Saturday, September 24, 2016

Keeping Tabs

Too often we keep tabs on the problematic issues in life. It’s a limited viewpoint: life is a problem. This is how we make life hard. This is how we become Hardaholics – through our perceptions. For numerous companies, Y2K was problematic, but for hundreds, if not thousands, of well-paid programmers, Y2K was a job. It meant employment.

Rather than building problems with our minds, we might do better building emotional and mental scenarios of gains, rather than those of loss.

Please consider playing some of my favorite building games:
  • Expected and Unexpected Income I start the day with this thought: “Today I receive expected and unexpected income.” Each day I keep tabs on my income, based on that intention. Recently I found $12 between some papers. One day a friend gave me a book. Another day we got one free bag of dog food for making our tenth purchase. That same day we received a free bottle of flax seed oil. My husband was told by a store worker that the store did not carry flax seed oil. My husband checked out, but before he left, the employee caught up with him and handed him a bottle of flax seed oil. “I was wrong. We had it. Just keep it for free.” That was $10.00 worth of oil
  • What good happened today? At the close of the day, review what happened and find at least one good thing that happened that day. Let the last thing on our minds be a life-supportive thought.
  •  Synchronicities of the day Synchronicity means meaningful coincidences. One of my most profound incidences of synchronicity happened when I was explaining the concept of synchronicity to a client. “If I am saying something to you and a tree falls in the backyard, that would be a sign that what I am saying is important. It would be as if the tree falling was the Universe’s way of saying, ‘Listen’.” As I was saying that, a tree fell in the backyard of my office. There was a window in my office, so we had a clear view. The falling of the tree pointed out that synchronicity would probably be important in her life. These events are magic and they make wonderful journal material.
  •  Keeping up with the miracles – the small ones. A miracle could be changing the way I react to something. The behavior or activity that used to upset me no longer disturbs me. Another miracle would be a deep feeling of peace even in the face of a loss. I remember flying home for my father’s funeral and feeling uplifted on the journey. It felt like invisible arms were holding me. A miracle can be meeting an influential friend or turning to the very page in a book that you needed to read for information or inspiration. Maybe it’s a good night’s sleep when you are an insomniac. Look for those miracles.
  •  Keeping tabs on me This involves taking a second throughout the day to feel what it’s like to be me, when I feel me, and I connect my mind and body. “Oh, here I am.” I check in throughout the day and it keeps my mind from too much chatter and calms me. Simple task; profound results.
  • Keeping tabs on my breath I check my breath during the day. Just noticing my breath makes me sit up straighter and breathe deeper. If I’m holding my breath or have shallow breathing, it tells me I’m stressed. I relax my body. I let go in my belly and shoulders. Relaxation is the secret simple key to health. (I heard that relaxation quote recently, but don’t remember who said it).
The eastern trinitarian concept highlights construction or creation, sustaining life, and destruction or tearing down. Brahma creates, Vishnu sustains, and Shiva destroys. What does your mind keep tabs on? Is it the constructive or the destructive nature? Are you mentally affixed to the negative side of Shiva’s nature? Life is always falling apart; that’s the Shiva nature, but focusing on that aspect alone will bring despair. Things need to fall apart, but watching the fall may not be the best use of your time.

I have a compost bin in my kitchen. It lives in my pantry. I don’t deny its existence. I use it to dispose of my vegetable and fruit trimmings, but I don’t stand over the compost bin for hours and smell the stench. It really stinks. I know it’s there, covered and tucked inside my pantry, but I don’t let its existence determine my life’s view.

What we keep tabs on colors our world view and either builds or destroys personal realities. What are you keeping tabs on? Tim Bays says it so well in his song, A thousand things went right today and will again tomorrow. The exercises above build the mind and heart and take us from hopelessness and helplessness and deliver us to peace, ease, and happiness. Please join me in creating an easier and safer world. Your world view is up to you, and it’s time to make it easier, freer, and lighter.

Friday, August 26, 2016

Simplicity


“I continue to be drawn to clarity and simplicity. ‘Less is more’ remains my mantra.”
— Stephane Rolland

“Simplicity is about subtracting the obvious and adding the meaningful.”
— John Maeda

“If you live for having it all, what you have is never enough.”
—Vicki Robin

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”
—Leonardo da Vinci

“Stuff is not passive. Stuff wants your time, attention, allegiance. But you know it as well as I do, life is more important than the things we accumulate.”
— Dave Bruno

These quotes came from the Life Edited blog.

"Simplicity is difficult for twisted minds." A Course in Miracles


Thursday, July 7, 2016

This life is not a Story of Me; it is a Story of We.



The oppressive heat of the Texas summer makes me infinitely appreciative of air conditioning. When I was young, we slept in front of a fan and kept a wet wash cloth beside the bed to moisten the skin. When the wind blew over our wet skin, we were cool. I was so happy that we had fans. While technology provides endless complications, it brings with it endless advantages. Yes, it's hot, and it's wonderful that many of us can say, "It's hot; so what!" 

Here's a prayer for those who face oppressive heat in the summer. "May you have relief from your suffering. May the coolness of spirit bring comfort to your days and nights, and may you have all the clean water your body needs today." Take a moment to be thankful for what you have, and then send a blessing for those who are in need. While it is important to heal ourselves, it is equally important to remember the plight of others and to also lend our thoughts and prayers to their well-being. This life is not a Story of Me; it is a Story of We.


Wednesday, June 22, 2016

The Mind

"Your mind is constantly driving you crazy over nothing. You can watch the mind be neurotic and not get involved."
— Michael Singer


"Words can fool us, words can rule us, but they can also serve us. They can lead away from fear and deliver us into the sovereignty of the heart."
— Anne Sermons Gillis


"Our minds are traumatized through habitual, repetitive thinking."
— Anne Sermons Gillis

May Your Life Be ....



Tuesday, June 14, 2016



"We live on the edge of consciousness, dipping in only briefly for the truth."
— Anne Sermons Gillis

"The mind is our entertainment center. We entertain ourselves with make believe stories crafted from our thoughts."
— Anne Sermons Gillis


"People don't argue because they are right; they argue to feel alive."
— Anne Sermons Gillis


"We love to view and review life, but we're not adept at actually living it."
— Anne Sermons Gillis


http://archive.aweber.com/theezsecret/AHJd4/h/Here_s_Anne_Sermons_Gillis_.htm

Monday, June 6, 2016

Word Power



How long is never? Very long, because never, never comes. So I don't like to use that word frequently. 

No, however, is a respectable word. It has traction. It keeps me from over committing. It keeps bad stuff out.

“Neither” is one of those in between words. The word “neither” won't get you out of a jam, but it will make it clear what you mean. When someone says, "I don't eat many fried foods." and you quickly respond - "Neither do I," everyone knows exactly what’s up.

Words can be so helpful. They can take us far, but words aren’t the master, we are. We can take a perfectly good word, deliver it with sarcasm, and the word seems tainted. We can use a word to uplift or support. We can change the tone of our words and make even the most innocent word a bullet. 

What kind of master do you want be? Will you be a benevolent word master or a cruel word lord? 

Just a thought from your Joy Provider.