Cell Phone Users Beware

Yesterday I wrote about raising positive vibrations and today I am sharing with you some vibrations that are very dangerous.  I came upon this information while skimming over the CNN website for my daily dose of news; it is about a health hazard that I have suspected for a long time.  According to an extensive study by the World Health Organization (WHO) cell phones use can increase possible cancer risk.  This very significant report by the WHO included 31 scientists from 14 countries. 

My writing is not usually about health hazards but this report even though worded carefully leaves very little doubt that using cell phones can be very dangerous to our health and even more dangerous to the health of children.   This has been known for quite some time but the studies seem to not get much coverage.  This study is not going to go away. 

Would it be wise to ignore this information?  No it isn’t but cell phones have become an important part of most people’s lives.  Those that use cell phones for long periods of time report the side of their heads get very warm.  This obviously cannot be healthy in any way.  Cell phone companies are going to minimize this report but we should not.

Yes there are many things out there not healthy for us so we have to make decisions every day like: organic or not; spring water or tap water; hybrid or gas guzzling; ride bike to work or drive; exercise or watching a sports event; cook healthy at home or fast foods; an apple or a piece of cake and on and on. 

All decisions about what you choose are ok.  If we are going to choose healthy we will most likely feel better and in turn that will make us feel even better.  If we choose not so healthy, at least try to feel ok about the choices we make.  If we feel bad about the choices we make that multiplies the negative effects. 

About cell phones, talk less, text more, use hands free devices, don’t carry them around on your hip or in your pocket, and meet people in person as much as possible for all your significant conversations.  Here is an article you will find helpful if you are interested in cell phone safety.

It is also important to remember that our worry, anger and our fear may be more carcinogenic than any devises.  Keep a cool head, let go of pent up emotions, and use your cell phone only when needed. 



30 Ways To Raise Your Vibrations

In the consciousness expanding book I have been reading, The Twelfth Insight by James Redfield, there is a strong message about keeping our energy up, our vibrations high to access our inner resources.   This emphasis rings very true in my experience of my own life and the many people I have assisted in their journey towards their mental, emotional and spiritual well-being. 

When we are in fear, worry, anger, or blame the world feels overwhelming.  These states lower our capacity to deal with what is going on. 

When we are vibrating at a state of higher consciousness, of love, of joy and other expansive thoughts and feelings we are much more resourceful.

In higher state we have access to our intuition, to being aware, to synchronicity, gut instincts, wisdom from the heart and guidance from our spirit.

30 Ways to raise your vibrations:

1. The breathing through the third eye chakra practice shared in yesterday’s post
2. Tapping also called the Emotional Freedom Technique (see demos on You Tube)
3. Exercise moves energy especially resistance and aerobic training and stretching
4. Get up and move, go for a walk, get some fresh air
5. Inspirational music or ideas can really lift you up
6. Listen to podcasts and watch videos for inspiration (Sounds True is an amazing resource, see ad)
7. Eat or drink something energizing, lots of water is excellent
8. Go out into nature for a walk or sit by a stream or ocean and relax
9. Do a mindful activity like: being conscious of your body expanding and relaxing with your breath
10. Take a 15-20 minute nap
11. Do an affirmation or mantra.  Affirmations:  I totally love and accept myself; in an easy and relaxed manner, in a healthy and positive way.  Mantras like Ram, Ram, Ram; Om; or I Am
12. Go do something fun or playful
13. Spend time in quiet contemplation
14. Turn on your favorite songs and sing
15. Be more alive in the moment by acknowledging all you feel
16. Set a short-term goal for the next 2 hours, commit to it and then celebrate the success
17. Move from blame to exploring personal responsibility
18. Brainstorm when you get stuck with no censoring (this can be funny)
19. Do a walking meditation: breathing in peace and breathing our a smile
20. Explore your potential by trying new things
21. Do something creative like writing, drawing, collage etc
22. Act on your intuitions and gut instincts
23. Listen with compassion to someone in need
24. Pick an important value and live by it for that day
25. Close your eyes and imagine something you want to experience
26. Go to an art museum and be inspired
27. Call a friend you know who could use support
28. Feel the fear inside and do it anyway
29. Read Rumi’s writings and image the mystic in you is activated
30. Talk to your higher nature, your spirit

How do you raise your vibrations?



