Don't Sweat the Small Stuff!

And it's all small stuff, or so the saying goes.  It was a favorite of my grandmother's, who used to tell me, "Don't sweat the small stuff, Sweetcheeks!"  Sometimes the simple, common sayings that we take for granted can be a source of great wisdom.

I'm not sure that it's all small stuff, but I think most of it is definitely small stuff.  It's human nature to project our what-ifs out into a future that hasn't even happened yet.  I do know that for me, most of the things I find myself concerned with on any given day I won't remember six months from now, let alone at the end of my days when I'm looking back at what made my life exceptional, worthwhile, and uniquely mine.

The small things can take a big amount of energy if we let them, so there's a balance to be found in attending to them.  Keeping my house clean, or at least clean enough, I consider small stuff, but the quality of my life would be greatly reduced if I didn't consider it at all.  And I'm really grateful that I have a house, and this particular small thing, to deal with.

I remember a message at Unity a few months ago in which Rev. Ken suggested that we ask ourselves, "What am I willing to do to create an exceptional outcome?"  It occurs to me that we can ask this of ourselves about a particular situation, the day in general, or about our lives as a whole.  Focusing our attention on how we can be our best selves in a moment or with our lives helps take the attention off of the frequent, nagging, and in-the-long-run less important issues that surface.

A common example that comes to mind is those drivers on the road who cut us off in their hurry to get where they're going.  Rude drivers don't get to me very often, but they drive my husband crazy.  (Honey, are you reading this?)  One response is to sweat it, and thereby give it more power than it deserves over the quality of my day.  Another response would be to ask what I'm willing to do to create an exceptional outcome in the situation.  I find this amusing to think about - a very lofty consideration for a very small event.   Maybe blow the driver a kiss?  Or perhaps just choose to bless and see the Christ within him (or her) and move on with the gift of what's ahead.

What am I willing to do to create an exceptional outcome in this day?  It's a bit hard to think about, because I'm accustomed to just doing what I do in the roles that I fill, and that takes up quite a bit of the creative energy that I put into my day.  But what if I took back just a little of the energy that it takes to fulfill my roles, and use it to decide what I will do that's new or different, something exceptional.  I don't think exceptional has to mean untoppable each and every day, but special in a way that will make the day more memorable.

What am I willing to do to create an exceptional outcome in my life?  I believe this is a work in progress, and is created each day, in every thought we have and each choice that we make.  The answer to this question certainly changes as we learn and grow, accomplish our goals and move on to new ones.  In each moment we can choose to create an exceptional outcome, for this very moment is the moment that we live.

My husband's aunt, who is beginning to be affected by Alzheimer's, is coming to dinner along with my father-in-law, my son and his girlfriend.  I think I'll make cupcakes for them, just because.

May your moments be every shade of exceptional, and may this tool be a blessing. . .

Resting on the Bank

Life can feel at times like we’re being pulled along by the raging waters of a mighty river, tossed about, sometimes easily floating above the water, sometimes underwater and struggling to breathe, always bumping into the many other things being carried in the surging current.

The immensely powerful forces that we encounter in this life are at times delightful and at other times terrifying, and everything in between. All of life’s intensity is a gift, as all of it provides us with one opportunity after another to choose how we want to show up. Through all of it, times of struggle and of ease, fear and faith, isolation and connection, the pain of forgetting who we really are and the joy that’s born of remembering, we are perfectly expressing God, knowing himself.

There’s a saying out there on the internet about someone who, at the end of her life, wants to be worn out, used up, with a big smile on her face and saying, “Wow, what a ride!” What a fun and fearless sentiment! Life is nothing if not a wild ride! And as I’ve said, I’m getting better at not fearing what’s coming my way but instead moving forward with eyes open. More often, thank you God, I’m able to say “bring it on.”

Still, at times, I need a break when the waters rush too fast. When there’s a lot coming at me at once, it’s harder to stay grounded, and peaceful, and clear about my own priorities. In those times, it’s helpful to step out of the river, and rest for awhile on the bank.

Resting on the bank is something we can do in the middle of our activity. Like many spiritual tools, it’s a state of being.  In the middle of any situation, resting on the bank is a way to step out of some of  life’s tumultuous energies for a time. We can sit on the bank and watch them go by, without having to process them internally. We can notice what’s happening without having to do anything about any of it for awhile.

I actually picture this, in my imagination, that I’m sitting on the shore, and everything I’m encountering at that time is moving by me in the rolling water. I am seeing it, and will be part of it again when I choose to be, but it is not me.

I have noticed what a tremendous healing it is for me to rest on the bank. When I take time out from managing all of the energies that I bump into in a day, demands, thoughts, emotions, both mine and others’, and just let them roll on by, then when I do decide to jump back into the river and swim my own unique stroke, I am more calm, happy and connected to the voice of the God of my heart.

May you be inspired and rejuvenated on life's peaceful shore, and may this tool be a blessing. . .

In This Moment - A Meditation

In this moment, all is well. As I pause in my activity I realize that right now, I am just where I am supposed to be. My unique life experience and perspective have brought me here, expressing myself in the best way I know how.

