RETURNING TO CALM

"A cyclone derives its powers from a calm center. So does a person." 

~ Norman Vincent Peale ~

I am testy and irritable with our dog when I am overwhelmed or afraid. He's the ultimate measure of my real state of wellness. If I find myself annoyed with him for just doing what he always does, that's a pretty good indication that elsewhere in my life I have feelings to acknowledge and facts to face.
     Sitting quietly is generally a better help to me at such times than franticly rushing around and distracted busy-ness. I have to return myself to center, and too much movement keeps me lurching off track.
     So when we find ourselves unexpectedly irritable, let's take five  minutes and sit in silence; breathing, detaching from thinking, and listening with awareness to whatever we may hear.

I cure anxiety, restlessness, fear and agitation by slowing down, sitting down, and centering within.

WHAT FOLLOWS THE RAIN

"Many a man curses the rain that falls upon his head, and knows not that it brings abundance to drive away the hunger." 

~ Saint Basil ~

Sunshine after a rainfall is exceptionally beautiful. Everything is wet and fresh. Cedar trees sparkle in the brightness, and it's as if the earth lets out a great sigh. Animals and people venture out, encouraged by the dry skies.
     Just so, difficulty and ease storm and clear in our lives- both necessary- and one making the other that much sweeter.

I accept the rain and welcome the sun that follows.

GREAT BLESSINGS FROM SMALL THINGS

"Greet the day with reverence for the opportunities it contains, approach (your) work with a clean mind... be gentle, kind, and courteous through all the hours; (and) approach the night with... the joy that comes from work well done." 

~ Thomas Dreier ~

If we treat things with reverence, then we will experience the preciousness of life. The more gently and mindfully we take care of the management of our bodies, our finances, and all of the things that we own, the more we will appreciate them.
     To light a candle and sit in its light is a sensuous delight of immeasurable proportions; so too, is each bite of a delicious meal, the feel of fresh water on our face in the morning, and getting into bed at the end of a long day.
     Life is a great blessing, no matter the intricacies of our external circumstances. Let's pay attention enough to the details to allow them to bless us.

I approach my day with reverence that I might feel the spiritual blessing of appreciation.

SHARING STORIES

"Man is a knot into which relationships are tied." 

~ Antoine de Saint Exupery ~

I don't know exactly how it feels to be you, but I know how it feels to be me, so that's what I have to share- all the daily struggles and victories of my life experience. And it is my hope and fervent prayer that as I open up the contents of my soul for public viewing, that there will be those in the world who are able to recognize their own experience in what I share, and that through the sharing, we become one.

I share my personal experience with others because that's what I know and understand best.

INNER KNOWING

"Intuition, my trustworthy friend." 

~ Terri Guillements ~

When the powers that be tell us one thing, and our guts tell us something else, we should probably listen to our guts. No one else can be the authority on our intuitive knowing. It speaks its truth quietly, and often only to us.

I trust my intuition over the popular opinion of the day.

HOPE, FEAR, AND INTUITION

"The metaphoric mind is a maverick. It is as wild and unruly as a child." 

~ Garson O'Toole ~

My fears and hopes sometimes masquerade as intuition. I have the sense that I know what's going to happen, both on the up side and the down side as well; great blessings and great suffering. I prepare myself emotionally in advance. And then when they don't happen, I feel let down, and jipped almost. But the truth is that it wasn't ever knowing in the first place- it was just hoping and being afraid.
     Going forward, I want to be able to separate my fantasies from my gut, and my magnifying mind from the place inside of me that really does know.

I test my intuitive knowing for hope and fear, and  if I find them, then it's not really my intuition and I have been duped.

SELF-RESCUE

"I don't want to be like Cinderella

sittin' in a dark cold dusty cellar

waitin' for somebody to come and set me free..." 

~Cheetah Girls 

I heard the other day that we should never be the heroes of our own stories, and that made me wonder, "Why not?" I think we need to be our own heroes, to rescue ourselves from what limits us, traps us, plagues us, or wants to hold us down. That doesn't mean that we don't need help and guidance as we make our way, but we do have to be the one to initiate the movement towards our own salvation. Of this I feel certain.

I have the courage to show up for myself, whatever that means on any given day.