Advise From The Higher Realms

If you haven’t taken the time to watch the video in the previous post, please do so because I think you will find it very helpful in upgrading your life in a number of ways.  Of course you would have to want this upgrade and feel ready and open to expanding your life.  I question if you want to expand because the biggest barriers to being more fully your highest expression would be you.  This is why the Napoleon Hill video can be very helpful; it invites the guidance of higher knowing into our lives in a unique way.

The idea of a counsel of people (from the video) guiding me got me excited because I know I can always use higher wisdom in whatever form it takes.  My counsel of advisors include: Abraham Lincoln (a wise leader), Martin Luther King (an inspired leader of social change), Gandhi (for his determination and integrity), the consciousness of the Divine Mother (She has manifested in many forms and is a great source of the consciousness of compassion), the consciousness of Infinite Supply (opening to the abundance flow of the universe), Buddha (the great teacher of enlightenment), the consciousness of health and well-being (so that I may heal and spread healing in whatever I do) Hilda Charlton (a modern mystic who had a great joy for life) Rumi (the Great Sufi poet and mystic) and Great Spirit (the Native American version of the Source of all creation).  I will add others as I explore this counsel and am guided to higher expression.

In my OBE today I was guided by the consciousness of Infinite Supply that I would be assisted and this consciousness gave me a practice that would assist me when I get stuck in the lower vibrations of ego-mind and the dramas of life. 

Here is the simple practice:

Find a comfortable place where there are little or no distractions and do 10 deep breaths breathing in through the third-eye chakra.  This focus will slow you down and alter you state so that you are more open to guidance. 

If you want to find this poster here is the website.

The shifting I have sensed recently seems to be excellerating and I suspect some significant changes are happening now both inside and across consciousness.  As I write this I can sense the inspiration of my counsel and in particular Hilda Charlton who was an amazing human being that light up the room with her direct contact with the Divine. 

 

Hilda Charlton



Inspiration On A Holiday Weekend

This is day one of four days in a row away from work and I am just enjoying the day so far and wanted to share with you a interesting video that I found inspirational.  Most of you have heard of Napoleon Hill, a personal success writer, who published in 1937 Think And Grow Rich.  He had other well-received books that change the people who read them.

One of his most famous quotes was, "What the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve."

Here is the video about what he called the invisible counselor technique.  Please enjoy and prosper.

I also read a very thoughtful and enlightening article in the Elephant Journal that I thought you would enjoy.  This article is about going with the flow.

Have a good day.



Take A Break From The Ordinary

There is holiday this weekend (yeah!) and I am going to take another day off and have four days away from the intensity of my work.  As I write this I feel tired and when Friday afternoon gets here I will head out to my little Chevy pick-up and be filled with the joy of leaving work behind.  This break is taking time for my own mental health, which is necessary if I am going to help others.

I am very dedicated to making a difference in people’s lives and to do that I have to also be dedicated to my own well-being.   I will probably take a day or two to get some things done around home and then play for two or three days.  My play can be intense with long runs, lots of time in the gym, bike rides and walks but they are energizing to me, they blow the carbon out of my pipes, leave the heaviness of my work on the floor and roads.  Other forms of play for me include golf, cooking, creative expression, and just wandering about. 

What do you do to break away from the weight of your work, your struggles, you emotionally entanglements?  How do you let go and release what you are carrying?

Here are four simple ways to release the junk of life you might be carrying:

Take a break from the ordinary and go do something you enjoy.  This could be hanging out at a bookstore, kitchen supply store, a museum, or walking through a place with lots of interesting shops.
 
Take a shower or do a good workout when you start a few day break.  The shower and the power workout will leave the body, mind and emotions is a lighter and more relaxed state.
 
Take a walk in nature: along a stream, up a trail into a forest, climb a mountain or bike along a beach.  Nature and its beauty nurtures our minds, hearts and souls.
 
