Blog Archives
Expand Your Comfort Zones
Stick your Necks Out!
We all get caught up in our daily routines. It is familiar and most comfortable, like a pair of good slippers.
I would like to suggest that daily routines and comfort zones can also become a fence or a wall. Perhaps we might long for an adventure, but we never begin to plan one.
When was the last time you checked the cost of airfare to Hawaii? What deals are out there? Or perhaps it is to take a cruise or a trip to Disney World or Universal Studios. So many plan to do these as a dream, but it is always somewhere in the distant future…and certainly not now. Rationale then kicks in with: “That is too expensive. I don’t have the money.” You talk yourself out of it before you ever begin.
Do you work so hard at your life that there is no room for possibilities? Every day, year in and year out, is full to the brim with all of your lists of things to be done and must do.
It is said that the way to begin saving is to pay yourself first, even if it is only $5 – put it in a special account so that you can stop feeling like you do not have enough money to do anything.After enough time and consistent saving of even small amounts, you might be surprised at how much it could amount to. Dreams become possible one payday at a time.
Do you have a place in your wallet or purse for a “Hold Card“…be it $5, $10, or whatever? The thought behind abundance is this: You look at something you would like to have, but you automatically think that you do not have the money for it, no matter how small a thing it is. (Like a nice Starbucks for a change of pace.) Yet, if you have a hold card, you could decide to use it for that object. Or not. (How bad do I want that Starbucks? Do I want to use my Hold Card? I know I can replace my Hold Card on Payday.) But it then becomes a choice instead of an automatic reaction. You are breaking the chain that has held you in place for so long.
My point is that we get so set into our comfort zones that we never “stick our necks out!” Like the turtles above, we can look at our routines and decide if they are a fence or a wall. Analyzing our daily lives can bring to light other possibilities that we have not examined before.
Are you willing to “stick your neck out?”
Attitude of Gratitude
Christmas and New Year’s are now past. The gifts have been opened and enjoyed. Perhaps you have made some New Year Resolutions, had a party, and welcomed the beginning of a New Year. So…what comes next?
Will it be more of the same? Or are you determined to make some changes?
Do you look at your life frequently, just to comment on what is wrong with it?
Do you need more of ….. (you finish that sentence)?
Here’s a novel idea: Look at your life carefully. Look at all the elements that are in it. Inside of each element is something to be grateful for. Many elements you were born with: You can walk, talk, speak, smell, think. There are many in this world who do not have the abilities you do. Are you contemplating what you will have for dinner? Many are wondering if they will be able to find anything to eat at all. In short, life is really not about what is wrong, but what is right. Too much attention is devoted to correcting deficiencies, while little is spent on the attitude of gratitude.
A song says, “Count your many blessing, name them one by one…” How long has it been since you did precisely that?
Whatever you focus your attention on is “the seed of your tomorrow.” Do you want more of what is good for you, or do you want to continue like a hamster in a cage, going round and round in the same old lessons?
Life is about lessons. It is meant to be lived. We all of have to do whatever it is we do every day…work, ride the bus, drive a car, play super mom or super dad, provider, bill payer…our routines rule our life.
When was the last time you said, “Thank you!” to someone? Do you show appreciation when someone does something for you? It is all part of the Attitude of Gratitude.
As for me, I am grateful for each and every day, from the sunrise to the sunset and beyond. I do count my blessings often. I love to be able to exercise and be healthy. I love to be outside and enjoy all of God’s wonders that He shares with me, be it a coyote, a Kestrel, or a bee on a blossom in my camera’s vision, which is also a gift. Beauty is all around, and I actively seek it.
Life comes to us a moment at a time. The Attitude of Gratitude becomes a part of our way of life, which expands our blessings and our livingness in the enjoyment of each day.
So instead of condemning (finding fault with) ourselves and others, why not spend more of our time being grateful, COUNTING OUR BLESSINGS?
Coyote
What’s up?
Kestrel
Bee on a Snap Dragon
“Good Morning, God!” or “Good God, It’s Morning!” ?
What is my attitude when I open my eyes for the first time each day?
Is it a Good Morning?
This picture of a little chickadee is in my bathroom, asking me that very question.
Attitude affects and effects perspective, always. AFFECT is defined as influence; produce a change in; to move or stir the emotions. EFFECT is defined as the power or ability to bring about results. PERSPECTIVE is defined as a specific point of view in understanding or judging things or events, especially one that shows them in their true relations to one another.
You may ask me why this is important. The answer is a simple one: How we view our world and interact with it begins with the second we open our eyes. Our first waking thoughts “set our sails” and will determine our journey for the day..the winds that come, as they always do, will catch those sails and blow us completely off our intended course unless we first set them properly and then adjust them as needed.
Is your world a fright-filled one where you have to turn on the morning news to get your first dose of negativity or pick up your newspaper to do the same? Or do you get a fresh cup of coffee and sit down out on the patio to quietly greet the day? All of your first actions in the morning will influence the rest of your day.
You control your reactions to what happens to you by starting to make small changes in your schedule to accommodate new beginnings. Are you willing to take that tiny amount of time to make a difference in your life?