My thoughts and actions create the unfolding of my life, but the future is not here yet. The delights and challenges of the future I will live when I get there. There is no need for worry, or regret.  What happened in the past is done. I carry it with me as I learn and grow, but it is not now.

Right now, all is well. Health and vitality course through my body, and I am happy to be alive. The world is my oyster, and I joyfully anticipate the pearls of love, wisdom and adventure waiting to be discovered. I am at once peaceful and expectant of the good that is sure to come my way.

In this moment, and in this one, and this, the worries of the world fade as I know the ease of just being. As I breathe in the light that transcends time, I am larger than life itself and creative beyond measure. In this moment, I am one with the God of my heart.

May this meditation be a blessing. . .

Joy

At a meeting last week, some coworkers and I were talking about something one of them had read recently, which I thought was wonderful. It was, simply, “What are the 10 things that bring you the most joy? Why aren’t you doing them?” For me this is a very worthy question, and gets right to the heart of the matter of creating the life we're meant to live.

We are here to fulfill every dream for ourselves that we can conceive, and in this way honor God within us, as limitless creators in our own right. But what is commonly accepted is that we will move through our days mostly doing what is expected of us, and not give nearly enough thought to choosing to do what brings the most joy.

Watching my son, who is now in college and juggling work, school, rehearsals, and a growing number of responsibilities, it occurs to me how early in life this happens. I'm grateful that he loves what he does.  We work hard today for rewards to be had later, hopefully, when school is finished or we’ve found a good job, or it’s time for vacation from work or retirement. I like to think that in most cases those rewards do come to pass, but what about now? I believe that we can strive to accomplish those things that are important to us, but not get so lost in the striving that we miss knowing joy in today.

I tried it this morning, writing a list of 10 things that bring me the most joy. And what I found is that it contained simple things like dancing and backpacking, listening to God within me and nurturing my body, the beloved expression of my soul.

I’m finding that joy is a very moment-to-moment thing. There have been many big things that I’ve worked hard and planned for in my life, and they were unforgettable, but the conscious decisions that I’ve made to find joy in the small daily events are what have brought the most peace and happiness.

When the big things come up that I want to do, I find a way to do them with relish and remember them always - one noteworthy example is skydiving.  I've done it a few times and it's always amazing like nothing else I've experienced.  It's huge fun, but I can't say that having done it brings joy to my life.  As great as the big things are, they don’t add as much depth and meaning and love to my days as the simple things on my list.

Others will likely find a completely different focus in considering what 10 things bring the most joy, but the important question remains, if there are things on your list that you are not doing, what better time to begin than now?

May this tool be a blessing. . .

Belonging

We all feel a sense of belonging in this life to varying degrees, to our spouses or partners, children, birth families, friends, communities, ethnic groups and cultures.  We strive to belong, as it is a very basic human need.  It provides not only safety and security, but also the opportunity to know ourselves more fully by noticing how we are seen by others, through their own life's lenses.

The truth is that the moment we draw our first breath in this world, we belong.  As children of the earth, we join the ranks of all others who have molded this gift of life into our best vision.  We belong to that very holy family of spiritual beings having a human experience, encountering myriad paths, trials, tribulations, and joys and sorrows along the way.

From where we sit as children of the earth, the world can seem very big indeed, our perspectives divergent, and others' ways difficult to understand.  But from farther out, the worldly belonging that we share pales in comparison to the common spark we share as children of creation.  Our being here, as we know it, is as our neighborhood playground is to the entire universe.  That is not meant to diminish the tremendous joy of playing at the playground, swinging high on the swings until I'm not sure I'll be able to walk straight when I stop.  My husband and I still do that sometimes, and it's a whole lot of fun.  But our belonging is much more profound.

I told a group of friends the other night that in those fleeting moments when I completely trust the God of creation in all things, it doesn't really matter if I am here, or somewhere else.  In those moments, I am aware that as a child of creation, my existence here is only a small part of all that I am.  As children of God, we are made of the consciousness that conceived all that is, the seen and the unseen, the known and the unknown, being, or ceasing to be.  We all embody the spark of light that contains all future and all past, transcends them, and just is.

May you rest in knowing yourself as the light of creation, and may this tool be a blessing. . .

Sound Healing

I was blessed today to experience the profound healing that can come from sound.  I don't know a whole lot about the subject, because sound isn't the type of healing that I have focused on in my life.  But I understand the importance of changing vibration in order to initiate healing, and sound is, of course, vibration.  In my own meditation, I have experimented with my breathing and allowing myself to release by sighing with the outbreath, and I have noticed that it creates a deeper sense of connection and softening within my body.  I know many of you have experience with sound healing techniques and I hope you share them here.

I am frequently healed by music.  I have a playlist on my IPod called "spirit songs," which has many of the songs that help me feel connected to the peace and truth that is the God within me.  Today, I was healed watching my son's final concert of the season with the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra.  I was enraptured by the first piece, called The Chairman Dances, composed in 1985 by John Coolidge Adams.  My son tells me that I prefer minimalism.  I don't understand much about that because I'm not  a musician, but I did notice that the pace and starkness of it allowed me to feel as if I could almost taste each sound, and was left waiting expectantly for the next one.

