For 1 week only!

An interesting special guest review of The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle.

Read Michael Maccariello’s view at Gem of The Week.

Missed the deadline? You can still get it in the FREE December newsletter at Lifetime of Life.

Peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek,
but a means by which we arrive at that goal.
~ Martin Luther King Jr

I decided that the title of this blog, which has summed up my entire approach to life so far, epitomises exactly why I have had so much struggle with life.

“Emily’s Quest”.  It suggests that I am somehow searching for something I don’t have, ‘questing’ for some answers I will never find.  It suggests I am wanting some kind of destination or answer more than I want the moment I already dwell in.

I decided what I need is not a change of circumstance but rather a change of mindset.  I do not need to reach some specific goal or destination.  There is no holy grail at the end of the quest, without which my whole life journey has been in vain.  Rather, I have looked down and realised I have held this holy grail in my hands the whole time. 

I am already alive.  In every moment, I have arrived.  I don’t need to wait for life to begin.  It is already here, and every moment is available to me to enjoy or not, as I please.

So no more questing.  But that does not mean to stop living or to stop exploring – quite the opposite.  It means to view each step along the way as worthy in and of itself.  It means to love each moment as it is, rather than as it was or should/could be.

For all my pontificating on the value of the present moment, it has only really hit me in the last couple of days what it really means to live that truth as a reality.

So instead of questing all the time for something else, instead I choose to say YES to life, and YES to every moment within it.

I will be doing that here: http://aheartyyes.blogspot.com

For a long time it seemed to me that life was about to begin – real life. But there was always some obstacle in the way, something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time still to be served, a debt to be paid. At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life. This perspective has helped me to see there is no way to happiness. Happiness is the way. So treasure every moment you have and remember that time waits for no one.

Happiness is a journey, not a destination.

~ Souza

Boy the day after can be rough.  The boys really did a good job with their wins yesterday so as they were partying it up in TO, I decided to do the same in Vancouver.

Our evening consisted at dining at my friend’s restaurant Azia.  If you love Asian Fusion food, you gotta come here.  It’s got tapas, Thai, Chinese, Malaysian, Mongolian and Japanese theme dishes.  A lot of the staff are Asian, so Ivano and Hector, jump on a plane!

Afterwards we hit the theaters to see 2012.  Awesome effects in this movie.  However with all of the rain we’ve been getting in Vancouver, you would think 2012 is already upon us!

The night concluded with more eating at Moxies and at the fully licensed Cafe Crepe!

Next morning I woke up with a purpose to hit the gym in an effort to reverse the damage I had caused.  As my student Julian likes to state “if you do the crime, you must do the time.”  Man I know that statement very well!

Before I had a chance to hit the gym, I got a call from Rob Kaman!  You will be very glad to hear that Rob is his usual charismatic destructive self.  He says “hi” to all of the Kombat boys and girls.

I jumped on the SkyTrain and made my way to the Gold’s Gym.  Boy it’s been a long time since I’ve been in a gym.  We actually started off Kombat Arts in the aerobics studio (just 2500 sq ft!) of a Gold’s Gym.  Boy I miss those days, and at times a small part of me wishes to be back there.  The good news is that I weighed  in at 147 lbs this morning!  Must be the facial hair!

It was great to be totally anonymous and get in about 1 1/2 hours of hard work.  My workout consisted of: skipping rope, shadowboxing, chin ups, dips, snatches into a split squat, military push presses, 1 legged stiff legged deadlifts, japanese squats, plate twists, more core training, Ys and Ts for the mid back and finally neck training.  Whew, not bad eh?

I finished up and made my way to Extreme Pita were I chilled and read more of Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now.  It’s pretty interesting; if you’ve completed the whole book, please let me know your thoughts on it.

Back at home Josip’s brother entertained us for an hour or so by bringing over his German Shepherd puppies.  They are such little terrors!

After getting nipped everywhere, Josip and I escaped our residence and headed to Earls for dinner.  The night got capped off with the movie, The Blind Side.  The movie was really moving and inspirational.  If you get a chance please check it out.  Ok guys, off to chill out by watching Heroes on my net book.  Tomorrow will be a full day of Yoga (my 1st lesson!) and back to training camp-Jd

The holiday season is here and it might make you feel joy, stress or fear.

It could bring up family struggles and romantic relationship issues.You may feel bad about your unmet goals and think about what you want but don’t have now.

