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Sharing It

3 May

When we are young, most of us are taught to share. We’re encouraged to share our crayons and our toys, sometimes our food or treats, and in doing so we learn how to give. As we get older sometimes we lose focus of the blessings that come from sharing. We’re busy taking care of ourselves and making sure our needs are met. We manage our time and our possessions and may hold them tightly in order to control them. Although it’s important to control our lives effectively, we can still include others in them as well. There is a lot of need in the world. Some of it’s financial and we may certainly give to a limitless number of programs or projects, but some of the need is personal. Not all needs are material in nature. We all need compassion, kindness and consideration. And our capacity to share those things is virtually endless. Unlike our checkbooks, there is no limit to what we can share emotionally. If we’re having a good day we can boost those around us. We can choose to be kind and engaged instead of rude and aloof. We can be polite and helpful and when we are, we share our very best.

The world is a big, complicated place with all kinds of problems and issues. Because we have so much access to what’s going on everywhere we can see suffering and trouble every moment of every day. Unfortunately, those who produce our news stories focus on all the negative things that are happening all the time. And there is no end to trouble. But with all that duress and strife, there are people doing well. There are people helping each other, caring for one another, easing each others’ burdens, and sharing what they can to make things better. We rarely hear about those stories but the people sharing their lives in service to others are the ones really changing the world. Sometime it’s not the big events that make the lasting changes. Sometimes it’s the small gift of personal charity that turns everything around.

We don’t have to do huge, impressive acts of kindness to make a change in the world. The smallest thing – helping someone who’s fallen get back up – can turn things around for others. We can be kind and share goodness with those around us and make a big impact on the world. Of course we can share our money and our food and our possessions and those are all helpful. But when we share ourselves by being kind and considerate, when we reach higher to be more present and available to others, and when we do a little more to serve those around us, the world becomes a better place. Lives are lifted and we impact everything for good. We have an unlimited ability to be loving and caring. If we focus on sharing those attributes with others, everything will be better. Our lives will be more fulfilled and those around us will feel happier. We have so much to offer. If we remember to share it, we can change the world.

Today remember to offer your kindness to those around you. Be polite and caring in all your dealings and your impact on the world will be great. You have nobility inside you. Show it to others. Be the change we all want to experience. You have so much to offer. Share it with those around you today. And you will change the world.

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Learning to Bend

31 Mar

There are few times when things go exactly like we think they will. Our plans often have many modifications and sometimes we reach an ending that doesn’t look anything like we thought it would at the beginning. There are a lot of variables in life and we can’t control anything but our own choices. Other people may get involved, the situation may change, the weather may even come into play, and a thousand other possibilities. If we decide things have to go exactly as planned and they don’t, we may find ourselves in a very uncomfortable place. It’s great to make decisions but it’s important to remember complications may arise that color how things actually happen. We have to learn to bend from time to time. Sometimes it’s easy to turn one way or another, and other times it can be very difficult. But if we don’t bend our plans may fail altogether. It may be disappointing to have to change plans especially if they are very important to us. But it’s better to have some flexibility instead of breaking apart at the seams because we couldn’t stretch. Learning to bend takes practice but we can manage it. We can adjust and accommodate whatever is needed to find success.

Control is an illusion we sometimes believe in. We might think if we plan well or spend more money nothing will go wrong. But there is no way to predict the future and we can’t control anything but ourselves. There are often unforeseen developments and complications we couldn’t predict. Sometimes things go perfectly but often there is some sort of glitch. No matter what comes, no matter how complicated things get, if we are patient and look at the situation objectively we can find a way through. Sometimes complications bring us unexpected surprises that work even better than the original plan. If we’re flexible and able to adjust, we can take full advantage of those benefits when they surface.

