Your Inner Compass - A Child's Toy

Yesterday I wrote about man's "natural" beauty. When we're young we don't try to be beautiful, we just are. This lasts longer for some than others, depending on the length of time we're covered in an appreciative love for everything we are and everything we're capable of still becoming. It's like good soil, sun and water for us to grow up healthy, wealthy and wise.

At some point most of us start trying to be attractive, whether to our parents, our world, or to that "just one". This is a learned thing, that how we are naturally somehow isn't good enough. Once this mental path is taken it seems to get us emotionally and spiritually lost. The longer we travel it, the less we are able to see real beauty in ourselves or in others. And what we see as beautiful too closely matches what the media says we need to be acceptable and beautiful.

Then one day we wake up, look at our less-than-beautiful messed-up lives, feeling ugly and lost. Without realizing it, we have been worshiping the opinion of our fellow man to tell us our lives have meaning and importance instead of listening to our inner voice. We have been praying to the saints of money and materialism to tell us of our worth in this world, instead of allowing abundance to flow into our lives as a by-product of following our joy and developing our talents. We realize we are so lost; in the deep woods with no sunlight to guide us out.

There always is a way out, if you believe there is. If you're unable to reconnect with your inner child, perhaps you'll be able to follow your inner compass. This is from my friends at Daily OM. As Ben Franklin said, "...I was conscious, that not a tenth part of the wisdom was my own...but rather the gleanings that I had made of the sense of all ages and nations. However, I resolved to be the better for the echo of it.."

Daily OM

August 7, 2007
Information And Inspiration
Roadmaps Of Life

All the major spiritual traditions serve the purpose of offering us a roadmap to guide us on our individual journeys to enlightenment. These roadmaps are made up of moral codes, parables, and, in some cases, detailed descriptions of mystical states. We often study the fine points of a particular ascended master’s narrative in order to better understand our own and to seek inspiration and guidance on our path. In the same way, when we plan a road trip, we carry maps and guidebooks in an effort to understand where we are going. In both cases, though, the journey has a life of its own and maps, while helpful, can only take us so far. There is just no comparison between looking at a line on a piece of paper and driving your own car down the road that line represents.

Some people seem well-suited to following maps, while others are always looking for new ways to get where they’re going. In the end, the only reliable compass is within, as every great spiritual guide will tell you. The maps and travelogues left behind by others are great blessings, full of useful information and inspiration, but they cannot take the journey for us. When it is time to merge onto the highway or pull up anchor, we are ostensibly on our own. Strange weather patterns, closed roads, and traffic jams arise in the moment, out of nowhere, and our maps cannot tell us what to do. Whether we take refuge in a motel by the side of the road, persevere and continue forward, or turn back altogether is entirely up to us.

Maps are based on observations from the past and we are living in the present, so we are the only true experts on our journey to enlightenment. We may find that the road traveled by our predecessors is now closed. We may feel called to change direction entirely so that the maps we have been carrying really no longer apply. These are the moments when we learn to attune ourselves to our inner compass, following a map that only we can see, as we make our way into the unknown territory of our own enlightenment.

Feeling Alive in the Summertime

Life is rich, very rich. Summertime helps remind us of this as our senses awaken to the wealth and abundance of life . It's difficult to see this richness and great abundance in our own lives when we see ourselves as separate from it; as something that is happening outside of us, and not within us.

And it is, for as long as we continue to see it that way, because what we choose to "see" we choose to make our experience of "reality". The warmth of summer calls us to reconnect with the reality of our intimate relationship with all things.

Go with it. Take a deep breath, and take in the wealth and abundance of life through all of your senses. It will allow you to see yourself as part of this wonderful expanding universe.

Renew yourself through your thoughts and emotions and even your individual cells will grow more attractors for positive and empowering emotions, as will their daughter cells after division.

Before you know it, feeling alive and seeing your great abundance will produce more and more of it in your life, and you will realize just how connected we all are, to all things.