Take a chance and do something very different like visiting someone who might become a good friend, take a class on something you have always wanted to do, go to a new place or a place from your past that had impact on who you are.

Change is for the better so welcome new or different ways of being in the world and that will keep you fresh and alive.



Mayhem At Allstate

Have you have seen the Allstate Insurance ads on TV for the mayhem guy?  If you have you know this guy brings mayhem into people’s lives and Allstate Insurance is supposed to protect you from mayhem.  This is the perfect ad for an insurance company because it uses fear, which is really the only reason they can come up with to buy insurance.  Insurance is in the fear business and the more they can make you afraid the more insurance they can sell.

Medical insurance is supposed to protect you from the fear of injury and illness.  The sad thing is that insurance is not in the business of keeping you free from the scariness of poor health.  It is only in the business of making profits.  Making profits on the fear of injury and illness of people does not seem right but sadly they best way to make profits is not to pay for people’s injuries and illnesses. 

Maybe that is why doctors work for insurance companies (Why would a doctor work for an insurance company? Could it be because it pays better than being a doctor with incentives like bonuses for denying claims?)  The less these companies pay out, the more profits.  These profits mean more money for their doctors when they keep their customers from getting the coverage they need.  Could this be why the number one reason for bankruptcies in the US is debt created by illness and injuries?  Do insurance companies cause people to go broke?  If they profit from that is it is ok?

Could it be the mayhem is caused by the insurance companies because of their profit seeking, their fear tactics and their denial of claims?  

I know a person who works in the insurance industry and this person reports that the company keeps the benefits hidden so no one knows what the customers have the right to receive as far as funds for their claims.  This makes my friend have to deny claims or push the customer in varies directions where they know the customer will be denied.  The companies’ profits soar and those who work for them gets bonuses for playing along.  Again the health insurance industry is not about helping customers, it is about making profits. 

Any companies or industries (like insurance, weapons/defensive systems, pharmaceuticals etc.) that use fear in promoting their services have to because they exist only because they can make people afraid.  It is time we all look at our fears and end insurance for profits, end huge military spending, and end our belief that we need all the medications doctors say we need.  

What do you suggest?



The Sadness of Relapse

Lately there has been a few past clients showing up in our detox program and calling sounding under the influence of alcohol.  Relapse or return to using alcohol and drugs is a very common phenomena in the work I do.  It is often difficult to predict who is going to do well and who is not. 

Sometimes the ones that seem so promising do not last long before they are calling and asking for help.  At least when they ask for help we can do something, others don’t ask but just seem to slip back into their full addiction.  When people have recovery happening it always feels very sad to me if they slip back into their old ways.  There is no judgment about not doing well but a compassion for how powerful addictions are.

This got me thinking about: What stops or limits people from making the healthy choices necessary to leave their addictions behind? 

Here are 10 reason that seem to complicate ongoing recovery:

1. They feel as if in some way they deserve their life of suffering
2. They have such painful emotions inside that they find alcohol and drugs are the only things that work to numb out
3. They are stuck in a family cycle of use, abuse and addiction and they know no other way of living
4. They lack a strong enough support system including AA, NA, and sober family and friends
5. They feel such shame and guilt that they don’t know how to move on from their past
6. They forget that the addiction is too powerful to ignore and they slip back under the influence
7. They have such poor self-esteem that they always feel down on themselves and need to escape their negativity
8. They feel overwhelmed by the responsibilities of life and decide to check out
9. They get entangled with another addict and the two of them seem to keep each other down.
10. They have a big self-sabotage aspect of themselves and head themselves into trouble when things are going too well

Breaking these cycles takes readiness, determination, a plan, lots of support, and daily effort.  If I had these qualities in a magic potion, I would make sure each client left with enough of a supply for the rest of their lifetime.  I don’t have a magic formula but I do know that this is a disease that is almost impossible to beat without the strong support of others and a real clarity of intention.

May those who suffer this path find the light of their own inspiration and the warmth of their heart’s compassion.



