On Motivation and Increasing your Chance of Success

We are coming up to that time of year, New Year’s Resolution time. You know, that time when we join the gym, start a diet, resolve to change our ways for the better. Wonderful! All excellent ideas. Then February rolls around and we realize that our resolutions have fallen by the wayside. What happened? We had every intention of sticking to our plans. Maybe you are one of those people who doesn’t bother making New Year’s Resolutions because you know that you won’t stick with them.

So, what happens to our resolutions, our plans to change? We blame ourselves, get mad at ourselves, call ourselves all sorts of names, all without realizing what it takes to effect positive change.

Making a Difference in Community

There are so many ways that we can make a difference. Small changes ripple out and have a much bigger impact than we may realize. We talk about the importance of community and how much we’ve lost the connection. I want to ask you to find ways to bring community back into your area, and into other areas in need.

On Revolution and Positive Change

We are living in a time of revolution. No longer silent, people are rising up in protest. In Canada, we voted out Harper and, unexpectedly, elected Prime Minster Trudeau. In the UK, it was Brexit. And now, the US Election. People are voting for change, no longer willing to remain silent about the government, organizations, and corporations that hold us in their power.

Truth or Fantasy?

What if you could see fairies?  Unicorns?  Dragons?  What would you see?

This is the tale of my first encounter with a dragon.  Truth or Fantasy?  I will let you decide.

On Peace

Some days it feels as if the world is falling apart. The news is heartbreaking and worrisome. It feels as if we’re being pulled into a deep pit of fear and despair. ‘What can I do’, we ask. ‘I am only one person on this planet, one voice, how can I possibly make a difference?’

Like you, I have felt swept along with the tide of hopelessness, yet it isn’t in my nature to give up or to admit defeat. I have a strong core that bears me up and has me thinking about solutions, not allowing myself to become buried in the negative energies.

Shadows

Morning walks are always a time of quiet reflection. I love the thoughts that come and go, and the insights gained.

This morning I walked early. It was still cold, but with a promise of warmth to come. I reflected on the shadows and the sunlight and how they are a metaphor for life.

We are constantly moving, traveling along the path of our lives. Hills and valleys, twists and turns, never knowing what lies around the next bend. Yet we keep on walking forward; going backward just isn’t an option, the past no longer exists. Standing still is possible but rarely comfortable. Besides, inevitably we will be pulled forward again, willingly or not.

This morning I walked through areas deep in shadow, trees overhead making the path dim. It was cool in the shadows and the breeze raised goosebumps on my skin. It reminded me of the dark times in our lives when we feel cold and alone. We feel surrounded by a darkness that seems never ending. We want to stop, curl up inside ourselves and tell the world to leave us alone with our pain. Yet we walk on, going forward, not quite daring to trust that there is something other than the shadows.

Then something happens. We receive a message from a friend, we read an article that deeply touches our wounded heart, we get a chance to lend a helping hand, and there is a sudden glimmer of light. It may be fleeting, but it is there.

We start looking for the light instead of the dark. We walk forward with the hope of walking into the sunlight once again. Everything shifts as we see through the eyes of the light instead of the shadows.

This morning, as I walked into the sunlight, I could feel the warmth on my skin and on my face. I could see the amazing sparkles as the sun hit the early morning dew on the grass making everything dance. I breathed deep and gave thanks for just being. Gratitude given that I am able to walk on these mornings, music in my ears, fresh air to breathe, beauteous nature all around me, such abundance that I often take for granted.

As I walked back into the shadows I took that gratitude with me. The dew was still there on the grass, and when I looked at it I knew that the ability to sparkle was still there, it just needed light. And as the sun rose higher in the sky, the light shifted, the shadows moved, and the grass sparkled with magic once again.

And so it is for us. The sparkle of light, the magic, is always there. Sometimes it is harder to see, difficult to remember that we carry the light within us. Yet we have only to ask it to shine and everything shifts.

On Emotions

On Being Stuck – Or Am I?

It seems to me that my writing has stalled and so has my life. The parallel is fascinating because it implies that for me one has to move in order for the other to also move. However, if I actually write every day as I started out to last year maybe that will trigger what is necessary to open up my life and get movement there.

Then there’s the thought that we are evolving to learn how to be instead of how to do. If that’s the case then I’m an expert at Being! Seeking never brings the right results; chasing rainbows, pushing for outcomes, definitely not how I operate. I am more a creature of scattered thinking, ideas pinging, some landing for a while, some not even worth more than a glance. I’ve even taken ideas beyond the concept stage, started to think about getting involved, only to find that the idea withers before it has a chance to develop. The trick is to remain the observer, not to get into reasons why, inner criticism, self-analysis, but to simply let it fall away.

Changing the World?

Changing the world. It sounds so wonderful, yet it seems impossible. We live in a world where the sheer magnitude of issues that need to be addressed can feel overwhelming. Climate change, deforestation, world hunger, our food sources, child labour, and the list goes on.

Voices in my Head

I’m devoting March to the voice in my head. You know the one! The voice that is a running commentary in the background of your day. This month I am going to listen more closely to that voice, to what it says, how it says it, and how it would sound if someone else were saying those words to me. Then I’m going to work on changing what isn’t in my best interests.