"Solitary brother, is there still a part of you that wants to live? Solitary sister, is there still a part of you that wants to give? If we try, we can live our lives the way we want to be. It's the loneliness that's the killer. Will we live, or will we die?" - Seal (from his song "Killer")

Daily OM

Warmth And Renewal
Summertime

Our memories of summer are often intense because it is a season blessed with a vividness unsurpassed by any other time of year. Our senses are delighted by bright colors, fresh scents, vibrant flavors, brilliant sunlight, and heat's caress. There is a sumptuousness about summertime, as both flora and fauna come into their own, regaling us with natural beauty. Our day-to-day circumstances may not change as spring turns into summer, yet we nonetheless feel refreshed. Our burdens seem lighter, and we feel compelled to play, to travel, to relax, and to experience all of life's joys to their full extent during extended sunlit hours.

Rituals specific to the summer season empower us to attune ourselves to the changes that take place in nature and within ourselves as the weather grows warmer. Some summertime rituals are highly personal—remnants of past traditions we have unconsciously preserved through practice.

Others can be incorporated into our lives whenever we feel the need to experience summer's significance on a deeper level. Summer is at its core a season of light, and by opening ourselves and our spaces to this light, we honor all the joy associated with the coming months. Unbolting windows and doors, arranging bright-golden blooms in a vase, and turning our faces toward the sun become a celebration when done with intent. Summer is also a wonderful time to practice focused listening, as the air is filled with beautiful sounds particular to the season.

To begin, find a quiet, solitary spot. For 10 minutes, pay attention to the workings of your mind and allow it to wander at will. Then turn your att! ention to the sounds resonating around you and note what you hear, whether the buzzing of bees, children's laughter, or birdsong.

Thoughts of summer likely evoke numerous pleasant images in your mind. However, if what you envision seems little more than a piece of your distant past, you can reacquaint yourself with the joys of summertime by immersing yourself in its pleasures. Wake up with the sunrise, take a day trip to the beach, indulge in an ice cream cone, or simply sit quietly in nature's embrace. The season will pass quickly, but while it remains, you can revel in the richness of life and renew yourself in the wonder of the light.

Live a Life Free of Blame

This is a very good enlightening piece from my friends at Daily OM. A lot of us have read/seen The Secret, Law of Attraction, Louise Hay and What the %$*&# Do We Know.

It's an appropriate next-step in the area of past pain and associated blame. Enjoy and Illuminate.

There's Zen in Fire.




June 25, 2007
Burdensome Feelings
Blaming Others

As we begin to truly understand that the world outside of us is a reflection of the world inside of us, we may feel confused about who is to blame for the problems in our lives. If we had a difficult childhood, we may wonder how we can take responsibility for that, and in our current relationships, the same question arises. We all know that blaming others is the opposite of taking responsibility, but we may not understand how to take responsibility for things that we don’t truly feel responsible for. We may blame our parents for our low self-esteem, and we may blame our current partner for exacerbating it with their unconscious behavior. Objectively, this seems to make sense. After all, it is not our fault if our parents were irresponsible or unkind, and we are not to blame for our partner’s bad behavior.

Perhaps the problem lies with the activity of blaming. Whether we blame others or blame ourselves, there is something aggressive and unkind about it. It sets up a situation in which it becomes difficult to move forward under the burdensome feelings of shame and guilt that arise. It also puts the resolution of our pain in the hands of someone other than us. Ultimately, we cannot insist that someone else take responsibility for their actions; only they can make that choice when they are ready. In the meantime, if we want to move forward with our lives instead of waiting around for something that may or may not happen, we begin to see the wisdom of taking the situation into our own hands.

We do this by forgiving our parents, even if they have not asked for our forgiveness, so that we can be free. We end the abusive relationship with our partner, who may never admit to any wrongdoing, because we are willing to take responsibility for how we are treated. In short, we love ourselves as we want to be loved and create the life we know we deserve. We leave the resolution of the wrongs committed against us in the hands of the universe, releasing ourselves to live a life free of blame.

Finding Your Energetic or Spiritual Family

An interesting writing from my friends at Daily OM.

