By Haley Sawyer
The Review
When Davina Kotulski moved to Southern California in 2012, she was beginning a second recent major life change. In 2008, she left a secure government job. Four years later, the psychologist relocated from Northern California to Southern California.
Although she was someone who had always erred on the safe side, Kotulski — who eventually ended up in South Pasadena — stayed positive through these two leaps of faith.
“And it was amazing to watch how all of my needs were still met, things still worked out,” Kotulski said. “I did what I needed to do. Money somehow stretched, like the laws of gravity bent. I don’t know how, but they did. They do. It was really staying positive and doing what I needed to do, so that was an amazing change.”
She established a home and a practice in South Pasadena and continued to service clients from around California. Her personal process inspired the concept of the Manna Paradigm Shift and her second self-help book, “The Manna Paradigm Shift: Creating the Consciousness of Abundance and Freedom.”
Now, as the world endures the COVID-19 pandemic, the Manna Paradigm Shift seems more relevant than ever.
The Manna Paradigm Shift mirrors a parable in the Bible in which God provided the Israelites, who had fled Egypt, with manna every day so that they could survive. Manna was an edible substance that had to be eaten that day; it would rot if it were hoarded or stored for any longer.
Kotulski sees manna as spiritual nourishment, an experience that can be religious or not.
“Manna is about creating a mindset in the consciousness that is open and allowing, and in a place of faith, gratitude and positive expectancy,” she said. “Seeing the best in yourself and others, and moving forward from that place, trusting life versus feeling like, ‘oh my God, I have to go back to Pharaoh,’ whatever that is, and ‘do whatever I’m told or I’m going to die.’”
The Manna Paradigm Shift involves three steps: Choosing freedom, letting go of negative thoughts and finally, trusting in a higher power.
Ceci Angelinni has used the concept to help get through personal struggles. Originally a spa director in Sedona, Arizona, Angelinni had to relocate due to a change in employment caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. She came to South Pasadena to live with and care for her 95-year-old mother.
“Life was good, everything was going all right and when it happened, it’s like, the whole plan got thrown into a big shift,” Angelinni said. “All of a sudden, it was time to reevaluate the plan that my daughter and I were on, and I was pretty terrified. If I can’t do hands-on work, what am I going to do?”
Angelinni received an email invitation to join a Manna Paradigm Shift group in which she could learn how to apply the concept to her life as well as get a preview of the book.
“When the Manna Paradigm came, I thought, wow, that really aligns with a core belief that I had,” she said. “When I started working with Davina, I started realizing instead of staying in that slump of fear, I was able to lift out of that and not stay in this depressed state, and my hope was restored quicker than had I been on my own.”
The book comes two years after Kotulski’s first self-help book, “It’s Never Too Late to Be Your Self: Follow Your Inner Compass and Take Back Your Life.”
It was through her first book that Kotulski connected with fellow South Pasadena resident Jane Brust, who eventually became her publicist as well as a participant in Manna Paradigm Shift workshops.
“We were doing this workshop, reading one chapter at a time with a PDF,” Brust said. “But it wasn’t just processing the teachings, it was processing the language of the book and how it was written and she would make notes on the screen and do some refinement. She was very open, she’s a good listener and she wants to be inclusive in this process, and I felt very privileged to be part of it.”
“The Manna Paradigm Shift” is available for pre-order in digital and hard copy via Amazon and is scheduled to be published on Jan. 5. Those who read the book will have an opportunity to participate in a workshop series to further demonstrate the mindset.
“This book helps you create a mindset that will move you through the pandemic, that will help you stay focused on the positive,” Kotulski said. “And look at areas that you might be holding yourself back, and to stay focused on a can-do attitude to get through this.”
