Give the gift of connection and relationship

Pile of gorgeous gifts — Image via Wikipedia

I found another great blogger this morning — Lee Horbachewski of SimpLee Serene. Here’s a recent post I liked…

No matter who you are, what you look like, what you do, where you invest your time or how you celebrate the season, you need connection.

Accepting people for who they are.

Knowing what’s going on around you.

Being present right now.

Connecting with full attention and pure intention.

It all sounds wonderful doesn’t it? So what stops our society from doing and being this?

Busy, busy, busy, go, go, go, buy, buy, buy and dare I say it judge, judge, judge…

What if the biggest gift you can give someone you love is you: your time, your love and your acceptance?

I invite you to consider for a moment what it would feel like to experience quality time with a friend. How would it feel to receive a surprise visit, a phone call, a real life connection?

I invite you to press STOP right now on the busyness of life and what should be done. Connect with YOU in this moment, now think of the special people in your life… Do you know how they are feeling? Do you know what’s going on in their life? When was the last time you spoke to them? When was the last time you saw them?

Show someone you love, that they are special.

Show someone you care, and give the gift of connection and relationship.

And as always this begins with connecting with YOU.

Source: Give the gift of connection and relationship by Lee | SimpLee Serene

If you like this, there’s more at the Source. Add her blog to Google Reader like I did and keep your holidays happy…

Open-mouthed smile

December 15, 2011 0

Don’t try anything cute

http://www.bizarrocomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Picture-17.png

December 15, 2011 0

Quashing the Self-Improvement Urge

Leo Babauta has some interesting thoughts on his blog this morning…

One of the driving forces of my life for many years was the need to improve myself. It’s one of the driving forces for people who read my work as well.

It’s an incredibly pervasive urge: we are always trying to improve, and if we’re not, that’s something we should improve.

It’s everywhere. Where does this urge come from? It’s embedded in our culture — in the U.S. from Benjamin Franklin to the early entrepreneurial titans, everyone is trying to better themselves. It goes deeper, to ancient Western ideals of the perfect well-rounded person. But it flourished in the 20th century, from Dale Carnegie and Napoleon Hill to Stephen Covey. And now it’s in full bloom, with blogs. And yes, I’m part of this movement.

So what’s the problem? You could say it’s great that people are constantly trying to improve themselves, but where does it end? When is anyone ever content with who they are? We are taught that we are not good enough yet, that we must improve, and so … we always feel a little inadequate.

Source: » Quashing the Self-Improvement Urge :zenhabits

Go to the source if you’re interested in the rest of his perspective…

December 14, 2011 0

Soul builder

POSTER-SOUL BUILDER

December 14, 2011 0

YOU ARE how you see life

We all have filters through which we see life. It could be the filter of a past relationship, rules that we learned from our parents or culture growing up. We have expectations of what a relationship should be. But – remember, life isn’t how you see it; YOU ARE how you see life.

Source: Why You Get To Experience What You Bring To A Relationship!

December 14, 2011 0

Just a cute picture…

We enjoy life on our hobby farm in Wisconsin. Can you tell?

December 13, 2011 0

What is ‘healthy giving’?

“It is giving that holds the giver and the receiver in high esteem. It is giving based on a desire to do it rather than from a sense of guilt, pity, shame, or obligation. It is giving with no strings attached. Or it is giving based on a clean, direct contract. Whether it is giving of our time, efforts, energy, comfort, nurturing, money, or ourselves, it is giving that we can afford. Giving is part of the chain of giving and receiving. We can learn to give in healthy ways; we can learn to give in love. We need to keep an eye on our giving, to make sure it has not crossed the line into caretaking. But we need to learn to give in ways that work for us and others.”

Beattie, Melody (2009-12-15). The Language of Letting Go (Hazelden Meditation Series) (p. 360). Hazelden. Kindle Edition.

December 13, 2011 0

Why The Story You Tell About Your Life Is Vital!

In reality we are all storytellers and the story we tell about our lives is what we believe, and then we act on what we believe and those actions create a result that continues to reinforce and backup our story! Crazy cycle right?

