Why do we believe that real life is found in  the dark place of our lives?

Why is it so hard for us to forgive…the past, ourselves, the driver who cut us off on our way to church?

Why do we insist and persist on dwelling on these ridiculous transgressions?

What is it about me that does not allow me to forgive myself?

Do you know?

Affirmation: Life is Light. Light is my nature. Peace is who I am.

Forgiveness is as easy and refreshing as… 

drinking a cool glass of water on a warm summer’s day.

Well there’s been a lot going on, all good.  I plan on making some changes to the blog.  Soon there will be a free 20 minute guided angel meditation, as well as videos on simple everyday mindfulness, online classes, and so much more.  I haven’t shared this all yet with my web guy Mark, so let’s just keep it between us. 

Also, I’ve just discovered something called art journaling.  I love to journal and I have been journaling on and off for about ten years.  While I was in Santa Fe, I literally stumbled on something called, “The Diarist’s Workshop.”  Incredible stuff!  Well, over the past two weeks or more I’ve been up late researching art journaling and adding it to the mix with my everyday journaling.  I’ve also started taking an online art class.  I love the way the Life always has something new and delightful in store for us, we just have to learn to expect our good to arive more often.  Anyway, it’s not to late to sign up for the art class or to start your own series of art journalings.  If you want to see what I’m up to, go to http://www.flickr.com.  My screen name is Krista1970.  Check it out, leave a comment.  Let me know what you think…but be nice.

Bye for now.

Krista

p.s.

I will be posting new class updates shortly. 

How does the material world exist if the fundamental building blocks of matter have no mass?  And what does this have to do with meditation, visualization, and your wellbeing? 

Your body and everything else in the universe may look solid; but all matter is made up of particles, particles that have no mass.  Science has yet to quantify exactly what this is all about, but the mystic and the metaphysician will tell you that the fundamental building blocks of life is Source energy…moving, oscillating, vibrating, living energy. You are Source energy in a beautiful and unique form. 

You direct this energy with your thinking and with your feeling.  That is, you have a free will to do whatever you want with this energy.  If, for example, you direct your thoughts towards something that makes you feel sad, disappointed, or resentful, the vibratory nature of your being slows down and you feel drained, tired, or depressed.  Why?  Because your sense of wellbeing is directly related to the quality your thinking, and your thoughts direct the vibration and flow of your energy.

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The Practice of the Silence

1. Be comfortably seated so that your mind will be as free as possible from any thought of the body.

2. Remember that this period of silence is a period of prayer, a period of conscious communion with your Source.

3. Be interested in discovering the nature of Source and what Source wishes to reveal to you.

4. Become very still, and listen with your whole being to catch whatever degree of Presence may be revealed to you.

5. Acknowledge that The Presence is in you and that Its infinite wisdom is unfolding in you, Its Life is expressing in you, and Its inexhaustible substance is being formed in you continually.

6. Do not make the period of silence too long in the beginning—perhaps only two or three minutes. Let it be only as long as your interest seems to hold you.

7. Only by practice does one become a musician, and it is by practice that you develop the new consciousness of spiritual things…so don’t be discouraged if your experiences are not as you anticipate them to be.

8. On closing your time of silence, assume an attitude of thanksgiving.

From, “Meditation in the Silence,” (by E.V. Ingraham, pp. 42-43)

Lesson and Practice: Practicing Attention and Appreciation.
To know God (Source, Universe, Soul, Self, etc…), you must first be interested in knowing God, you must give your attention to It. This week practice knowing God in all things, in all places, and in all peoples everywhere through the giving of your attention. (more…)

A good way to frustrate yourself, waste time, and create tension in your relationships is by trying “fix” your family and friends.

We have all experienced the aggravation that arises from trying to help a loved one or a friend only to have our advice and intentions ignored, belittled, or used as ammunition in the battle for “whose right.”

The reason why our seemingly good intentions fail, is because the deeper, truer, inner intention is tainted by self gratification.
 
For example:  Mary has a friend Betsy, who is always depressed.  Mary loves Betsy and wants help her.  Mary treats Betsy to lunch, buys her spiritually uplifting books to read, recommends seminars and classes to take, tells Betsy what a terrific person she is, and so on. 

Mary’s thoughts about Betsy are often, “she’s such a great person.  If she’d only…..she’d be so much happier.”  Mary’s feelings about Betsy range from frustration, to pity, and back again because although Betsy complains a lot she will not listen to Mary.
 
Why aren’t Mary’s efforts to help her friend working?  Does Mary truly see her friend as complete, whole, and perfect?  Or does Mary see someone who needs “fixing” or saving?  How do you think Mary will feel once her friend is fixed?  Who is she really trying to make feel better? 

Mary’s inner/subconscious intentions are in conflict with her outer/conscious intentions.  Mary’s conflicting intentions contaminates the outcome, thus Betsy never gets “fixed” and Mary remains frustrated.  This happens for a number reasons: 

1.  Since Betsy complains a lot about her life situation, we can assume that Betsy sees herself and her life as flawed.
Mary perceives Betsy’s complaining as a desire to be “fixed” or helped in some way.  Unfortunately, Mary’s attempts at helping her friend fail because her perception of Betsy is of someone who is broken…thus Mary unwittingly perpetuates Betsy’s negative self image.

