The Long Winding Tale

One thing I have learned from my spiritual life coaching practice is that the longer the excuse, the more it is hiding the truth. Sometimes our truth is so brilliant and beautiful that we have to spin a long, long tale to wrap around it so that we no longer are reminded of it. For some, they feel they are not ready for their truth; they want to hide from it, run away from it and keep others from seeing it too. Most of us would not dream of stealing from someone. Yet, some steal from themselves routinely. They steal from their potential. They rationalize why the time is not right, the benefit is not for them, the opportunity belongs to others and they begin to believe the excuses over their truth. They hide from their own inner light.

And yet, it takes only one second, one breath to experience when we act in our truth and embrace that moment, we feel the gates of our soul open wide and all the energies and inspiration shine through. One experience like this can be life changing. When we feel that moment of freedom we feel our soul come alive with the breath of our divine truth. That can never be undone. For many that is enough to begin taking steps on the path of authenticity and freedom. We let go of the lies that we used to tie us down, to hold us back and to keep us small. The pain is no longer stronger than the power we find in our truth!

Philip James Baily once stated, “The first and worst of all frauds is to cheat one’s self.” Cheating one’s self of the beauty awaiting you, keeping yourself from the blessings that are brilliant gifts with your name on it, turning down the possibilities and opportunities that cross your path and reach out to you…all this serves no one. It is not as though someone else will then receive them, that is not how it works. What the Universe showers down for you, is meant for you, to help you grow, to encourage you, to challenge you and to bless you. It will never feel the same for anyone else. It is a soul loss and a waste when you keep yourself from being who you are meant to be and from receiving the blessings that have come your way.

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2013 Lisa Meade

Let Go For Growth

Eckhart Tolle has written, “Some changes look negative on the surface but you will soon realize that space is being created in your life for something new to emerge.” Let’s admit it, our lives are pretty full. Most of us have limited amounts of free time. So is it any wonder that when something new is ready to be birthed in our life, space must be made? If we are walking with intention, we may actually be aware that something has to give and put forth effort to make the space. But if we fail to recognize the need to create room for emergence, sometimes the Universe provides! If only we can remain present with the fact that when something comes to an end, when something leaves or fails to thrive, it may and often is because the need for space is active. Our soul is often aware of this and if we are able to check in and be fully present with our truth we will see that loss is necessary in all of life. Endings, even those that bring some sadness or regret, are important to the birthing of newness in our lives.

If we can accept this with grace then the sadness of loss is fleeting, as we stay present with the possibilities. We stop trying to cling to what must go, whether it is a relationship, a situation or a hope. We learn to step aside and allow our soul the access to new beginnings and the powerful energies that reside there.

This changes the perspective on loss, for me. That is not to say I don’t experience sadness when something ends or my efforts fail to produce the results I had hoped for. I am human after all and have emotions. But I do not let these emotions rule my understanding of my truth. I allow the sadness to flow through me and release it so that I can then embrace the promise of new emerging opportunities. Regrets are few, for I cannot go back and change. All I can do is observe, learn, embrace the lesson and carry it forward with me to the next step in life. Things flow much more smoothly when I stay present with this realization and put it to practice in my daily life.

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT LISA MEADE

Are You In Alignment?

Financial guru, Suze Orman, was on television the other day offering advice to folks facing investments in today’s tough economy. She stated, “In order to live a rich life, everything about who you are must be one, in alignment, and in pure harmony.” I sat there an immediately lapsed into my spiritual thought process and lost track of the rest of the television interview. What wisdom! And money aside, how right for EVERYTHING else in our life! But let’s not turn this quote into a book, just a blog! So how do you define rich? For some it includes money or possessions, for others it is lifestyle, family and friends and for others it is opportunities, career, and calling. Regardless of your definition think on this … in order to be rich in life, everything about you needs to be aligned, whole, one and in harmony, agreement or synchronization. WOW! What a fabulous intention to set one’s focus on.

