A Different Perspective

We often look at stumbling blocks as lessons and gifts to learn more about ourselves. This is very true. But I also hold a different perspective about some of the blocks and walls we run into. Sometimes, and almost always with hindsight, I see these obstacles as opportunities for me to stop. They have been put before me so that I not only slow down, but that I stop, what I am doing, thinking or saying and take a look inward and around me. Sometimes I need to be pulled off my path so that I take the time to reconsider my options and the possibilities. I have a tendency to gain a momentum and movement in my actions and this does not always serve me well. These impediments will sometimes allow me to take the time to see I can shift directions.

Sometimes I just need time to reconfigure or to rest. Rest is a good thing when we are moving forward toward an objective or calling. It gives us the space to restore, to release and to remember. These are all very important aspects of being honest and honoring of your work and process.

Setbacks are not always to be looked at as a failure, but merely a hindrance. Complications sometimes happen for reasons that provide space around our process. Instead of begrudging these I am learning to embrace these opportunities. It is not always easy to remember this, but when I do, things seem to shift. My energies creatively become something new and the essence of what I am doing responds. There is a freshness that can be found in these moments if we can stay open to them.

Oh, please do not think that I am in any way saying that these times are always enjoyable or peace filled or even satisfying. But I have learned that they are often exactly what I needed at that point in my journey. Accepting this is half the battle of letting go of the disappointment that can be created. Our ego takes a back seat and our authentic self nods knowingly as we embrace the moment.

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2013 Lisa Meade

The Practice of Balance

It seems that life is more than willing to give me ongoing opportunities to keep practicing balance. Whether it be a balance of giving and receiving, a balance of rest and work, or a balance of willing and surrendering. I am given chances to ignore what does not honor the work I am doing and to cherish the moments of alignment. My times of struggle are purposefully well balanced with times of play. As I approach my 50th birthday I think about how at one time in my life I actually believed a day would come that the seeking balance would not be an everyday occurrence…silly me. It seems that the better I get at this act of balance, the more I am aware of its necessity. I see it as it comes around the corner of my day! I am ready for the challenge. I have learned that with each attempt I become stronger and more adept at the act of balance. And life, being the wise teacher that it is, keeps me on my toes with more and more ways to stretch and expand in my balancing skills.

I am proud to say I look forward to these opportunities. Hindsight always shows that they serve me well. The learning curve sometimes is larger and longer than at other times, but that is the point! Isn’t it? I no longer expect life to be easy, struggle free or even keeled. I no longer have any expectations. I have learned to live with possibilities and that is probably the best tool I now have in my tool belt to approach balance with.

Whether it feels like a stroll over a high wire or a hop, skip and a jump along a few stumbling blocks of my path, I don’t let it hinder me or turn me away. I just take a deep breath, seek my intention, find my focus and stay open to what will happen next. It is the only way I know to do it and after all these years, it is serving me well. How about you? What does your balancing act look like?

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2013 Lisa Meade

Escape Definition

There is a wonderful quote by Eckhart Tolle that discusses the importance of not defining yourself. I find it very powerful and was called to it today to share with you all. “Give up defining yourself - to yourself or to others. You won't die. You will come to life. And don't be concerned with how others define you. When they define you, they are limiting themselves, so it's their problem. Whenever you interact with people, don't be there primarily as a function or a role, but as the field of conscious Presence. You can only lose something that you have, but you cannot lose something that you are.” — Eckhart Tolle

What a beautifully freeing way to present yourself to the world. Imagine not being boxed in by definitions created by others or yourself. Imagine the freedom to be whomever and whatever you are in this very moment. And then imagine the freedom that you can shift and change from that moment’s perspective to the very next without need of worry about how it will be perceived or understood. This can be your reality!

Our possibilities in life are limitless and our beauty has a presence that has no boundaries, except when we create them or allow others to. Being fully present and authentic to yourself means being the full expansion of who you are, now. And then again, now. We are ever evolving and growing, sometimes constricting or sometimes in a place of pause, but we are ongoing in our personal design in life. There is a permission given to us by our souls to live in this place of power. That is exactly what it is, you know? A place of self power, because it is not dictated by expectations or presumptions. It is raw and unbridled. It is free and flowing. It is all and nothing at once.

We lose some of this power when we become boxed in and restrained. If we are performing to meet someone’s expectations or to keep ourselves comfortably stagnant, we are bleeding from our soul the essence of our potential. It takes an understanding of the fact that we are meant to be vibrant and present, filled with light and love, open to growth and at peace with stillness and everything in between. Even in our time of pain or loss, we are exactly as we are meant to be. We are not failing or faltering from what has been designed for us. So if we can accept this, we then open ourselves up to the gifts and lessons of that moment as well.

Blessings ~ Lisa ©COPYRIGHT 2013 Lisa Meade

The Power Within Our Thoughts

Oh the power of our thoughts! Not only do they set the tone for our day, but they impact hugely those around us. We know what it is like when we are in a funk, a negative or pessimistic place. Those around us pick up on that energy and have to be aware of it in order to now be drawn into it. So is the reverse of this. "When we wake up to the fact that our thoughts touch the people we are thinking about, we are again asked to choose which thoughts we send out. If we send out the thoughts of the heart, we can heal, even if the person who needs healing is far away." – Robert Moss, from the teachings of Island Woman in Dreamways of the Iroquois.

The above quote is from one of my favorite books. I love the concept of our thoughts holding healing energies within them. As you can see, if our negative thoughts have impact then the reverse must be so for the balance that life creates. The balance is that our positive thoughts can impact those around us. Weighing this gives me pause. I have great power in my thoughts. I can impact those around me simply by intentionally selecting the direction of my thoughts.

Selectively choosing positive thoughts filled with love is not always easy. Our egos get hurt, people’s actions impact our day, and sometimes words sting when said to us from a place of hurtful intention. We are human after all. But that said, if we can get ourselves to rise above this place of egoic struggle. If we can find the soft spot of love in our heart and remember we are spiritual beings, then we can alter the path of our thoughts.

I sometimes have to remind myself that I will spend energy daily carrying the relationships I am in. I can carry negative energy, work hard at the effort it requires of me and not feel very positive, happy or well. Or I can spend energy daily carrying the relationships I am in with positive energy, I may still be working hard, but at least I feel positive, I feel connected to source and I feel love. It is in the choice. It is not easy to let go of hurt. It takes intention and effort, but the result is so much better for me and then for others. I want to believe I am in service to the good of the whole. I strive daily to keep balance and optimism in my heart. So even on those days when the struggle is more taxing than others, I can be reminded that there is a choice I can make.

To be apart of the energetic healing of the world is important to me. More important than stroking my wounds, or seeking the opportunity to prove I am in the right. My thoughts, when tended to with intention can heal the wrongs done to me and then in my healthy heart I can send love and positive energies to others in my life. Holistic spiritual health in the making!

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2013 Lisa Meade