June 18, 2007
Where The Soul Is
Finding The Place You Belong

There will likely be times in your life when your soul evolves more quickly than your circumstances. Your subconscious mind may be ready to move forward long before you recognize that you are destined to embrace a new way of life. Your soul intuitively understands that changing habitats can be a vital part of the growth process and that there may be one part of you that is eager to move to another home, another state, or another plane of existence.

But the ties that bind you to your current mode of being can make moving into this next stage of your life more challenging than it has to be. If you find it difficult to move on, consider that just as people in your life may come and go, your role in others’ lives may also be temporary. And many of the conditions that at first seemed favorable served you for a short time. When you are ready to match your situation to your soul, you will find that you feel a new sense of harmony and increasingly connected to the ebb and flow of the universe.

Moving on can be defined in numerous ways. Your forward momentum may take you from your current locale to a place you instinctively know will be more nurturing, comfortable, and spiritually enriching. Once you arrive, your misgivings will vanish, and you will know that you have found a sanctuary.

Similarly, subtle changes in your values, goals, or emotional needs can motivate you to distance yourself from one group of people in order to reassociate yourself with individuals that are better able to support you. For example, this could mean moving away from your birth family in order to find your energetic or spiritual family. The route you need to travel may not always be clear; you may feel inspired to change yet be unsure as to why or how. Clarity may come in the form of a question if you are willing to seriously ask yourself where your soul is trying to take you.

In a way, moving from one point to another when you feel strongly driven to do so is a way of bringing your spiritual and earthly energies together. It is a two-step process that involves not only letting go but also reconnecting. You will know you have found your destination, physical or otherwise, when you feel in your heart that you have been reborn into a life that is just the right shape, size, and composition.

Changing Unwanted Things Without Force

I don't know about you, but the end of the school year is anything but peaceful. The fruit of your efforts all year as a student, parent or teacher is finally revealed. As a teacher, students are seen for the last time and for the first time, the immense amount of end-of-year paperwork is really seen.

Just for fun, it seems that no matter what you do for a living, when that living gets super stressful, the universe is going to throw just one thing at you to make it seem unbearable. Your car will break down, important paperwork will become lost, someone will yell at you for something you didn't do, etc.

My God (and yours too if you believe in Him or Her), it's almost as if when we're in this non-peaceful state we attract more non-peace into our lives. The Law of Attraction at work......

And such it is with yours truly. Even with outstanding results from the big state FCAT test, I'm seeing less of what I like and more of what I don't.

When I woke up this morning from another night of "let's see how long I can survive on less than 100 minutes of sleep" and saw this meditation (from DailyOM), I felt like it was talking directly to me.

And because I value you, I wanted to share in case you need it too. Be sure to reread the part I highlighted a few times. Peace, Love and Joy


Looking Deeply
The Good In All

Sometimes we find it difficult to see the good in people, places, or situations that aren't to our liking. We focus on the things we don't like in our lives as a way of fueling our efforts to create change. There is nothing inherently wrong with this, and it is one way we make progress. However, if we get too caught up in this way of looking at the world, we lose touch with our ability to sit back and simply say yes to everything on our plates, which is the true starting point for all successful activity. Sometimes what we really need is to encourage ourselves to look deeply into all things in our lives to see the inherent goodness at the heart of everything.

At the core of this inquiry is the practice of unconditional acceptance, which can be scary because we feel as if we are being asked not to change the things we don't like. But when we think this way, we are still operating on the surface of our lives. In order to feel the beauty and warmth of full acceptance, we have to be willing to sink deeper into the stratum underlying the external manifestation of our lives. This deeper place of being is the origin of all lasting change, yet its paradox is that when we are in it, we often don't feel the need to change anything. From this place, we experience the pure beauty of the process of being alive, and we see that all things change in their own time. We don�t need to force anything. If there are things that we do need to change, from this place of serenity we create the shift easily, our hands guided by an energy that resides at the very center of our hearts.

In our active, goal-oriented culture, we learn to distrust stillness and to engage in busywork on the surface of life. This tendency can blind us to the good that lies at the heart of all things. But all we have to do to see again is stop for a moment, let go of our preconceptions and our agendas, and settle into the very center of our hearts, remembering that it is only from here that we can truly see.

