Sometimes we struggle to believe we can ever overcome all of our past mistakes. We might get caught up in the thought that we've done so much "wrong" that we can never get it "right". We have to understand that there really is no right or wrong, there are only choices that take us down different paths, but the different paths all eventually lead to the same place. Some choices make our journey easier, some make our journey more difficult, but no choice is really "wrong".
Let's for a moment think of our life as a play. Let's envision ourselves as the actors in the play. In our "play" we choose to act out a certain scene in a certain way. Sometimes the scene doesn't turn out how we would like it too. We have made some type of mis-take and now we have a chance to do a retake. We have the chance to look at what we didn't like about how the scene in our life went and when we get the opportunity to act out the scene again we can make adjustments to try to get the outcome we desire. Nothing was really "wrong" with the first scene, it just didn't give us the outcome we really desired, so we want to study the scene, make adjustments and do a retake.
This is kind of how our life works. We are given a situation to deal with and we have a choice in how to deal with it. If we are in touch with our innerself, our heart or soul mind, we will most likely make a choice that gets us through the situation with the outcome we would most desire, we will learn some lessons along the way and then be done with the situation. If we made a choice that led to an outcome we really didn't desire then we have the opportunity to look at the situation and the choices we made when acting it out and the next time that type of situation rolls around, we can make a different choice, hopefully this time one that's more intuned to our heart.
Each situation in our lives are little mini lessons for us and if we make mistakes the situations eventually present themselves again in some manner so we can do a retake. Hopefully we've been awake and paying attention and can make the necessary adjustments so that we don't have to have the lesson several more times. Sometimes we will even notice that those around us are living out lessons we have dealt with and still need to learn and we can learn our lesson by helping them through theirs. Technically we experience the lesson through them, but don't have to live through it again. How interesting is that???
If we are clinging to our mistakes let's let them go knowing that through them we've learned some hard lessons and now we are equipped to make different choices that will help us to stay on an easier path.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Friday, January 28, 2011
Don't Worry, Be Happy
Don't worry, be happy...easier said than done. If we find ourselves wondering if we will ever be happy we need to keep something in mind. Being happy takes practice.
How do we practice being happy if we don't feel happy? We can start by attempting to replace negative thoughts with positive ones. Does this mean we stick our head in the sand and pretend everything is perfect in our world?? No, this means we recognize that we are having difficulties, but instead of falling into despair over the situation, we look for something positive to focus on and that is what we hang on to. We fill our mind with positive thoughts and visions rather than negative frightening ones.
We may have to make a real effort to cut down on the negativity we are exposed to in our world. Look for positive, uplifting people to be around, cut back on our exposure to negativity on TV or radio stations, read books that help us to feel better and uplift us or help us to learn something.
They say misery loves company. If you don't want to be miserable, don't keep company with those who do.
We can continue to love and support negative people, but we don't have to get down and play in the mud with them....in other words, don't join in with their negativity or buy into it.
If we have to be in situations with negative people on a daily basis, such as at our job and can't avoid it, then WE should do our best to be the positive in the situation. Instead of falling in to being angry at the person who is negative or judgmental towards them, we can send them love and try to point out the positives we see to contradict their negatives. It may have no effect on them what so ever, but WE will feel better for not falling into our own negative thoughts.
Most importantly we should start looking for what helps us to feel happy and we should do it. Find a creative outlet for ourselves. If we love to write, write, if we enjoying painting or knitting, do that, if we like to plant flowers or build wooden bird houses, put puzzles together, do that. Find something constructive and healthy that brings us joy it doesn't have to be expensive or time consuming it can be as simple as cooking or coloring in a color book.
It would also be helpful to connect with other people. Find a way to reach out to others in some way. Say hi to the people we meet on the streets. Start up a random conversation with someone in the grocery store. Make a small comment to the person who takes our money at the gas station. Show the people around us that we see them, wish them a good day and give them a smile. It will brighten our day and theirs too. If someone responds in a negative manner, we shouldn't be offended, we should just smile to ourselves and remember we totally understand how it feels to be grumpy and closed off and send them some extra love vibes.
It's important to get outside for at least 10 minutes every day. We could take a slow walk, sit on a bench or our steps, do anything outside for at lest 10 minutes a day. Our bodies need the fresh air, sunshine and connection to the earth. Get out there and smell those roses!
We also need to remember to take good care of our bodies. Make sure we are eating healthy foods and most importantly drinking plenty of water. Get plenty of rest. It will be easier for us to be happy if our bodies are well cared for. If we treat our bodies like garbage we will feel like garbage.
We have to remember to not judge ourselves and to be gentle, kind, loving and accepting to ourselves as well as those around us.
It's time to give ourselves permission to have fun and play. Let's dance through life enjoying it instead of trudging along waiting for it to be over!
Find something to do just for YOU today.
How do we practice being happy if we don't feel happy? We can start by attempting to replace negative thoughts with positive ones. Does this mean we stick our head in the sand and pretend everything is perfect in our world?? No, this means we recognize that we are having difficulties, but instead of falling into despair over the situation, we look for something positive to focus on and that is what we hang on to. We fill our mind with positive thoughts and visions rather than negative frightening ones.