Tony [Robbins] asked a funny and also profound question yesterday. We were talking about the movie “Titanic” as a reference. He was joking around and said “If you saw “Titanic” 3 times a day for 10 years, every day, how would you feel?” Obviously, with a sad ending like that, most of us would probably not be jumping up and down for joy. We’d probably be sad, perhaps a little hopeless and feel like we’ve missed out on life and or love.

Tony asked, “Do you wanna go see a shitty movie 10,000 times?” and obviously the answer is no. But – wait a minute – what about the movie, or the “story” that you tell yourself about what your life is like? What is that story like? Is it empowering? Is it awesome? Is it inspiring? Or is it shitty and sad? And how many times a day do we tell ourselves these stories?

ALL THE TIME! So, we are watching and reacting to the story we are telling ourselves about our lives and then producing that result. What story are you telling yourself about your life?

Source: Why The Story You Tell About Your Life Is Vital!

December 13, 2011 0

Let us choose more loving words and actions

POSTER-LET US CHOOSE LOVE

Let us choose more loving words and actions and create more love in our world please POSTER-LET US CHOOSE LOVE – notsalmon

December 13, 2011 0

The Dark Side

Image via Wikipedia

Have you ever gone outside at night and looked closely at the new moon? Or looked through a telescope at the moon when it was crescent shaped? Although what we see is a bright slice, we know there’s more. Even when the moon is full and lights the night sky, there s a dark side to the moon.

There’s a dark side to us too. We all experience jealousy, envy bitterness, resentment. How about neediness? Ugh. Who wants to shine a light on that?

What about all those fears? Fear of failure, fear of Success, fear of intimacy, fear of going broke, fear of staying broke, fear of abandonment, fear that we’re essentially unlovable, fear of the unknown, fear of growing old, fear of being alone, fear of being with someone, fear of losing control.

Then there are other parts of us that we would prefer to keep darkened and out of sight, parts such as greed, dishonesty, intolerance, disgust, hatred. Although some people have no problem showing anger, others of us prefer to keep that out of sight too. And what about our manipulative part? Who wants anyone to see that?

Some of us may even consider the dark side of ourselves forbidden. We may refuse to acknowledge it exists because we believe it’s wrong. Not acknowledging our dark side doesn’t wish it out of existence, any more than not seeing the dark side of the moon makes it disappear.
Most sane people agree that they don’t want to be controlled by their dark side. We don’t want parts of ours elves- jealousy, neediness, greed to control our behaviors. But when we don’t acknowledge these emotions and traits, they can gain control. The more we try to repress something, the more it fights for its life.

Stand back. Don’t be afraid. Shine a light on that dark part. At least look at it briefly. Acknowledge it’s there. Take some of the pressure off. Let yourself be well rounded, instead of one dimensional.

Take it a step further. Share those darker parts with others, so they can shine a light on those parts of themselves. Experience how much easier it is not to act needy, not to speak bitterly, and not to look disgusted when you acknowledge those feelings.

Value: We don ‘t just have a light side, a bright side. Nobody is always loving, always kind, always generous, always thoughtful. We should honestly acknowledge our character defects as well.

Source: December 13: The Dark Side | Language of Letting Go

December 13, 2011 0

Forget the word failure

POSTER-FORGET WORD FAILURE

Forget the word failure. If you’re always learning new things, you’re always winning at life. POSTER-FORGET WORD FAILURE – notsalmon

December 13, 2011 0

Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring

I first fell in love with this piece when I heard it in this form in middle school in 1972…

Now I appreciate this form much more…

Which one is your favorite?

December 13, 2011 0

Facing Our Dark Side

Image by dawneday via Flickr

Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
— Step Four of Al-Anon

By the time we get to the Fourth of the Twelve Steps, we are ready to face our darker side, the side that prevents us from loving ourselves and others, from letting others love us, and from enjoying life. The purpose of Step Four is not to make ourselves feel worse; our purpose is to begin to remove our blocks to joy and love.

We look for fears, anger, hurt, and shame from past events buried feelings that may be affecting our life today. We search for subconscious beliefs about ourselves and others that may be interfering with the quality of our relationships.

These beliefs say: I’m not lovable. … I’m a burden to those around me…. People can’t be trusted…. I can’ t be trusted…. I don’t deserve to be happy and successful…. Life isn’t worth living.

