TREES

     I love trees! Especially this time of year, in the summer heat, with their leafy branches. A feeling of coolness, relaxation, and ease overtakes me when I'm sitting under a shady tree on a hot afternoon. The shade is delicious. It feels indulgent and rich. The patchy, filtered sunlight is exquisite, as is the mossy ground, the spreading roots, and the commanding trunk that rises up to the sky!
     A whole world exists beneath the trees. Think of pine forests! The fallen needles are soft, and cover the earth like a comfortable carpet. I love the carpet of pine that spreads beneath the trees... And willow trees are their own kind of wonderful! And birch trees! And grandaddy oaks with trunks so wide I can't get my arms around them. And cedar trees, dogwoods, and persimmons- apple trees, maple trees, and English walnuts!
     Let's celebrate the mysterious and wonderful variety of trees, and their beauty. Let's take a moment to say thanks for woods and landscapes and the breezy, leafy shade.

I notice the majesty of trees and feel grateful for the way they ground our world.

OBSESSIVE THINKING

     Obsessive thinking is exhausting. It consumes our energy like wildfire. If we are lucky, we can stop it, but it's difficult to keep it stopped. Like a broken record, if we are not perfectly vigilant, the mind catches again in the same spot, and gets stuck there, circling around and around.
     Perhaps we obsess mentally over things to keep us from having to face what we perceive as difficult in our our external lives that we don't want to face, and feelings that we don't want to feel. The fantasy drama we create seems controllable somehow. We have a false sense of power. It's addictive, gnawing, a nail-biting habit- both destructive and strangely appealing at the same time. It's a grand distraction.
     But in the end it can't save us. The only salvation is in embracing the moment, and being present and attentive. Projections of all kinds cast shadows on the screen of blessing that is right in front of us. We miss the simple and abundant grace that is already here by creating faraway fantasies. We miss the breeze and the singing of birds as we turn ourselves into imaginary heroes and take the world by storm.

I recognize when I am hooking in to obsessive thinking, and return to the moment. I consider what I might be trying to escape, and choose to face it instead, so that I can experience real peace that lasts, as opposed to fantasy peace that traps me in vicious circles.

ALWAYS SOMTHEING

     It's true that in life "it's always something." The minute we feel that we are in the clear at last- free from pain, free from debt, secure in love, whatever it may be- here comes the next challenge and the new discomfort. There is no quick fix, no absolute security, and no point of arrival. There is always the next step and the next thing. Our back feels better and then our elbow starts acting up. The elbow heals and we step on a rusty nail. We are poisoned by food; the car breaks down unexpectedly, or someone dies and we find ourselves utterly unprepared emotionally.
     We have to learn how to get comfortable being off-balance. Like a tight-rope walker, we have to learn to constantly shift our weight and energy and attention to keep from toppling over. Life is a tight-rope. We have to learn to accommodate ourselves to the height and instability.

I can be comfortable and feel secure even when things in my life are discombobulated and I am surrounded on all sides by loose ends. Life is a dynamic adventure of adaptability.

CHANGING REALITY

     We are what we think about. We create a reality that is beautiful or oppressive, hostile or friendly. We create suffering and pestilence, or blessings galore. The real reality of our situation is no more complicated than the way we think about it.
     Do we look on the bright side? Do we expect the best? Do we believe that things will work out? Or are we victims? Are we put-upon and helpless? Do we get what we want? Or is that for everyone else? Do people like us? Hate us? Not see us? Are we invisible? Do we consistently feel sorry for ourselves? Or are we grateful to be who we are?
     With our thoughts we create our world, every minute of every day, and we are free to change at any time and in any direction we choose. There is power in this. It is the power of creation and manifestation. Considering this, let's adjust ourselves and our expectations and judgments to improve the quality of our day, and our year, and our life experience.

I observe my thoughts and see how I am sabotaging myself with negativity. I am willing to change the way I think to experience more satisfaction in my life. 

THE FOURTH OF JULY

     The Fourth of July. It's festive and hot; the height of summer and barbeques galore. It's parades and fireworks and small children with sparklers. It's a fair amount of patient waiting for things to begin. It's loud, and somewhat frantic; a chaotic celebration of freedom and independence.
     Let's pause for a moment before the activities begin and consider our own personal sense of freedom. Are we free? Do we feel free? Do we act free? Or are we oppressed in a self-imposed kind of way by our life circumstances? Are we enslaved to our children, our jobs, our families, or our own negative judgment and criticism? Are we martyred? Unappreciated? Do we feel stuck?
     Everything is a choice in life. Everything. Let's choose freedom. Let's choose to enjoy the things we do and the people we are. Let's wear life like a loose-fitting garmet with no stress, no strain, no imprisonment, and no warfare. It's up to us to feel free. Freedom is not our right. It's our choice.

I choose freedom.

MUSIC

     It's important and necessary that we make time to sing at the top of our voices, and to dance to the music that we love. Great music elevates us, but we have to be willing to let go of self-consciousness in order to fully enjoy the rising experience of the rhythm and the beat. We need to find a way to honor the songs that resonate within us, and allow ourselves to move along in time.
     It's easier when we are alone. That way, we can sing with all of our enthusiasm, and shimmy our bodies however we please. Without allowing for such a musical expression on some kind of a regular basis, no matter our age, it seems to me that we live our lives "in check;" properly restrained and composed, but missing out on a piece of freedom.
     It's a primal thing to let go. Let's give ourselves permission. Let's crank up the tunes and get our bodies moving. It's heartening. It's joyful! And it's fun!! :)

I sing along to my favorite songs and dance with joy to the music that moves me.

LIGHTENING UP

     We take ourselves too seriously. We fret and fuss and over-think everything. We allow ourselves to get weighed down with daily burdens and responsibility. We count on life being difficult. We fall into a "struggle-ethic" philosophy.
     But maybe the whole point of life is to take ourselves and our life circumstances less seriously, and to find the fun in whatever we do. It's there. If we approach things playfully, they are enjoyable, and we laugh easily and feel relaxed. If, on the other hand, we approach them with dread, then our foreheads wrinkle and dread is what we get.

I am willing to take myself less seriously, and to live life with more laughter, and smiles that last.