Disappointment is natural when we have to make unwanted changes but disappointment is just a sign that we’re in transition. We are moving from one point to another. It doesn’t have to be negative. If we are able to lessen our grip on our first ideas we can more effectively embrace the next. Moving from one decision to another often brings challenges but it can also bring insight. Sometimes stepping away from our first position helps us see other options more clearly. If we can be flexible, if we can embrace change when needed, and if we can bend into the wind, we can find success. We can be open to new ideas and explore new paths.

Today if your plans aren’t working out like you hoped, there is another way. Your options are endless. Look around. See the whole picture and let new ideas find you. You can accommodate any change needed and you will succeed. Bend a little and stretch to find the answers. They are there waiting for you.

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Tadpoles

25 Mar

Tadpoles are interesting creatures.  They are generally water creatures, and have gills, no legs, and a tail.  But their form is transitional.  Their quest is to become frogs – an entirely different creature that looks and lives completely differently.  As tadpoles mature, their gills are replaced by lungs so they can breathe air, their tails disappear, and they grow legs.  Their mouths change and become very wide, and their diet changes as well.  The metamorphosis from one creature to the other is dramatic and amazing.  The change is extreme and occurs naturally without intervention.  We aren’t tadpoles but we change as we grow as well.  We aren’t going to grow another set of legs, but the metamorphosis we go through as we change into our unique and genuine selves can be dramatic.  But our changes don’t always happen without intervention.  Life gives us challenges and trials, and as we navigate each one we change a little.  Our changes may not be dramatic, although they can be.  Change is a constant in our lives, and if we are wise the changes we go through will take us to who we really want to be.

When we stretch our abilities and push ourselves to move forward, we may feel discomfort.  It’s like deciding to start running to get into shape.  There are lots of benefits to getting more physical exercise, but getting to those benefits means we have to go through a transition.  At first we may struggle to get through the run.  The next day we may feel pain because we’re doing something new.  It may be difficult to manage, but if we stick to it and continue day after day, we’ll become stronger and gain the benefits we are seeking.  Change isn’t always easy.  At first turning another way may feel foreign and uncomfortable, but as we practice we’ll find our rhythm and the behaviors we want will become routine.  But it doesn’t happen overnight.  The tadpole needs time to change into a frog, and we need to time to change as well.

Like most situations in our lives, the big changes generally take longer to adjust to than the smaller ones.  If we want to change our route to work it will take little effort, but if we want to stop smoking it will be much harder.  No matter what it takes, if we want to change anything, we can.  Our lives are not carved in stone and we aren’t pre-determined to do anything.  We can change anything we like.  There may be pressure from those around us to keep things the same because it’s comfortable and rocking the boat can unbalance things.  But if we want to we can push forward and once on the other side, our balance will return.  There isn’t anything we can’t do and we don’t have to live a life we don’t want.  We are in control and can choose any path going forward.

Today if you’ve been thinking about a change you really want to make, take a step toward it.  You know where you want to go and how you want to get there.  The first step will open the door to the destination.  You can do anything.  You can decide how your life will go.  Begin today moving toward where you want to be.  You’re only steps away.

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Intertwined

4 Mar

We can do just about anything we want to in our lives. If we want to learn something new, with enough time and practice we can master whatever it is. If we want to make a change, with enough determination we can accomplish it. And if we want to achieve something, if we plan well and do all we can, we can succeed. Unfortunately we all face times when something we really want eludes us.  If everything only depended on us we might never fail, but in this life what we do and what we want often depends on the choices of others. We can try hard to change something in our lives but if others are involved and they don’t agree, we may have to alter our course for a time.  Sometimes we may have to change our plans until the situation improves. But that doesn’t mean we have to forsake the dream. It just means we may have to move in a different direction or at a different pace.