The concert brought me to tears, listening to those young people making such perfectly exquisite music.  That a fellow human being had the talent and vision to conceive such beauty to begin with, and the musicians had the commitment and passion to pour their hearts into the beauty of it, and that they can all come together and weave each of their parts into such a heart-rending, exquisitely beautiful whole speaks to me of the never-ending good that is us, expressing our greatness.  There can be no real ill in a world where that can take place.

I received another sound healing earlier today, at our Unity service.  A woman by the name of Denise DeSimone spoke about a video she created called "Pray Peace," which is a compilation of prayers for peace from all around the world, set to moving images and music.  Denise had stage IV cancer and was given a very short time to live.  She now coaches other cancer survivors and has created a program around sound healing, which includes chanting, breath and sound techniques, and specific combinations of tones (my son would understand more about this).  She also has a CD available called "Make a joyful noise - a meditation using sound."  I'm really grateful that I was able to learn about the amazing work she is doing in the world.  You can visit her website here.

Edgar Cayce is quoted as saying that the medicine of the future is sound.  May we be open to its healing vibrations, and may this tool be a blessing. . .

Saying Yes

Saying yes is that magical state where we accept what is happening in any given moment without resistance.  Saying yes to the present moment is an even more vitalizing tool than acceptance, which is a very powerful tool in and of itself.  But saying yes can elevate our experience from acceptance to enthusiasm.

It is inherent in the dualistic nature of our existence that in our minds we label our experiences as good or bad, or the people we encounter as right or wrong; our thinking tends to be very black and white.  This is part of divine intelligence at work, and serves us in our coming to know ourselves.  But we tend to oppose the "bad" things, and the "wrong" things, and that opposition shuts down the joy of just being here, alive in this moment and open to all that is good and right.

Work has been very busy lately.  Yesterday I counseled 15 patients, which is alot for one day.  By yesterday afternoon I was starting to feel like "enough, already."  When I get into that kind of resistance, I'm just trying to get through, and not doing my best for myself or the patients.  I'm definitely not enjoying my moments.

By God's grace I remembered to change my mind, and say yes.  Yes, I am here in this moment.  Yes, I'm doing my best, and that is good enough.  Yes, this job that I have loved for many years makes me crazy sometimes.  Yes, I am an ongoing contradiction of wants and fears and perfect knowing and peace.  And yes, it is all here for me to express myself within.

I felt my body take a deep breath, expressing its own perfect knowing.  And in that second I smiled, as I was filled with gratitude for all of it.  I am repeatedly impressed by how instantaneously and completely changing my mind changes my experience.  Changing my mind is a prayer answered.

The best part is that I finished my work day feeling alot of enthusiasm about having the opportunity to be doing what I love, interacting with interesting people, and making a difference in my own way.  It really is amazing what happens when I stop fighting what is.

I love how Eckhart Tolle puts it in his book, Stillness Speaks.  "How often each day, if you were to verbalize your inner reality at that moment, would you have to say, 'I don't want to be where I am'? What does it feel like when you don't want to be where you are -- the traffic jam, your place of work, the airport lounge, the people you are with? . . . Acceptance of the unacceptable is the greatest source of grace in this world."

We can't change what comes to us; people will do what they do and situations will come up as they must.  That really doesn't have anything to do with us.  But we can bring ourselves fully to where we are, and know that within everything is a seed of grace.

Here's to being here, and all that comes with it:  yes, yes, a thousand times yes!

May this tool be a blessing. . .

Embracing This Life

We embrace this amazing existence not by doing more, but by focusing on what is truly important.  We are probably more similar than dissimilar in the things that are most dear to us.  We all want to be happy, and to have loving relationships that are mutually supportive and nurturing.  We want to have strong, healthy bodies that can waltz (or boogie) us through our life's dance.  And we all want to be seen, and known, openly and honestly, for all that it has meant to be our unique selves.  I believe this is true for most of us. 

Thank Goodness for the challenges, for they help us find those rather elusive answers about what has the greatest value to us.  It's pretty easy to get caught up in the demands of the day, and end up spending long amounts of time separate from what is meaningful.  At times, I remember to ask myself, "At the end of my life, is this what I will remember?"  There are things that fall quickly down the priority list when I view them in this way.  Ultimately, a life spent involved in what provides meaning infuses our lives with joy.

It is said that happiness is not in having what we want, but in wanting what we have.  It's tempting to focus on what is still lacking.  But the life of our dreams comes from finding the good that is always present, standing right there next to the distractions and concerns.  We embrace our lives, and our good, when we recognize the gifts we've been given.  How sweet life is when we cultivate a joyous dance of unfettered gratitude, not only in our thoughts, but in our prayers and in our hearts as well.

So today, I embrace my life with an amount of gratitude that has no limits.  I am here, in this healthy, strong body that is infinitely capable of walking me though all of the adventures of my making; in the middle of a glorious day filled with unlimited possibilities for me to experience wonders of all sizes, shapes and colors; and for as long as I am here this is my daily legacy, as a child of God.  Today is the day that my heart beats, and I choose how I want to show up. Today I am.

