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Thursday, January 29, 2015

WALKING THE ROAD TOGETHER

"So we grew together
Like to a double cherry, seeming parted,
but yet a union in partition;
Two lovely berries molded on one stem."
~William Shakespeare ~

We need each other to bounce ideas of off and to share our joys and challenges. It's a wonderful thing to know that we are not alone, that others have felt as we feel and that they struggle just like us.
     And we can't know these things unless we are willing to open up and unveil whatever's going on inside. We don't have to pretend to be anything other than we are. We can be messy, unsure, bubbling over with high hopes, or feeling dark and dangerous. The point is simply to speak up. This is a shared adventure and there is no percentage in going it alone.

I share myself with others and encourage them to share with me in return.

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

FORGIVENES

"To err is human; to forgive divine."
~Alexander Pope ~

True forgiveness is an act of love. It's a compassionate admission of our human propensity for making mistakes, and an acknowledgement of our ability to learn through our apparent failures, and evolve over time.
     As we age, we outgrow behaviors and ideas that once sat ok with us. Hopefully, as the years carry us forward, we become less impulsive, vengeful, hostile, and judgmental. And hopefully, we learn to live and let live- to shrug and say, "Oh, well," and to let go of whatever we can.

I free myself from the past by learning to forgive all things.

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

THE LIMITS OF PERFECTIONISM

"Striving for excellence motivates you; striving for perfection is demoralizing."
~Harriet Braiker ~

I held a baby yesterday and remembered what it was like to be a new mother myself: chock-full of love and fear. I wanted to do everything right, and be a perfect Mom, but I struggled emotionally in the absence of my independence and under the weight of what I perceived as great responsibility.
     If I knew then what I know now, I could have relaxed and experienced my infant twins as more of a gift and an adventure and less of a cross to bear. But that's what comes with a bit of time and distance. With age, we learn to trust and enjoy others and stop trying to be so perfect ourselves.

Life doesn't have to be anything other than exactly what it is.

Monday, January 26, 2015

CHALLENGE

"We acquire the strength we have overcome."
~Ralph Waldo Emerson ~

Challenge is good for the soul. It stretches us and makes our energy buzz. We have to call up resources that we don't generally use, and may not even know we have. We come face to face with what's inside us, and it's surprising and good. We discover that we are more capable than we thought we were, and more creative; more resilient, intelligent, intuitive and invincible. If we pay attention, it's challenge that introduces us to our true selves, and challenge that inspires us to the next courageous step, and then the next one.

I welcome challenge as a tool to tap my inner drive.

Sunday, January 25, 2015

BOUNDARIES

"Saying no is a right we all have. Use it."
~ Anne Lamott ~

Setting boundaries is our responsibility. No one else will set them for us, and the world will happily take advantage of our time, love, money, and good intentions as far as we will let them. But that's up to us.
      We have the power to say, "No," and, "Enough!" and to walk away. And doing so is our responsibility. Ultimately, it's our job, and ours alone, to protect ourselves from being over-run.
 
I am assertive and courageous, and I set personal boundaries with ease. 

Thursday, January 22, 2015

FREEDOM FROM MEDDLING

"Never miss an opportunity to make others happy, even if you have to leave them alone in order to do it."
~Author Unknown~

I used to honesty believe that I knew what was best for other people. If only they would do this or that; change in a specific way or reconsider the priorities in their lives, then they would feel better- and I would too. But I've learned to let people be and trust that they will know what they need to know when they need to know it, and not as the result of my prompting, or by my demand.

I mind my own business and allow others to do the same.

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

LIFE

"To live remains an art which everyone must learn, and which no one can teach."
~Havelock Ellis~
 
Life doesn't happen catastrophically, even though that's how it might sometimes feel. Life happens in cycles, and rhythmically, like the tides and the seasons and the revolutions of the earth.
     Sometimes we want instant results and instant gratification, but anything worthwhile takes time to establish, and even more time to develop and grow.

Time is my friend and it carries me gently forward one day at a time.