We look at our behaviors and patterns with an eye toward discerning the self-defeating ones. With love and compassion for ourselves, we try to unearth all our guilt – earned and unearned and expose it to the light.

We perform this examination without fear of what we shall find, because this soul searching can cleanse us and help us feel better about ourselves than we ever dreamt possible.

God, help me search out the blocks and barriers within myself Bring what I need to know into my conscious mind, so I can be free of it. Show me what I need to know about myself.

Source: December 12: Facing Our dark Side | Language of Letting Go

December 12, 2011 3

The single best thing for our health

Well worth the 9 1/2 minutes to watch…

December 12, 2011 0

Best Christmas ad of the season?

h/t @rontite

December 12, 2011 0

Hate takes pieces of your heart. Love creates peace in your heart.

POSTER-pieces of your heart

Hate takes pieces of your heart. Love creates peace in your heart. POSTER-pieces of your heart – notsalmon

December 12, 2011 0

Here’s Why There Are No Victims – Only Volunteers!

We get to choose to be a victim. We place that identity on ourselves and before we know it, we are volunteers to our own victimhood. It’s so easy to feel victimized by the world – and some people will even justify your choice to feel like a victim. But ask yourself, does choosing to be a victim EMPOWER you? Does it bring more kinds of healthy and awesome Love into your life? Does it move your life forward? Does it serve your highest potential or does it keep you stuck in the emotions or guilt, anger, shame and the like?

It’s possible for us to be hurt – and no matter how deep that pain, it is possible for us to learn from it and give it an empowering meaning – and when we do that every day, we turn shit into fertilizer. And then we can really begin planting the seeds of our dreams.

So – what’ll it be today my friend? Victim or co-creator? It’s up to you!

Source: Here’s Why There Are No Victims – Only Volunteers!

Mastin’s post is a long one today. Go to the source if you’d like to read more about victimhood…

December 12, 2011 0

God’s will

Each day, ask God what God wants us to do today; then ask God to help. A simple request, but so profound and far-reaching it can take us anywhere we need to go. Listen: all that we want, all that we need, all the answers, all the help, all the good, all the love, all the healing, all the wisdom, all the fulfillment of desire is embodied in this simple request. We need say no more than Thank You. This Plan that has been made for us is not one of deprivation. It is one of fullness, joy, and abundance. Walk into it. See for yourself. Today, I will ask God to show me what God wants me to do for this day, and then ask for help to do that. I will trust that is sufficient to take me into light and joy.

Beattie, Melody (2009-12-15). The Language of Letting Go (Hazelden Meditation Series) (p. 359). Hazelden. Kindle Edition.

You might also find this helpful…

“The following summarizes the description of the 11th Step provided in Alcoholics Anonymous (primarily on pp. 86-88). This is supplemented by some suggestions [in brackets] that we have found helpful.

Preparing for the Day Ahead

We ask God to direct our thinking, asking especially that it be divorced from self-pity, dishonest or self-seeking motives.
We consider our plans for the day. We can now use our mental faculties with assurance.
If we face indecision or we can’t determine what course to take, we ask God for inspiration, an intuitive thought or a decision. We relax and take it easy.
We pray to be shown all through the day what our next step is to be, that we be given whatever we need to take care of problems.
We ask especially for freedom from self-will. [We might also pray for help with specific defects or problem areas, and review our 10th step corrective measures for the day ahead.]

Prayers to be of Use

We ask for guidance in the way of patience, kindness, tolerance and love especially within the family.
We pray as to what we can do today for the person who is still sick. [We might also pray for specific people in need, or those with whom we’re angry.]

Spiritual/Religious Exercises

If appropriate, we attend to our religious devotions, or say set prayers which emphasize 12 Step principles.
We may read from a spiritual book.

Practicing the 11th Step Throughout the Day

We pause, when agitated or doubtful, and ask for the right thought or action.
We constantly remind ourselves we are no longer running the show, humbly saying to ourselves many times each day “Thy will be done.””

Source: 11th Step Guidelines

For the record, the first excerpt can be found in Melody Beattie‘s book “The Language of Letting Go”. I recommend getting the Kindle edition — it’s cheaper and you can view it on your computer, smartphone or Kindle. The second reading comes from Recovery.net which features a website and an android app…