Your ego (your mind and awareness) tells you stories about your past and based on your interpretations of your past, you doubt yourself and worry about your future.

“What if I never have….?”

90% of our thinking is negative and we spend way too much energy thinking about what we don’t have.

Shift your thoughts to a positive perspective and be thankful for what you have in the present moment.

When you focus on what you have, you instruct the brain to look for information, resources and opportunities to be thankful now. Then, your mind will see more evidence of that every day, and you’ll find yourself having more to appreciate, satisfaction in relationships, and self growth.

Here’s a quote on gratitude by author, Melody Beattie: “Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity. It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.”

You have the power to perceive the way in which you view the world. It’s time to change your attitude to gratitude.

Write down 3 specific things you are grateful for and e-mail it to me.

Give thanks and have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Imagine what it would be like to be totally disconnected to your brain chatter that connects you to the external world…. I felt lighter in my body…. I felt this sense of peacefulness. Imagine what it would feel like to lose 37 years of emotional baggage. I felt euphoria.

- Jill Bolte Taylor

When my mind chatter becomes still I know that all  is well, I accept where I am even if it’s not my first choice. I feel better.  I don’t stay there all day, I may go back to worry for a time about what to “do,” or what has been, but gradually I can tell that I am building the muscle of being in the present moment.

Living these moments without resistance has a very practical and immediate effect on my well-being.  Eckhart Tolle describes this in his Podcasts with Oprah (free at iTunes), a refuge of inspiration – my morning, mid-day or evening snack for the past few weeks.  Studying in a practical way, the art of bringing our awareness to the present moment, can calm and dissolve stress that we may otherwise absorb in small or large ways as we live in this economic “crisis” and ever-changing “climate.”

To nurture my “muscle” of presence today, I took two walks in the light rain and left my cell phone and camera in the car.  Radical, I know!  You might like it, you might already do it from time to time.  Disconnect to connect.

MORE:  Here’s an article I found interesting from the NY Times about a woman relating to her mother as she lost her memory, a link to Jill Bolte Taylor’s work, and one of many resources for people who want to learn more about how to deliberately develop presence and live in the moment (PsychCentral).

Start to observe yourself and move from worry to acceptance of the present moment; breathe into the now, feel the now by using more of your senses, close your eyes and bring gratitude into the present moment for something in your immediate experience.  Oprah says about working for a difficult boss at the start of her career, “I was grateful because I knew this too would pass!”

The secret Journey is my account of the magic of now – the law of attaction.
It is a work in progress, written as much for you as it is for me.

I would like to share this, as much as chart my progression, the creation of my dreams and wishes, and as I have already had some wonderful experiences since learning of this magical power, I need to share it before I burst!

Today I will make this my homepage for reflecting on my journey as it happens and reliving some of the wonderful things, that secretly I have manifested.

I don’t want to sound, preachy or weird, like another one of those funny people, who stand in Leicester Square screaming through a megaphone about the end of the world being nigh!
Although I do feel, like I have learnt a secret that has made me become somewhat wiser than before. Perhaps that’s just growing up?! Sorry, I am procrastinating

What it is that I am trying to say is, I am not weird at all, I am just like you. Actually, I am a total contradiction of the last delivered statement as “I am Unique” the same as you are!

I (like you, I am sure) am trying to grow as a person, be the best I can be, treat my friends and family well, and ultimately be happy!

This hasn’t always been the case..

Some time ago, when my life was on another path. I received a DVD of a book. Rachel a dear friend had purchased it for me as a gift. She knew I needed help in someway or another. To her I will always be thankful. At the time the place I found myself in mentally, was rocky and hard, difficult and confusing. The drugs certainly didn’t help. I was on a one way trip to mental institution, I was fueling my body with alcohol and drugs to see me through a very tough and completely ill fated, physically and mentally demanding job. I will reveal in another addition about the nature of that beast.

Anyway that’s when I found a Health, Smile, Peace centre in Hammersmith – http://www.brholistic.co.uk/html/hammersmith_centre.html – which fixed me up a treat, just in time! I had walked past this building many times, the off licence was next door after all, I hadn’t ever paid any attention to this building, or considered the goings on inside.