We may have to make a real effort to cut down on the negativity we are exposed to in our world. Look for positive, uplifting people to be around, cut back on our exposure to negativity on TV or radio stations, read books that help us to feel better and uplift us or help us to learn something.
They say misery loves company. If you don't want to be miserable, don't keep company with those who do.
We can continue to love and support negative people, but we don't have to get down and play in the mud with them....in other words, don't join in with their negativity or buy into it.
If we have to be in situations with negative people on a daily basis, such as at our job and can't avoid it, then WE should do our best to be the positive in the situation. Instead of falling in to being angry at the person who is negative or judgmental towards them, we can send them love and try to point out the positives we see to contradict their negatives. It may have no effect on them what so ever, but WE will feel better for not falling into our own negative thoughts.
Most importantly we should start looking for what helps us to feel happy and we should do it. Find a creative outlet for ourselves. If we love to write, write, if we enjoying painting or knitting, do that, if we like to plant flowers or build wooden bird houses, put puzzles together, do that. Find something constructive and healthy that brings us joy it doesn't have to be expensive or time consuming it can be as simple as cooking or coloring in a color book.
It would also be helpful to connect with other people. Find a way to reach out to others in some way. Say hi to the people we meet on the streets. Start up a random conversation with someone in the grocery store. Make a small comment to the person who takes our money at the gas station. Show the people around us that we see them, wish them a good day and give them a smile. It will brighten our day and theirs too. If someone responds in a negative manner, we shouldn't be offended, we should just smile to ourselves and remember we totally understand how it feels to be grumpy and closed off and send them some extra love vibes.
It's important to get outside for at least 10 minutes every day. We could take a slow walk, sit on a bench or our steps, do anything outside for at lest 10 minutes a day. Our bodies need the fresh air, sunshine and connection to the earth. Get out there and smell those roses!
We also need to remember to take good care of our bodies. Make sure we are eating healthy foods and most importantly drinking plenty of water. Get plenty of rest. It will be easier for us to be happy if our bodies are well cared for. If we treat our bodies like garbage we will feel like garbage.
We have to remember to not judge ourselves and to be gentle, kind, loving and accepting to ourselves as well as those around us.
It's time to give ourselves permission to have fun and play. Let's dance through life enjoying it instead of trudging along waiting for it to be over!
Find something to do just for YOU today.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
All We Need Is Love
Everyone discusses my art and pretends to understand, as if it were necessary to understand, when it is simply necessary to love.
- Claude Monet
How appropriate that this quote showed up in my email today! It reminds us that we don't really need to understand everything. We can discuss, contemplate and work on finding understanding, but in the end all we really need is love. How simple is that?
- Claude Monet
How appropriate that this quote showed up in my email today! It reminds us that we don't really need to understand everything. We can discuss, contemplate and work on finding understanding, but in the end all we really need is love. How simple is that?
Who Wouldn't Want To Be Me?
Sometimes we are so busy trying to figure out who we are or trying to be something we are not or trying to fit into someone else's idea of who we are, that we forget a really important point....all we have to be is ourself.
What the heck does that mean? How can we be ourself if we aren't sure who we are? Good question. Let's see if we can find an answer.
Stop right now and take a deep breath, hold it for a second then let it out. Now, take another and while you let this one out become aware of your body and how it feels. Take another deep breath and as you let this one out release all of the tension that you feel. AHHHHHH do you feel loose like jello? If not that's OK. Do you feel tense and worried or relaxed and calm? What ever you feel at this very moment is just fine. Let's just notice how we feel and not place any judgment on ourselves for it.
What you are feeling is NOT who you are, your feelings are only indicating to you that there maybe something you need to focus a little more on. Feelings do not make you who you are, they are simply the tools we've been given to help indicate we need to focus our attention on something, we need to take a deeper look within to see what is causing the feeling.
We could think of our feelings as warning lights, like the check engine oil light in our car. Try looking at it this way, someone just said something to us and suddenly we are angry. Our learned reaction is to become angry at the person and perhaps lash out at them, but if we are thinking of our anger as a warning light we can stop and assess the situation and wonder, what exactly is disturbing us about what this person has said. If we do this we may discover that we aren't angry at this person at all but what they have said has reminded us of an issue that happened at another time. If we use our emotions as indicator lights we may begin to see many situations in our lives in a whole new light.
The key to remember here is that we all have emotions and while they don't make us who we are, they are a part of who we are and it's OK to have them. We need to learn to not let them control us, but rather for us to control them. Could we think of them as a control panel of indicator lights and WE are the ones in charge of controlling the panel? It takes self discipline and hard work to learn this, but with time it will come easily and naturally to us.
Sometimes just admitting how we are feeling can help us to free ourselves from the feeling a bit and in a sense release us from them so that we can have more control over them. Sometimes we are so afraid of our emotions that we try to hide them or clamp down on them and this is not healthy or beneficial to our body. Our emotions must be experienced and released, but we can't allow ourselves to become stuck in them or controlled by them. I hope this is making sense because this is very important.
Our goal is to become aware of our emotions and notice how we are reacting to them and to understand that whatever we are feeling is OK. We are perfect just as we are and no one is judging us other than our self.
