" How Far … "

There's a boat, I could sail away

There's the sky, I could catch a plane

There's a train, there's the tracks

I could leave and I could choose to not come back

Oh, never come back

There's a chance I could change my mind

But I won't, not 'till you decide

What you want, what you need

Do you even care if I stay or leave

Oh, what's it gonna be

And it's up to you to say ...

And it's up to you to say how far ...

~ Martina McBride ~ How Far ~

***

There are times when you need to reflect back on your journey and take a look at how far you’ve come.  We get caught up in our day to day living that we can lose perspective of what our life use to be like.  

Reflecting back ... three years ago today, 

we had our first day at the Gerson Clinic in Tijuana, Mexico.

Our worlds focus so much on what we lack .. wealth, vanity, image or love, that we get caught in the need to have, be, or do more before thinking that it is good enough at this moment, now.  Reflection allows you to celebrate your progress, however you measure, big or small ...

Looking back, I am amazed as to how this chapter of my life started and where it has lead me today.  I feel a huge sense of accomplishment that I am here, still.  This journey has been tough, adjusting to this new life ... and many times I took rest with my family and friends who gave me comfort and assured me that my journey was still worthwhile ... immense gratitude.

Finding blessing, discovering the gifts, appreciating what is, knowing all is well ... sometimes life’s pivotal moments help you identify your true calling, your true passion.  Life is funny that way, it can through you off course so that you get back on course.  And then the time comes when you are living your ideal life even in an un-ideal circumstances.  

You manage, you cope, you adapt, you live ... Yet one of the best pieces of advice I received was when you fail to acknowledge how far you’ve come, it robs you of a lot of joy and price ... so just because I may not have figured it all out, I still come a long way from.  

It is about finding a balance for striving for your goals but also celebrating your mini-victories along the way ... As you go about your day, try to notice when you shift towards your goals, however small the step may be ... and then honour it in some way.  And although our lives are a constant work in progress, take the time to bask in everything you have achieved thus far ... because the best motivation is to cherish & celebrate each step along the way.

Without deep reflection one knows from daily life that one exists for other people

 * Albert Einstein *

" Challenging Me … "

This fortune brought to you,

Is it worth the pain, the suffering?

Would you rather work sparingly without the stress

or is there such a thing?

Pray hard sing out loud!

I wonder if you'll bother me

I'm twisting back and forth

My eyes are burning stronger now ...

Challenging me...Should I give up everything?

should I give up everything?

~ Chris Park ~ Challenging Me ~ 

***

That moment when you have that sinking feeling ... it’s happening again ... but when challenges occur, we have a choice to rise up and reveal the resilience within us.

During crisis, we often admire others that seem to act with ease and do or say the right things.  Because it is not only the hardship that they have endured, but the way they have chosen to manage their feelings and emotions about it.  And more importantly, their view of themselves has little, if any, ring of victim hood in it.

The greatest of accomplishments often have come with 

a heavy dose of resilience ... 

Our history is the best indicator of how well we can fare with resilience.  Yet when we reflect on the past, we tend to focus on the negatives and rarely look for the opportunities to grow.  NOW is the chance to seek the lesson in each moment.

Learning isn’t just about repeating failures, with only the pain as the byproduct ... it is about choosing response versus reaction to bring the desired results ...

When we accept the situation as is, and the lesson at its core, we begin to find the wisdom in it.  When we ask who, what, when and how, we take the next steps for healing because we move out of resistance, which blinds vision.

I believe we are deeply interconnected.  Hence by surrendering to what is, we realize we are helping heal the collective through our own growth.

Trust your life situation, at a soul level, to be purposeful ... the sad, the bad, the scary and even the ugly are all hidden with joy, happiness, surprises and miracles.

“Challenges are what make life interesting 

and overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.” 

☯ Joshua J. Marine ☯

" Man On The Moon ... "

Mott the Hoople and the game of Life ...

Andy Kaufman in the wrestling match ...

Monopoly, Twenty one, checkers, and chess ...

Mister Fred Blassie in a breakfast mess ...

Let's play Twister, let's play Risk ...

I'll see you heaven if you make the list ...

Now, Andy did you hear about this one?

Tell me, are you locked in the punch?

Andy are you goofing on Elvis? Hey, baby

Are we losing touch?

If you believed they put a man on the moon

Man on the moon

If you believe there's nothing up his sleeve

Then nothing is cool

~ R.E.M ~ Man On The Moon ~

***

I use to believe I think, therefore I am ... I am what I think, but what I am realizing is what I think is not always so great.  And instead of blaming the tricks and techniques for not working, I am realizing it is my core beliefs about myself.

So who really runs the show ... our subconscious mind has incredible power over our lives.  It leads us to take action that sabotage the best intentions of our conscious mind.  Our subconscious also tells all our the cells in our body how to live, breathe, grow, reproduce and die.  Our thoughts, whether consciously or subconsciously, transmit through our neural network to the rest of our body.  And what drives your subconscious ... your core beliefs.

Think about it ... there are times when we believe that no action will change the outcome ... we don’t have a core belief that we will become the person we want to be.  It simply depends on what you believe ... so so simple, but hard to practice.

WE are not a victims ... 