I had watched the The Secret – Rhona Bryne DVD with a dreadful hangover, smoking a spliff whilst painting my toe nails. I wasn’t really paying too much attention to the story, it was certainly more like company comfort noise.
I did feel a little different afterwards, as some of the stories had drawn me in, for a few moments. I would contemplate the ideas, before returning to the spliff, and correcting any mistakes I had made with the scarlet paint.
The following day I was on my way back from Shepards Bush Market, with two friends in tow, when I said, “Hold up, wait I need to go in here”. My friends asked why. I did not know.

The HSP Centre saved me for a little while it gave me a sanctuary of calm, a place to reflect and wash myself of the madness of my life. I found peace there, I practiced meditation, although I didn’t find this easy. There was certainly lots going on upstairs, mentally to try and keep that lot in check took some practice. I enjoyed Yoga, Energy Building, Vibration dance and Thai Chi, I took myself there everyday, to this HSP Centre I will always be grateful.

Thinking back I know it was the essence of what i found in The Secret by Rhona Bryne that gave me that nudge that day, the nudge through the door at the HSP Centre. Well, not litrally, but it certainly had awakened something inside of me, I remember a section of the film saying “Ask – Believe – Receive!” I asked for Strength, Love and to make a grand that night!! It didnt happen staight away, but as soon as I found the strength the rest followed.

I have had enough.

Enough running, enough searching, enough trying, enough becoming – enough questing. I have had enough trying to be something different than what I am. Enough trying to become – to become better, different, worthy. Enough trying to redeem myself for sins I can’t identify, enough trying to prove myself, enough trying to justify my very existence. Enough sacrifice, enough study, enough self-depreciation, enough of men who reinforce a sense of worthlessness, enough of believing in worthlessness myself. Enough of being an octagonal peg, an irregular peg, an Emily-shaped peg, in a square hole, a round hole, a triangle hole – in somebody else’s hole. I thought if I made a career out of saving other people’s lives, caring for other people, meaning something to other people – ignoring all the things I love and that make me who I am, to become the life-saver, the giver, the worthy saint – that then maybe I would be enough.

I am enough.

I am enough right now, just as I am, today. I have nothing to prove, nothing to redeem, nothing to make up for or make better. Of course I can continue to grow, to grow into myself, into all the space beyond that my body aches to fill- but that doesn’t mean I have to fundamentally change, to become – to become better, to fix myself, to become someone else, someone more worthy. I am already worthy of all I am and all I have and more. I am already a person. I am creative, philosophical, expansive, hopeful, loving, genuine, honest, expressive, independent, personable, free spirited, spiritual, slight crazy… I have nothing to prove. I already am.

Enough.

Whatever tomorrow brings I’ll be there with open arms and open eyes. – Incubus

And whatever today brings let me be present with open arms and open eyes!

I keep learning more that if I want to feel peace I have to make peace with the present.  If I want abundance I have to feel gratitude for the good that is.  Now.  If I want friends I have to be a friend.  If I want someone to appreciate me I have to appreciate me.  And so on.  It’s easy enough to think of this in an intellectual way, the trick is the practice.  Only through practice can we really know something.  I think I will be practicing this my whole life;  to make peace with and realize that my effectiveness is only and ever in the here and now.

Somehow this was easier last year on my motorcycle trip – the immediacy of the consequences for not being present as a beginner rider.  Every morning and during riding I was singing with Bob Marley, “Thank you Lord for what you are doing now.”

Cheers today to open arms and open eyes!  I hope I and you behold some and more and eventually all of the good that is.

Do you wonder why you can be in a terrific frame of mind and then something happens or someone says something and you fall into a feeling of heaviness, hopelessness, and despair?  Or why someone can “push your buttons?” It can happen after something a family member did or said, or when you’re getting ready to celebrate a holiday or birthday.   For me, it’s that feeling of wanting to desperately hide in my bed with the shades drawn.  It can last for minutes, hours, days, or longer.  Some people spend a lot of time there, others only occasionally.  

Eckhart Tolle (A New Earth, the Power of Now) characterizes this uncomfortable and despairing feeling as the pain body.  Everyone has one. It’s the emotional aspect of the ego. It’s a very unhappy entity.  It’s essentially unexpressed pain in the form of energy that your body has been holding onto from the past. 

As Tolle explains, “Any negative emotion that is not fully faced and seen for what it is in the moment it arises does not completely dissolve. The energy field of old but still very much alive emotion that lives in almost every human being is the pain-body.”   It could be the energy you have from childhood after being told by your parents to “stop crying.”  Or the unexpressed grief you carry from the death of a loved one.  Past-life regressionists say it’s negative energy imbedded in our cells that we carry from one life time to the next.