Let's try something. Let's make a list of all the words that we think describe us. Don't be afraid and be very honest. Use a pen and paper if you have one.
Now, look at these words, if we were to look in the Creators dictionary under our name is this what our definition would be? NO, these are merely labels that we or someone we know has placed on us throughout our life time. These words, these labels are NOT who we are and they do not define us.
If we were to look in that dictionary under our name we would see one word PERFECT . This is who we all are. Underneath the labels, the emotions, the thoughts and misconceptions, THIS IS WHO WE ARE.
We don't have any expectation we have to live up to or any labels we have to carry forever, we only have to be who we are and that is perfect. Don't get nervous, this doesn't mean we have to strive to be our idea of perfect or work until we become perfect. We are already prefect, we just got confused along the way and forgot who we are.
I know this is difficult to believe with all that we've been taught for thousand of years, but let's keep our hearts and minds open to the possibility that this is a true statement. Let's do our best to hold our hearts open to the possibility that underneath all of our pain and confusion we are perfect. Let's love ourselves exactly as we are at this moment, whether it's grumpy, scared, happy or doubtful.
What the heck does that mean? How can we be ourself if we aren't sure who we are? Good question. Let's see if we can find an answer.
Stop right now and take a deep breath, hold it for a second then let it out. Now, take another and while you let this one out become aware of your body and how it feels. Take another deep breath and as you let this one out release all of the tension that you feel. AHHHHHH do you feel loose like jello? If not that's OK. Do you feel tense and worried or relaxed and calm? What ever you feel at this very moment is just fine. Let's just notice how we feel and not place any judgment on ourselves for it.
What you are feeling is NOT who you are, your feelings are only indicating to you that there maybe something you need to focus a little more on. Feelings do not make you who you are, they are simply the tools we've been given to help indicate we need to focus our attention on something, we need to take a deeper look within to see what is causing the feeling.
We could think of our feelings as warning lights, like the check engine oil light in our car. Try looking at it this way, someone just said something to us and suddenly we are angry. Our learned reaction is to become angry at the person and perhaps lash out at them, but if we are thinking of our anger as a warning light we can stop and assess the situation and wonder, what exactly is disturbing us about what this person has said. If we do this we may discover that we aren't angry at this person at all but what they have said has reminded us of an issue that happened at another time. If we use our emotions as indicator lights we may begin to see many situations in our lives in a whole new light.
The key to remember here is that we all have emotions and while they don't make us who we are, they are a part of who we are and it's OK to have them. We need to learn to not let them control us, but rather for us to control them. Could we think of them as a control panel of indicator lights and WE are the ones in charge of controlling the panel? It takes self discipline and hard work to learn this, but with time it will come easily and naturally to us.
Sometimes just admitting how we are feeling can help us to free ourselves from the feeling a bit and in a sense release us from them so that we can have more control over them. Sometimes we are so afraid of our emotions that we try to hide them or clamp down on them and this is not healthy or beneficial to our body. Our emotions must be experienced and released, but we can't allow ourselves to become stuck in them or controlled by them. I hope this is making sense because this is very important.
Our goal is to become aware of our emotions and notice how we are reacting to them and to understand that whatever we are feeling is OK. We are perfect just as we are and no one is judging us other than our self.
Let's try something. Let's make a list of all the words that we think describe us. Don't be afraid and be very honest. Use a pen and paper if you have one.
Now, look at these words, if we were to look in the Creators dictionary under our name is this what our definition would be? NO, these are merely labels that we or someone we know has placed on us throughout our life time. These words, these labels are NOT who we are and they do not define us.
If we were to look in that dictionary under our name we would see one word PERFECT . This is who we all are. Underneath the labels, the emotions, the thoughts and misconceptions, THIS IS WHO WE ARE.
We don't have any expectation we have to live up to or any labels we have to carry forever, we only have to be who we are and that is perfect. Don't get nervous, this doesn't mean we have to strive to be our idea of perfect or work until we become perfect. We are already prefect, we just got confused along the way and forgot who we are.
I know this is difficult to believe with all that we've been taught for thousand of years, but let's keep our hearts and minds open to the possibility that this is a true statement. Let's do our best to hold our hearts open to the possibility that underneath all of our pain and confusion we are perfect. Let's love ourselves exactly as we are at this moment, whether it's grumpy, scared, happy or doubtful.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
What's Love Got To Do With It?
What's love got to do with it? EVERYTHING!
I'm no expert in love, in fact I really don't feel qualified to speak of love, but here is what I have come to understand so far. Love is all that really matters. I'm not talking about the hearts and ribbons, hugs and kisses stuff. I am talking about real love, the kind of love that we display when we take an interest in those around us, when we are willing to open ourselves up and trust people. When we are willing to look beyond the outer image of those around us and see the beauty that lies within them and trust that in their heart lives someone who is beautiful even though on the outside they may be displaying otherwise. It's trusting even when we have no real basis for that trust and loving even when someone appears to be the most unlovable.
