Resolve with Gentleness, Allowance, and Light-Heartedness

If you’re like almost everyone I know, you have your resolutions set for this new year.  You contemplate the tangible things you wish to increase, decrease, introduce, or release within yourself.  It might be a bit boring and clichéd for me to list the regulars that show up for a majority of folks each year. 

I want, instead, to offer a couple of points for consideration this year. 

 
For some reason, I keep sensing the need to remind folks that they are human, imperfect, and beautiful just the way they are.  For many, once this is acknowledged, much pressure can be released.  

I believe that resolutions encourage us to actively engage in making improvements that make us even healthier, happier, stronger, more confident, and even more creative than we already are. It is the perfect time to assess the things you like about yourself and your life, while bringing to mind the things you wish to change.

I believe it is important not to judge or criticize yourself for what you consider to be a shortcoming or an area that you see needing improvement.  The important point is that you are striving to make positive changes to these areas of yourself and your life.   

While assessing the effectiveness of your ability to honor your resolution, please be gentle with yourself and the process……because if it truly is worth adjusting, it will become more of a way of life for you - rather than a crash course in dictated, uncomfortable, forced change. There is no need for scolding, judgment, or self-criticizing if you see yourself being lax on your stated changes. Try adopting a kind and light-hearted approach where you forgive, allow, and reward yourself for the intentions you are setting and the actions you are taking. If the process is no fun and labeled as “self-torture”, then you won’t stick to it!

Take each day for the opportunity it brings, and contemplate how you can gently make the changes you envision. Maybe it takes years or decades, but if it’s going to make a lasting impact in your life, it needs to be joyous, flexible, and supportive! For me, I am pretty sure I will never give up chocolate chip cookies even though processed sugars aren’t particularly healthy. Sorry, but I must be allowed to keep some guilty pleasures, and these delicious cookies aren’t going anywhere (but into my mouth…) :)

For next year, maybe you can even consider what positive changes you will make in the world, not just in yourself……

[PS, not to tempt you with cookies, but I found the above photo on Pinterest, and it happened to be connected to a lovely chewy, chocolate chip cookie recipe, The Best Chewy Café-Style Chocolate Chip Cookies from Host the Toast. Enjoy!]

 

 

For more insight, feel free to visit my website, http://www.letearthrise.com.  Let me know if you have an interest in a particular topic, and I am pleased to offer information, opinion, guidance, or assistance. I welcome all ideas and feedback. Thank you for sharing your valuable time with me!

 

Dreams (and *Miracles and Magic*) Wanted

Assignment: If there were no rules, no limitations, no boundaries, no hesitations, no restrictions, no lack, no hesitation, no resistance, no opposition, etc. what would we create?  What would you create?  What would you change in the world? Where would you place your efforts?  What kind of impact would you have?  Yes, you have endless financial support, so do with it what you will. 

Don’t bore me and don’t bore yourself with the traditional wishes of a million dollars.  Dream bigger than that!  Some say that anything is possible.  Well, what is anything?  What does anything look like?  Can you imagine creating something that you’ve never known or seen?  Can you make something so magnificent that words cannot describe it?

Take some time in the next few days to….

Visualize

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Dream

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Ponder

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Fantasize

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Daydream

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Imagine

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Formulate

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Concoct

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Create

 

It’s time to unleash that creative genius, that dreaming mischievous child, that renegade who won’t see limitation of what is, but imagines the possibilities of what could be!

Take some special time in the next few days – especially on Thursday/Friday, October 23/24^th, 2014, when the universe is sprinkling a hell of a lot of **fairy dust** on your dreams.  Get your ideas together and envision them coming to light at the perfect time. Take advantage of these powerful energies of possibility, expansion, creativity, magnificence, magic, and MIRACLES!

Create whatever you want. Imagine it’s yours because it’s on the way…….

 

 

PS - I'd ask you to share your ideas, dreams, magic, and miracles, but I know that words could never do them justice, and they just cannot be contained or verbalized.  I get it....

;)

For more insight, feel free to visit my website, http://www.letearthrise.com.  Let me know if you have interest in similar topics, and I am pleased to offer information, opinion, guidance, or assistance. I welcome all ideas and feedback. Thank you for sharing your valuable time with me!