May you embrace the gift of living another precious day as your unique and perfect self, and may this tool be a blessing. . .

Dancing!

Dancing as a spiritual tool?  You betcha!  My husband and I have taken swing dance lessons on and off for years.  We're not very good, but it's one of the things we do that brings a huge amount of joy.  Something absolutely, positively magical happens when I start to dance.  It doesn't matter what's been going on previously in the day.  When my husband starts spinning me around, and I'm trying to anticipate where he's going to lead me next, before I know it I'm grinning ear-to-ear like a nut!  It's exhilarating, and fun, and well, funny!  It's not uncommon for us to laugh out loud when we're dancing.  Not very dignified, but I wouldn't trade it for anything.  We're starting swing lessons again next month, and I can't wait.

My husband teases me sometimes about unexpectedly breaking into dance.  It's a wonderful way to move my body, and be spontaneous, and express happiness in being alive.  And as much as I love dancing with my husband, I don't always need a partner.  I have been known to turn on some fun music and dance in the car on long trips (seated, of course).  More often than I should probably admit, I've put some funk on the radio driving home after work, and car-danced my way down the freeway (after making an agreement with myself that I'm not going to worry about what the people driving near me think!)  Turning on some music and dancing after I get home from work is a great way to release any stress I'm holding onto.  And dancing my way through a day of housework makes the job a whole lot more fun.

Dancing can be a spiritual tool, because it takes me out of my head and squarely into that delicious space of just enjoying expressing through my physical form.  When I dance, my spirit dances, too!

May this tool be a blessing. . .

Being Impeccable With Your Word

Because our words have such tremendous creative power in our lives, it is important to be very conscious about the words that we use.  Just as we need to guard our thoughts, it is even more essential in living the life that we intend to use words that embody the energy we wish to manifest in our lives.  Our words are even more powerful than our thoughts in creating how our moments will unfold.

The words we choose, like our thoughts, are mostly unconscious.  We react to something and speak before we've decided if the words are a true representation of who we want to be.  I know I do.  It's very easy for me to forget to be deliberate about the words I speak.

In his book The Four Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz devotes an entire chapter to being impeccable with your word.  It is one of the four agreements.  In it, he says that "Through the word you express your creative power.  It is through the word that you manifest everything."

Literally every word we speak promotes either truth, or fear.  Our statements act to enlighten ourselves and our world, or help hold them in darkness.  Even small, seemingly innocuous statements, like gossip or judging anothers' behavior, have far-reaching effects because they plant seeds of negativity.  Whether from truth or from fear, the opinions, ideas and concepts that we plant grow quickly in the mind's fertile soil.  Ruiz makes the point that our minds become fertile for the type of words that we use.  When we use words to promote positive thoughts, those are the kind that latch on and grow in our minds.  Such is the nature of the spiritual law of attraction, which is always at work.

I found it interesting that impeccable means "without sin."  Ruiz states that "a sin is anything that you do which goes against yourself."  Ultimately, all that we sow in our thoughts and words comes back to us, as the energetic code of that communication forms the reality of our experience.

According to the book, "When you become impeccable with your word, your mind is no longer fertile ground for words that come from (negativity).  Instead, it is fertile for the words that come from love. . .  How much you love yourself and how you feel about yourself are directly proportionate to the quality and integrity of your word.  When you are impeccable with your word, you feel good; you feel happy and at peace."

I am grateful for the reminder!

May this tool be a blessing. . .

Living From the Heart

I wrote some time back in a post called Heart-Focused Breathing about some amazing software I bought for my computer, called Em-wave, made by the Institute of HeartMath. The idea of heart-focused living is very interesting to me, and I've really enjoyed working with the software in my spiritual practice. I'm finding that, as with most things, it's easy to forget to stop and take advantage of this tool, but when I do, it creates alot of peace and grounding in my life.

The idea of it is that the normal changes in our heart rate as we inhale and exhale become more irregular when we are in stress. The Em-wave software uses biofeedback techniques to help people learn to focus their attention on the heart and quiet thoughts, thereby producing regular patterns of heart rate change - a state they call coherence.

It is accomplished by focusing on breathing through the heart, and then holding in mind a positive emotion, such as gratitude or caring. With practice, it gets easier and easier to maintain coherence, and the software lets you know how you're doing. It's an amazing product, really.

I recently became aware of another group doing research into heart-focused living, called the Institute of Noetic Sciences. The word noetic is derived from the Greek nous, for which, according to the institute's website, there is no exact equivalent in English. It refers to "inner knowing," a kind of intuitive consciousness—direct and immediate access to knowledge beyond what is available to our normal senses and the power of reason.

What fascinates me about the work they're doing is the idea that our thoughts and emotions affect the heart's electromagnetic field. The electromagnetic field produced by the heart is the largest in our bodies. This very powerful field can affect not only us but also those around us, and the entire world! I am excited and encouraged by this emerging field of study. Think of it, that as people learn more and more how to manage their thoughts and consciously choose what they hold to be truth, the electromagnetic field that they project into the world affects others! We have known this intuitively and clairvoyantly, that our energy affects people around us. But I really love the idea that science is learning ways to quantify the affect that each individual can have on the world by choosing to hold a positive belief or emotion.