Love is taking the time to notice others around us and listen to them, really listen. While others speak we should stop thinking of what it is that we want to say in response to their words, stop thinking about what we would like to teach them about how they "should" behave or how we would like to show them how "wrong" they are about what they say or how what they say makes us feel. We should listen with an opened heart to what they are saying to us. Listen with a clear and quiet mind trusting that if there is anything we need to say when they are done speaking it will come to us when they are done, but while they speak it is our time to really listen with our full attention them and what they are saying. We should clear our minds and open our hearts while others speak to us.
Trusting is giving others the benefit of the doubt. It's not making assumptions from past experience. It's understanding that we all deserve the opportunity to learn and grow and change when necessary. It's knowing that along the way we may make some choices that lead us down a difficult path, but still we are worthy of love and acceptance, no matter what path we have chosen. It's looking at someone and holding them with love right where they are. We never know for sure why some people are on a certain path, but there is a purpose for it and we should not make assumptions or judge them or ourselves for the paths we've chosen to take.
This is no easy task and the most difficult part is that we must start by loving ourselves. If we can't love ourselves, we will not be able to fully love those around us.
I'm no expert in love, in fact I really don't feel qualified to speak of love, but here is what I have come to understand so far. Love is all that really matters. I'm not talking about the hearts and ribbons, hugs and kisses stuff. I am talking about real love, the kind of love that we display when we take an interest in those around us, when we are willing to open ourselves up and trust people. When we are willing to look beyond the outer image of those around us and see the beauty that lies within them and trust that in their heart lives someone who is beautiful even though on the outside they may be displaying otherwise. It's trusting even when we have no real basis for that trust and loving even when someone appears to be the most unlovable.
Love is taking the time to notice others around us and listen to them, really listen. While others speak we should stop thinking of what it is that we want to say in response to their words, stop thinking about what we would like to teach them about how they "should" behave or how we would like to show them how "wrong" they are about what they say or how what they say makes us feel. We should listen with an opened heart to what they are saying to us. Listen with a clear and quiet mind trusting that if there is anything we need to say when they are done speaking it will come to us when they are done, but while they speak it is our time to really listen with our full attention them and what they are saying. We should clear our minds and open our hearts while others speak to us.
Trusting is giving others the benefit of the doubt. It's not making assumptions from past experience. It's understanding that we all deserve the opportunity to learn and grow and change when necessary. It's knowing that along the way we may make some choices that lead us down a difficult path, but still we are worthy of love and acceptance, no matter what path we have chosen. It's looking at someone and holding them with love right where they are. We never know for sure why some people are on a certain path, but there is a purpose for it and we should not make assumptions or judge them or ourselves for the paths we've chosen to take.
This is no easy task and the most difficult part is that we must start by loving ourselves. If we can't love ourselves, we will not be able to fully love those around us.
Monday, January 24, 2011
What If?
What if we can't believe deep within us lies a beautiful being? What if we feel too ugly, angry or damaged to be lovable? What if it's too difficult to quiet ourselves and no place feels safe?
Ahhh....the what if's. These are all questions that many have asked, struggled over and continued to wrestle with.
If we can find no beauty within ourselves, we still view ourselves as damaged and unlovable and no place feels safe to us we can do several things. One is to look into the eyes of one that we trust and see what it is that they see in us. There are others who see what we fail to see in ourselves; the ones who we often wonder....why does this person continue to put up with me and want to be around me. Those people see the real us. There may also be strangers who are drawn to us for no reason or teachers or co workers who just seem connected with us, these are the ones who see the real us.
Another thing we can do is take into consideration how powerful our creator must be and wonder, would our creator have created garbage? Would he create a damaged miserable being to send into the world? Can we possibly damage ourselves beyond repair so that even the most powerful being who is capable of complete, unconditional love not possibly love us? What purpose would that serve? What sense does that make. Our souls were created with the utmost of care and love by our creator and we are viewed as nothing but perfect by him. WOW, that's a hard one to wrap our brains around sometimes! Let's take a minute to let it soak in. We were created perfectly by complete love.
Now if there is no place we feel safe we can create our own place in our mind. Let's all think of one person, place or time that makes us feel happy, comfortable or safe. Even if that time last only for a moment. If we can come up with a whole scene with that person or place we can review that scene in our minds reliving out every small detail...slowly notice where we are, the sounds, the smells, the feelings of that scene, place or person. Look at it all and soak it in. This is our safe place and we can come here whenever we want. We can add to the scene or build on it if we desire to do so.
If there is no memory in our life that causes us to feel happy or safe we can come up with something that would make us feel happy and safe now. Perhaps we'd love to lay on a beach by the ocean or climb to the top of a mountain or rest beside a waterfall on a blanket. Let's close our eyes and build a scene in our minds. We can be as creative as we wish. If we've always wanted purple skies and a red sun, picture that. We can paint our scene how ever we want. Warm breezes, cool breezes, moonlit nights or sunny days. We can build our own safe place and visit it whenever we need to or want to. Our safe place may change and grow, it doesn't have to remain the same all the time.
It's all about relaxing, being creative, having fun and remembering we are loved beyond belief always in every way! Now let's all take some time to create our safe place in our minds. Relax and have fun with it.