Passion for Compassion

The dictionary definition of compassion is, “the sympathetic consciousness of others' distress together with a desire to alleviate it.”  It is the understanding or empathy for the suffering of others. Compassion is the emotion that we feel in response to the suffering of others that motivates a desire to help.

The Dalai Lama has said, "If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.”

In my own growth and learning process, I have been fortunate to have the opportunity to connect to some wonderful individuals who, in fact, teach the importance, components, and behavioral aspects and practices of compassion.

To observe the powerful ability of compassion, practice seeing everyone as a reflection of yourself.  You only want the best for yourself and others, so you will interact with others in a way that you wish for others to interact with you. 

If someone is in need of comfort, you are there to offer it, and vice versa.  If you see yourself as a constant source of support, love, and comfort (no matter what is occurring in your life), you are well on your way to living a life filled with compassion. 

Once that part is mastered, the practice of compassion can also be extended to those who you would otherwise turn away, such as anyone you consider an adversary, someone for whom you lack respect (or vice versa), someone who disregards you, or someone who does not show compassion towards you.

Compassion is a powerful energy that can be applied to any situation, and your unconditional love (especially when coupled with continual acts of forgiveness) enables you to care for others – regardless of the situation or interaction. When you do this, you are a model for others to extend their offerings of compassion – all without judgment for anyone or anything. Honor all individuals as you would honor your family, friends, children, and yourself.
 

The same basic truth remains unchanged: We are all here to learn and support each other as we grow, face challenges, and celebrate successes. – together. No need to carry around or hand over unnecessary baggage to others!             

Learn more about the influence of compassion through the passage of time.

 

~ If I show compassion for you, then you show compassion for me. ~

*Until next time, bathe yourself and others in compassion, forgiveness, and unending love. These are some of the greatest gifts that you can offer.*

For more insight, feel free to visit my website, http://www.letearthrise.com.  Let me know if you have interest in any similar topics, and I am pleased to offer information, opinion, guidance, or assistance. I welcome all ideas and feedback!  Thank you for sharing your valuable time with me.

Are you Creating Chaos or Masterpieces?

 

It has been said that our thoughts are comprised of energy.  Thoughts become formulated in our minds in response to our environment and all of the stimuli that exist in our everyday lives.  If we understand the importance and implication of this fact, we might do very well to be more mindful of what we allow to cross our minds!  

Imagine that moment by moment, every thought that enters your mind is instantly manifested in front of you.  What if your thoughts were automatically formulated into clay models?  What would you be molding and carrying around with you?

Here’s a simple comparison of daily outcomes driven by thoughts:

Scenario 1

 

·        You begin your morning by dreading another long day at work
·        You preemptively state how bad traffic will be, and there’s probably an accident or construction or another delay ahead
·        You gripe internally about how long the line will be to wait to get coffee
·        You just know that your annoying co-worker is going to ‘throw you under the bus’ today

Outcome:  Exactly what you said would happen - did.  See the irritated green monsters above. J

Scenario 2

·        You look forward to another day of life – no matter if it’s a full day of work, a vacation, day, or a weekend day
·        You just know that there will be no traffic to hold you back either heading to work or somewhere else
·        You look forward to seeing who is in the coffee shop to start their day and, out of curiosity, you wonder what is going on in their lives
·        You welcome any interaction with any co-worker because nothing can get you down!  Who knows what they are dealing with – it might be much more than what you have on your shoulders.

Outcome: Optimism and positive thoughts gather together to bring delight into your day.  See that happy butterfly with free-flowing energy and beauty?

Another simple way to remember this advice is shared quite well in the fortune cookie I ate earlier today, “Emotion is energy in motion.”

Become a master of your thoughts!

A T O M (A Time of Miracles)

Looking upon the vastness below, I see endless bright, shining lights emanating across the planet / galaxy /universe. 

Akin to a stream of beautiful Christmas lights or a network of intricately placed flashes of brilliance, they shimmer brightly and signify the magnificent light of LOVE, PEACE, and RADIANCE.  

