Wednesday, June 29, 2016

Who Writes the Story?




Don Miguel Ruiz, author of The Four Agreements, tells us that RESPECT is one of the greatest expressions of LOVE...and that, if we love someone, we respect that this person is a good artist and can write his own story


Ruiz further says that  this person was, in fact, BORN to write his own story and if we respect him, we do not try to write his story for him.


What is even more important is that imposing ourselves in someone else's story is a blatant example of our lack of faith that the other person is capable of learning for himself what there is to be learned and applying those lessons to his life.  The consideration of how and when and if he does this is not In our job description.
 

I do believe that we can communicate to others in a gentle, positive, loving manner any suggestions that we may have about the turmoil they may be experiencing BUT that is it...just SUGGEST...not expect and not punish if someone does not wish to embrace what we are envisioning as an answer to a dilemma.


We are NEVER in the place of knowing all of the factors involved in how someone's life is playing out and  to act as if we are and to envision what we think is the perfect answer is to exalt ourselves and fail to honor the other. 

It represents the giving of affection with CONDITIONS, falling short of a truly loving response and indicating a lack of respect.

Truly understanding our place in the world and the place others occupy is a challenging task for us.  It requires clear boundaries for ourselves and others  but it frees everyone involved to make life choices in an atmosphere of support and caring.


Expressing our faith in everyone else's right and ability 

to listen to the guidance of his own heart...

to  decide issues for himself...

to experience the consequences of his choices and to learn his own lessons when and if he chooses..

is a most beautiful and pure expression of love and caring.  


It also frees us to use our energies for the selection, welcoming and experiencing of our own adventures.

                                                                         
                                                                                     Marie Helena


image from tootsiegrace.blogspot.com

Saturday, June 18, 2016

The Magic of Flow


People are seldom happier, says psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, than when they’re in…flow. You know the feeling…you are blithely unaware of time passing…or the knee that’s been acting up…or even the sound of a dog barking in the background. You aren’t noticing anything but what is directly in front of you. There is no To-Do list hammering at your brain nor any worries or concerns. Only the joy and bliss of doing something you love.

Perhaps your flow comes from getting lost in the paradise of nature…or from teaching a child how to pass the ball…or from tinkering with a recipe…or creating a painting…or dancing Zorba style. Whatever it is that brings you to that fascinating place is a Divine gift that you have recognized and received.

We are beginning to find out how very important it is to regularly put ourselves into the entrancing and magical splendor of flow. When we are there, our highest selves are shining. We work tirelessly. Our creativity abounds. We are indulging in one of the greatest states we can access as humans.

What fires our desire to move into flow? Joy…and…Love. The Joy we feel and the love we give to ourselves by indulging in something that is so wonderful and satisfying to us.

When we love ourselves enough to make time for flow, we are building a supply of love that overflows to others. What a beautiful gateway to opening our hearts and sharing the bounty of the talents and gifts we have so joyfully cultivated!

Friday, June 10, 2016

A Secret Energy Source


  
 Whenever we decide to make a change in our lives we require a great deal of ENERGY and a free path for it to flow.


Once we clearly see that the way we are doing things is not working well for us, we are primed and ready for a transformation, but the WAY we try to make that change could be the source of a very big problem.

 
Very often the first thing we do is create a picture of how we can do things differently.  This picture usually features a 360 degree turnaround from our usual behavior.  We feel motivated and ambitious and so we embark on the journey...

only to find ourselves stuck in the quicksand of our default.



Here we have envisioned a huge shift in our actions...something we really want to do...and we get VERY frustrated when it doesn't fall immediately into place. 


And that starts the verbal barrage we toss at ourselves for not being able to shift things and, even more pointedly, for having practiced such poor behavior and made such bad decisions in the first place.  ):


And herein lies the biggest issue we are now facing.  We have become our self-appointed prosecutor, judge and jury and are now reciting to ourselves a harangue filled  with disappointment and recrimination.  ):    ):   ):

 

And it's a BIG energy drain.  HUGE.  And it's seeping the life force out of us.



The fact is that change of any kind is very daunting...and uncomfortable.
And yet we are beating ourselves up for not being able to kick habits of long standing...possibly years of long standing...OVERNIGHT!


