Flow ― An Illuminated Training Manual: How to Thrive in Love, Work, and Play

"Steven Budden is your gift from the universe. If you are reading this, a universal flow brought you here to awaken your soul." Amazon ReviewBroke, desperate, and completely alone, I nearly gave up on life. Twice. Whatever creative force drives us had other plans. At what seemed like the most inopportune moment, I was enlightened on a beach in Northern California in 2005. When I witnessed a wave wash out a set of footprints, I viscerally experienced an earth-shattering connection to everything. Life and death; agony and ecstasy; bliss and pain were all in perfect balance. That moment was complete… even if my life was… not. Broken Bones. My life was turned upside down as I tried to integrate the experience. I moved to San Diego to live by the beach. While I was undulating between agony and ecstasy, I broke my neck bodyboarding in the Pacific in 2008. A wave slammed my skull into the ocean floor and sent my life hurtling off in a new direction. I crawled out of the water, bloody and trembling, and flow was born. Now I no longer believe in accidents. What do I believe?Our physical and emotional pain contains sacred messages from our body. We can use it as an excuse for not living a rich, full life or a gateway to surrender and spiritual awakening; a catalyst to physical and emotional unfoldment. This is where the miracles happen, our relationships touch new depths, and we thrive.We are each here for a unique purpose, which we can either resist or embrace. (Hint, resistance creates suffering). No matter where we go, what we do, or whom we love, if we do not meet the experience with our whole body, life feels like its slipping by. Life happens where our body meets the present moment. When we release our blocks and flow into the present moment, the body’s innate intelligence system takes over and beautiful things happen. This frees us up to love, work, and play with our whole being. Unfolding/awakening/healing is a process; a process we can choose to celebrate.Life energy networks in complex and dynamic ways. In order to truly thrive, we need to thrive in every aspect of our lives. Welcome to Flow. Flow: An Illuminated Training Manual, is the culmination of a desperate lifelong quest to fully experience life. For over a decade I used my body as an alchemical laboratory. Nothing was taboo, as long as it added depth, meaning, and richness to my life. This is a tale of how I went from sick and nearly dead to thriving in so many ways. After moving through the fear, I finally discovered real intimacy. I live my passion by helping others come into flow. And I play in the ocean of possibility like a child. Nothing feels as good as fully experiencing the full spectrum of life… the surge of energy, chills, tingles, tickles, throbs, heart-wrenching passion, floods of tears and laughter. Nothing.As you come into flow, there will be tears of pain and joy, breakdowns and breakthroughs, epiphanies and healing. Guaranteed.We can’t figure everything out intellectually. We weren’t supposed to.So take a break, take a breath and sigh. This is a good thing. Now we can play…Now we can flow.