These negative emotions become an energy field.  The energy gives off an unhappy vibration. It doesn’t want to end its unhappiness because an end to its unhappiness is the end to the pain-body.  The pain body actually seeks negative experiences and needs more of them to keep itself energized.  One of the ways it feeds is on negative thinking. 

When I had my last strong experience with my  pain body (after something my partner had said) I retreated to bed all afternoon and watched cable news, gossip shows, and ate cookies.  This is what the pain body wants – more negativity. The best I could do that afternoon was to accept it and to know that things would change.  As Tolle points out, the first step is realizing that there is something in me that seeks unhappiness,that seeks unpleasant experiences, that seeks more negativity because it feeds on those things.

There is a way out. 

If you can become the watcher of the pain body and not identified with it it won’t be able to replenish itself through you. You won’t be generating more negative thoughts for it to gain stregth.  The moment you observe it, feel its energy field within you, and take your attention into it, the identification is broken. A higher dimension of consciousness has come in.  Which Tolle calls presence.

There are modalities to help remove energy blocks like Kundalini yoga, past life regression therapy, and energy-based body work.  And as basic as it may sound, thinking positive thoughts helps bring positive thoughts into your vibrational field.  Negative thoughts feed the pain body and cause a different vibration which then attracts more negativity.

The most direct response when you are overcome by it, is to see it as not you.  See it for what it is. In the present moment, there is no past pain. Take one moment at a time, accept what you are feeling, and find a way to connect to Spirit.  Read something inspirational, contact a friend, pray, or do something fun that connects you to the present moment.  The power of your presence will connect you with joy.

I just saw a program on PBS with Eckhart Tolle called “Eckhart Tolle: Awakening in the Now”. 

Here’s an excerpt:

Working with the Law of Attraction to manifest a different life for myself, I found that what Eckhart Tolle was saying really hit home.  That many people, including myself, are not pleased with the present moment and either complain about it or use it “as a means to an end”.  I need this “now” now to get me to a more important moment. 

I know that I am guilty of this and find myself often looking towards a future that I think I’ll like better than what I have and where I am right now.  But does this practice–living in the now–contradict the Law of Attraction? Since I am using the Law of Attraction in my life to create things and situations that I want, am I using the “now” to get to a better future.  A future that doesn’t really exist because the “now” is all we have.

I’ll go farther into what Eckhart Tolle says.  He says that as we look at each moment, we must ask if we can live  in its space (be okay with it).   That to live in the “now”, we must be okay with it whatever it is because it is. Is. Is.  That’s all there is.  Every moment. Now. No. Now. Now. Now.  He also says that we can make a decision to take action.  Or not.  In that now.  He also is a big advocate of getting out of our thoughts that project or live in the past (not that the past  or future exist in reality, but do in our thoughts).

This too, however, is what I am discovering as I use the Law of Attraction.  I set out to manifest a new life for myself, new job, money, health etc…and what I am discovering is that 99.9% of my thoughts are fear based. About the future mostly, but some times I am also beating myself up about the past.   I am finding that to really work the Law of Attraction and to feel the feelings of who I want to be and what I want that I MUST live in the now and let go of that fear and those thoughts about the past and future.  Because the truth of who I want to be and what I want to have IS ALREADY HERE RIGHT NOW!  I already am who I want to be and I already have what I want, I just have to get out of my own way, live in the moment and realize it.  Feel those feelings of who I am and what I have.

Using the Law of Attraction and Eckhart Tolle’s thoughts about the “now” do not contradict each other.  I would describe the process of realizing your desires and who you are as an unfolding that exists in this very moment.  Not a projection of the future.   (Though I would thoroughly admit that when I first started on this journey almost 6 weeks ago that I was projecting into my future wholeheartedly…and was feeling miserable because of it.)

What do you all think about this?

I started reading The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle today. Tolle suggets to “watch the thinker” –in other words, to pay attention to what the mind is thinking about, and not let it control you, so you can be in a constant state of awareness. Awareness is exactly what I want. I think when I am in peace with my surroundings, and with myself, my creativity flows and I am happy. In the past, I’ve sold myself short so many times because of negative thoughts and high expectations. It’d be great to be free of my inner critic. Why not try?