Awareness of Beauty
It has been said that, “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” I find that to be mostly true.
We all have our own definitions for Beauty and what it consists of. Out West here, it could be seeing a beautiful horse in full gallop, or a sunset over the mountains, or the sight of an eagle in the sky. It depends on your frame of reference really. Perhaps it is a sailboat on the horizon, or windsurfing, or zip-lining through the top of a forest somewhere. Perhaps it is a smile on a loved one’s face. Perhaps it is a beautiful flower or barn swallow babies on the nest.
Whatever it consists of, one thing can be ascertained: We can get so wrapped up in our work, our jobs, our To Do Lists, emotions, etc., that we lose our awareness of Beauty in any form.
I have been with a friend, looking at a beautiful sunset over the mountains, and standing in awe at the colors before me. I turned to my friend to comment on it, and she said, “What? I don’t know what you are talking about.” She was so consumed with some sad issues that she had totally lost sight of the moment and her surroundings.
Have you ever done that? If you have, are you willing to let yourself become more aware so that you can wake up your senses to the loveliness that surrounds you? After all, the only day we have is right NOW, the PRESENT. It is the only place we really live, second by second. Not yesterday, not tomorrow…Do you want to LIVE NOW?
Mountain Sunset
Gardenia
Barn Swallow Babies
Daily Resolutions vs. New Year’s Resolutions
Newspapers and magazines are filled with articles this time of year about New Year’s Resolutions. Many people make magnificent resolutions that, if carried out, would make a big difference in their lives. Some even take action to make those resolutions come true: They buy a gym membership to be more healthy; they buy a book on “How To…” with the express intent of achieving their goal; they buy exercise equipment; they buy Stop Smoking patches or remedies. Then daily life takes over. Time crunches arrive. Decision time: “Do I take the effort to keep my resolution or do I not?” “I’m tired.” “It’s late.” “I’ve had a hard day.” “I’m so stressed out that I need a cigarette to calm me down.” Almost any excuse becomes a reason to delay working on the resolution. What seemed marvelous as an ideal soon loses its glamour when faced with the price tag attached…and there is always a price tag attached, whether it can be seen or not. Perhaps we like to create mountains that we think we can climb, imagining ourselves overcoming obstacles and ending up victorious. Then, when the energy ebbs away from the initial resolution, disillusionment settles in, accompanied by a feeling of some degree of failure most of the time.
What if, in lieu of sweeping, substantial resolutions, you begin by making a bargain with yourself: Make a simple Daily Resolution that would, if carried out consistently, begin to make a change you can live with and actually achieve? Small steps represent choices you can make. Taken collectively and over time, you can, indeed, create possibilities in your life that could bring you gifts of all kinds…intangibles including joy, peace, laughter, wisdom, understanding, as well as tangible results that are measurable such as the loss of a pound or two, or you actually cut down on the number of cigarettes you smoked that day, or you exercised by taking the stairs instead of the elevator, or you signed up for a yoga class and really enjoyed doing it so you kept at it. No choice is too small to matter. Begin with where you are today and look for a possible step that will take you in the right direction.
It has been asked, How do you eat an elephant? Answer, one bite at a time. So, are you willing to make the effort to make a simple Daily Resolution? Your future is in your capable hands, today.
Whatever this New Year holds for you, may you be blessed with your highest good and an abundance of Life expressing through you as you.
Colorado Mountain
Metamorphosis
Metamorphosis is defined as, “Change of form, shape, structure, or substance; transformation; a marked or complete change of character, appearance, condition, etc.”
This happens during Autumn of every year. I revel in the sight of leaves drifting down from the trees and the changing of their colors.
It reminds me that I need to examine my own life to see what is not serving me very well so I can let it go. Amazingly, there is always something to find. Life does it to us, serving up a cup of sad memories, should have’s, shouldn’t have’s, wish I had, wish I hadn’t…you name it. That includes lack of forgiveness for myself and others. We hang onto the memories, both good and bad.By hanging onto the memories, we also hang onto the emotions. In most cases, that gives us more grief than the original occurrence of whatever happened. As usual, it is the bad stuff we hang onto the tightest. We wonder: Why am I so bummed out? Depressed? Sad? Angry?
Like a caterpillar that spins its cocoon so it can morph into a butterfly, we need to examine our attitudes, emotions, thoughts, etc. We cannot become who were meant to be as long as we continue to hang onto whatever is holding us back.
I tell myself that this is a time to accept changes and let go, peacefully and without frustration or gnashing of teeth. It is like putting a leaf into a stream and watch it float away with the current, releasing it.
Life is a journey, not a destination. I would rather enjoy the journey, wouldn’t you?
It is very difficult to enjoy something when you carry so much baggage with you, isn’t it?
Oak Autumn Leaves
Reflection of Autumn Leaves
Magnificent Autumn Leaves – Colorado
Colorful Caterpillar
Blue Morph Butterfly
Yellow Swallowtail on Dianthus (Sweet William)
upliftingthoughts4u 