your area.
Victoria writes:
EFT has helped me to release blocks from past issues that I didn’t realize where impacting me at the time. It’s helped me to work these issues through and release them. It’s really one of the main tools that guided me and allowed me to write our book.
What do you hope that everyone will take away after reading this book and trying the exercises in each chapter?
Learning how to create a spiritual practice and incorporate it into your life need not be complicated. But there’s such an abundance of wonderful material available on spirituality that figuring out what to do or where to begin can feel rather overwhelming. Our intention in writing this book was to condense and share, from all that we’ve learned, what’s really resonated and worked well for us. We know that every journey begins with that first step. Our hope is that this book provides what’s needed for other women to take that step on a long, fulfilling journey to creating a life of peace, purpose and abundance.
I see that this book is the first in a series that you are writing. What’s next?
We’re presently working on a couple of projects. The first is a short workbook designed to help others discover and live their true life purpose. In addition, we’re outlining the second book in the series which will be about taking readers deeper into their spiritual journey.
Anything else you would like to share?
We’re very grateful to all those reading this post.
Thank you, Jodi, for giving us this wonderful opportunity to share our message with others!
THE GIVEAWAY:
One lucky winner will win the following prizes:
- One copy of A Little Book about Something Much Bigger: The Gift of a Spiritual Practice (ebook)
- One 20-minute phone conversation with Victoria! (It can either be an intuitive angel card reading or a one-on-one session about starting a spiritual practice.)
Entering is super easy!
- Follow A Little Book on Twitter and Soul Speak on Facebook.
- Leave a comment below sharing one spiritual practice that you either do each day or would like to do. (It could be anything that connects you with your soul and helps you remember that you are a part of this amazing universe.)
That’s it!
One lucky winner will be chosen randomly on 5/17.
Good luck!
P.S. – Our Month of Meditation is still going strong! Many of us are already beginning to feel calmer and more grounded. Here is today’s check-in page: https://www.jodichapman.com/may-10/
I guess my practice would be that I find some quiet space and consciously feel into my center. That place that feels so promising and magical. The place that instantly brings me a smile 🙂 -Tanya
Hi Jodi,
I found this interview very interesting and the book certainly sounds so inspirational. When I wake every morning I take time out to pray and read my Daily Word, a very inspirational magazine. Throughout the day I read some chapters of an inspirational book and meditate. I also do Yoga and repeat my favourite Psalm 23 several times a day. All this has taken me through some rather challenging years of my life. I am a new Fan of your Facebook Page and also now follow A Little Book on Twitter. Do enjoy the rest of your week.
Judy
What a great interview Jodi! I really feel like I got to know the authors. Victoria and Lois, thank you so much for sharing your amazing book. It sound right my alley. I’ve written a book to help mother with their experiences, too. I loved what you had to say about tapping. I’ve tried it once. I’ll have to check out those youtube videos.
Thanks for an inspiring post!
Wow this sounds like a dream friendship and a book that will help heal an individual and then the world. I love the alter idea. and practice. Love it!
I loved this: “intentions come from the heart and goals come from the mind”. I am thrilled to read this interview – and the close friendship because I know exactly how it feels to have one. Yesterday was my best friend’s birthday – we’ve known each other for forty years now ( I am 48) and I can’t adequately express how wonderful that feels.
I’d love to read this book. I applaud the authors for sharing their learning in such a unique way!
I really enjoyed reading the interview of two good friends and all that they have to offer. Myself, I do my best meditating/praying in the shower every morning. It’s quiet with no interruptions. There are often other times of the day that I meditate depending on what I am doing that day, but every morning is a given with me. Thanks for the chance to win!
My spiritual practice every morning is Reiki, EFT (tapping) and prayer, and at I also use my crystals. I enjoy setting intentions also for my day. I always pray and use Reiki to end my day on a good note and to clear anything that may need to be released.
Thank you for such a great post.
It warmed my heart to read about Lois and Victoria’s beautiful and magical relationship. I also find peace and joy meditating by alter, doing EFT and breath work, and setting daily intentions.
My daily ritual occurs each morning as I sit by my alter, light a candle, and set my intentions for the day. I always end my session by including the phase, “ I let go and trust in the process.” I repeat this phase silently during the day to remind myself to let go of the “how” and “when”, and to trust that the Universe will provide me with exactly what I need NOW.
I would be so honored to hold, A Little Book about Something Much Bigger: The Gift of a Spiritual Practice, in my hands, and to have an interview with one of the beautiful authors.
Much Love and Light for this opportunity.
I’m participating in the month of meditation, strengthening my previous meditation practice and journaling daily again. Hadn’t heard of EFT before but will definitely be looking into that.
Hello!
I have to say…I loved this post! 🙂 This book sounds wonderful, and Victoria & Lois sound like AMAZING women!
One spiritual practice that I just started about a week ago is meditation. It is definitely a little difficult to “get” at first…I’m always wondering if I’m doing it right or not. But even if I may not know everything there is to know about meditation, just doing it for the week that I have been has really helped me to feel more relaxed and calm through my days. Another thing that I have been reading up on and trying to practice on my own is channeling. I’m not sure if everyone would consider this “spiritual” per say, but it definitely feels that way to me. It’s something that just sparked a part of me deep down inside to life as soon as I started reading about it…like it was something I had been searching for for a long time without even realizing it. It’s an amazing feeling when you find things like these that just help something inside you “click” into place.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts, for writing the book(s), and your experiences with us!…with the world! You are contributing so much positivity into the world, and I know SO many people will benefit from it! 🙂
Thank you very much Jodi for this post and for sharing with me the book and the two great authors.
I don’t really have a practice to connect with my soul, no rituals, nothing programmed, But I just live in the “now”. I don’t plan or decide, or worry about something that might happen or not. I can talk about the lessons I learned in the past, but only to discuss its influence in my present. I can never tell what I will do the next day, but what I say is what i would love NOW to do tomorrow.
I paint, write, and collage in an art journal. Occasionally I meditate, but working in my art journals is my soul work.
Every morning and every night I sit on the back porch while I let the dogs out and look at the sky. Every day and every night it is different. It’s become an act of meditation and soul cleansing and gets me through each day. Just a simple act of sitting still in silence is spiritual. <3
I make time to sit quietly and watch the sunset each evening and practice being in the moment with the beauty and peace of nature.
I’ve been using listening as a spiritual practice. I get still and try to find that still small voice within me and that spark that helps me know I’m on the right path.
I enjoyed reading the interview. It’s great that two friends got together to write a book like this and shared what they’ve learned with others.
My daily practice is to write in my journal and to take some quiet time for myself, even if it’s only 5 minutes.
I write everyday about things I am grateful for, insights, signs and themes. When I look back I see the patterns that emerge and that propels me forward to each new day.
Seems about the only time I really read is on vacation. When I’m home I use what time others read to knit or crochet or update blogs, or read blogs, or
comment on blogs, etc.
Sounds like a good book. Got one here a friend sent me about homelessness. I do plan to find some time to read it…
Congratulations to Colleen for winning!
Thank you to everyone who entered and shared their daily spiritual practices. We can all learn so much from each other – I’m going to try some of them out myself! 🙂
I’ve just read through everyone’s wonderful posts. It’s so heartwarming to see how many of us care about living lives that are spiritually-based and letting our lights shine in this world. Thank you everyone.
Many blessings,
Lois
Thank you all for your beautiful comments. I am so grateful for Lois, the book and all of you!
Thank you and much love,
Victoria