So, goodbye to the worrying and suffering, and hello to awareness and peace!

Relationships

I started this project because I wanted to gain control over my Well-Being.

I was at a crossroad.  My back was against the wall.  Abraham-Hicks teachings about the Law of Attraction rang true, they resonated with me.  They gave me hope, and re-ignited my dreams.

Soon I discovered that the Law of Attraction is all encompassing.  The Law of Attraction is more than what allows us to get a car, money or a husband.  It is what governs the Universe.

During a retreat with my teacher this summer, a fellow seeker asked her:

“Amma, whenever we have the opportunity to ask you something, we waste it. So my question is; if we could only ask one question what should it be?”

“Who am I, should be the question,” she explained.  “Know thy Self,” the answer.

Studying the Law of Attraction I am struck by the sameness of its core.

In The Power Of Now Eckart Tolle refers to that knowing of who we are, as Presence. Knowing who we really are, we are connected to Source.  Being connected to Source we feel good.  Feeling good, we create a happy reality for ourselves, and for others.

When we are not connected to Source, we have that unquantifiable feeling of something missing in our life, of a void that we feel compelled to fill.  Some of us spend our whole lives trying.  Take relationships for instance.  Our first one with our parents is followed by relationships with schoolteachers, friends, neighbors, colleagues, money, significant others and so on.  Along the way we are influenced by their beliefs, expectations and demands.  The connection we had with Source when we were first born; is now dimmed.  We feel a void.  When we first meet our partner, we are his/her sole focus of positive attention; we love it. Our partner’s empowering attention becomes the catalyst for that shift of energy that helps us re-connect with Source.

Unfortunately nobody can keep their full attention on us forever.  When it is withdrawn, we feel bad and we resent it.  Before we didn’t notice that the way he squeezes the toothpaste is actually aggravating.  And what about the way he gets the wrong end of the stick and forgets things we’ve told him a hundred times?  It drives us insane!

Separation may follow, or a change of job, neighborhood, or we feel that more money will do it, or maybe all of the above.  Thing is that the characters will be different, but the bloody plot will be the same.  You know it’s true, we’ve all been there, done that.

So, before going to all the trouble of looking for new actors for the same play Abraham-Hicks says  “…You must be willing to please yourself first, or you will often be swept up by the negativity that surrounds you…”

To please ourselves first is not selfish.  To please ourselves means making ourselves feel good, which means that we are in alignment with who we really are.

“…When you are in alignment with who-you-really-are, you cannot help but uplift those with whom you come into contact. Your value to those around  you hinges upon only one thing: your personal alignment with Source. And the only thing you have to give to another is an example of that alignment-which  they may observe, then desire, and then work to achieve-but you cannot give it to them. Everyone is responsible for the thoughts they think and the things that they choose as their objects of attention…”

On the other hand, if we make it our job to feel good (which it actually is) instead of relying on someone else, our attention will automatically fall on what we do like.  And guess what, the Law of Attraction will find and bring us more things that we like about our partner, or our colleagues, our neighbor or a dog. What we don’t like will often fade away and now the other party responds in kind, and you know how it works from here; the better it feels, the better it gets.  I’d say it’s worth a try, don’t you?  Beats the alternative in many cases.

My husband and I have been married a long time…

More tomorrow.

But for now let me leave you with Abraham-Hicks’  thought of the day.

Begin modulating thought in terms of the way that it feels rather than in

terms of the results that it will net you. The tendency is to flow a

little Energy and then take score. Well, the problem is, as you flow the

Energy, the Universe responds instantly. But when you take score, you’re

right back in that reality again.

— Abraham

Look forward to seeing you then.

Your friend,

Success

Do not pursue the past.

Do not lose yourself in the future.

The past no longer is

The future has not yet come.

Looking deeply at life as it is

in the very here and now

the practitioner dwells

in stability and freedom.

- Gautama Buddha

]]> http://lawofattractionenterprise.wordpress.com/2009/10/16/day-four-%e2%80%93-a-better-stance/ Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:21:41 +0000 loaenterprise http://lawofattractionenterprise.wordpress.com/2009/10/16/day-four-%e2%80%93-a-better-stance/

Whacking bad feelings on the head

Hi – You know; since starting this project I feel so much better.  In the morning I feel like, “Yeah I’m awake, I can play.”

