Hopes

I remember as a child being told, "Don't get your hopes up." It immediately deflated my balloon of hope and all its possibilities that I had floating about me. It immediately told me that life was bound to be filled with disappointments. This statement told me that I should not aim too high in any of my dreams as it was likely not to happen. This statement and others that were similar were often shared with me as I grew by many different adults in my life; parents, teachers, coaches and more. Statements like, "In the real world things like that don't happen" or "You are getting too old to think like that" or "Well, I used to believe that too until I wised up." After a while I stopped looking to life to bring me good things, magic or wonder. I have since learned that my thoughts are very powerful. They are so powerful that they create my reality. I was not willing to accept that my life did not hold miracles, that my life had to be mundane, that my hope was part of my powerful tool collection that I brought to my day.

I bring my hope to the day. Hope adds fuel to my actions, delight to my efforts and it buoys me through my struggles. It reminds me to believe in the miracles and to look for them. It shows me the path of my dreams. It is something I offer to those in my life as a bright burning star to shine on their actions and thoughts.

Hope is a brilliant light that can serve as a beacon in our dark days. It shares a light onto the places where we feel stuck and shows us where to find the flow. It wakes parts of us that want to turn away and bury under the blanket of life when we feel overwhelmed, undone, or simply tired. Hope allows us to lean back into Her arms and reminds us of all the times she has helped us through.

My story is not one of disappointment or mundane. My story is full! It is packed with wonder, beauty, dreams, possibilities, growth, and gifts. There are parts of the story that have struggle, challenge or pause and hope is the light I look for to empower me to move to the next moment of the day.

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2013 Lisa Meade

What Inspires You?

Have you asked yourself this question lately? Do you know? It is important to know the answer. It is important to honor the answer and celebrate it in your life. What inspires you feeds your passion. What inspires you awakens your soul. What inspires you challenges you to grow. We often let our self judgement or our fear keep us from creating from our inspiration. We think things have to be perfect, the best, final, or complete. Inspiration grows within us as we evolve in the process of its unfolding. Helen Keller once stated, "Life is either a grand adventure or nothing." That is how to approach the wonder found in your inspiration. Let it fuel your grand adventure!

If your inspiration is singing, don't wait until you "think" you are the best at singing, share your song with others and share your inspiration. If your creative fire is part of your inspiration, allow your art to be shared and see how it moves others. If your time in Nature inspires you, then be sure to make regular time to be out in it in your life, not only when there is time.

How often have you allowed fear or criticism stop you from doing something that you are inspired to do? When we allow this to happen it stops us in our tracks of experiencing our grand adventure. Our inspiration is a potent force that runs through us. Grab a hold and enjoy the ride!

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2013 Lisa Meade

Minute by Minute

How is your relationship with time and life? Odd question? Hard to answer? Not sure? I can relate. There was a time when I had a difficult time answering it. I was not really sure how my relationship with time and life truly was. I needed to figure it out. Here is what I discovered. First I had to find out what was needed in my relationship with time and with my life. I found I needed intention, desire, belief and willingness, a good amount of perseverance, some acceptance and willingness. Once I discovered the need for these things and how to relate to them, embrace them and BE them...my relationship with time and with my life changed, dramatically. In the most wonderful ways.

I learned I was losing parts of my life minute by minute, day in and day out, in a thousand small and tiny uncaring ways. I needed to step up and become conscious of my life, my beliefs and my choices. I took my intentions to work on first. I became very clear with what I wanted in my life. I looked at relationships, activities, locations, skills, achievements...you get the picture. I really spent time with a sharpie and made a list of intentions, specific intentions, that would bring about the changes in my life to be what I dreamed it could be.

Then I looked at my desire level. I know the more motivated I am about something the more energy I bring to the game. So I asked myself in total truth seeking, just how much I wanted this life for myself. Things that I felt challenged me in the motivation realm, I sat with and looked for the answer of why I was not motivated. More work to do, but I knew it would be so worth it! My life, the one I was dreaming of was worth it!