Steps To Follow For Creating the Life You Want

I am reading this very nice little book (Getting What You Want. . . To Want You by Dov Baren) that has me inspired.  The book is only 47 pages, easy to stick into your pocket, and so worth your time to read.  I wanted to share in my own words the key practice of this book so you can be inspired to read more about it.

Here is the four-step practice for making what you want to happen:

Find You Clarity – Clarity is a powerful force and the more the clarity the better the results.  Your mind is built for focusing and if you know exactly what you want to make happen, you will.

Visualize – If you can see it, feel it, sense it, smell it, taste it, touch it, and hear it, you can make it happen.  Create an experience that is so real, you can touch it.  See every detail, let it become part of you and feel the joy of bringing it into your life. Let the emotions fuel what you want to make happen.

Stretch Higher, Take It Deeper – Once you clearly see what results you want to create, turn inward and explore the feelings of deserving or being enough to have what you want.  Affirm your deserving until every cell sings in harmonious agreement.  See this wanted expression as you expressing your highest nature.

Trust – Take actions and have trust in what you are guided to do and how you do these actions.  Keep your intention on super concentrated with all thoughts, feelings and actions aligned.  If you are open and clear all that you need and want will be placed in front of you.

Once you take these steps please take the time to celebrate each success along the way.  Even the small joys of success build the energy for more powerful results.  You can make anything you want happen but you have to get clear, see and feel it, go deep within, and know it will all work out with the right actions. 

The Danger Of Believing The “I”

We live in a world of opinions, egos, big personalities, sports, movie stars etc. and they clog our airways and keep our media distracted.  This empty noise is the chaos caused by the “I.”  The “I” is so sure it has to be heard, so sure it’s important, and so sure it is who we are. This belief in our self-importance is incorrect because it is based on the needs of the ego-mind.  We are not our thoughts or personality or who our “I” thinks we are.

The “I”:

• Thinks it is right
• Has an opinion about everything
• Wants to be seen
• Obsesses over the need for approval of others
  Seeks more power and control
• Craves attention
• Is sure its important
• Believes its own thoughts
• Gets caught up in its own drama
• Can’t separate from its story
• Is often lost in blaming and complaining
• Experiences fear because of deep self-doubt
• Lacks flexibility and openness
• Is most afraid of its own feelings
• Assesses compassion as a sign of weakness
• Believes it own beliefs

This is just to name a few of the confusions of life when the “I” is in charge.  We are all heavily programmed to believe the our sense of self is real and the media feeds the frenzy of the importance of the “I.”  Now days the news is mostly about personalities and opinion instead of what is really going on.

Once we see and understand that the “I” in us is a cause of great distress; that it keeps us anxious and uneasy; that it is never satisfied, then we are aware of why we can never feel at peace.  The “I” is never about peace and hope because those can only happen in the now.  In our “I” world we live in fear and worry of tomorrow and regret and longing for the past.   The “I” is an inner force that needs to be redirected towards a more healthy view of self and the world.

What can we do when most of us have the dis-ease of too much “I-ness?”

10 Anti-Self-Importance Strategies:

1. Step back and question what is going on between your ears
2. Find the path inside back to your guiding heart and follow it
3. Stop fighting to be right, let go of your thoughts of importance
4. Make it you goal to have fun, be free and love and laugh often
5. Humbly accept you purpose and be passionate about life
6. Feel everything you feel and question everything you think
7. Go inward and listen deeply for the wisdom of your higher knowing
8. Seek to be more aware and to raise your consciousness
9. Appreciate the beauty and diversity of all of life
10. Make it you daily goal to spread love, peace and joy  



How Do We Open To The Light?

What if you are Divine but don’t realize it?

What if you are made of the same Light as God?

What if you can bring about miracles if you decided to?

What if your self is the same as the Self of All Creation?

What if the only thing holding you back from being unlimited is you?

What if you are a saint in waiting?

What if you can discover Your Divine Nature in this moment?

These kinds of questions have been coming up for me as I have been reading Ram Dass’s book Be Love Now.  As I sit with them I am aware of a deep message inside of me that keeps calling me to my true higher nature.  I wonder if I have been the one in my way?  I wonder how I am still holding myself back now from the full realization of who I am? 

