C-c-c-courage

I often find my courage within my silence. It is often where I do my best work. I tend to go there when I am confused, feeling misunderstood, a bit cautious or even anxious. Courage for me does not present with a roar. It does not leap across my path. It does not soar down and swoop over me. Courage, on my path, is a quiet slow flow of cooling water that soothes my soul. Courage is a gentle flutter of a bird’s wing cooling my heated thoughts. Courage is a soft whisper in my heart from the Universe affirming what action I need to make. Courage is a pause to just be and to breathe and remember who I am.

My inner self has the many twists and turns of my lifetime. It has many doors to rooms of relationships. It has treasure boxes filled with gifts of this lifetime and those of the past. Courage holds my hand as I navigate and travel my inner path. Courage sheds light onto my shadow self so that I can truly see who I am from all sides.

Finding my courage once was a challenge. It was bogged down with falsehoods and masks; those of false arrogance, inadequacies, self-criticism and more. I had to spend time cleaning house. I had to arrange the parts within so that they could be reflected outside. It took time and diligence. It took commitment to self. It took gentleness and awareness. And eventually my courage was revealed. It is a soft and subtle courage. But it serves me well. I can rely on it. I honor it. I appreciate the value of it. It holds my hand and leads me forward even when all other parts of me want to freeze me in my tracks, slam shut my doors and shield my thoughts. Courage holds me tenderly and brings me to the opportunity to grow, to change, to shine and to BE.

Courage is not always the face of fierceness and determination. Courage does not always make itself obviously known. Courage does not need applause and fanfare. Courage needs room to be, space to grow, freedom to share, and time to evolve. I honor this fact about my courage. It serves me well.

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2012 Lisa Meade

The Change in Truth

Someone once told me that change happens when we sit with our truth openly and publicly and universally. If we can live our truth without comparison, shame, judgment or denial, then we can begin to change and grow and evolve. We sometimes hide from our truth. It can be for a wide number of reasons. Some hide from truth because they are afraid of how big they can be. Some run from the truth out of fear of the pain. There are those who judge themselves so harshly that when they begin to step into a puddle of truth they recoil. It is important for us to know ourselves fully. When and how do you cover up or hide from your truth.

Once you have a better understanding of what you do, then you may be able to explore why. Let’s face it, the better we understand our selves, our reactions, our needs and our faltherings…the stronger we then can become. Learning to accept that we are not perfect beings, that we have stories, or that we hold onto fears and pain can only free us in the long run. The acceptance of these facts and the embracing of them as part of our unique qualities is the key to our way of unlocking our authenticity. We do not need to pretend to be someone we are not. We do not need to stuff down feelings. We do not need to be so harsh on ourselves.

It is not easy to be this transparent. It takes time and practice. It means asking tough questions and waiting on the answers. It can also mean having a support person to help you as you uncover your truths. As a spiritual life coach, I spend a good deal of my time with my clients offering this exact kind of support. Everything that the client needs to be their fullest and brightest self is already within them. They just may need support in discovering it and revealing it. They also may need help in becoming comfortable with their truth.

Once this process has begun, it seems to often takes on a force of its own. The truth bubbles to the surface more freely. The heart and mind accept it more willingly. The human in us embodies it more gracefully and our awareness and consideration grow so that we can hold others in their truth more compassionately. Like many things of spirit, the beauty lies in the simplicity of it. We do not need to complicate it. If we learn to just be with it and not try to explain it, resolve it, rate it or whatever else we tend to do…but to just be with it and allow the gentle unfolding occur; that is when our connection to source is at its strongest and the brilliance of our personal truth shines brightly.

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2012 Lisa Meade

Reflected

A day of reflection did a world of good for me. I sat quietly and took a look over my life’s shoulder. I looked back on my life and asked myself some important questions. Here is what I discovered. Was I happy with the direction my life was going in? Yes was the answer. I may have gotten here my own way and had a few obstacles along the way, but they were the best teachers on my path. I also had to circle around the block a few times here and there until I got it right and understood what the Universe was bringing to me. But I have learned that that is sometimes the only way.

Did I feel happy with the choices I had made? Yes was the answer again. I really try to live without regrets and look at every decision as the best I could make at the moment. It may have been that at the time I did not know any other way, or that I needed to learn more. If I made a poor choice it was another opportunity to learn. Knowing this takes a little pressure off. Everything I do in life is not defined by right or wrong, but instead of now or later.

Am I living authentically? Yes again. I do my best. I try to have my actions match my words. I check in regularly with my intentions. I am the first to step back and take another look at my behaviors, my expectations and my ego. I know when I am off tract and usually am quite uncomfortable staying in that place for too long. Once I know my truth, it is difficult to continue being false, challenging to deny, and unauthentic to play a game with myself or others. I just don't have it in me.

I want to be able to look back on my life one day and say to myself, “You did good! There were moments here and there, where you stumbled or sidestepped, but you got back up, got back on track and kept going. You gave more than you took and you answered the call.”

I don’t know what the future has in store. I am excited when I think of all the possibilities. But in the meanwhile, I live in this very moment, right here, right now. As i look into my reflection of Self I see my imperfections as beautiful reminders, my mis-steps as part of finding my rhythm and my pauses as opportunities to go deeper. Perhaps you see a bit of yourself in this reflection as well. I get excited when I think of the connection we share on some level. I trust that the Universe is weaving between us a bond that is necessary for the good of us all; to be able to relate to one another and to support, celebrate and share what the next step may be. Onward!

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2012 Lisa Meade

Run and Return

Let’s face it. We all have those days, and even weeks, where our days are too full, our calendars have little to no white space and our stress level climbs. Even if we try to live consciously, we are human and lives are full and outside influences encroach on all the healthy efforts we make. We get called in many different directions. We are faced with overwhelming decisions. It is inevitable. But this chaos can cause ongoing distraction. For some, this energy becomes a form of self-distraction. Being authentic takes hard work and concentrated effort, especially when we are being challenged. Those challenges can come in many shapes and sizes, they can come in relationships and situations. It is often during those challenges that we revert to old behavior patterns, or comfort zones, even if we know that they have failed us in the past and are not really reflecting our truest self.

Author Jeff Brown wrote, “The faster we run, the more determined is the Universe to slow us down. The more embedded our methods of self-distraction, the more agitating the truth-aches calling us back to authenticity. The more eagerly we race to the sky, the more intense the lessons that bring us back to earth. The Universe has no interest in our flight from reality. It wants us right here. Nowhere else…but here.” It can be no other way.

There is comfort in knowing that even when we get off track or lose our focus, we will be called back. We will be given opportunities to re-learn our truth and embrace it. We can run away, but there will come the day when the running is more exhausting the return.

As we move forward on our life’s path, we experience this again and again. A small falter, a drifting away, even getting lost…and then the warm embrace awaits our return. Our souls want to be whole and in alignment with the treasures and experiences the Universe has waiting for us. The unfolding happens naturally and needs little more than for us to be present, to be open, to stop trying to be in control and to explore the possibilities!

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2012 Lisa Meade