Ahhh....the what if's. These are all questions that many have asked, struggled over and continued to wrestle with.
If we can find no beauty within ourselves, we still view ourselves as damaged and unlovable and no place feels safe to us we can do several things. One is to look into the eyes of one that we trust and see what it is that they see in us. There are others who see what we fail to see in ourselves; the ones who we often wonder....why does this person continue to put up with me and want to be around me. Those people see the real us. There may also be strangers who are drawn to us for no reason or teachers or co workers who just seem connected with us, these are the ones who see the real us.
Another thing we can do is take into consideration how powerful our creator must be and wonder, would our creator have created garbage? Would he create a damaged miserable being to send into the world? Can we possibly damage ourselves beyond repair so that even the most powerful being who is capable of complete, unconditional love not possibly love us? What purpose would that serve? What sense does that make. Our souls were created with the utmost of care and love by our creator and we are viewed as nothing but perfect by him. WOW, that's a hard one to wrap our brains around sometimes! Let's take a minute to let it soak in. We were created perfectly by complete love.
Now if there is no place we feel safe we can create our own place in our mind. Let's all think of one person, place or time that makes us feel happy, comfortable or safe. Even if that time last only for a moment. If we can come up with a whole scene with that person or place we can review that scene in our minds reliving out every small detail...slowly notice where we are, the sounds, the smells, the feelings of that scene, place or person. Look at it all and soak it in. This is our safe place and we can come here whenever we want. We can add to the scene or build on it if we desire to do so.
If there is no memory in our life that causes us to feel happy or safe we can come up with something that would make us feel happy and safe now. Perhaps we'd love to lay on a beach by the ocean or climb to the top of a mountain or rest beside a waterfall on a blanket. Let's close our eyes and build a scene in our minds. We can be as creative as we wish. If we've always wanted purple skies and a red sun, picture that. We can paint our scene how ever we want. Warm breezes, cool breezes, moonlit nights or sunny days. We can build our own safe place and visit it whenever we need to or want to. Our safe place may change and grow, it doesn't have to remain the same all the time.
It's all about relaxing, being creative, having fun and remembering we are loved beyond belief always in every way! Now let's all take some time to create our safe place in our minds. Relax and have fun with it.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Who Are We Really?
Who are we really? What we see when we look in our bathroom mirror is really just a reflection of our outer shell and many times we don't even see that clearly. Who we really are lies deep within us, underneath our outer shells and with all of our outer layers we aren't always easy to see.
The phrase you can't judge a book by it's cover is so true. Souls come wrapped in all kinds of different packages and it's not the package that is important, it's the gift within. One thing I learned in 10 years of doing hair was it doesn't matter how beautiful we make our outsides, if we feel ugly on the inside, that is what we will see when we look in the mirror. If we want to be truly beautiful, we must work on healing the ugliness we feel inside, not just rewrap our outer package.
Letting go of the idea that how we look represents who we are is not easy. We all struggle with this whether we want to admit it or not. We all have preconceived notions of how things should look and how things should be. Our culture thrives on convincing us appearances are important and if we don't fit a certain image then we should do our best to mold ourselves into that image. It's sad to see how our inner beauty gets lost in our race to fit in.
If only we could all remember that we are not merely a body, but that our body is the house for a beautiful soul. Yes, we must maintain and keep our houses up, but we can not forget the importance of maintaining what lives within our "house", our soul. Without our soul, our house is just an empty shell and it doesn't matter how beautiful that shell is, it is empty.
The phrase you can't judge a book by it's cover is so true. Souls come wrapped in all kinds of different packages and it's not the package that is important, it's the gift within. One thing I learned in 10 years of doing hair was it doesn't matter how beautiful we make our outsides, if we feel ugly on the inside, that is what we will see when we look in the mirror. If we want to be truly beautiful, we must work on healing the ugliness we feel inside, not just rewrap our outer package.
Letting go of the idea that how we look represents who we are is not easy. We all struggle with this whether we want to admit it or not. We all have preconceived notions of how things should look and how things should be. Our culture thrives on convincing us appearances are important and if we don't fit a certain image then we should do our best to mold ourselves into that image. It's sad to see how our inner beauty gets lost in our race to fit in.
If only we could all remember that we are not merely a body, but that our body is the house for a beautiful soul. Yes, we must maintain and keep our houses up, but we can not forget the importance of maintaining what lives within our "house", our soul. Without our soul, our house is just an empty shell and it doesn't matter how beautiful that shell is, it is empty.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Are We Willing?
As we move further into our journey it seems appropriate to assure ourselves that we are not damaged beyond repair, we are not alone and we are not crazy. There are many wounded ones out there like us who have forgotten who they are as well as many who have begun to remember. Together we can help each other find some understanding and uncover the answers to our innermost questions. But first we must be willing to ask the questions. Answers will not come if we are not willing to ask.
There are many willing to help us, but we must do our work our self. We are never alone, but we must learn to stand on our own two feet in our own truth, no one will hand our answers to us or do our work for us.
We may have to search and dig to uncover our truth...are we willing to work for this? Are we willing to get down in the dirt and dig? Are we willing to sift through layers of years of beliefs and understanding to find what really lies beneath it all? Are we willing to look at our fears dead on and face our doubts and moments of darkness knowing we will find our healing and light within them?