My inner voice is calling me to go even more deeply into the silence.  I crave the time to explore without other distractions.  I want to walk in silence, sit in silence, explore out of my body and do everything else I can to be fully realized in this life. 

The stuff, drama and obligations of life feel like barriers.  How can I use them to awaken?  What about my life today is just how it needs to be to fully awaken?  How can I be open to the grace of blessed discovery?  How can my heart be as spacious as the Divine Mother? 

What is spirituality other than our journey to the full realization of the Great Spirit in us?



Eating, Diet, Trying To Feel Better

I wrote the other day about us at the Public Health Department having a weight loss competition.  This kind of competition helps motivate me to get my weight right where I want it to be.  Motivation however does not take care of all of the challenges to weight loss.  My biggest challenge is that I love to eat tasty foods.

As I have gotten older food has played an even bigger role in my life.  I love a large variety of foods and my palate is much more sophisticated.  My cooking skills have improved through lots of practice, experimenting and the influence of the Food Network.  I experience cooking as a fun way to be creative.

The other weight-loss challenge is really that food is a great source of self-soothing.  In my stressful work of counseling those with addictions, trauma and often serious mental health issues, I have a number of coping mechanism.  Snacking at work is one of the ways I sooth myself. 

When I feel too much of the suffering of those I am trying to help, when I get angry at those who harmed my clients when they were young and vulnerable, and when the frustration of all the paperwork gets to me, I eat.  I also do many other things like workout daily, mindfulness and other stress reducers.  Food however is quick way to self-nurture.  Unfortunately eating only works some of the time and not for long.

Good tastes and frustrating workdays make getting to my healthiest weight a challenge.  My strategy for the 10 weeks of the competition is to workout more (I love working out), use a number of helpful nutritional ideas I have been studying, and to eliminate sugar.  The sugar thing is so prevalent in my (our) world where sweeteners are added to almost all foods.  Also there is something about dark chocolate that is especially self-soothing and in a stressful world food that is self-soothing is a hot commodity.    

My wife said the other day that when I talk about past situations, I usual mentioned what we were eating or some other food highlight.  I didn’t even know that about myself as a life traveler of food experiences (new awareness) more than events, people or places.  

Yes I love to eat and how about you?  How can we self-sooth in healthy ways?  Dieting is something that happens best with less stress, with a solid program of nutrition, supplements and exercise.  It seems everybody has written a diet book but they don't work that well because diet is about you taking care of yourself in the way that works for you. 



You Beyond Your Thinking Mind

This is one of my very favorite quotes from the Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle. “You soon realize: There is the voice, and here I am listening to it, watching it.  This I AM realization, this sense of your own presence, is not a thought.  It arises from beyond the mind.” 

If you can totally understand this you are more conscious than most people on the planet.  The wisdom of this statement if fully realized will forever change your view of the world.

This wisdom is in direct contradiction to what the vast majority of people believe.  They actually believe their thoughts are real and falsely think the ego mind is who they are.  From ego-mind there is no watching, there is just lots of thinking and judging.

The “I AM” nature talked about here is also called the wise mind, Higher Self, or Spirit or by other names in different traditions.  This divine aspect, which although usually not realized is in many human beings, represents the true knowing beyond the ego-mind. 

You may not be aware there is a presence in you that has nothing to do with your thoughts.  You also may not be aware there is a knowing in you that happens beyond your ordinary thinking.

No worries because if you now understand this higher nature within you, you have welcomed in a higher level of consciousness.  Higher consciousness means in this moment you have left who you were in the past and become a more self-realize person.  Your awareness of your “I AM” nature causes an expansion in all the ways you experience yourself and the world. 

The higher mind in you is free of judging and has the ability to see the world as an objective observer, as an impartial watcher.  This capacity is a gift waiting in you to be fully activated.  The best way to make this “I AM” nature part of your life is to sit quietly with the above quote of Eckhart Tolle until you can walk in the world with the full expression of this knowing.