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

ENCOUNTERS THAT MEASURE DISTANCE

"The only man I know who behaves sensibly is my tailor; he takes measurements anew every time he sees me. the rest go on with their old measurements and expect me to fit them."
~ George Bernard Shaw ~
 
Sometimes it takes running into someone we used to be close to in order to realize how far we've come. If we've been diligent about personal development and the one we encounter has not, the distance between us is distinct and the measure from where we once were is before us plain as day.
     And though we may be the only one to recognize it, that is enough. If we are living at ever-higher levels of vibration, we will inevitably outgrow our past.

I welcome encounters with my past life so that I can clearly see how far I've come.

Monday, January 19, 2015

MODESTY

"What kills a skunk is the publicity it gives itself."
~ Abraham Lincoln ~

There's something to be said for modesty in clothing. Low-cut and skin-tight leave little to the imagination, and attract attention to our physicality and sexuality rather than our spirits or our minds.
     Letting our clothes fall loosely around our curves is, in many ways, more attractive and self-affirming than strutting around flaunting whatever we may have to flaunt.

I have nothing to prove with my physical physique. I dress in what's comfortable and becoming, rather than what's going to grab the most attention.

Sunday, January 18, 2015

COURAGE!

"Give me a fruitful error any time, full of seeds, (and) bursting with its own corrections." ~ Vilfredo Pareto ~

There is no percentage in being afraid. If nothing comes from whatever we may attempt, or the end result doesn't play out the way we hope it will, we haven't actually lost anything- not really. And we have grown in depth from the experience. Enlightened living requires of us that we have courage; that we trust outcomes, trust our efforts, and trust the process of progress over time.

I am willing to take risks and try things, even though the outcome may be uncertain at best.

Thursday, January 15, 2015

THE PARADOX OF BEING HUMAN

"Nature does not deceive us. It is we who deceive ourselves."
~Jean-Jacques Rousseau ~

It's hard to be ok with being ordinary. I think we all want to excel; to be exceptional and extra-wise, strong, beautiful or whatever. We want to be special because we feel special. And we are.
     And perhaps we feel that way because the mere fact of our being human and being one among many is special in its own right. And when we add to that our unique combination of gifts and talents... well, there's no question. We are ordinary and not at the same time. It's a natural state and one that we don't have to work at manufacturing.

I am extraordinary exactly as I am.

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

LEMONADE

"When life hands you lemons, make lemonade."
~ Proverbial Phrase ~ 
 
To any problem we may have, there is a solution- a way to feel better and come to terms. It may not be what we expected, or what we think we want, or can live with, but even our hardest lessons enrich us in the end.

Everything that happens in life has the potential to grow me. Understanding that, I stop resisting what is.

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

PROSPERITY

"The unthankful heart... discovers no mercies; but let the thankful heart sweep through the day and, as the magnet finds the iron, so it will find, in every hour, some heavenly blessings."
~Henry Ward Beecher ~
 
It's a wonderful thing to properly acknowledge our blessings. We are blessed beyond measure, beyond reason, and beyond understanding; blessed with life, love, nature, beauty, courage, hope, and resilience.
     When we feel appropriately grateful for all that we have and all that we are, we experience prosperity. And when we own the goodness in our lives, we experience bliss.

I understand that I am blessed.

Monday, January 12, 2015

ALLOWING FOR EASE

"If only we would stop trying to be happy we could have a pretty good time."
~Edith Wharton

When life is good and all is well it's almost unsettling in a way. And it's easy to manufacture drama in order to save ourselves having to anticipate it. But maybe we can learn to enjoy and appreciate the good times, instead of doubting them and waiting for the other shoe to drop. Aren't we worth it? Let's drop the worry from our brows for a moment and give happiness a try.

The goodness of my life is not too good to be true.

