17 posts tagged “motivation”
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June 6, 2008 At The Feet Of The Divine Laying Our Burdens Down
We all know the feeling of walking through life as if we are carrying the huge burden of our worries and stresses on our backs and shoulders, struggling to keep moving forward. There is no real way to move freely and fluidly in such a situation, and we are all longing to lay our burdens down. Just imagining that it would be possible to do such a thing can be enough to elicit a sigh of relief and a feeling of lightness. The human imagination is a powerful tool, and we can use it to take journeys to faraway places without ever leaving our home. Because of this, we too can lay our burdens down at the feet of a divine being such as the great Mother, Buddha or a mountain. Releasing ourselves from that which we can’t handle on our own. No matter how smart we are, how capable we are, or how hard we work, no one can single-handedly cope with all the worries that we tend to take on in the course of our lives. And, we aren't designed to do so. Our wellbeing depends upon our ability to hand over that which we can no longer carry by ourselves.Visualizing yourself carrying your burdens to the feet of someone or something much bigger than you can be a powerful daily practice. To begin, sit with your eyes closed and envision an all powerful, supremely comforting being in what ever form that takes for you, standing at the end of a road. See yourself carrying a large sack, box, or other container, imagining that all your worries are inside it. Watch as you make your way to the being of your choice, and lay your baggage down at their feet. Allow yourself to feel the lightness and relief of this action, express your gratitude, and surrender. You will be amazed by how this simple meditation can liberate you from a burden you were never meant to carry
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This article is printed from DailyOM - Inspirational thoughts for a happy, healthy and fulfilling day. |
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June 5, 2008 One of the hardest things in life is feeling stuck in a situation that we don’t like and want to change. We may have exhausted ourselves trying to figure out how to make change, and we may even have given up. However, each day offers us an opportunity to renew our resolve and to declare to the universe that we are ready for change. We may even say out loud that we have tried and struggled and have not found a way, but that we are open to help, and that we intend to keep working to create change for ourselves. Making this declaration to the universe, and to ourselves, may be just the remedy for the stagnation we are experiencing. And, it can be done today, right now. It is difficult to understand, even with hindsight, how the choices we have made have added up to our current situation, but it is a good idea to examine the story we tell ourselves. If we tend to regard ourselves as having failed, this will block our ability to allow ourselves to succeed. We have the power to change the story we tell ourselves by acknowledging that in the past, we did our best, and we exhibited many positive qualities, and had many fine moments on our path to the present moment. We can also recognize that we have learned from our experiences, and that this will help us with our current choices.When we do this kind of work on how we view our past self, we make it possible for the future to be based on a positive self-assessment. This inner shift may allow us to get out of the cycle we’ve been in that’s been keeping us stuck. Now we can declare our intentions to the universe, knowing that we have done the inner work necessary to allow our lives to change. Allow today to be the day to end cycles and enter into a new way of being For more information visit dailyom.com This article is printed from DailyOM - Inspirational thoughts for a happy, healthy and fulfilling day. |
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© 2004-07 DailyOM - All Rights Reserved
No portion of this site can be reprinted without express permission
The 12 week Vox Fitness Challenge is wrapping up it's 12th and final week! Congratulations to everyone who participated! woot! :)
Much speculation has surrounded the topic about what is next and many people have expressed interest in doing another 12 week challenge to keep the momentum going! I think this is a grande idea!
Sooooooo, we are going to be starting another 12 week challenge on Monday, May 5th.
This time around, things will be the same as the original deal.....but with a couple of changes.
The new and improved Vox Fitness Challenge (read carefully!):
1. This challenge is open to everyone on Vox, regardless of whether or not you participated in round one. If you are a current participant of the round one challenge, please let me know if you plan on continuing or not.
Please don't feel obligated to continue on or join up. The challenge is totally voluntary for those who are seriously interested in taking it on.
2. On May 5th, you must report your starting point stat for one or all of the following:
- weight
- % body fat
- body measurements (thigh, hips, waist, chest, bicep)
- clothing size
3. Your first post should include, in addition to your starting stat(s), a little about yourself, what you plan on doing for the challenge, and what you hope to accomplish.
4. What you do for the challenge is pretty much up to each individual as we all have different goals, abilities, and desires. Just as long as your plan of action revolves around activity (exercise), health, and wellness. Starving yourself and/or using strange diets is really not a long term plan for success.
The first challenge was a big mix of different people doing different things and everyone was starting out from somewhere different. Don't feel shy because you may not be exercising or doing anything now. The whole point of the challenge is to just start!!! :) And if you are just starting, perhaps try picking up Bob Greene's Best Life Diet. It's a great way to get started, gradually, for long term health and wellness. Bob's vision is to get everyone making lifestyle changes that last a lifetime.