WE have power over our lives by controlling our beliefs and environment ...

I have written a great deal on the experience of dis-ease.  From my own health journey I have learned that your body tells you what your thoughts and beliefs are, regardless of what your conscious mind thinks.  If your life is full of things you don’t want, know that you’re living out some unwanted and unproductively beliefs.  The idea is if you don’t believe it, your body won’t manifest it.  This is hard to consider that you are solely responsible ... you and your core beliefs.

Identifying unwanted beliefs is a great place to start ... figure out what positive belief you can embed into your subconscious instead.  Challenging your core beliefs can be uncomfortable because to this point in your life, those have been the rules.  But ask yourself, what your life will be like in five, ten and twenty five years if you change your current belief about situation you are dealing with.  What will you have accomplished?  How will you feel about yourself?  Will you still be here?

Master your mind instead allowing your mind to master you ...

It IS a practice ... I am learning as I change my belief, I open myself up for a new one, perhaps one that supports my highest good.  I am learning to consider the feeling of pain in my old belief versus the pleasure waiting in my new beliefs.  It is taking all the courage and strength within me to challenge my patterning and programming, because it is all I know till now ... but as I create new pathways where I begin to re-wire my subconscious, my life is transforming and bringing closer to harnessing my power and living the life I am meant to live ... 

" Reflection ... "

Who is that girl I see 

Staring straight back at me? 

When will my reflection show 

Who I am inside? ...

Why must we all conceal 

What we think, how we feel? 

Must there be a secret me 

I'm forced to hide? 

I won't pretend that I'm 

Someone else for all time 

When will my reflection show 

Who I am inside? 

When will my reflection show 

Who I am inside?

~ Christina Aguilera ~ Reflection ~

***

What does reflection mean to you? ... maybe thinking in new ways instead of just thinking ... maybe finding better to be better.

Using reflection as a means or tool to gauge where you were and where you are ... and where you want to go.  It is a way to understand your life and “course correct” if required.  Because life is overwhelming so when you objectively reflect you have an opportunity to meet yourself where you presently are.  

When a time comes to reassess and replant your life, you may look to religion, science or counseling ... and some have a combination of them.  

why Religion?

“believing the Divine can take away indecision's, uncertainty's and moral impurities.”

why Science?

“hard fact grid works used to sprout new developments of self and a better world”

why Counseling?

“seek a person(s) who will have ways to improve your life”

Personally, reflection helps me learn about myself in hopes to make better choices in my future.  I get to figure out where I went wrong and what I can do to put my life back on track.

Mistakes are a valuable commodity and a learning tool; 

but unless we understand why we make mistakes, 

all of this becomes counterproductive ...

But there is more to reflection .... success.  The more you reflect on your success, the more likely you will celebrate them ... instead of focusing only on what you failed at.  This allows you to put your life back into perspective and stay grounded.

The beauty of reflecting is that it is a powerful way to create space and encourage personal growth ... this is where transformation occurs.   

I recently read a few ideas to help with initiating your reflection process:

• Reflect on your Highlights
• Reflect on your Challenges
• Reflect on your Beginnings & Endings
• Reflect on your Blessings
• Reflect on your Intentions

Reflecting is a process .... a gentle reminder to oneself as to you they really are ... a personal check-in of what you embraced and what you released ... an opportunity to count your blessings.  

"Follow effective action with quiet reflection. 

From the quiet reflection will come even more effective action" 

~ Peter Drucker 

" Go On ... "

Just go on

There are still so many things

I wanna to say to you

But go on, Just go on

The moment that we start ...

What is the purpose of my life

If it doesn't ever do

With learning to let it go ...

You can do the same

It's the least you can do ...

So go on, Just go on ...

The moment that we start

~ Jack Johnson ~ Go On ~

When faced with life’s painful challenges, we often wonder if there is an end in sight.  Coping requires emotional endurance ... “the ability to keep an ordeal of indefinite length from sapping your emotional health”.  And sometimes you need someone to help you when saying “this too shall pass?” isn’t enough.  Thankfully, that help is present in my life from my friend Ally.

Our loving walks and talks cover a wide range of topics.  And recently we discussed the significance of emotional endurance ... how sometimes you lose the ability to take life's ups and downs in stride emotionally.  Staying strong for a long journey takes work and some days it is far from easy.  We talked about how it was important to focus on the positive, but it was okay to not always feel positive ...

Many can relate to emotional spectrum aka mood swings, ranging from curiosity to exhaustion, excitement to fear, light heartiness to sadness.  We all have “something” going on in our lives.  Every day is different, requires adjustments and quick thinking.  

So how do you cope and keep going on?  Here are some things I am now practicing ...

• write down every concern you have, sort them and focus your attention on those that matter most and those you can do something about
• give yourself credit for your efforts, especially when the ultimate goal is far away
• seek the good wherever you can find it and cultivate a habit of gratitude
• practice a sense of humor and focus on a positive future and the willingness to grow

You don’t have to pretend that you never have a bad day and you don’t have to be judged for having one.  Solutions are rarely immediate and perfect and sometimes we need to slog along in the swamp ... and just keep going on ...

We can do anything we want to do if we stick to it long enough ~ Helen Keller