The law of karma states that  every action (intention) has an equally corresponding reaction (manifestation).  Thus, Mary continues to feel frustrated in her friendship because her feelings about Betsy are negative to begin with.  That is, she can not create a positive outcome for herself and her friend as long as she is coming from a negative inner space.  Mary does not really believe that Betsy is a terrifically whole person, her deeper belief is that there is something wrong with Betsy that needs fixing.

2.  There is a Hindu saying that only a god can worship a god.  What this means is that when we are in the awareness of our inherent and divine perfection we see It in the world around us.  Conversely, when we are in lack consciousness, we will see lack in others, in our relationships, and in our world.

Since Mary’s attention is not on her own perfection, Mary’s perceived inadequacies of Betsy are an unconscious mirror of Mary’s own perceived inadequacies. Here Mary’s deeper unconscious intention in fixing Betsy, who represents the outer world, is about Mary feeling better and ultimately more complete.

3.  It is possible that Mary has a “savior” or a “martyr” identity.  Thus Mary’s need to fix Betsy, will enhance and feed
this ego identity.  When Betsy doesn’t listen to Mary, the “savior” feels frustration. The “martyr” identity is perpetuated also when Betsy doesn’t listen because now Mary’s thoughts and feelings revolve around self-pity.

4.  The ego (unconscious, uncontrolled, and reactive thinking) thrives on feelings of power.  If Mary was very present during her time with Betsy, especially when the conversation or her actions revolved around fixing Betsy, there would be a tingling sensation in the solar plexus, accompanied by a feeling of power or superiority.  Why?  Because Mary knows more than Betsy about how to fix Betsy’s life, what books to read, and so on.

This Week’s Mindfulness Practice:
1. Be mindful of your intentions.  What’s really motivating you in your relationships? 
2.  Work on feeling your own completeness and acknowledge the completeness of others.

For more on topics about relationships and personal freedom, please attend my “A New Earth Workshop:  Working with the teachings of Eckhart Tolle,” begining July 8th or my “Women’s Wisdom Workshop.”

Know that wisdom is integral to your being…ask and ye shall know.

Quote for contemplation: “…a spiritually awake person…looks with compassion on those whom he knows are in ignorance of their true identity or those who do not understand the nature of God’s world,” (The Contemplative Life, by Joel Goldsmith).

Question for contemplation: What is the difference between pity and compassion?

Unfortunately, most of us second guess our intuitive impulses, mulling the various outcomes around in our heads for hours or even days in search of the right answer.

We mistrust our intuition, not because we don’t feel it, but because we have forgotten that everything we need for our desire to manifest is contained within the desire.

Instead we debate all of the pros and cons and loose time, energy and focus. More importantly we loose touch with the initial flame of our desire thus extinguishing it with our deliberation.

The habit of “second guessing” arises from our preoccupation with the outcome. Part of being here is to experience what happens along the way when we follow the spark of our desires.

Try This: When cooking dinner or getting dressed for work, follow your initial desire. In other words, if you have the desire to put cinnamon in the chili, try it. If you have the desire to wear a red tie or blouse to work, then do it.

Throughout your day, notice how often you stop to “deliberate” even the smallest desire and ask yourself, “Am I second guessing?” Then go back to the initial feeling of desire (if you can remember it) and follow it through. But Be Forewarned! There is a difference between being compulsive and being intuitive. I trust you’ll know the difference.

You never know when a small spark of desire to wear a red tie will turn into and even greater inspiration, or if simply wearing it makes you feel good that day.

Say this with me: “I hear, I trust, and I respond to my internal guidance system. It serves me well.”

P.S. Read, “The Alchemist,” by Paul Coelho. Find out what happens to a young man when he follows the spark of his desires.

We all have the potential to be mystics, to be knowers of the Truth and Lovers of Life.

The life of the mystic requires commitment and a consistent spiritual practice that includes study, meditation, contemplation, prayer and service.

Unless we commit to mystic’s path we will only be living on the edges of what could be rather then living in the midst of what is.

Say this with me now: “I am a knower of Divine Love. I express this Love in my thoughts, in my actions, and in my life. I am a supreme mystic, I am a revealer of love divine.”

From “Walden,” by Henry David Thoreau: “To be a philosopher [mystic] is not merely to have subtle thoughts, nor even to found a school, but so to love wisdom [God] as to live according to its dictates, a life of simplicity, independence, magnanimity, and trust.”

Would you like to suggest a class topic? Post your suggestions and if we explore your topic, you get to attend the class for free!

Everyday I think of my personal goals.  They change based on my mood and my needs, but there’s one goal that came to mind recently, one that I’m feeling passionate about… it’s leaving this world in a better place then where I found it, and my sense is is that the Internet can help me with this goal. 

The world is small.  I can reach across the globe just as easily as I can reach across the table to touch my husbands hand.  It’s wonderful, and filled with possibilities and potentialities.   Too often we focus on what we don’t have, how the world is imperfect and how the people in it are flawed.  As a writer and a teacher, I am concerned with how to make ”the positive” interesting.  This can be challenging when ”the negative” is often more titillating, but challenge is a good thing.   

 What I’d like to create here is a community of people that are interested in  feeling good, conscious parenting, listening, tolerance, letting go of dogmas and spiritual awakening. 

I am knowing a beautiful present for all.

Love,
Krista