 
So WHY do we persist in putting ourselves through this agony?



Susan Mennano, a leader of Shamanic Journey Workshops, would say our mind wants to give our spirit indigestion by condemning our perceived inadequacy.


The mind wants to stay in control while our Spirit is growing into the Light.




So how do we stop this intellectual onslaught?  


We stop it by accessing the heart...we stop it by loving ourselves.  

We stop JUDGING ourselves... 
because the very act of judgment is LEAKING OUR ENERGY.  

The more we criticize ourselves, the more we lose this vital life source.


Instead of voicing criticism and condemnation,  Mennano tells us to:

us to:

Call forth in our internal dialog what we want and need.

Voice a clear and sincere intention regarding what we hope to accomplish.

And then trust that we will be gifted with the insight, encouragement and opportunities to make that happen. 




 It is then, I believe, that the Divine Universe guides us to the perfect circumstances to support us in our desire to transform our behavior.


This way of thinking lifts our hearts beautifully and moves us seamlessly into the delightful flow of energy with which Spirit fills our lives.  


Now we feel strangely free and liberated.


The absence of self judgment keeps us in the beautiful vibration of evolution and  transformation.  And the faith that we are loved and guided informs and directs our journey.

Now the energy pathway to our desired life change is clearly OPEN and waits only for us to step forward and accept this gift of grace and opportunity.    : )




                                                                                      Marie Helena




image from spirituallivingandhealing.com.   

Saturday, June 4, 2016

A Late Night Call and the Cat Face Piñata



  


Yesterday was my BIRTHDAY

 I received many beautiful gifts...including a scarf sent from Paris, books by Alan Watts, yellow roses.

I had an Italian dinner outside with my family observed overhead by a smiling, white and pink cat-faced piñata just waiting to reveal her treasures.


Yes, it was truly a lovely day.  "And" it also contained a very special spiritual gift...the role modeling of a solution to a challenging problem...a solution I have been in avid pursuit of for some time.


Here is the BACK STORY about this amazing gift.

I received a phone call the night before my birthday shortly before midnight...the cusp of my big day. 

It was an unexpected call (enhancing the drama) and it came from The Big Apple.  I would guess my subconscious was also involved in the planning of this moment because I had just posted a blog entitled "Happy Birthday to Me" and the caller, who had just awakened from a catnap, had set his alarm to give me his birthday greeting.

I was surprised and delighted by the call and proceeded to enjoy a lively, high vibrational (was this my first clue?), spirited conversation.  

After a little while, my friend suggested we do a three way phone call with a cohort of ours.  I agreed and thereafter, a conversation ensued ( I call it a comedy of errors in retrospect) in which my friend tried to explain to me how I could start the process and he could enter into it as a surprise

Except that I was never able to figure out what he was trying to tell me.

Round and round we went until my friend burst out laughing and said, "This is hilarious.  I am going to give up trying to control this and just let it happen."


I was astounded by the emotion he was expressing as he uttered the "C" word...CONTROL.  


This word has always signaled difficulty to me.   A problem I needed to deal with.  Work.  Hard work And, here he was laughing and calling the situation "hilarious"!  

Wow!


THIS was truly a NEW VIEW for me of the concept of control...

Trying to achieve "Control" can lead to a messy, confusing production that is (if you hold on to some perspective) funny...actually, hilarious.


And this is what my friend saw in the moment and immediately released his attempt to make something happenHe backed right off and let the Universe do its thing instead.


A wise choice.  This came very clear to me very fast because we immediately found ourselves right back into our beautiful conversational flow.

I found this experience...this significant conversation with my friend...to be a very powerful gift

Suddenly, I felt myself lightening up around the concept of control.  The messiness and sloppiness of "trying" to orchestrate something is now striking me as a comedy of wasted energy and the more quickly I am able to realize that fact, the faster I can direct my life back into its lovely flow.


These days I am waiting for passing MOON beams or beams of SUN light to move things along...however the glorious universe presents the unfolding.


A lot simpler.  A lot easier.  And a lot more fun.

Nice touch for an awesome Birthday.  Perhaps that's why the "cat" was smiling!

                                                                             
                                                                                        Marie Helena





image from colourbox.com

originally published June 2, 2013