Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Ready or not

“Once your mindset changes, everything on the outside will change along with it.” 


It occurred to me today that we are midway through 2013.

To say that this year has been "interesting" would be an understatement...a lot has happened in the last 6 1/2 months. 

I've travelled to Puerto Rico and Italy (solo!), closed the chapter on some areas of my life while exploring some new ones, did a whole lotta interior work (an ongoing process!), and learned some things about myself. 

Among other things, I have had the opportunity to practice setting boundaries...something that I have not been very comfortable doing in the past.
I'm starting to become more clear about what is and is not acceptable or, for that matter welcome in my life. I'm refining the picture of what my ideal life looks like.
That's not to say that I am under the delusion that I can control the events of my life....far from it! I am just beginning to really understand the concept of visualizing what I want in my life.

As I have shared several times here, I used to be a cynical, pessimist girl. Not surprisingly, it didn't take much for me to spot the worst in any situation.
Needless to say, instead of serving as a defense mechanism,having that attitude simply attracted more of the same. It was a never ending chorus of, " See? I told you so!"

That got old real fast! But I didn't know any other way....

Fast forward a few years...I was introduced to the work of Wayne Dyer, which in turn led me to Marianne Williamson...and my life changed. I devoured the books as quickly as I could get my hands on them and it was like a domino effect. One teacher led me to another and so on and so on.....
My spiritual journey had begun.

The parameters of my life have shifted since then.
I have actually been described as a positive person who has a calming effect on others....that one still takes a bit of getting used to! :-)
But the reality is, most days, I AM positive....if for no other reason than it feels better! 

The shift occurred by simply learning to make new choices for my life and the way I viewed it.
"I can choose peace rather than this," from A Course in Miracles, was my mantra for the better part of a year. At first, I just repeated the words over and over at work, but slowly, I began to believe them! I could choose to look through peaceful, loving eyes rather than bitter, angry ones. The choice was MINE!

Since then, I have become a bit of a pleasure junkie. I crave a life that makes me happy and experiences that make me feel good. I find pleasure in food, music, spending time with people I love, practicing yoga, meditating, visiting museums, spending time in nature.....the list goes on and on.

I am getting reacquainted with this part of myself...I lost her there for a minute.
But she's back!

Maybe I needed to acquire a new sense of appreciation for how my life has evolved...
I believe I have that now and I am very grateful for it!

So, Universe....what do have in store for me??

Bring it!!
I'm ready!!

Peace & love,
xox


Sunday, June 23, 2013

Pause





 “Open your minds, my friends. We all fear what we do not understand.” 
― Dan Brown
 
This has been a pretty amazing week.

There were a couple of situations that occurred that not too long ago, I may have handled differently. Probably wouldn't have chosen the "easier, softer way" to go about it either. 

I've learned a lot over the last several years, but I'm always a little surprised when I actually apply these skills to a real life situation. Even though my logical mind understands that I have different choices, my default reaction still kicks in from time to time. The difference these days is that I usually don't go with my default reaction....the end result doesn't turn out well.

I used to live my life reactively.

In all fairness, I didn't know any better. I learned how to (re)act from the people around me. I don't say that to place blame or to avoid accepting responsibility for my own actions...I just didn't have many examples of alternative behavior.
For YEARS, I blamed other people for what happened to me and the situations in which I ended up. I just couldn't see my part in anything.
As a result, I rarely took action of any kind that was not the direct result of something else...I was a reaction waiting to happen.

Then things changed.

Even though I've had some years of practice with this new "skill", that old behavior seems to wait in the wings until my guard is down. Thankfully, these days, that reactive stuff happens only within the confines of my mind. I don't react nearly as much as I used to....in fact, the last time it happened was several months ago.
Progress!

Life has handed me a couple of tests this week and I'm proud to say that I think I handled them pretty well.

* I didn't react.
* I asked for help.
* I "paused, when agitated"...instead of saying what I really thought in that moment.  (beware of things you say that you can't take back once you say them!)
* I chose not to engage.
* I did my best to act from a place of love and compassion instead.

As always, I am a work in progress, but I must admit it feels pretty great to see the progress in action.

More will be revealed...

Peace & love
xo




Thursday, June 13, 2013

Choose wisely





“I can choose either to be a victim of the world or an adventurer in search of treasure. It's all a question of how I view my life.” 
~~~ Paulo Coelho


2013 has been an interesting year so far.
Lots of changes....lots of growth....some endings and some new beginnings.
Life's funny like that.

I finally feel like I'm coming to the end of the transitionary period and settling into the latest "new" phase of my life.
...and, today at least, it feels REALLY good!

I've said it before, but it bears repeating.
I don't know about you but, my memory is fickle and I need periodic (frequent) reminders of lessons learned. Sometimes learning them involved painful experiences that I would just as soon avoid repeating. 

Back to business....
So one of the invaluable lessons that I have learned is that how I view and experience my life is up to ME!

*I can CHOOSE to view any situation as an obstacle or an opportunity.
*I can CHOOSE to be let life happen to me or I can participate in my own life.
*I can CHOOSE to focus on the bad stuff or I can CHOOSE to look for the good stuff...and there is ALWAYS good stuff!
*I can CHOOSE to focus on what I don't have or I can be grateful for what I do.
*I can CHOOSE to be a victim or I can CHOOSE to take responsibility for my own life.

So today, I CHOOSE to view my life and my experience as the amazing, incredible gift that it is.

I wish the same for you....
xo