Stillness

August 19, 2014 / still a dreamer / 8 Comments

Being still is one of the most wonderful and simple ways we can manage our lives, our feelings, our stress, our actions … you name it.

I try, and generally succeed, to journal every day in the morning. Julia Cameron, author of The Artist’s Way, refers to this as a “morning dump,” getting rid of all the garbage we’re holding in our heads so we can begin the day fresh and with minimal interference from negativity. While she is recommending this for artists, it is, of course, of the same benefit to everyone. I do love to write so this is a wonderful and freeing piece of time, a gift to myself which I do not allow to be disturbed. It’s a great way to sort out some of the stresses and problems we’re dealing with and look at them afresh, as well as plan a new day.

It’s more than that, however. It’s also a time for stillness. Along with my writing, I often take a few minutes to do any of the following — center my breathing, meditate a little, read something metaphysical, and/or do a few affirmations. The stillness is a tremendous benefit to beginning the day, but it also teaches us that we can practice stillness any time things starts to get stressful. When we are still, we connect spiritually with ourselves and with our God, higher power, however one perceives that. We open and can listen for guidance.

There are times during certain work projects that I am ready to up and buy myself a ticket on the Crazy Train, it gets so stressful. But if I can remember to pull back, change my scenery just a wee bit, and breathe rhythmically and easily, restore my balance and be still, it can do wonders. Ideally it’s best to do this way before I’m at the ticket booth, but better late than never!

So consider, as your stress and anxiety begin to mount, that you can do something about it before it gets out of hand. Be still and breathe for a minute or two, opening your mind and releasing negativity. It may take a little practice at first, and the beginning of your day is a great time to try it out along with a little journaling. Both are gifts to and for yourself.

The Measure of Success – Fun!

August 4, 2014August 4, 2014 / still a dreamer / 4 Comments

We have often heard when the student is ready the teacher arrives. Sometimes that teacher arrives in person, at other times, in the form of an author and her book. Recently a friend bestowed a lovely gift on me, a book by a metaphysical author of whom I’ve been unaware, Gabrielle Bernstein.

In her book, Miracles Now, Gabrielle, (she feels like a friend already), gives us 108 simple tools that we can all apply right now to help ease our stress, feel happier, and find our path in life. These may be in the form of affirmations, meditations, (both short and long), quick ways to change our thoughts, etc. Today – and yesterday – I”m reading the same one – #46. Measure Your Success with How Much Fun You’re Having.

Uh-oh. I suddenly felt I must be failing miserably! Not that I don’t have fun, I do, but as a measure of my success? Hmmm … Methinks I need to up my success rate!

I can’t imagine that this doesn’t strike a chord with anyone reading this post. We are often told by our spiritual teachers and guides that we need to find the joy in the moment – to not worry about the past, because it’s gone, nor the future, because it hasn’t arrived, but to cherish and enjoy the present moment, the never-again-to-be-repeated-NOW. We all know that this is not always that simple … we’re human and live in a challenging world. But I don’t think there’s a one of us that couldn’t bear being happier; however, that means taking responsibility for it, too.

So while success is often measured in what we have or what we do, Gabrielle Bernstein affirms what I think most of us really know to be true; “happiness is an inside job.” Our job is to stay in the flow with joy and let pass all the things in life which we cannot control. Her Miracle Message is “I measure my success by how much fun I’m having.”

Here’s a toast to all of us being enormously successful!

Following Our Path

July 24, 2014 / still a dreamer / 4 Comments

This morning I felt called to look into my little metaphysical perpetual calendar, and as always, what I found was perfect for my day.

“For me there is only the traveling on paths that have heart, on any path that may have heart. There I travel, and the only worthwhile challenge is to traverse its full length. And there I travel looking, looking, breathlessly.”
~ Carlos Castaneda

There are times in our lives when our path seems to disappear from view. We’ve been drawn down paths to the side that beckon and call, needing or demanding our attention – finances, relationship conflicts, illness, the illness or death of others, job worries, and other challenges and distractions. These paths can lead deeper and deeper into a woods of fading light until we feel quite lost. And then we remember, we have a thread — a simple, single luminous thread to follow. That thread glows more brightly with each step we take out of the darkness to find again the glowing path that is uniquely ours.

May you walk your path — find or refind it — happily and bravely today. May your path be illuminated by the shimmering white light that is you and the Universe, one and the same. May it leave you breathless.

~ stilladreamer

The Rules We Make and Live By

March 15, 2014 / still a dreamer / 2 Comments

Those of you why stop by regularly know that there are always two books to the right – most likely a novel of some sort and below that a metaphysical, spiritual or self-help book. You may also notice that the top book changes fairly regularly and the lower one may stay there for quite some time. Although it may look like I’m an inordinately slow reader, it hovers there because I usually am “working” the book, i.e., taking my time and attending to the lessons the author has to offer.

I am really savoring Living in the Light by Shakti Gawain. In the broadest terms it is about becoming more aware of and living by your own inner guidance, learning to recognize and trust our own innate intuition, thereby creating a new life and world. The book focuses on getting to know the many aspects of ourselves and at the end of each chapter, Gawain has included exercises and meditations. The chapter I have just completed is titled Authoritarian and Rebel, two aspects that are often alive and well in each of us. To the degree that we are unconscious of these qualities, we may experience related difficulties in our lives, not the least of which is interference in hearing and trusting our own intuition.

Gawain’s exercise at the end asks, after you have read the chapter, that you identify and write down some of your rules and behaviors that feel demanding and controlling, (overly authoritarian), to you. She lists the categories of work, money, relationships and sex, encouraging you to add your own if you wish. (I did.) Gawain then asks you to do the same with rebellious behaviors, and finally to drop down into a deeper place and look at what you really want, to find what is true for you.

There can be quite a difference in what we’ve written and what we really want … surprisingly so. A brief, but related digression – on my desktop at the moment is an image of Buddha, and the following quote by him: “All that we are is the result of all we have thought.” Comparing that list to what I really want is quite an eye opener, and tells me in what way my work is cut out for me and reveals afresh how my thoughts are creating my life, as Buddha said. I want to make more changes.

There is always so much to know, so much to learn, and while a book such as Living in the Light may guide us, the work is always our own. We take many journeys in our lives and perhaps the greatest journey is the one within, for it is there we find the answers we need to know, which when brought to light, transform not just ourselves, but the world around us.

Looking Forward …

December 31, 2013January 1, 2014 / still a dreamer / 2 Comments

As the New Year rapidly approaches and everyone rushes to make resolutions, I am planning on doing one thing … continuing what I have been doing all along.

And that is … trying my best to add to the positivity on this planet, to live in love and eliminate fear, a lifetime endeavor. And to always remember to be grateful for all I have been blessed with in this life.

So no New Year’s resolutions for me … just same old, same old.
If the world is to be a kinder, more loving and peaceful place, I know it begins with me. And, of course, with you.
Happy New Year.