I Am Listening

Today, I commit to listening.  I will listen to the call of my own heart, beating out the music of my soul.  Perhaps it will tell me to dance with abandon or maybe to sit quietly and just be.  Whatever the song I hear, I choose to respond wholeheartedly.

Today, I commit to listening.  I will attend to you and try to understand your point of view with curiosity instead of defensiveness.  I choose to concentrate on validation, recognizing that, despite our diversity, we are more alike than different.  I can decide to dance with you rather than against you.

Today, I commit to listening.  I will hear the sound of the trees and birds, the whispers of the clouds and breeze.  I choose to respect, value and treat with loving kindness the spirit of life that dances all around me.

I am listening…

For Now

Is there going to be enough?  I can find myself becoming anxious about resources and starting to panic when I believe I won’t have adequate money, strength, skills, will power, protection, time, or whatever feels lacking.  Sometimes,  I scare myself with my ‘what if’ thinking and either paralyze myself with fear or push myself into endless activity to try to make up for what I judge to be too little.

Today, I choose to live in the present and remember that I have what I need FOR NOW.  I will mindfully focus on what is and practice gratitude for the resources I experience.  It is safe to surrender to this journey and trust that as it unfolds I will have what I need.  I recognize with gratitude that in this moment, I possess all I need and affirm my enough-ness. 

Energy Drainers and Revitalizers

Will I be exhausted this day or invigorated?  Often the energy can be sucked right out, leaving me empty, lethargic and weary.  Sometimes, however, I feel revitalized and empowered; full of life and ready to face another day.  What will I allow to drain me and how will I strengthen and re-fill my inner energy tank?

I can provide myself with a healthy balance of good nutrition, enough rest, adequate exercise, and chances to center and ground.  However, I could also fill myself with junk food and mindless rushing from one thing to another while I wear myself out.

I can decide how I will respond to those who make demands on my time & efforts by setting appropriate boundaries, communicating my feelings and needs assertively, listening carefully to others to make sure I don’t allow distorted messages to fester inside me without checking them out, and looking for opportunities to connect with those who nurture and support me.  On the other hand, I could choose to believe I am responsible for others’ problems, trying desperately to fix and make them feel better, while victimizing myself by over-giving and zapping my energy.

I can choose to empower myself with internal messages of self-acceptance.  Opening my arms to embrace who I am while reminding myself of my resources and enough-ness or I can buy into old messages that push me to prove my worth and value through endless activity.

I can tell myself I stand all alone or remember I am connected to something much bigger than myself, taking time to recognize one-ness with all that is, was, and ever will be. I am part of more than I can even imagine.

The choice is mine today.  How will I expend and revitalize the energy I hold in these 24 hours?

 

Where Am I Living Today?

It surprises me every time I find myself living in the “Land of Either/Or” where rejection, exclusion, and negativity abound.  I box myself and others into black or white categories.  I think I can only choose only one way or another.  I judge myself and others as either right or wrong.  Living in extremes is rarely helpful and creates distorted thoughts, intense feelings, and often over-reaction. 

 

Today, I choose to recognize when my thinking is tempted to go down the pathway towards this detrimental territory.  I will stop and redirect my steps to the “Land of Both/And” where understanding, acceptance, connection and inclusion thrive. 

 

Calming the Storm

Intense feelings sometimes come from what seems like nowhere and seem to sweep over me like a tidal wave.  When this happens I want to make a conscious choice to step away from reactivity.  My first instinct is to run away, hide and give up or else come out swinging like a banshee.  However, I know I will later regret my impulsive all or nothing behavior. 

 

Instead, I choose to take a time out.  I intend to make no immediate decisions until I have regained a sense of calm.  I will breathe and ask myself what I need and soothe myself with nurturance and comfort.  Afterwards, I will explore whatever happened that set me off.  I will recognize the action or words I experienced and examine how I interpreted that event.  I can look at my interpretation and notice how rational or irrational it might be.  I may make a note to check out any assumptions I have made.  I will move forward only after I know what I think, feel and need in the situation.  THEN, and only then, I can take assertive and well thought out action.

Facing Difficulty

When unexpected and undesired things occur, it feels like instinct to panic.  However, this has never served me well.  I become impulsive and often make choices and decisions I later regret.  I can change this pattern of behavior with practice.  I can remind myself, in the past, I have always had all the resources I needed to deal with whatever has surfaced in my life.  I can remember to breathe and take time to gather enough information before I react.  I can call upon a good friend who reliably has been able to help me ground and calm my reactivity if I feel unable to do so myself.  I can recognize sad, difficult experiences come to all of us at times and I am not the only person in the world who is suffering in the moment. 

 

I will face this day with reassurance of recovery from past times of difficulty, awareness of the many resources at my fingertips, and a belief that a gift has come from every dark moment I have ever experienced.  I will breathe, center myself, allow my feelings to be expressed, recognize what I need and remain present to myself and others.

Practicing Mindfulness

Today, I will practice mindfulness. 

 

When I become aware I am operating on automatic cruise control and robotically going through the motions, I will affirm myself for recognizing what’s happening. 

When I find myself lost in the replay of past events and filling my mind with ‘I should have’s’ or blaming and judging, I will push the stop button on the movie reel.  Then choose to pause, breathe and ground myself in the here and now.

When I notice I am focused on what might happen in the future and frightening myself with an overload of ‘what if’s’, I will gently nurture myself with reassurance and bring my attention back to the present moment. 

I want to live my life NOW and choose to consciously open the door to peace, love, and happiness.

Meeting My Own Needs

“Go away, don’t bother me I’m busy!” were words that were imprinted on my heart early in life.  I quickly learned my needs didn’t matter and weren’t as important as others’ needs. I started to ignore the voice inside myself that cried out for love, reassurance, connection, validation and began to put myself down when it began to creep through into my consciousness.  I found myself often feeling resentful, envious, angry, depressed and hurt. These useful feelings led me to rediscover what I had denied for so long.  Of course, I have needs and they do matter.  When I first gave myself permission to acknowledge my needs, I felt very ‘needy’ and struggled with shame. I looked to others to fulfill my requests and was disappointed when the hole inside me emptied out so quickly.

Now, I know that I am the only person who can satisfy the call of my heart.  As I acknowledge and accept all of my needs, I ask for help from others when it is necessary and gratefully receive reassurance and validation whenever and wherever it’s available. 

Today, I will listen to the voice within me and respond to myself with a tender love and attention.