The old saying that “no man is an island” is true. We live in a world with lots of other people. We develop all kinds of relationships with them and they are intertwined throughout our lives. There are some things we do that don’t impact anyone else, but unless we’re hermits living alone on a mountain top, many of our choices will touch those around us in some way. If we’re in a work situation, the choices we make and the things we want to achieve may depend on their agreement and support. If we’re dealing with family and they don’t understand what we’re trying to do, their disapproval may hinder us. If we’re in a relationship where someone depends on us keeping things the same, we may postpone a decision we really want to make. People are complicated and every one of us has our own unique perspective on life. If we want to do something that needs the cooperation of those near us for it to succeed, and that isn’t forthcoming, we can alter our plans. We can find a way to move forward alone, and we can still succeed.

Complications often come when we’re trying to make a change in our lives. But complications are just unexpected developments. We are certainly capable of figuring out how to navigate anything that comes our way, and if our goal is important to us we will find a way around any complication. If we want something badly enough we can achieve it even without the support of those around us. Someone else’s opinion of what we’re doing is just that – their opinion. And their opinion belongs to them. We can let them own that, and continue on our course.  We can listen to their comments and if we don’t agree, we can graciously decline their advice and do what’s most important to us.

Today if you really want to make a change in your life, and there’s something you want to do, carefully weigh your options. If you can move forward and feel it’s best to proceed, begin today. If you feel you must wait until things change, make a plan for when you will start. There isn’t anything you can’t do. You’re in charge of your life and are capable of making excellent decisions. You know what you want and you know how to get it. Make a plan and make the best choices for success.

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It Happens

25 Feb

We live at a time of unprecedented opportunity. We can travel around the world, take jobs we can work at home, go to college in our spare time, and accomplish anything we set out to do. It has never been easier to make dreams come true. But the trick is learning how to make them happen. We have a choice in our lives – we can either make things happen by setting goals and working toward them, or we can sit back and let them happen as they will and navigate around them. Life changes every moment of every day. Whether the changes are things we want to experience or not often depends on the choices we make. There are some things we have no control over, but when it comes to our lives, we can determine and change a lot. All we really have to do is decide what we want. After that we can work toward our goals and if we are persistent will make many of them a reality. Some people don’t want the responsibility of creating the lives they dream of and prefer to just go along with whatever comes their way. Perhaps they prefer the security of knowing someone else will decide, or the comfort of sameness each day. But if we let circumstances and others determine where our lives will go, it’s doubtful we’ll find real, fulfilling happiness. And we all deserve to be happy.

It’s those who dream of changing things and imagining how different life could be who make the most amazing discoveries. If Edison had not imagined we could have light whenever we wanted it, he wouldn’t have created the light bulb. Dreamers have enhanced our lives in many ways. It’s wonderful to dream and imagine what could be. But in every instance if we want to create something new, change something, or develop our lives in new ways, we have to do more than dream. We have to act. If all Edison did was sit around and think about how wonderful it would be to have light at the flick of a switch, and did nothing to make it happen, he would have created nothing. Even if we spend years planning a dream we want to achieve, even if we ponder every detail we need to conquer to make it happen, until we actually begin to do what is needed to make it a reality, nothing will change. Our lives will continue, time will go by, and we’ll still be dreaming.

There isn’t anything we can’t do. If we can think it, we can do it. Some things will of course be harder than others, but with sufficient preparation and time, if we work at them and persist no matter what comes, we can make our dreams a reality. It takes courage to change our lives and go after the things we dream about. It takes determination and it might take a long time. But we have enough courage and determination if we really want what we’re dreaming of, and we can move forward toward it for however long it takes to succeed. We are capable of having the lives we dream about. Our lives will go by whether we design them and create them the way we want them or not. We are responsible for the choices we make, even when we choose to do nothing. We deserve to be happy. We deserve to make all our dreams come true. Life happens. It’s up to us to make sure it happens our way.

Today if you’ve been dreaming of something you really want to do but haven’t done anything to achieve it, take the first step. Mark your path and move forward a little every day. As you move closer to the goal your confidence will rise and you’ll succeed. Nothing is strong enough to stop you. You can make all your dreams come true. Make your life happen your way, and it will be the life you always dreamed of.

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