Enhancing The Quality Of Your Life

At work there is a competition for weight loss, we have teams that all weighed together and the team that looses the highest percentage of weight wins.  We are now two weeks into the 10 weeks and I have been reading a lot about weight loss and exploring different ideas.  My goal is between 10-15 lbs because the Winter holidays seem like they add pounds every year and I am about two or three years behind. 

In my readings about weight loss what I rediscovered was how much I love to read about food, healthy eating, nutrition, and fitness.  I always enjoy learning new ideas about health and well-being at all levels.  How about you, do you read and explore ideas to enhance your health, to expand your well-being in mind, in body, emotionally and spiritually?

You and I live in an age where all the info we need is sitting right in front of us on the Web waiting to be explored.  There are also endless books on diet, healthy living, fitness, and well-being on every level.  If you were to explore some health topics of interest to you what would they be?  Where does your interests lie?  Are you interested in maximizing the health of your body?  How about the health of your mind?  Do you feel the desire to have more emotional well-being?  Is your spiritual side wanting to be more explored?

Go to your favorite search site and started typing in your areas of interest.  Soon you will have resources to explore and the more you explore the more knowing you will have to enrich the quality of your life.  Knowledge is very valuable in moving towards a healthier lifestyle.  The more informed you are the better decisions you make and the better you feel.  Why not feel the best you can, have the most energy, feel the most alive and live the most inspired life?

Listen inward, what are you guided to explore, what interests get you excited about knowing more, what topics make you feel energized?  If you listening deeply enough, you will always be guided to what you need, what will be best to explore, what will make your life feel purposeful and fulfilling.  A richer life is waiting for you right now.



Don’t Ever Go Home

In the book I have been reading lately (Going Home by Reshad Feild) is a phrase and explanation that says, “Don’t ever go home’ reminds us that sooner or later, if we really want to understand the purpose of life, we need to give up our reactive patterns which have motivated our lives up until now. Only then can we move on.”

What reactive patterns do you need to give up?  What old ways need to change?  Where is the past keeping you from being fully present?  What familiar ways are congesting forward movement?

Insight and awareness grow outside the familiar, away from home, out into the unknown and yet unexplored.  Change is only possible when there is added awareness otherwise you get the same old results.  

                                    AWARENESS = CHOICE = CHANGE

How do you mix things up when you now you need to?

Here are 10 ways to not fall back into the familiar:

1. Take up an inner practice like mindfulness then every thing you do mindfully will be unique every time you do it.
2. Sit in meditation daily and watch it influence the expanded way you see the world.
3. Emphasize what makes your life feel purposeful.
4. Change jobs if it is time to move one.
5. Explore a relationship that you sense will enhance your life.
6. Expand your circle of friends and seek feedback from those around you.
7. Follow your creative urges because they are trying to show you new ways of expression.
8. Listen to the guidance of your intuition and act accordingly.
9. Take a trip and explore new cultures.
10. Improve your view of yourself and focus on your unique way of seeing the world, what you do well, and what you appreciate about yourself.

Now leave the home of the familiar, your comfort zone and make things happen from a fresh perspective.  If you get stuck, remember these steps because they can be very helpful for moving energy and opening possibilities.

*Special Offer*: My newest e-book Spirited Living is an excellent resource for new and more expanding ways to be you and have a rewarding life.  If you buy a copy in the next week I will give you a free 30 minute phone coaching session that you will find very helpful in moving your life forward in amazing ways.



Why Do People Believe The Nonsense Of Others?

There have been lots of things going on in the world of politics, religion and media lately that seem worth commenting on.  I don’t understand how people believe the nonsense that other people put out on the airways.  Are we addicted to fear, to having highly charged opinions, to being right, or did we forget that our ego’s should come with a warning label?

Here is a list of key indicators that say “Trust what is being said here at your own risk.”