What I'll take away from this new information is to more often place my attention on breathing into and out of my heart, from a place of gratitude, as explained in my earlier post on heart-focused breathing. From my practice on the Em-wave software, I know that this very quickly changes my heart rate pattern, as my focus turns from worry to one of peace and gratitude. And it's exciting to know that as I create peace in my heart, I help create peace in the world.

Click on the video clip above to watch a short video from the Noetic Sciences Institute.

May this tool be a blessing!

Being in the Body

I've heard of people looking for out-of-the-body experiences.  I am seeking as much in-the-body time as I can muster.  Being out of the body is easy; we do it all the time.  Where our thoughts go, so goes our energy, to things outside of us.  I am having an out-of-body experience when I'm sitting at work planning what I'm going to cook for dinner, or when I'm reliving a conversation I had with someone the day before.  There are plenty of wonderful things for us to put our attention on, and we need to do that to be in the world.  But I've found that to really experience my life, to live it in the way that is most appropriate for me, and to find meaning in all I see outside of me, I have to be, as much as possible, in my body.

Being in my body means that my attention is within.  At the Berkeley Psychic Institute they speak of it as having the outside of the aura close to the body.  The energy field expands to encompass all that a person has his or her attention on, and the more that we have our attention on, the more we have to consider, decide about, and possibly be responsible for.  When our energy field encompasses too much, it becomes very difficult to hear our own voice.  We can become scattered, stressed, depressed, or physically ill. 

In addition to helping us hear our own truth, being in the body helps us be present in our lives.  It enhances our experience of the sumptuous feast of this existence.  When I am present in my body my senses are turned up, my own healthy emotions are ebbing and flowing, and I feel more of what it is to be fully human.  I am aware of being me, rather than the effect of everything around me.

Pulling the aura close in around the body reduces the amount of data that we are tuned in to, and allows us to quiet the external in order to focus on the internal.  I often stop and visualize my aura shrinking, as I "pull myself back in." What we visualize, the cells of the body perceive as real, and is made manifest.

Many other tools explained in this blog and elsewhere help us get back into the body.  Deep breathing and meditation techniques work, being in nature, walking, anything that helps return our focus to our own being.  Other possibilities might be taking a bath, enjoying a really good meal or glass of wine, or other things that cause us to relish the experience of having our amazing physical bodies.

I was glad to be in my body a few minutes ago, sitting in my living room as the clouds passed overhead and for the first time today I was washed in sunlight, listening to a jazz recording that has been my favorite since high school.  If I had been attending to anything other than just being, I would have missed that exquisite moment of my life.

When I am in my body, it is a celebration of my spirit's divine creation.  My spirit knows it's home, and I hear the voice of the God of my heart.

May this tool be a blessing. . .

Cultivating Humor

My husband told me last night that he'd love for me to do a stand-up comedy routine, just for him.  Just picturing it made him chuckle.  It made me chuckle, too.  I can see us in our living room, him sitting at a make-shift round table with a glass of wine, and me standing with a wrench or some other pretend microphone, saying "Did you hear the one about. . ."  We've done sillier things.  We tend to laugh alot.

I'm a true believer in humor for healing all types of ills.  In the stress management class that I teach at work,  one of the things that I discuss with people is the idea of actively cultivating humor.  I enjoy watching people who have come into the class very burdened by the demands in their lives light up at the thought that maybe something as simple and uplifting as laughter could help ease those burdens.  Research has proven that laughter lowers blood pressure and stress hormones, and increases immune function and the release of endorphins.  It really is good medicine.

Humor unites people, because laughter is the universal language.  Sharing a private joke or a moment of happiness with another creates a bond of good-feeling and lifts the heart.  I remember when my son was about 18 months old, he would pick up his play telephone, hold it up to his ear, and laugh and laugh.  I realized early on that he was imitating what he thought a person did on a telephone.  I looked like that, talking on the phone with my sister.  I am pleased to say we still do that.

Many times, when my husband or I, or both of us, have had a tough day at work, we decide to do something funny.  We've gone to the park to swing and slide, which is very humorous, especially to the kids watching us.  We've batted the wiffle ball at the park in heavy wind.  We've worn big wax gummy lips to the dinner table.  We've eaten cake with my son, not using utensils, and then taken pictures.  Not too long ago, while paying bills, my husband donned his slippers that look like rainbow trout, and I wore a bow tie.  Recounting these times, and remembering so many more, makes me smile.  Humor is even great years later, with the remembering.

There is no limit to the ways we can create humor for ourselves.  Rent a funny movie or choose to read a silly book.   I have a couple of sites bookmarked on my computer at work that I can go to for a quick joke in the middle of a hectic day.  Make a mental note of something that really tickled your funny bone, and then remember it when you need to smile.  Most importantly, choose to find amusement in the little things as you go through your day.  To quote that very articulate author, Dr. Seuss, "From there to here, and here to there, funny things are everywhere."

Celebrate your sense of funny.  Each of us has our own brand of humor and our own way of expressing it.  Mine is more quiet, which makes the whole stand-up idea all the more comical.  I'll let you know when my routine is finished.