Think back to a moment when you really did feel rich. Go there in your thoughts, think of where you were, who you were with, what the circumstances were and how you felt in your body, your mind, your heart, your soul. Now, slowly step back and look at that moment, that day, that time and check in and see how your alignment was. Odds are things were pretty much in great configuration and you were shining brightly and filled with joy and ready to leap forward!

So how do we bring these types of moments more and more into our day? Obviously, it is going to take something on our behalf to make it happen. I believe it begins the moment we open our eyes, beginning our day with gratitude to have yet another gift of a day to share with others, to be in service, to shine brightly, to interact in loving relationships, to strive towards health and well being, to inspire, to be inspired, to dream, to stretch and to reach! And we have ONLY opened our eyes!

Then there is the opportunity to connect with Source; regardless of your personal practices, bringing the sacred into the ordinary aligns our soul with our being. Taking the time to step into the realm of our spiritual self, to honor and celebrate that aspect of our selves and to unite this essence with our actions creates a spiritual union that serves us and others well.

And how shall we cherish and celebrate our bodies? Do you check in with your body daily, asking it what its needs are and feeding it foods that serve as fuels and health promoting energy? Do you move it and use it as it is designed to be used, dancing, hiking, stretching, and climbing through your day with grace and ease, delight and intention? What does your body long to do that you have not given it the time to?

Oh so many things to align, and we haven’t even spoken of thoughts and the power in them, making sure that they are in position with our intention of living a rich life? And what of our heart and its rhythm and outreach, it’s capacity for self-compassion and healing? As you can see, coming by the riches in life, takes a good amount of intention and focus, effort and insight, but oh how preciously wonderful it feels when it all comes together. And how glorious we see ourselves to be, how amazing our lives show themselves as they are, and all possibilities become an adventure to explore! Oh the beauty of it all.

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2013 LISA MEADE

Where Do You Place Your Focus?

Albert Einstein once stated, “Out of clutter, find simplicity. From discord, find harmony. In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.” We often forget this piece of truth when we are struggling, overwhelmed or at our wits end. But it is vital to our living in grace, embracing happiness and in finding peace. The problem for many is the process of moving from point A to point B. How do you find the simplicity, the harmony or the opportunity when you are feeling like your life is falling apart? Where we decide to focus our energies is key. If we continue to put our focus on the negative then that will be all we see and feel. But if we can find one piece to hold onto that is lighter or brighter and invest our thoughts and discussions on that, removing ourselves from conversations about the negativity surrounding us, we find our energies begin to shift. We have all experienced it. You bump into a friend, they are in a very sour mood, feeling as though there is a black cloud hanging overhead, or feeling like the world is out to get them. Their entire conversation with you is spent spewing, unraveling and re-raveling the tired story of why their life is a mess, who is against them, how unhappy they are, how things will never change and so on. No matter what optimistic or hopeful comment you make they push it aside and insist on stepping back into the mud puddle they are carrying around with them. Almost every encouragement you offer is met with a “Yes, but…”. It is exhausting not only for them, but for anyone else who crosses their path! Focusing on the negative is hard work!

It is hard to break the cycle, to step out of the repeating dialogue and negative mantra. But once you do, you feel the energy shift. At first your mind may try to persuade you to come back, to give it more to fester over, to offer you excuses and rationales of why this or that. Continue though to place your focus on one thing that can be seen as a positive possibility, on way to simplify, on peaceful thought and you will see that your soul responds to the life line being tossed its way!

Grab ahold of this and take it with you and move yourself away from the triggers of the negativity. It could be a situation, it could be a conversation, or it could be a relationship. Step away from it until you feel you have a better balanced, healthier perspective and can embrace the positive possibilities of dealing with it, if you even decide to return to it at all. Many times once we are able to do this we find that it matters so very much less to us than we originally thought and we can just let it go. As Henry David Thoreau wrote, “It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.” What you have learned to see in these situations is that you are in control of how you react to what happens to you. Then in response to the you choose to react, the future and how things unfold for you change. It is a beautiful equation.

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2013 LISA MEADE