• They tend to say things that draw attention to themselves
• They make outrageous comments that you know and feel are not right
• They seem driven by ego
• They lack compassion for the suffering of others
• They profess religion but are full of judgments towards others and lack any kindness
• They spread fear as a basic way of viewing the world
• They hate being held accountable
• They are run by greed and seek more power
• They hate regulations (therefore government) because they want to do whatever they want
• They want to eliminate all programs that help the less fortunate
• They are often angry
• They have a need to be right and stomp on people who disagree
• They place critical labels on all who think differently
• They are often racists but hide it by being indirect
• They often live in direct conflict with the values they proclaim are most important
• They are often extreme in their viewpoints and expect everyone else to believe and think as they do
• They are arrogant but don’t see it in themselves
• They have opinions about everything and are closed to other ideas

If we are honest with ourselves, we can see some of these qualities at times in us.  We are imperfect but we do have the awareness to grow and be more conscious and compassionate human beings.  Those who are dangerous to trust are people who lack self-awareness or have no desire to grow and be a more fully realized human being. 

The following are some examples of people that should come with a big, bright and flashing warning sign that’s says “DANGER: Interacting with this person may cause your mind to shrink, your self-esteem to be damaged, and your heart to go away.”     

First if you haven’t heard, the world is coming to an end next Saturday the 21^st of May.  This is according to a religious fanatic named Harold Camping.  This guy has no idea what he is talking about and people actually believe him.   One person dropped out of medical school because of the prediction.  Thank God that person won’t be a doctor.

Another brilliant idea was presented by Ron Paul.  He is a GOP/Tea Party presidential candidate, who says we should eliminate FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) because people should have to get themselves out of the messes they create.  There must not be a connection between his heart and his head. 

The CEO of Exxon Rex Tillerson was wining about people criticizing big oil.  “Why are people beating up on us when we are just doing our job?  Actually Mr. Tillerson people are really not ok with the $4Billion in subsides we taxpayers are paying oil companies.  Mr.Tillerson, you are robbing us at the pumps and we are paying you to do so.  With his almost 6 million is wages and bonuses this year it is hard to feel sorry for him being held accountable.

One of the many fear mongers out there is an extremist named Alex Jones.  Mr. Jones is spreading an endless steam of misinformation that is so absurd that he must never have even a moment’s worth of peace of mind.  This lack of peace of mind would be his reward for spreading fear and hate.  I am sure too many people listen to him and are unable to sleep at night.  Fear and hate are the workings of the ego mind in search of control over others. 

If we find ourselves spending most of our time thinking about what is wrong, blaming and complaining, and living in fear then it is time to immediately come to a stop.  Then we need to make a commitment to reprogram our own thinking or we will never find peace of mind and any real happiness or freedom.

The Effortlessness Of Flow

After I posted my blog in the morning yesterday I went for a walk in the rain because it was raining too hard to ride my bike. On my way back down my uphill hike I noticed the flow of the rain on the street.  Of course the water flowed easily and effortlessly down hill.  This is also true for the flows of consciousness, love, health and abundance.

The flow of consciousness is not an uphill battle but more of a turning inward.  Yes the journey on the meditation cushion or other insightful paths can be bumpy at times.  Yet the way of consciousness is mostly quiet, inward, reflective and peaceful.   Consciousness is an upward flow towards the full realization of both our highest nature and the unity we have with of all beings. 

The flow of love is more an opening to our natural state.  Love is not the drama we get ourselves into with a partner.  Love is the connecting of hearts and going beyond the focus of self.  Falling in love is easy with an open heart.  Staying in love is easy too if we focus on acceptance and appreciation and avoid expectations and the need to be in control.  Love is effortless flow.

The flow of health is about keeping the body, mind, heart and spirit open to being fully expressed.  Disease is caused by being ill at ease, tight, closed down, and in denial of what is true inside.  If our life forces flow freely through us we will be healthy in every way.  Like the downward flowing stream health naturally flows within us.  We are much more like a stream then a statue.

The flow of abundance is fun, alive, energizing, and expansive.  In this flow things, situations, and experiences are richly drawn to us with wonderful results.  It is as if the universe has opened a spillway of positive possibilities because we are willing to receive.  Abundance also means lots for giving which feels great and opens the flow even more.   

TGIF to you and hope the flow of the weekend is renewing and revitalizing. 