By nine am I have already done two hours of writing.  And that is great, because since I gave up smoking three years ago, I have found it hard to get going in the morning.  But now, I wake up at six-thirty, jump out of bed and wake up my son. I pack his lunch, make myself a big latte macchiato, hug him goodbye and… back into bed.

Don’t jump to conclusions, I don’t go back to sleep. I sit up, I look around my room in appreciation, I meditate and then I dive into my Apple laptop and write.  Then I read.  Sometime I read a bit first and then I write.

The other thing I’ve noticed is that now that that food has moved into the background. I used go to sleep planning tomorrow’s meal, and wake up itching to cook it.  Simon Majumdar would understand.  He is the one who wrote Eat My Globe, a foodie’s memoir.  These days, it is often the afternoon before I realize that I haven’t thought about food, and I haven’t a clue what I am going to cook for dinner.

“Which reminds me…oh, shit!  I have no idea what I’m going to cook today.  Wait, what about one of those frozen Mediterranean tomato, basil and mozzarella tarts I made from scratch in August?  Defrost one, a nice salad, fresh bread… and done!” It sounds good, doesn’t it?

So now, where was I…oh yes, since I started reading Abraham-Hicks, my stance has shifted, I am aware of how feel.  And like in the game Whack-a-Mole, I whack bad feelings on the head with good ones.

Feeling good has a high energy vibration, as a result I often feel sort of charged and have boundless energy.

I am more present and when I focus on something, it seems to be more… there.  Maybe this is the Presence that Eckhart Tolle tells us about in; The Power of Now and A New Earth.

Well that’s it for now.  My husband comes back tomorrow night.  Lets see how ready I am to interact with someone else’s energy at such close quarters.

I’ll let you know!

See you tomorrow

Your friend,

Success

ps. Before you ask, Zucchine with an e at the end, not an i, is the correct spelling for zucchine.  You see, zucchina is feminine and so it goes, one zucchina, two zucchine.

Feel better now?  Thought so.

It is just before 2 PM. This the begining of the afternoon. I am reading an article on a weblog about awakening. I am listening to relaxation music. Meditating while i am reading the text and listening to the sounds in my ears. It feels good. Quiet, peacefull. I feel the energy travelling through my whole body. At the same time, i am looking at some objects on my desk : a card representing a painting from Bill Saunders which shows a sinous road in the canadian countryside, reaching a forest with a lake on its side. There are houses, and a church. It’s quiet. A mug full of clean water and another mug for coffee this one. The clock, which does cliquetis-click as each second goes past. An apple on the right side of the telephone. Yellow and fresh. Outisde the large and clean window, a man is cutting the grass. It is fall time. Leaves have abandonned the trees to join the floor. On the other side of the door a few people are talking.  I dont hear what they say. I feel good. I like to observe people, i like to observe things and objects. I love doing nothing. Just being in the middle of my wordl, doing nothing. Just watching. I have always loved to do this since i was a kid. Just like watching and listening to the falling drops of the rain. I am relaxed. Ready to go back to the world of action, which i dont like.

Let’s see.  Rent was due today.  Yesterday I got really sick.  Probably not a coincidence.  Am I worried about money? If I said, “No” , then I’d be a liar.  The point is, I guess, is that I’m trying not to worry.  I am telling myself everyday that my bank account is chock full, I receive and give money easily and that I am a money magnet.  I am also telling myself that I am in perfect health, that all of my body parts work perfectly etc. So, what the f*** is going on?  I can tell myself that all I want but I’m still buying oodles of noodles!  I still had to sleep 17 hours just to feel remotely better,  Maybe I should make this a little clearer to the universe:

I HAVE ENOUGH MONEY SO THAT I CAN DIP MYSELF IN FINE BELGIAN CHOCOLATE AND ROLL AROUND IN IT!

AND

I  FEEL HEALTHY EVERYDAY OF MY LIFE FOR AS LONG AS I LIVE-WHICH BY THE WAY IS GOING TO BE A VERY LONG TIME!

Do you hear me now universe? Or should I get a fucking bull horn and yell it at the top of my lungs from the empire state building?! Yes…I think I’ll do that.

Here’s my point:

I am passionate about this.  I am not joking or kidding or playing at games.  These are the things I want and I want them now.  Not tomorrow.  NOW!