Are we brave enough to risk our whole world in hopes of gaining who we really are and finding our true purpose?
If these questions cause us to pause and frighten us a little or a lot, we are not alone. Many have been stopped in their tracks by these very questions. Facing our fears and darkness is not easy business, it is not for the weak or faint of heart. But I feel we are all up to it or we wouldn't have come this far. I trust that underneath our fear, doubts and pain we are all strong, courageous ones, stronger and more courageous than we can even fathom at this point.
I am willing to continue this journey to face my fears, my darkness and my doubts, even if I must move forward alone. I hope that you are willing to take the journey with me and if you are not, I wish you blessings and love as you continue on your own. Remember, you are never alone all you have to do is ask for help and be opened and willing to receive the answers you receive.
There are many willing to help us, but we must do our work our self. We are never alone, but we must learn to stand on our own two feet in our own truth, no one will hand our answers to us or do our work for us.
We may have to search and dig to uncover our truth...are we willing to work for this? Are we willing to get down in the dirt and dig? Are we willing to sift through layers of years of beliefs and understanding to find what really lies beneath it all? Are we willing to look at our fears dead on and face our doubts and moments of darkness knowing we will find our healing and light within them?
Are we brave enough to risk our whole world in hopes of gaining who we really are and finding our true purpose?
If these questions cause us to pause and frighten us a little or a lot, we are not alone. Many have been stopped in their tracks by these very questions. Facing our fears and darkness is not easy business, it is not for the weak or faint of heart. But I feel we are all up to it or we wouldn't have come this far. I trust that underneath our fear, doubts and pain we are all strong, courageous ones, stronger and more courageous than we can even fathom at this point.
I am willing to continue this journey to face my fears, my darkness and my doubts, even if I must move forward alone. I hope that you are willing to take the journey with me and if you are not, I wish you blessings and love as you continue on your own. Remember, you are never alone all you have to do is ask for help and be opened and willing to receive the answers you receive.
Just Breathe
There is no right or wrong way to quiet our self and find our inner voice, there is no correct label for what we refer to the process as...some call it centering, some call it reconnecting, some call it relaxation or meditation. It's not the label or the exact method that it important, it's the outcome and the outcome we desire to achieve is a state of relaxation.
If we do this for ourselves every day we will find it is very beneficial to our mind as well as our body.
We can spend minutes or hours connecting with our quiet place and relaxing ourselves. In the beginning it may take us longer to achieve this state, but in time, with practice and patience it will become easier and natural for us. Remember, this is not a race or a contest. RELAX and do what works best for you.
Understanding our need to connect with our mind, body and spirit and finding a way to put it into practice is an important part of our journey back to who we are. It will help us to once again learn how to fly.
Your breathing is important, it sustains your body, don't forget this. All of the relaxation techniques you may come across will stress the importance of your breath. Now, take a slow, deep breath, relax your body and remember....you are loved, you are lovable, you are loving. Breathe this in, embrace this and remind yourself of this often.
If we do this for ourselves every day we will find it is very beneficial to our mind as well as our body.
We can spend minutes or hours connecting with our quiet place and relaxing ourselves. In the beginning it may take us longer to achieve this state, but in time, with practice and patience it will become easier and natural for us. Remember, this is not a race or a contest. RELAX and do what works best for you.
Understanding our need to connect with our mind, body and spirit and finding a way to put it into practice is an important part of our journey back to who we are. It will help us to once again learn how to fly.
Your breathing is important, it sustains your body, don't forget this. All of the relaxation techniques you may come across will stress the importance of your breath. Now, take a slow, deep breath, relax your body and remember....you are loved, you are lovable, you are loving. Breathe this in, embrace this and remind yourself of this often.
Centering Ourselves
Finding our quiet center may not be easy at first. We have a lot going on in our outer worlds and we've been trained to juggle many thoughts and actions all at the same time. Sometimes in our attempt to take care of the whole world we lose sight of the understanding that it's important to take some time to focus only on our inner self.
The procedure you use can be as complicated or simple as you wish, Once again use what feels best for you. Some people recenter through yoga, some through meditation, some through simply soaking in a hot tub. Anything that helps you to relax, release your tension and focus yourself within will work.
Right now at this moment while we sit in our seats or on our couches or beds we can recenter. Simply take a deep breath and release it. Become aware of where you are sitting, feel the connection of your body to the chair, the sofa, the floor, feel your connection to the floor, the ground, the earth. Take another deep breath and let it out...notice your body, do you feel the tension in your shoulders? Your neck, your back? Become aware of all the places you are holding tension. Take another slow, deep breath all the way to your stomach, feel your stomach fill like a beach ball. Now as you slowly release the breath feel all of the tension release from your body. Relax your muscles, lower your shoulders you are loose like jello. On your next slow deep inhalation say these words to yourself, I am loved, I am lovable, I am loving. Fill yourself with these words. As you release your breath, feel all of the negativity and unpleasant thoughts flow out from your body into the air to be purified. Inhale in and say I am healthy, I am whole, I am loved. Feel your entire body relax and fill with love and light. There is an inner light glowing in your darkness, look at it and feel its warmth, visualize it growing brighter and filling you with its warm glow. This is you, this is love, you are beautiful and amazing. You are loved.