Then I ran into the wall of belief. Did I dare to believe I could trust I could actually have this life? I mean really? Old wounds and voices immediately surfaced. Holding patterns had to be broken, thoughts were challenged. My mindset had to be rebooted. I knew the power of my thoughts. If I did not truly believe I could have this life...how would I find a way to embrace it, to live it fully and to find the time for it? I also stopped worrying about what others believed I should be doing, wanting, creating or more. This was my life. Let them live theirs!

Of course from here I had to face my perseverance. It was going to take a while to change some of these bad habits, these old patterns because some of these had been with me my entire life, or as far back as I could remember; old stories to challenge.

I learned during this time of perseverance that I had to also work on my acceptance. I had to accept who I was in the moment, if I was mad...be mad, if I was frustrated be with it, or if I was nervous, accept it. By being present with myself and accepting I was experiencing these reactions to the hard work of creating a new relationship with life, I found that these reactions were not road blocks. I would become aware, recognize what was being brought up or triggered, accept it was part of me and my process and relatively quickly the reaction eased up. Wow!

This new relationship with time and life and my reactions to the process created a beautiful willingness within me to try to do things differently. I had an awareness that obviously if I kept doing the same thing the same way...what would change? But oh, how challenging, unnerving and odd it felt to not fall back on the usual ways; even when I new they would ultimately fail me or disappoint me. I had a period of time when I often had a good laugh at myself during this phase.

I learned the difference between existing and living. I don't know what the next moment holds for me, but I am not willing to waste anymore time worrying over it, trying to control it or building up regrets. Minute by minute my relationship with life is a beautiful unfolding of possibilities, gifts and lessons. I am in the life I want.

Blessings ~ Lisa ©COPYRIGHT 2013 Lisa Meade

Making Time for Play, Adventure and Delight

Giggles erupt from mouth, tears are rolling down my cheeks and my sides ache from the continuing belly laughter. I am with my family, laughing away at some silliness, some funny personal story, some delightful joke shared among us. These moments are often in my home. The laughter becomes contagious, the mood lighter, the memories deeper and we fall in love with one another again and again. Our souls are at play together, sharing and delighting in the energies. Our souls are alive and vibrantly dancing in the flow of the creative energies of the moment. These energies are what help our souls thrive. These energies of fun, freedom, playfulness and wonder are what keep our creativity alive. Creativity grows in the fertile ground of play and wonder. It finds an ease in being. Our soul finds newness and vibrancy in the folds of it and expand its many colors, it flavors, it sounds and it textures. It awakens ideas, encourages actions, empowers dreams and expands visions.

Stress and and overwhelm stifle our creativity. When we fail to make time for play, when we stop seeking adventure and we hold off on delight, we limit the space our soul can breathe in. The flow for these energies can become blocked off. We need to feed our soul healthy doses of this generative time so that there is an abundance of energies flowing for the gradual pooling of our creative juices.

Marion Woodman shares, "If we fail to nourish our souls, they wither, and without soul, life ceases to have meaning.... The creative process shrivels in the absence of continual dialogue with the soul. And creativity is what makes life worth living." We can always find another thing on our list of what needs to be tended to, someone is always around to ask a favor of us, and we often find ourselves stuck in the rut of doing and find it challenging to break the cycle and step outside of it to find adventurous play time. But like most activities that are really good for us, as difficult as it can be to get started, once we do them and begin to enjoy them...we don't want to stop!

Our soul let's us know we are on the right track. There is a beautiful flow to our day. Obstacles do not stop us in our tracks, instead we find creative ways to incorporate them, to move through them and to appreciate them. Our soul encourages us to keep our commitment to the time for play, laughter and delight. It knows how much it will fuel us. It knows how strong our energies become and how inspired we become from these energies. Our days become filled with focus, with dreams, with vision, and with love. Soul is always creative, fresh and new. It is part of its very essence.

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2013 Lisa Meade