5. At the end of the 12 weeks, you must report in your ending stat(s) as per above.
6. You must post a minimum of once a week to the Vox Fitness Challenge group with a report of how things are going. It doesn't have to be long or verbose.....just a simple update is fine. The whole point of the group is support....so a quickie once a week should not be a challenge even for the busy people. Don't join the group if you don't plan on participating.
7. Please follow the links above and read all the info that was posted for the first challenge. The same things apply for the second challenge and I don't feel like posting it a second time. Please take the time and read up.
8. Everyone who participates in round 2 must "sign" a commitment contract for the challenge. This is a commitment mainly to yourself that you still stay commited for the 12 weeks. The one thing that was highlighted in the first challenge was just staying the course, for 12 weeks, seemed to the hardest challenge. And if you want to move forward in getting in shape, staying the course is what needs to happen!
So, read up, think about it, and let me know if you are seriously interested in joining the second challenge. If you are not part of round one, you will not be able to view the group as its a private group. I will be inviting and adding all the new people, for round two, once round one is finished and wrapped up.
If you are seriously interested or have any questions, please let me know via a comment below or via PM.
Good health, love, and blessings,
Dee
The mistake I've made in the past is not realizing how constant a struggle it really is not to turn to food for comfort. It comes down to another question Bob asked me years ago: " How much do you love you yourself?"
"Of course I love myself", I'd snapped. "It's the first law of self-preservation. I firmly believe in it. "
"You may believe it, but you don't practice it, " he said. "Otherwise you couldn't let yourself be two hundred and thirty-seven pounds."
I wanted to cry, and later I did. He was so right. I cared more about everyone else's feelings than my own. I'd overextend myself to do anything anyone asked, to honour his or her feelings. I didn't want anyone to think I wasn't "nice" or worse "the money has gone to her head."
This, too, I know for sure: Loving yourself means honouring yourself and your own feelings first. When I was 237 pounds, I didn't even know what I felt. It was like living behind a veil of fat.
excerpt from the FORWARD by Oprah Winfrey for Bob Green's book The Best Life Diet.
Acknowledged truth must be applied truth in order for it to bless your life.
Paul Tsika
Another great quote that so applies to the journey of working out, getting in shape, and losing weight.
(although somes the "work" of working out, getting shape, and losing weight feels miserable as we are making ourselves strong! LOL! ...but staying out of shape and/or heavy is only going to continue to make us miserable anyway so why not work at changing the situation!)
Don't compare yourself to others.
Instead, focus on
where you've been versus
where you are now versus
where you want to be.
While this can apply to so many things in life, I thought this was appropriate for me to come across as I am starting my 12 week Fitness Challenge program!
"Don't let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it.
The time will pass anyway;
we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use."
~ Earl Nightingale
Part 1: Some things I have learned so far....
Part 2: Marriage
Your thoughts about marriage on your first day of marriage vs on your 10th anniversary…are VERY different! I am sure the view will be different after 20 and 30 years, too!
Nothing prepares you for marriage.
The only way to learn about marriage is to be married.
In marriage, 2 halves do not make a whole…..only 2 whole people can make a whole relationship.
Be wary about listening to and/or taking advice from single-never-been-married people with respect to marriage relationships…….nothing against them but they just have no experience and are in for a world of surprise! As with most things, the best people to watch and learn from are people who have the fruit on the tree…and in this case those who are married, happily, for longer than you!
Be careful about what marriage advice you take from divorced-and-single people. They may be good people and well meaning and have some good warnings and/or tips….but their experience is not in how to have a great long term relationship. Its no offense to them...but don’t let their bitterness, if they are bitter, poison your well.
Marriage is a 50-50 enterprise but its not divided 50-50 at every given moment.
Spite has no place in a long term relationship.
A long term relationship is an evolution of 2 people and how they relate to each other.
Nothing hurts a relationship more than ambivalence.
Do not compare your spouse to someone else’s spouse. Chances are strong that you are comparing your spouse’s worst to the best that you see in the other person.
Do not compare your relationship to someone else’s relationship. The grass always seems greener on one side of the fence….sometimes its your side, sometimes its their side.
Don’t judge someone else’s relationship just because you don’t understand. No one knows what goes on behind closed doors. They may seem like an unlikely duo, but you just never know what makes it tick for them.
Only you can make yourself happy. This isn’t your spouse’s job.
Withholding love and affection from your spouse because you aren’t getting what you want or to show them up…..never works…for anybody. It’s a true lose-lose situation.
Regardless of how you feel, disrespecting and/or putting down your spouse in front of other people is wrong, wrong, wrong.
I must trust my spouse around other people...even if they are attracted to him, it should not matter as its his trustworthiness that is most important....not theirs. I should not be surprised others find him attractive. As he has never given me anything to worry about or distrust him, I should not worry or be threatened. Its affirming and respectful to him to know that I trust him.