Rest in this light as long as time permits and you feel comfortable. Then slowly draw yourself back into your awareness of your body, wiggle your fingers, feel your toes, become aware of the place in which you sit. You are in your body and yet still connected to the light, the spirit within you. You are a beautiful light filled being and I am blessed to have connected with you.
The procedure you use can be as complicated or simple as you wish, Once again use what feels best for you. Some people recenter through yoga, some through meditation, some through simply soaking in a hot tub. Anything that helps you to relax, release your tension and focus yourself within will work.
Right now at this moment while we sit in our seats or on our couches or beds we can recenter. Simply take a deep breath and release it. Become aware of where you are sitting, feel the connection of your body to the chair, the sofa, the floor, feel your connection to the floor, the ground, the earth. Take another deep breath and let it out...notice your body, do you feel the tension in your shoulders? Your neck, your back? Become aware of all the places you are holding tension. Take another slow, deep breath all the way to your stomach, feel your stomach fill like a beach ball. Now as you slowly release the breath feel all of the tension release from your body. Relax your muscles, lower your shoulders you are loose like jello. On your next slow deep inhalation say these words to yourself, I am loved, I am lovable, I am loving. Fill yourself with these words. As you release your breath, feel all of the negativity and unpleasant thoughts flow out from your body into the air to be purified. Inhale in and say I am healthy, I am whole, I am loved. Feel your entire body relax and fill with love and light. There is an inner light glowing in your darkness, look at it and feel its warmth, visualize it growing brighter and filling you with its warm glow. This is you, this is love, you are beautiful and amazing. You are loved.
Rest in this light as long as time permits and you feel comfortable. Then slowly draw yourself back into your awareness of your body, wiggle your fingers, feel your toes, become aware of the place in which you sit. You are in your body and yet still connected to the light, the spirit within you. You are a beautiful light filled being and I am blessed to have connected with you.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Answers
If you are still reading and can relate to what I've said I say welcome from one who may have forgotten how to fly, but is here willing to join you on a journey of rediscovery. In the process of uncovering who we are may we learn how to heal our wounds and our world and once again use our wings to fly.
Once again I do not expect you to accept everything I say or adopt my understandings as your own. I only ask that you remember to keep your heart and mind open as I share my process with you.
I've learned if we are ready and willing to ask questions, insights will come. Open your heart and see the world around you and you will learn many things. Answers come to us through people, through books, through movies and songs, through thoughts and whispers of ideas in our heads. We must pay attention, focus and be willing to accept new ideas and ways of viewing our self and our world.
Be aware that there may be times throughout the process that we may feel darkness, fear or doubt, but rest assured we are safe, we are loved and we are never alone. If we look into the darkness we will find the light still shines.
It will be important on our journey to learn to maintain focus, learn to center ourselves and connect to the quiet place deep within us where answers reside. There are many methods for doing this and it doesn't matter which one you use or what label you place on the technique, what matters is that you are able to quiet your mind, calm your body and open your heart. Find a method that works for you and use it.
I have found for me that music, sounds of water, candles and incense can be helpful. It is important to find things that work best for you. If your body is tense it is difficult to hear the quiet voice of your soul and your guides.
Yes, we all have angels surrounding us. They are very real and they are here to help us, they love us and want to guide us, but we must ask for their help. It's not a difficult process, we don't even need to know who they are or their specific names. Simply say something like, "To all those who guide, protect and surround me, I need help." and help will immediately be provided in some form. The words we use are not important. We only need to ask for help, any time, in where, in all situations.
Once again I do not expect you to accept everything I say or adopt my understandings as your own. I only ask that you remember to keep your heart and mind open as I share my process with you.
I've learned if we are ready and willing to ask questions, insights will come. Open your heart and see the world around you and you will learn many things. Answers come to us through people, through books, through movies and songs, through thoughts and whispers of ideas in our heads. We must pay attention, focus and be willing to accept new ideas and ways of viewing our self and our world.
Be aware that there may be times throughout the process that we may feel darkness, fear or doubt, but rest assured we are safe, we are loved and we are never alone. If we look into the darkness we will find the light still shines.
It will be important on our journey to learn to maintain focus, learn to center ourselves and connect to the quiet place deep within us where answers reside. There are many methods for doing this and it doesn't matter which one you use or what label you place on the technique, what matters is that you are able to quiet your mind, calm your body and open your heart. Find a method that works for you and use it.
I have found for me that music, sounds of water, candles and incense can be helpful. It is important to find things that work best for you. If your body is tense it is difficult to hear the quiet voice of your soul and your guides.
Yes, we all have angels surrounding us. They are very real and they are here to help us, they love us and want to guide us, but we must ask for their help. It's not a difficult process, we don't even need to know who they are or their specific names. Simply say something like, "To all those who guide, protect and surround me, I need help." and help will immediately be provided in some form. The words we use are not important. We only need to ask for help, any time, in where, in all situations.
