Out of Nothing, And No Way, A Way is Made

Michael Beckwith says this quite a bit when he preaches. It's really stuck with me, but only in desperate times. 

Today wasn't so desperate, but I got to feel the depth of this statement - Out of nothing, and no way, a way will be made.

So I noticed this crack in my windshield yesterday in the midst of driving all over town in holiday shopping traffic - I think to myself, That sucks, and promptly forget all about it.

And today. Today I was given a precious gift of $200. I was so happy! I thought of the boots I need, the haircut I could get, how I could surprise my husband with something, Chinese food for NYE, etc... After telling myself I wasn't going to use this gift to pay bills, I was going to use it as a gift for myself - these are the things that came to mind. We are truly a paycheck to paycheck family, and $200 extra dollars is a real blessing.

Then I get in my car to run an errand, and there it is, like a cold, hard slap in the face - the windshield crack. Except it had grown. No longer forgettable, this thing was now over a foot long. I sighed. I knew right then what I needed to do, and I knew right then how much it would cost. I needed to call my insurance company and have the windshield replaced, and my deductible is exactly $200.

Did I have my moment of thinking WTF?? Oh yea I did. Then I had the moment of forcing myself to get over it - like not naturally getting over it, but nudging myself, thinking "Gratitude, gratitude, gratitude Erin!! Be grateful you had the money!" When really inside I'm whining "But it's not fair!!"

The difference is, this all lasted minutes - not hours or even days like something of this nature used to.

A friend of mine recalled to me in the midst of this that when she used to be tight on money, and had a struggle, something always worked out so she could afford it. This my friends, is Right Thinking. What we are accustomed to is Backwards Thinking - "Damnit, I had money and now I have to use it for a repair! This sucks, poor me!" But that's backwards, it's literally flipped the wrong way, and in so doing completely changes the tone, feeling and attitude. 

Just flip the two events in the opposite order - "I needed a repair, and then I got the money to fix it!" This is so simple it's almost stupid. But do you see how the entire tone changes? It changes so that, in fact, it leaves no room for poor me or bitter feelings, yet brings about an atmosphere for gratitude. 

There are just two sides to every coin, and we are the ones who can flip it. I flipped my situation into one that felt grateful, and this brings about joy, which in turn leads to more things to be thankful for.

Look at that. I was going to need help with that windshield. And out of nothing, and no way, a way was made.

Amen.

Forget the Resolutions...

As I see it, resolutions are for the birds. We usually don't keep them anyhow! And so it becomes this silly little waste of time, helping us to either become better at accepting that it's okay to make promises we don't keep, or to feel lousy about our inability to follow through.

Last year I chucked the New Year Resolution, and implemented New Year Intentions.

An intention is different. Whereas I liken resolutions to hard set goals we carve out for ourselves, intentions to me are softly playing in the background. There is no deadline or point at which we've failed to come through and accomplish the goal. Intentions are intuitive. Intentions are positive. Intentions affirm the best outcome.

A resolution might be to start going to the gym, or even, "I will go to the gym 3x a week." Well we know how that can turn out! By February we've already put our membership on hold bc its too cold and dark to want to leave our house after work!

Along the same lines, the Intention would come from a place of feeling like your body and emotions would benefit from some physical exercise. It would go more like this, "I intend to fulfill my right to healthy living." Or, "I intend to release stress in a healthy way." And then we watch for the ways this plays out for us. We watch for the opportunities which come to us that will make it happen. This gives you so much to work with, and so much room for success! And you don't scold yourself for not keeping the intention. Like I said, you keep it softly in the background, and the universe has a wonderful way of helping us fulfill these life affirming desires!

So be gentle with yourself and listen to what your mind and body are telling you, use that intuition to get your New Years Intentions. Don't go with what you think you "should" do, bc logic has less say with Intentions.

I'm happy to say last year I naturally saw my intentions playing out for me and I fell into a rythem of seeing them through or at least making progress. And I've already gotten that intuitive notion of what I intend for myself in 2014.

Listen to that inner voice to guide you, and you will see wonderful ways you can fulfill your intentions for the new year. Keep them playing softly in the background, and watch for doors to open.

Until then, a VERY Merry Christmas to all... Watch for my next blog post featuring an interview with my dear meditation instructor, Gloria of the Brhama Kumaris!