Humor, and laughter, bring us into step with our highest joy, and open us to fully celebrate being alive.  Here's to laughing loud and often!

May this tool be a blessing. . .

Enlighten Up!

Most of us know at least one person who has the uncanny timing and ability to lighten the mood in a group of people, to raise the vibration when things start to get too serious. David, our music director at Unity, is like that. We can always count on him to keep things light with a spontaneous quip that gets us chuckling. He doesn’t take himself too seriously.

It is easy to regard ourselves and our life path with too much seriousness. I know I often do. It can seem like hard work at times, moving forward, trying to be the people we know in the deepest part of ourselves that we are, striving to be our best selves. We are taught that hard work brings results, and we apply that maxim to everything, including growing in our spiritual understanding. On the physical plane, hard work may accomplish results, but as unlimited creators of our experience, no more than our intention is needed to bring a dream to fruition. I need to enlighten up!

For me, there is absolutely nothing better than remembering that I don’t have to try so hard. We really don’t have to try at all. What a delicious truth, that perfection exists in and through everything, and we can just relax and bask in it. In our most peaceful, or most chaotic, days, divine order guides all. We can let go into the experience of all of it, comfortable or anxious, light-hearted or totally stuck. We have designed all of it as part of our soul’s playground.

I spent some time last night being incredibly grateful. I was thinking about some of the experiences I’d had yesterday, and became aware of the absolutely perfect way they provide me the opportunity to choose who I am, and who I want to be. In that moment, I knew myself as the designer of those experiences, every part of them, and I was God. There was no effort, because I knew that all that comes to me is good. I felt larger than I’ve ever been as I reviewed lifetimes of experience, and knew it was created not only by me, but though me, and also for me. It is all done for me. And I knew for just a few moments the profound love that called forth my being. I am forever changed.

May you know the lightness of being God’s love, and may this tool be a blessing. . .

Enthusiasm

Enthusiasm is the energy that turns the moments of our lives into magic.  Enthusiasm isn't something we must wait to feel; it is something we can cultivate as often as we remember.  I am always amazed by the incredible creative power we have, in each instant, to choose what we will experience.  In any moment, there are countless different things that could capture our attention.  We tend to focus on what we expect, based on past experience or what we've been taught.  In this way, experience can limit the flexibilty in how we see things.  We will always see what we expect, if we don't resist the temptation to believe everything we think.  Much of that thinking is old, outdated, and never originated with us anyway!

In order to be as fully open as possible to the gifts of this life, we must claim our power in creating a world of our own making.  We are not seeing the world as it is, we are making the world we see, based on our thoughts and beliefs about it.  Experience is not hard-wired, it is infinitely variable depending on what we decide to accept into awareness.

Right now I am delighted by the possibilities.  Am I struggling to find the right words, or am I writing with ease the thoughts that come from my heart?  This moment is an incredible gift in choosing my experience, and I send the vibration of that choice outward into ongoing creation.  How much importance and immediacy will I place on my awareness that my office is messy, and needs dusting?  There is no judgment here, for me just a decision about whether to deal with that now, or not.  Is needing to get ready for work soon an interruption in my enjoyment of the peace and warmth of the morning, or a valued opportunity for learning and growth, hearing the wonderful stories of my fellow travelers, and making my own contribution in the world?  In each moment there is the potential for any and all possibilities, but what I focus on dictates my experience.  It also creates the habit by which I begin to experience similar situations in the future.

Life is a struggle when in our awareness we are always responding to unwelcome situations that are thrust upon us to deal with.  When we choose to create our own experience instead of respond to the world according to a programmed set of expectations, it is so much easier to live in gratitude, enthusiasm, and ease.

So work awaits!  I will take the warmth of the sun, and the peace, with me through my day.  I will hold it in my awareness as I teach, and learn, and enjoy hearing the stories of the people I meet today.  And I will thank God for the ability to find the right words to gracefully convey the truth that I hold in my heart.

Today is the day that the Lord has made; rejoice and be glad in it!

May this tool be a blessing. . .

Living Your Bliss

Our dear Reverend Ken at Unity recently quoted Joseph Campbell as saying that the purpose of life is to live your bliss.  I do love that idea, that all we need do is decide what brings us the most joy, and allow those to be the most important things in our lives! This prompted me to consider bliss as the main purpose in life, and also to learn a little more about Joseph Campbell's philosophy.  I really enjoyed what I read, and have included some of his quotes here.  They reminded me of my son, Eric, so I dedicate this post to him.

It has occurred to me many times on my personal journey that the main reason we're here is to be happy.  I believe that we are meant to glorify as grandly as possible in our countless different ways the God that lives in and through each of us.  Moving through our periods of doubt and forgetting is part of the process of finding, and living our truth.  According to Campbell, "Where you stumble and fall, there you will find gold."

Campbell's ideas validate the incomparable gift of our being.  He said, "The priviledge of a lifetime is being who you are."  How well said!  It's so easy to get wrapped up in doing, that we don't delight in our awareness of being.  At the end of my days, what I did won't be nearly as important as how present I was in experiencing all of the moments of my life.