Interesting:

Bryan just called and delved into a story about his massage client who is suffering from a spinal cord injury and can hardly walk.  By hardly I mean that it took Bryan 20 minutes to get him out of bed and to the massage table.  I guess his client was really depressed and asked for advice.  Bryan told him that he’s not in his shoes and its hard for him to tell him what to do to make it all better because he doesn’t know how he feels.  He said the guess that he could tell him was to “be happy now”.  

Sounds simple doesn’t it.  Be happy  now.  It’s great advice.  Be happy now. I have to mediate on that one.  I keep waiting to be happy for when I get all these things and when my life will be this way or that.  Be happy now.

Be happy now.  Wise huh?

Well, I’ll  post this one.  I’ll let you all see me in all my fucked up glory.  Amen.

Sometimes it feels like our lives are filled with tight deadlines, frustrations and demands.

While we know how awful stress is, we’re constantly racing anyway.

It can be difficult to slow down and take time for ourselves.

But, we may not realize how our mind and body pay the price.

Need a break?

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Tom Butler-Bowdon

Morris: Of all the non-religious works that were composed before (let’s say) the 20th century, which one of them were you most surprised to find is relevant today?

Butler-Bowdon: My personal favourite of the 19th century is Samuel Smiles’s Self-Help, published on the same day as Darwin’s The Origin of the Species in 1859. Smiles was a Scottish doctor cum journalist who had begun giving inspiring talks to working men in the north of England, drawing on many of the Victorian success stories of his time. The book is a wealth of examples of people who beat the odds and did something great with their lives, and although it is dated to the extent that he included almost no women, it is still a brilliant motivational work that deserves a bigger readership today. During his lifetime Smiles was quite famous, and it was said that many homes only had two books: the Bible and Self-Help. It was also the inspiration for Orison Swett Marden, the founder of Success magazine in the US and the author of books like Pushing to The Front.

Morris: To me, “spiritual” has always been an elusive term to define. What did you decide when selecting and then discussing the works in the 50 Spiritual Classics volume?

Butler-Bowdon: First, it was never going to be 50 Religious Classics. I was less interested in famous theologians or works of orthodoxy than whether a book had deeply moved or inspired people, whether it was written five or five hundred years ago. And I wasn’t bothered if some writings would be seen by others as sacrilegious (I wrote about a book on Wicca, for instance) or even a bit ‘trashy’. I was very keen to highlight that this has been a golden era in terms of modern spiritual writing, with books like The Celestine Prophecy, The Power of Now, Conversations With God and The Way of the Peaceful Warrior representing a new canon that lay totally outside established religion. Again, as with the previous 50 Classics books, I wanted to show that, even though many of them had been huge bestsellers, and people’s lives were being changed by these writings, they had not been given due critical recognition.

Having said this, I was also keen to cover many of the famous spiritual writings by authors such as Augustine, Teresa of Avila and Al Ghazzali. I wanted 50 Spiritual to be a treasury of inspiration covering many centuries.

Finally, my aim was to make this a spiritual book for people who don’t necessarily believe in God. The point I make is that, whether or not you believe in a divine entity, there is an unseen order that moves the universe, and that getting in tune with it provides for a magical, purposeful life. You become a vehicle for this force, helping to advance the universe in a positive way.

If you wish to read the complete interview, please contact me at interllect@mindspring.com.

Also, you are invited to check out this Web site:

http://www.Butler-Bowdon.com/

As summer ends and autumn begins, the sun sets earlier and the days get shorter.

Trees prepare for winter as their leaves change colors and eventually fall to the ground.

Nature responds naturally to the changing seasons. Let today, the first day of fall, inspire you towards personal growth. It’s time to let go of what no longer serves you and take on new challenges and responsibilities.

Despite your desire to make positive changes, you may feel stuck in bad habits and resist making a change. So, stop resisting it and start taking action.

And, if you’re having trouble changing on your own, having a life coach will help you get where you want to be more quickly and easily.

As a life coach, I’ll cheer you on, give you feedback, reaffirm your commitment, and motivate you to create new habits. You’ll discover healthy ways to manage your life.

I’ll track your performance to enable you to accomplish your goals. Don’t wait any longer to start a new career, boost your self-confidence, have a body you love or improve your relationships.

Just as trees know how to prepare for winter, personal growth starts with you knowing you’re ready and willing to take a step forward to change your life.

Today starts a new season-a reason to let bad habits fall away.

Turn over a new leaf.

http://josephsreviews.wordpress.com/2009/08/21/the-weight-the-story-of-forgetting/