Broken Wings
For many years I viewed myself as damaged, broken beyond repair. There was a darkness, a sadness, a weight upon me I could not understand, yet I carried on quietly searching for answers, praying for healing, looking for a way to lighten my load.
Some in the world would have us believe we are all poor miserable sinners and that our suffering, our heaviness and sadness will only end when we leave this life and move on to Heaven.
What I've come to understand is that in reality we are all perfect, shining beings of love who have forgotten who we are. God did not create poor miserable sinners who need to be cleansed. Underneath all of the confusion and pain of the world lies beauty that shines brightly, a love beyond belief, a soul full of God.
We are in a sense angels with broken wings who have forgotten how to fly.
Some in the world would have us believe we are all poor miserable sinners and that our suffering, our heaviness and sadness will only end when we leave this life and move on to Heaven.
What I've come to understand is that in reality we are all perfect, shining beings of love who have forgotten who we are. God did not create poor miserable sinners who need to be cleansed. Underneath all of the confusion and pain of the world lies beauty that shines brightly, a love beyond belief, a soul full of God.
We are in a sense angels with broken wings who have forgotten how to fly.
Questions
We all have a lot of questions and our answers lie within us. I am not here to provide you with answers, but to share my understandings and help you in the process of finding your own.
Let's look at the word process for this is what we are all a part of...the process of discovering/remembering who we are and what our purpose is.
Process: a series of actions, changes or functions bringing about a result. A series of operations performed in the making or treatment of a product. Progress, passage.
These definitions bring about some important questions.
Are you willing to take action, make changes and function in a manner to bring about results as part of your process?
What would you desire to see as a result or product of your process?
Are you ready to progress, move forward and cross the passage into a new way of viewing yourself and your world through your process?
These are questions to consider as we move ahead in our process to find understanding of what lies within us; of who we really are underneath all of our layers.
We are not entering a race or a contest. Our speed is not an issue, there are no right or wrong answers, no winners or losers. This is no one judging us to see whether we are getting it "right" and there is no grand award to be given. The prize, the treasure we are seeking in our process is simply gaining a better understanding of ourselves and our purpose.
Let's look at the word process for this is what we are all a part of...the process of discovering/remembering who we are and what our purpose is.
Process: a series of actions, changes or functions bringing about a result. A series of operations performed in the making or treatment of a product. Progress, passage.
These definitions bring about some important questions.
Are you willing to take action, make changes and function in a manner to bring about results as part of your process?
What would you desire to see as a result or product of your process?
Are you ready to progress, move forward and cross the passage into a new way of viewing yourself and your world through your process?
These are questions to consider as we move ahead in our process to find understanding of what lies within us; of who we really are underneath all of our layers.
We are not entering a race or a contest. Our speed is not an issue, there are no right or wrong answers, no winners or losers. This is no one judging us to see whether we are getting it "right" and there is no grand award to be given. The prize, the treasure we are seeking in our process is simply gaining a better understanding of ourselves and our purpose.
The Beginning
I've always thought of myself as an average person, living a rather average life full of struggles and choices that led me down paths that were not always easy. Yet underneath the average outer me there always seemed to be a deeper, more wise one with a greater purpose waiting to emerge.
My formal training in this life consists only of secretarial courses at a community college, a license in cosmetology, a diploma in early childhood education and training in Reiki, meditation and regression therapy. As you can see I would not be considered highly educated by social standards.
I am a speed reader who seems to have a gift of taking in great amounts of information and simplifying them into concepts that are easy to grasp. As a child I taught myself many things such as tying my own shoes, reading, writing my name, sewing. There are many things that I've always just known, many understandings I've held that didn't always fit in with the world around me or come from what I was being taught.
One of these understandings is that we must hold our hearts opened to everything around us, understand that truth is an ever changing process and everyone has their own understanding and perception of every situation based on what they've been taught through the world around them. There are many different ways of viewing things, different choices to be made, different understanding to uncover and discover as we work our way through life. We make ask questions seeking answers and may find that with the insights we gain we only come up with more questions.
I do not ask or expect you to believe or agree with my understandings. I only suggest you read them with an opened heart and consider them with an opened mind while you search for your own understandings.
My formal training in this life consists only of secretarial courses at a community college, a license in cosmetology, a diploma in early childhood education and training in Reiki, meditation and regression therapy. As you can see I would not be considered highly educated by social standards.
I am a speed reader who seems to have a gift of taking in great amounts of information and simplifying them into concepts that are easy to grasp. As a child I taught myself many things such as tying my own shoes, reading, writing my name, sewing. There are many things that I've always just known, many understandings I've held that didn't always fit in with the world around me or come from what I was being taught.
One of these understandings is that we must hold our hearts opened to everything around us, understand that truth is an ever changing process and everyone has their own understanding and perception of every situation based on what they've been taught through the world around them. There are many different ways of viewing things, different choices to be made, different understanding to uncover and discover as we work our way through life. We make ask questions seeking answers and may find that with the insights we gain we only come up with more questions.
I do not ask or expect you to believe or agree with my understandings. I only suggest you read them with an opened heart and consider them with an opened mind while you search for your own understandings.
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