His idea that we create meaning through our experience was simply and rather bluntly put:  "Life has no meaning.  Each of us has meaning and we bring it to life.  It is a waste to be asking the question when you are the answer."  What is the meaning of life?  To simply be.  That is miracle enough.

I also appreciated reading his thoughts on our path in life.  "If you can see your path laid out in front of you step by step, you know it's not your path.  Your own path you make with every step you take.  That's why it's your path."  Also, "If the path before you is clear, you're probably on someone else's."  This for me emphasized the importance of living in the present moment.  Try as we might to nail things down into some manageable and predictable future, plans change as priorities shift.  We are constantly evolving, in the midst of creating who we are, and who we want to be.  Life happens, when we're busy making other plans.

Campbell had some wonderful ideas about our experience of challenge, and even though he died in 1987 his thoughts resonate today:  "We have not even to risk the adventure alone, for the heroes of all time have gone before us.  The labyrinth is thoroughly known.  We have only to follow the thread of the heroes' path.  And where we thought to find an abomination, we shall find God.  And where we had thought to slay another, we shall slay ourselves.  And where we had thought to travel outward, we shall come to the center of our existence.  And where we thought to be alone, we shall be with all the world." 

The heroes' path, then, is having the courage to do what brings us joy, and not make any excuses for it.  It is choosing to seek the gift inherent in all circumstances.  It is taking ample time to revel in the glory of being alive, here and now in this small segment of eternity. 

Living our bliss is the heroes' path. I am grateful to have stumbled upon these wise words.

May you live your bliss, and may this tool be a blessing. . .

God Is, I Am

We are blessed to live in a world filled with such light-filled people.  They have graced my life as amazing teachers, the authors of the many life-changing books I've read, enlightened souls I've encountered through this blog, all of my spiritual brothers and sisters.  I am deeply grateful, and acknowledge the profound joy of our collective being.

I was reminded again yesterday of a favorite author of mine, Eric Butterworth, and a simple and healing tool for focusing the light that is ever present in us.  As he explains in this book "The Creative Life,"  we can affirm and breathe, God Is, I Am. 

"Take a few moments with this breathing exercise:  On the inbreath, speak the words 'God is.'  Hold it . . . then, on the outbreath, affirm, 'I am.'  Hold it.  Repeat this several times.  Get the sense that you are vitally coupled with the energy of God's light.  With this centering in the light, you see with light.  And your seeing actually becomes a "light treatment" of all that you see.  . . .  (You) become synchronized with and in the stream of light that is everywhere present.  Now make a survey of your schedule for the day:  your appointments . . . contacts, projects and relationships.  As you hold them in the light one by one, you give to each one a 'light treatment.'  . . . The whole of Infinite Mind is within you -- and you have access to the wisdom of the ages."

This is good stuff!  When I practice this, I become aware of the light that is always within me and everywhere present.  The texture of everything in my awareness changes as I recognize the perfection in all of it.  I release concerns or considerations that are not my own, and there is no need to struggle over anything.  God is, and I am, in this moment of light.  I am an active participant in creation - an ongoing design of perfection.

May this tool be a blessing. . .

Letting the Day Come to You

I am sure there are people in the world who live in constant awareness of divine order.  I am not one of them!  As I'm sure you've noticed in my writing, I often forget.  I get caught up in worrying about people, or anxious about how things will turn out.  Thankfully I get back to remembering that I have a choice about the reality I create through my thinking.   I write and teach to reaffirm this for myself.

This morning, I found myself swept up into my most common fear du jour, that I don't have enough time to do it all.  Oh, how enticing this false belief is!  When I'm not aware of myself beginning to slide down that slippery slope, before I realize what's hit me I am caught up in all kinds of negative thinking.  I get very focused on all that needs to get done, instead of just enjoying my moments.

One real benefit of life experience is that we are able to notice when we end up in places that we've been before.  Our stuck places are more familiar, and we gain more ability to navigate them.  We can acknowledge that the thoughts we are having are habitual, but not reality.  

I noticed this morning that the to-do list in my head was taking way too much energy.  I had the whole beautiful Sunday in front of me, and I was spinning about things like grocery shopping and laundry and writing bills.  The funny thing was, the list in my head wasn't just of chores; I was also worrying about how to fit in my get-to-do things like working on my stained glass, meditating, walking, writing, all of the things I do to nurture my spirit.  The programming to get it all done can cause even the nurturing things I do for myself to start to feel like too much to accomplish.

Thankfully, I remembered to let the day come to me, instead of the other way around.  I decided to stop grasping the possibilities for this day and controlling them, and stand still, and see what happens.  I decided to just stop.  Stopping is a great spiritual tool, and I'll write more about it in another blog.  It is a small leap of faith to turn my attention away from the voice that warns that the sky will fall if everything doesn't get done.  It did try to advise me about the dire consequences of starting my week with piles of folded laundry on the living room sofa!  The voices of fear and lack always seem so much bigger in the moment.  But I persevered.  My commitment for today was to just see what the day brought.