Glimpses of the perfection of the universe flash before my eyes.  A following vision displayed a very clear and brilliant “A T O M” spelled out in front of the vastness of the surrounding stars.     

I shared these lovely images with a dear friend of mine, and as I shared my experience with her, she received a message from her higher guidance.  They whispered into her ear, “It’s a Time of Miracles.”  So that’s what ATOM represents!

I couldn’t agree more……

Dr. Mary, EMT Michael, and Nurse Netty

Elated to grab one of the last window seats on a recent Southwest flight from California back to Texas, I had no idea what was about to transpire on that 4-hour flight.  It was the very back seat in the far corner of the plane on a completely full flight.  Have you ever been on a flight and you hear the flight attendant request the assistance of a physician?  Yeah, it was my neighbor who would need it this time.  

Right after we received our snacks and refreshments, she started to feel dizzy, and she became startled and lost her sense of hearing.  She spilled the water and coffee on herself, along with me and another passenger.  She began to lose consciousness and looked completely zoned out with no response to any stimuli.  One of the flight attendants was trying to get her to regain consciousness, slapping her face, shaking her mildly, and taking her pulse. 

For a while, I was stunned at what was happening right next to me.  I felt completely powerless as I see this lifeless form sitting next to me.  The attendant was a bit startled when he was unable to find a pulse.  I was thinking to myself – “what just happened?”  Before long, there were a few volunteers to join in the life-saving mission.  Interesting how they were all in the seats and rows right next to us – I mean they were right there…..

 

Dr. Mary proceeded to converse with my neighbor who somehow eventually regains consciousness.  She collects information about her medical history and any related activities.  EMT Mike was helping with the oxygen supply, and Nurse Netty stepped in to be the reinforcement for Dr. Mary. 

So, after all of this excitement was over, and the paramedics came to escort her off the plane, I was thinking that no matter what happens to us, we are all surrounded by helpers, protectors, and guardians.  It really made me feel comforted knowing that a fully capable team will always be there and will be ready to help with whatever occurs.  I guess I see this happen over and over, but I sometimes forget to acknowledge that we really are never alone.    

I am just glad I did not upchuck in response to her continual bouts of vomiting!  It took a lot of personal focus, but I was able to avoid it somehow.  Whew!  At the end of the incident, she stated how thankful she was for all of the assistance, and the flight crew was also very friendly and helpful, so kudos to them, as well.  Thank you to all of the helpers who just happened to be part of the experience.  I am not still certain what my role, was, but it made for an exciting flight!

Want to Win? Deem it So!

I keep hearing more and more about the speed at which your dreams, thoughts, and desires will be manifesting in your life.  You can interpret this to be good, and you can interpret this to be bad.  If you are an optimist, this is the best news you could ever hear!  If you are a pessimist, well, get ready for some tough lessons. 

 

Optimistic thoughts = positive, happy, loving, uplifting

Pessimistic thoughts = negative, worry, grief, anger, hurt

So, I am seeing more and more examples of this each day.  For starters, let’s see what happens when fear and worry enter into your thought stream.  

I was listening to a BlogTalk radio show the other day, and the host was discussing a situation in which she was visiting with her neighbor as she and her dog floated in a canoe.  She was headed to the shore, and worrisome thoughts of danger and unsafe conditions entered into her mind. She played out the scenario in her head of her dog falling into the water needing to be saved.  Seconds later, that became her reality.  She was able to save the dog and all was fine, but she was shown the importance of managing her thought patterns.    

On the flip side, two awesome situations arose last week in which the power of intention, hope, and knowing brought forth some great examples of the power of positive thought.  At the cake walk, right before the walk ended, one of my colleagues boldly stated that he was going to win the cake, and he did.

Later that week, I attended a get-together in which free event admission was being given away.  Right before the name of the winner was drawn, one of the attendees stated that his name would be drawn, and he added the statement that it would go to whoever needed it most.  It was apparently him!

These are a just a few examples of how your thoughts and intentions can affect second by second outcomes.  Can you imagine the power of your intentions when considering the outcome of a lottery or the fate of a plane ride?

~ Journey into instant manifestation.  It’s created second by second and is influenced completely by your thoughts!  Be mindful of what you consider in your thoughts because it might very well become your reality.