To a Happy start of 2014...Cheers

Random Acts of Stuff

Walking into the bank today, I noticed one of the trees in the parking lot had been... "Decorated"...
Well you could call it that.
My buddy Jason, the Security Guard, filled me in.
"It's a local guy who does it. He brings random stuff he finds, and he decorates the tree with it. He's got Christmas already all planned out", he told me. "I told him he at least had to wait until Thanksgiving was over", Jason chuckled.
I wondered if the decorations would change much for Christmas, since the Thanksgiving decorations had nothing to do with the holiday.
Speckled with car keys, a sock, and other lost things, for a moment I noted that it doubled as a glorified lost and found!
Regardless of what it represented, it made me smile. Why?
1- Because someone in the community got to do something with their creative energy, and the Bank (Im sure with outrageous rules and regulations to abide by) did NOT turn him away.
2- It was hilarious.
3- I finally got to get moving on what this Blog was created for. Cheering on people in the community who are Amazing, Awesome, or simply just interesting in their own way.
Watch out Jason, I'm on a roll now, you might be next!!

An Important Reminder

Is anyone else sick of BS in their lives?
This full moon definitely got the better of me, and I pretty much tumbled and fell on various occasions.
I've cried, I've yelled, and felt a heavy sadness.
But wait...
All my energy has been focused on everything wrong, and how much I hate it!
After 3 days of hating the world, I took my Power back.
You can't shove the feelings aside, you have to feel them...
But then, you kick the BS to the side - and put your energy into what you DO WANT.
It works people.
A smile replaced the frown, and I remembered all things are possible. And what a better reminder of what to aim for, then feeling everything that you don't want.
Even for these terrible feelings, we can be grateful. Because if we know enough to just turn around, everything we want is right... there... waiting.

Filling the Gap

Recently, I was presented with a situation that normally I would've felt very upset about. Upset, anxious, uncertain, resentful. A victim of whatever outcome may arise.
I spent a few hours being upset. Feeling helpless as to what would become of things.
Then, in an instant, I perked up.
Now this will sound cheesy to many of you, but to some of you, you'll know.
I perked up because I remembered God. You know that big old guy in the sky who magically controls our lives... No, not that God.
I remembered the God that absolutely, positively, without a doubt has the precise perfect vision of me, created in His likeness. I remembered the God that ALWAYS gives me the right next step to take, for the right next place I need to be. I remembered the God who never for even one second stops seeing me as Empowered, and never ever sees me as a Victim.
I remembered all these things in an instant. And instantly, I smiled. Instantly, I left victim mode and went into Faith mode.
You see, this takes the QUESTION out of what may come. You know you will be given what's best.
On a daily basis, no I don't continually remember this. But with each circumstance that arises, my faith only grows stronger, because our questioning serves as a reminder.
It's bold to say, because so many times we do not like the outcome. Faith is the understanding that in hindsight, you always understand why things happened as they did. It always makes sense later. God fills the gap between now, and then...

Judging or Caring?

What is the difference between concern and judgement?
I myself have felt strongly judged in the past when others were concerned for my well being.
I've been on the other end, concerned for another's well being, and yet they felt judged.
So what gives? Where does the difference lay? Where is the line and how do we know if we've crossed it?
If we strongly disagree with what someone is doing, isn't it a dishonor not to say anything? We aim to do what is for the Highest Good.
Yet if we say something, and the other person takes offense they may either get defensive or create distance between you. And then where is the progress?
This must be where personalities come into play...
Is this person really being judemental and critical, or is that simply how the other is receiving it, how it feels to them?
At the same time, the one voicing concern - are they thinking only in terms of logic and what is "right" and "should" be happening? These can be merely reflections of the one shouting out the orders.
Being told of a concern can be felt in different ways by different personality types. If we are feeling judged, we have to own a piece of that. That is also partly a reflection of how we feel inside. Many of us have broken pieces inside which are like magnets for feelings of criticism, even when a comment is not intended as such.
I am still learning the grey areas between enabling, tough love, having compassion, speaking up, and knowing when to zip it.
Sometimes too, I forget to remember that no one is "wrong". These reflections of each of us come from an all too real place.

Re-Writing

Some of us have heard about the practice of Gratitude. Absolutely important, in the sense its contagious and brings us more to be grateful for.
But what about when we've had one of those days, or weeks, and we hate life; cant think of a thing to be glad about; wish things were different.
My dear meditation teacher (guru as I refer to her), Gloria tells us about re-writing.
Okay so your day sucked. Dont stay stuck in it. Re-write it how it could have gone. Instead of trying to list off what you're grateful for, write the crappy day over, write it how you could've handled it better.
I had one particularly anxious day recently (to which I am prone), and I did exactly what Gloria taught us. Picked up my journal, and re-wrote. It affirms what is possible...

For Now...

Well, this began as a place for me to interview the people I find most interesting, and with something to say we can all benefit from.
Since its been over a year without me having done that (Oh procrastination, you!), in the meantime, I think Ill make use of this sweet little blogspot I've carved out in time, space and the cyber world in other ways.
I occasionally have my own interesting things to say! Perhaps a few others will enjoy them too...:)