What my day brought to me was peace, and alot of color.  I immediately noticed the vibrant spring green in my backyard, and the joy that comes from remembering that all I ever have to do is be.  That happens often; when I get back into present time the world is much more brightly colored.  It is not the world, but I who has changed.  When I affirm that things will happen in divine order, it is so.  My day was not really different from what it would have been had I struggled with the to-do list in my head, but it was much more gentle.  I really enjoyed the message at Unity this morning.  The grocery shopping got done, and that was colorful, too, not only the people I watched, but also the whole isle full of hokey pinatas that I don't think I've ever noticed before.  My day was blessed with so many delightful details and experiences that I miss when my thoughts are out in the future, or back in the past.

How the rest of today unfolds is left to be seen.  Tomorrow at work I plan to keep myself squarely in the present moment, by letting the day come to me, and I will sit back and enjoy the show.

May this tool be a blessing. . .

Focused Deep Breathing

Deep breathing is the foundation of many relaxation techniques and some forms of meditation.  It is an important part of the practice of mindfulness, and of quieting the mind.  It helps bring our attention back from what we're encountering in the world, to ourselves.  There are many types of deep breathing, and all are helpful.  Deep breathing techniques are very simple to do, and over time and with practice can help us get more in touch with our inner voice, and our own truth.  The hardest part of this is making a commitment to regular practice.

The technique that I teach to patients at work is called focused deep breathing.  In class, people usually practice this technique for about 5 minutes, and almost always report feeling more calm and centered in that short amount of time.  It's a good idea to begin in a quiet place where you can sit for a few minutes with your eyes closed.  Closing our eyes helps us reduce distraction and bring our attention within. 

Begin by noticing whatever you notice outside of yourself; outside of your own space, so to speak.  This could be any number of things, voices of people nearby, the hum of the refrigerator, temperature, anything that is not you.  This is the place where our attention is focused most of the time, on things outside of ourselves.  That isn't a problem, because we are in the world and dealing with things.  But we also need an amount of time when we are "off", not attending to the details of living but being aware of our inner world.

Gently begin to shift your attention to become aware of what you notice on the inside.  You may notice your heart beating, your chest rising and falling with your breathing, or the weight of yourself in the chair.  This is the place where we will keep our attention, as much as possible, during deep breathing.  Everything else will wait.

Notice your breathing, whether it is fast or slow, or shallow or deep.  Allow yourself to begin to breathe a little more deeply, but comfortably; there is no need to force it.  As you begin to center yourself in your deep, comfortable breathing, remind yourself that right now, all I have to do is breathe.

During this time your mind will wander, because our minds like to be busy.  When you notice that your thoughts have drifted away, gently bring them back to your breathing, without judgement.  Spend as many minutes as you'd like being centered in your breathing.  When you are ready, gently open your eyes.

I had a woman in class yesterday who was struck by the idea that all I have to do is breathe.  She said that the realization that she could actually live like that, even for a few minutes at a time, changed her world.  What I saw was that it helped her realize that she has a choice about how she will experience her moments.   She created a much bigger space to be present in creating her world.

I sometimes use a deep breathing technique before I begin my meditation or other spiritual practice.  It is a simple but very powerful way to connect with our truth.

May this tool be a blessing. . .

Happiness

I came across a wonderful quote today by a man named Denis Waitley that started me thinking about cultivating happiness: "Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace and gratitude. " How true.

Many people use benchmarks outside of themselves to decide whether they can claim happiness. Is my partner meeting my needs, is my job validating my abilities, do I have what my peers have, or more? These markers for happiness are fleeting and don't fulfill us on a deep level.

That's not to say that we need to adopt a life of poverty and isolation to be happy. It seems that many believe that creating material things is shallow and meaningless, or in some way against our spiritual nature. Material things don't provide lasting happiness, but provide myriad ways for us to express ourselves as divine creators. Expressing my birthright as a creator in God's image does make me happy! I believe that God wishes for us all of the good things that will help us relish a complete and full life.

Although material things can't create lasting happiness, they are not contrary to expressing the highest in ourselves. The difference is our intention. Are we working to buy a bigger home because it's expected, or because it would be a healthy and peaceful place for our growing family? Are we working nights to get through school because someone expects us to do something more with our lives, or because we are drawn to a new career as a way of expressing more of our true talents in the world? Are we saving money for a special vacation because we're trying to keep up with someone else, or as a way to connect lovingly with our partner, experience joy and more of the wonderful places and people on this planet? We are meant to experience all that we want to do, be and have as expressions of the highest within us.

If material things can't provide lasting happiness, what does? Can we cultivate happiness, consciously, as a practice? I believe we can. The beautiful quote above provides good insight. Happiness is a spiritual experience wherein we are present in our moments with these three things: love, grace and gratitude. Having our moments in love is allowing others their path as we walk our own, and remembering that each of us is uniquely expressing the God within. Having our moments in grace is having an awareness of ourselves and others as being worthy of God's highest favor. Having our moments in gratitude means simply acknowledging the tremendous gift in all of it. As complicated as life gets, these three things we can do.

True and lasting happiness comes when we accept the truth of who we are, and are glad of it. When we know ourselves, God rejoices!