Finding Your Tribe

I received this today from "Daily OM" and wanted to share it. I would also like to share my willingness to be part of your tribe, "accepting you without reservation and glady accompanying you on your journey of evolution".


"Your Allies On Life's JourneyFinding Your Tribe

Part of being human is the search for an individual identity. Bound to this strong need to establish a unique persona, however, is an equally intense desire for acceptance. It is when we find our individual tribes that both are satisfied.

Our tribe members are those people who accept us as we are without reservation and gladly accompany us on our journeys of evolution. Among them, we feel free to be our imperfect selves, to engage unabashedly in the activities we enjoy, and to express our vulnerabilities by relying on our tribe for support.

We feel comfortable investing our time and energy in the members of our tribe, and are equally comfortable allowing them to invest their resources in our development. The individuals who eventually become members of your unique tribe are out there in the wide world waiting for you.

You are destined to find them, one by one, as you move through life. Sometimes your own efforts will put you in contact with your future tribe members. At other times, circumstances beyond your control will play a role in helping you connect with your tribe.

If you look about you and discover that you are already allied with a wonderful and supportive tribe, remember that there are likely many members of your tribe you have not yet met. On the other hand, if you feel you are still living outside of your tribe, broadening your horizons can help you find your tribe members.

However your life develops after you come together with your tribe, you can be assured that its members will stand at your side. On the surface, your tribe may seem to be nothing more than a loose-knit group of friends and acquaintances to whom you ally yourself. Yet when you look deeper, you will discover that your tribe grounds you and provides you with a sense of community that ultimately fulfills many of your most basic human needs."

Echoes of Happiness ~ Body Laughing

These pictures were just taken inside my classroom. When Brosden and Bella came to my room after school I put on silly tecno music one of my students brought in (thanks Wint! For a picture of this rad fly girl go to No Laughing at School! on their website.)

Brosden started dancing on top of the desks and Bella used her creativity to change the overhead to negative. For 30 minutes we used our creative imaginations while jammin to the music. Echoes of happiness filled the room with our shouts and belly laughs.

When we were done I opened this email from "Daily OM" entitled "Echoes of Happiness; Belly Laughs". I couldn't say it any better so I won't try. I know I live this all the time with my children.

"As children, we laugh hundreds of times each day, delighted by the newness of living. When we reach adulthood, however, we tend to not allow ourselves to let go in a good belly laugh. Inviting laughter back into our lives is simply a matter of making the conscious decision to laugh.

Though most of us are incited to laugh only when exposed to humor or the unexpected, each of us is capable of laughing at will. A laugh that comes from the belly carries with it the same positive effects whether prompted by a funny joke or consciously willed into existence.

When our laughter comes from the core of our being, it permeates every cell in our physical selves, beginning in the center and radiating outward, until we are not merely belly laughing but rather body laughing.

Laughter has been a part of the human mode of expression since before evolution granted us the art of speech. Through it, we connected with allies while demonstrating our connection with people we didn't know. In the present, laughter allows us to enjoy positive shared experiences with
strangers and loved ones alike. Yet solitary laughter carries with it its own slew of benefits.

An energetic and enthusiastic bout of whole-body laughter exercises the muscles, the lungs, and the mind in equal measure, leaving us feeling relaxed and content. When we laugh heartily at life's ridiculousness instead of responding
irritably, our focus shifts. Anger, stress, guilt, and sadness no longer wield any influence over us, and we are empowered to make light of what we originally feared.

Laughter also opens our hearts, letting love and light in, changing our perspective, and enabling us to fix our attention on what is positive in our lives.

It is easy to laugh when we feel good, but it is when the world appears dim that we most need laughter in our lives. Our laughter then resonates through our hearts, filling the empty spaces with pure, unadulterated joy. We regain our footing in the moment and remember that no sorrow is powerful enough to rob us of our inborn happiness.

When we understand that uninhibited laughter is the food of the soul, nourishing us from within, we know instinctively that life is worthwhile."