Sunday, January 11, 2015

PRACTICING PATIENCE

"Have patience, my friend, have patience,
For Rome wasn't built in a day!
You wear yourself out for nothing
In many and many a way!"
~Gertrude Tooley Buckingham
 
I think the roots of patience are love and trust. And that impatience is rooted in fear: a negative certainty that things won't work out, and that hardship of any kind will remain as hardship forever.
     And yet, we know from experience that things generally have a way of coming together, and generally far better than we ever could have anticipated or planned. And when we force the river, so to speak, chaos often ensues. 
     So accepting things as they are and allowing for the natural process of whatever is coming to come is a practice that bears ripe fruit. 

I needn't insist upon specific timelines and force things into being before they have had a chance to mature.

Thursday, January 8, 2015

HERE AND GONE

"It came to pass..." ~Genesis 22:1 ~
 
Everything comes and goes,
passes and flashes:
So real, and then
So quickly forgotten.
Here, and gone, except for our
colorized memories.
 
I accept the impermanence of all things.

Wednesday, January 7, 2015

THE REALITY OF DEATH

"Death may be the greatest of all human blessings."
~ Socrates ~

Why are we so terrified of death? And rather than face our fear and learn from it, why do we turn the other way instead, and pretend that it won't happen and it's not coming?
     Perhaps we would be better served to look at it head-on and contemplate its reality: what we know, and what we can't know. Perhaps the best thing we can do with death is to make peace with it before it makes peace with us.

I accept death as it is and stop thinking I can somehow avoid it.

Tuesday, January 6, 2015

TRUST

"There are a thousand ways to kneel and kiss the earth."
~ Rumi ~

I trust in the power of love, and I trust in evolution and goodness. I trust honesty, authenticity, integrity, and respect. I trust the sun and the moon and the cycle of seasons. And I trust in my ability to withstand and endure.
     I trust in clean living. I trust in the power of good orderly direction and personal responsibility. I trust what I feel can be trusted, and the rest I turn over to the wind.

I trust what I believe in.

Monday, January 5, 2015

THE BLESSING OF TIME

"Time is the wisest counsellor of all."
~ Pericles ~

I will often erroneously think that time is against me, and that it's something I don't have enough of; that I have to race against it and wrestle it and always stay one step ahead in the game. But I don't: not any of those things.
     Time actually has my back and is my friend. I can count on it to heal what's wounded and level things out; to unfold goodness and lessons and reveal the beauty of hindsight. Time is my ally and partner, and if I'm honest, it's always time and time alone that brings me to peace and resolution in the end.

     I am grateful for time today, and the journey of days and seasons as they cycle me round.

Sunday, January 4, 2015

THE STRUGGLE THAT UNITES US

"The problem is thinking that having problems is a problem."
~Theodore Isaac Rubin ~
 
It's easy to think that we alone struggle with life situations; with our families, the holidays, and the stresses of modern day life. But we are not alone. Life is a wild ride for all of us.
     And the more we share our stories and listen to other people share theirs, the more we have compassion and understanding, and the more we realize that struggle is simply part of it. It's not good or bad or anything. It's just life.

I accept my part in the human drama.

Friday, January 2, 2015

THE THINGS I CAN'T CONTROL

"Ultimately, there can be no complete healing until we have restored our primal trust in life."
~Georg Feuerstein ~

It's a challenge to surrender to the things that I cannot control: other people's behavior, their hopes and fears, the timing of outcomes, and the nature of the outcomes themselves- my hormones, the weather- it's an endless list.
     Resistance takes hold of me and creates angst and tension. I want things to work out my way. That's what makes sense. And yet, being face to face with something I have absolutely no power to change is a lesson in humility. And I may not particularly enjoy it, but it is likely exactly what I need.

I trust in the outcome of things that are beyond my control.

Thursday, January 1, 2015

NEW YEAR'S DAY

"We will open the book. It's pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. the book is called opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day."
~Edith Lovejoy Pierce ~

New Year's Day is full of hope and potential. Anything can happen in the year ahead. Still, it's helpful and instructive to set a course in mind and establish a destination to aim for. And then, guided by our vision, we can steadily and efficiently make our way towards it as the weeks and months advance.
 
I set my intentions for the new year, and allow them to chart my course.