Reclaiming Valentine’s Day

Is Valentine’s Day only an occasion for those folks paired in a starry eyed relationship or a relationship that needs the help of a heart celebration?  

I believe not. Why not reclaim the “Hallmark” card occasion for whatever or whomever you love? Choose one or all of the suggestions or add your own.

Love children

Love animals

Love yoga

Love meditation

Love healthy food

Love fresh air

Love a strong body

Love nature

Love this world

Love this moment

Be a lover of life and lover of self for this is the unconditional love that grows compassion and care for all sentient beings. Gaze at the world with love and love shines back on you on this and every day.

As the Grateful Dead sang, “Wake now discover that you are the eyes of the world.”

Love

Tommi

The Heart Hears

My beautiful grand-daughter Teagan went to Family Day Activities with her Grandpa Greg. Of the music she said, it made her feet get up and dance and that she could hear the music in her heart.  Then she said, it was funny how her heart had ears.

What a wonderful delight!  Through our Indigo children, we learn if we open our heart ears we can hear the music. 

Some Thoughts On Anger

How do we honour hate, anger, sadness, guilt? Perhaps more to the point is why would we want to honour “negative” emotions? To negate a part of existence is to deny the human condition; it is what it is.

When we bring light to darkness, we can see that all of these emotions are fear based. What do we do when a child or someone we love is fearful or angry? We offer compassion, understanding, consolation, kindness, support, a listening ear, hugging arms or a caring shoulder. Why would we be angry at someone who is hurting?

Honouring these “adverse” feelings by turning and facing them means acknowledging that they arise in us. In this arising, we have the choice to transmute the base metal of contrary feelings into gold; the golden light of understanding and compassion. In doing so there is an invitation to look beyond the arising feeling to what lies under. 

Questions to ponder include where do these feelings come from?  What is the purpose of them? How can I use my anger, sadness, guilt in a creative, productive way that could initiate change both inward and outward? 

Finally, the truth of these so-called “bad” emotions, the anger we feel to others we know on both a subtle and not subtle level is deeply harming and stressful to all, particularly ourselves. More conflict does not end conflict, fighting for peace is an oxymoron. 

Learning to find equanimity in the face of all of life’s challenges and joys is a healing practice. It’s not easy. It’s a practice that requires patience and forgiveness and a willingness to go beyond.  

Surrender

Angel Card for today:  Surrender

Does surrendering mean giving up, languishing in defeat or feeling less than? 

Surrendering is letting go of what we think should happen and being present with what happens. The natural flow of life shows us that clinging to beliefs, stories, grievances, past deeds or words taints our perception of the present moment. 

Instead of being with each moment as new and full of possibility we have preconceived moments of expectation. In this expecting, there is no room for freshness and change. Indeed when the inevitable change happens, we are surprised. In letting go we acknowledge that change is the only constant. 

Breath by Breath

Spiritual yearnings and a desire to self awareness started when very young. Preteen, I recollect. I distinctly remember realizing that breath had something to do with it.

I looked through card catalogues and book indexes (no Google then) for a clue. Yes, there was the breath by breath automatic inhalation and exhalation that sustained life but I felt on a gut level there was something more. I was puzzled until years later through meditation and yoga did I learn that it was not that we breathed but how we breathe.  

Being mindful of the inhale and the exhale and the still points between inhalation and exhalation connects us to this moment as it is. When we pause and bring attention to the breath we have the great and grand opportunity to truly be present. 

As you rush through your daily activities stop and ponder the breath. Am I gasping for air? Is my breath shallow? Is the breath frantic? The answers are pointers to our whole being, our mind, body, spiritual connection. When we listen to the breath, we have a window on our emotional state. Am I stressed? Balanced? Tired? Angry? Happy? Sad? 

When that light of awareness is shone, we then have a choice, with the breath to realize equanimity and come back to this moment where life is unfolding before our eyes. And yet there is a paradox, a moment that takes our breath away, is a moment of true connectedness and oneness in the wholeness of presence. 

Breathe deep and awaken to the knowing that you are life itself.  This is it. 

Enough is Enough

Ok. It’s time. Enough procrastination.  I’ve been tussling with an inner demon, “Not Good Enough.”  Truly, I’ve allowed this fear to stop me from writing for a while because that nasty beast reared its head and I believed it.  Without a doubt, I “knew” the writing was not good enough.  Tangled up in this web of self doubt are threads of self sabotage.  Why do I fear success?  Why do I shrink from letting true writing me shine through?  It’s not that I don’t have my own writer’s voice, I’ve been writing long enough to know this voice is strong, capable and literate. So, I don’t really know if I can answer the why perhaps Marianne Williamson can remind me, again.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

There, said succinctly, now I simply need to practice it. It’s a strange thing, I cheerlead for everyone else, except me.  Perhaps my resolution for 2013 is: “I have the right to be here and a right to express myself.”

Enough is Enough; I am Enough. 

On word.... 

This Season ~ In Joy

Well, I haven’t written for a while.  Probably due to the season, maybe the dullness of the skies, perhaps crazy chemicals in the brain(although after seeing an interview that said there is no evidence or scientific tests measuring the chemicals in the brain to prove this, I am questioning) or just plain, old feeling down. I’ve been teaching my grand daughter, everything comes and goes.  That includes everything, weather, stuff, us and even emotions. I knew that this too would pass and I would again feel inspired to write a few words in this blog. 

It is a sunny day.  I am filled with gratitude.  Blessed to be alive, to be physically healthy and enough strength of mind to know that to practice with feelings and beliefs is a process. There is always something. At the same time there is no-thing. This is our saving grace. To truly realize that we are not things, that nothing is fixed and solid is a blessing. 

When we accept the concept of change as a constant (a bit of an oxymoron) we “know” that everything comes and goes.  That opens an invitation to find the blessing in this moment. So often, I have heard that running from what we fear is just running, it brings us no closer to the knowing. Sometimes the most difficult thing to do is to turn and face fear and to realize that the fear is something we have created in our minds. We have the amazing capacity to find calm in the most challenging storm. We need only to accept “I don’t know” and learn to embrace the mystery of this moment, of this precious yet fleeting life. 

No matter how you celebrate this holiday season, I wish you joy, light and love.

In joy 

Tommi