Jealousy is a sign of a low self image mixed with fear.
I should always treat my spouse as number 1 to anyone else here on earth.
Not everything has to do with me.
Thanking and giving gratitude to my spouse, on a daily basis, for even the smallest of things, is very important.
I cannot fix/change my spouse nor am I responsible for fixing/changing my spouse.
The only person I have the power to change is myself.
I am not my spouse’s mother….nor do I want to be….so I shouldn’t act like I am. Its hard to be his mother and lover at the same time.
My spouse needs MY moral support more than anyone else’s.
Marriage and a long term relationship is hard work.
When I first got married, I thought I knew a lot about marriage but I really knew very little. After being married over 10 years, I feel like I have so much to learn but I really know so much.
Most people put more planning into their wedding day than into their marriage. Marriage is not a destination, it’s a journey. Forgetting that is like blowing all your time and money on the farewell party and then overlooking packing for the trip. Everyone dreams of their wedding day....but shouldn't you also dream of your 50th anniversary, too?
Love means saying you are sorry.
If you are feeling that you are not getting what you need from your spouse…..ask yourself if you are giving them what they need. They may be feeling the same way….in reverse.
If you aren’t being the bigger person…..then you are automatically being the smaller person.
Not all battles are worth fighting. Being right, at the top of your lungs, isn’t always right.
Communication, patience, trust, and understanding……are required regularly in heavy doses.
Sometimes the best thing to say is….nothing.
Spousal hugs are important….and should be administered multiple times daily.
Spousal snuggles times are important….and should be regular occurrences.
Laughing with your spouse on a regular basis…is a large part of what makes a marriage keep ticking.
Saying “I love you” never gets old and should be said regularly….everyday…..every conversation….you never know when it will be the last time.
Be a Queen.
Dare to be different.
Be the kind of woman who, in the face of adversity, will continue to embrace life and walk fearlessly toward the challenge.
Take it on!
Be a truth seeker and rule your domain, whatever it is - your home, your office, your family - with a loving heart.
Be a Queen.
Be tender.
Continue to give birth to new ideas and rejoice in your womanhood.
My prayer is that we will stop wasting time being mundane and mediocre.
We are daughters of God - here to teach the world how to love.
It doesn't matter what you've been through, where you come from, who your parents are - nor your social or economic status.
None of that matters.
What matters is how you choose to love, how you choose to express that love through your work, through your family, through what you have to give to the world....
Be a Queen.
Own your power and glory.
author unknown
I am not invincible.
Not to take for granted that people will be around forever.
I am funny.
I have good instincts.
Chaos is a good thing.
I dislike status quo.
People come into your life for a reason….and sometimes just for a season.
To counsel with people who have the fruit on their tree and not from someone with just opinions.
A wise man has many counselors.
Change can be good.
There is a reason for why I learn differently and why I am so methodical.
The key, in life, is to be thick-skinned and soft hearted, not thin-skinned and hard hearted.
Its ok to let people inside your walls.
Being shy is equivalent to putting up a wall (that you aren’t aware of).
You aren’t a failure if you make mistakes. You are only a failure if you quit.
Garbage in = Garbage out (thoughts, words, actions…)
The people you think are perfect…..aren’t.
The greatest legacy we can leave this world is what we leave behind us to carry on.
Raising better children is what makes a better future for everyone.
While you remember every hurt, sting, and bad thing that happened to you, not everyone else does (with respect to you) or remembers it differently.
Birds of a feather do flock together….this applies to turkeys as much as it does to eagles. (who do you hang out with?)
Friends, who can’t be happy for you, aren’t really your friends.
Not all friends are meant to be lifelong friends.
Asking for help is not a sign of weakness
Just being rich won’t make you happy….but neither will being broke.
Exercise is necessary evil….and not really evil at all (it just feels that way).
Many people love me for who I am….eventhough I don’t understand that or why that is!
That only I can make me happy. Its what inside me that counts.
Just because someone doesn’t agree or believe in something…doesn't make something less true.
People will blind themselves to the truths they can't or won't accept. Fear or ignorance is usually their driving force.
Fear is a prison. Our fears are, most often, worse that the reality. There is freedom in facing our fears.
Personal perspective is personal reality. Personal reality is not always the true reality.
True strength is not muscular or how much power we have over others. True strength is the power we have over ourselves. True strength is quiet, understanding, and compassionate.
Happiness is measured by how often we laugh on a daily basis. (How often do you laugh?)
That I influence and affect those around me more than I realize….when I am up and when I am down.
Living a quiet, mediocre, average life is not what God designed for me or had in mind for any of us.
Crisis and chaos happen in our life to shake up our status quo and get us out of our rut.
I am often standing in my own way.
Writing helps clear my mind.