The Four Essential Flows Of Life

Yesterday the warm Spring here in Boulder went haywire and my morning run included corn snow bouncing off my hat.  I am glad my tomato planets remain safely in their paper cups inside.  Nature is in itself a powerful and influential flow for all who live on this planet.  Today I want to write about the four essential flows on a personal level.

The Four Personal Flows Of Life:

One is the flow of consciousness – each of us at a very essential level feels the strong call to be a more conscious human being.  Consciousness most often comes from being aware, from exploring things deeply, from spending time in silence, and from devotional practices.  There are many specific practices found across all cultures that can raise our consciousness.  When we expand our consciousness, we feel in unity with all things and a deep sense of peace within.

Second is the flow of love – we were born to love, to have compassion for others and ourselves, to be kind, and to care for those who show up in our lives.  Love is an open heart expressing its infinite nature.  When we love we feel most alive and our heart sings with joy.  Love has an immense power to heal most of the world’s problems.

Third is the flow of health and well-being – everyone wants to be healthy.  Health and well-being includes: a peaceful mind, a giving heart, a strong and healthy body and clear link to our spiritual nature.  Each of us has a deeply innate capacity to heal.  Healing takes place within by opening to the life force that flows through each of us.

Fourth is the flow of abundance – abundance in this case means energy in its many forms which includes; life force, breath, money, creativity, purpose, thoughts and feelings.  Yes the amount of flow of each of these reflect how much flow we are open to giving and receiving.  Abundant flow comes from us being open in our mind, heart, and body and from our connection to the Source Energy of the universe.

Each of these four flows are powerful desires in all human beings. They are closely related to each other and the development of one flow often enhances the other three flows.  Hope is an example of these flows wanting to be expressed.  Many people however have wandered far away from these flows through denial, through limiting beliefs, through early conditioning, or even through a distorted pursuit of any one of them.   The pursuit of money driven by greed is an example of a flow gone way off course.  Exploring alternative health practices is often an example of the desire of flow expressing itself in us.

Flow is about openness, about receptivity, about effortless effort, about expansive thoughts, about readiness to receive and about taking the responsibility to managing the flows consciously.

In the future I will write more about how to open to these flows in ways that will create results and enrich life in many ways. 



There Are No Enemies

It is unusual for me to catch the news on TV because I get my news from the Web most of the time.  However I did hear a very interesting comment made by a person being interviewed about the impacted by the floods in Alabama.  This guy was a University of Alabama graduate who was surprised to see all these people in University of Auburn (also in Alabama) sweatshirts helping him out.  He said, “I am supposed to hate people from Auburn.”  This hate I guess comes from the sports competition these two universities?  He was surprised because Auburn was an enemy and they are helping us out.  He almost didn’t know what to think.  This moment of questioning the reality of his thoughts can be a powerful one and if explored more deeply can change a person’s experience of life forever.

How could sports competition create enemies?  Yet it does.  How come members of different religions hate each other just because they have different beliefs?  This hate is the cause of most wars.  How come there is such intense nationalism where people have enemies just because they live in a different geographic location?  Yes this too has caused many wars.  Aren’t these all just faulty thinking?

This hate and idea of enemies are simply thoughts that are based on the ego-mind and not in reality.  This U of Alabama supporter may have to been forced to change his thoughts about the people of Auburn U.  New and more expansive thinking makes us better human beings.

What if much of our thinking in many areas of our life is as faulty as the idea of sports competition creates enemies.  Sports are games and they are for play and entertainment aren’t they?  What if there are no enemies except in our mind?  

Yes there are people in the world who are dangerous and disturbed.  They need to be contained and helped but they are not our enemy.  They are simply ill and in need of compassionate understanding and treatment. 

Hate is a learned point of view too often passed from generation to generation.  Breaking this narrow thinking takes stepping back and seeing the world from a more accurate perspective like we all share this planet together.  Today in a chaotic world we need to figure out how to cooperate instead of compete. 

Try this: next time we think the driver in front of us is our enemy, please take the time to rise above those silly thoughts and be open to a wider and more conscious way of viewing the world.



How Can I Serve?

Recently this question has come into my awareness several times.  I feel change is itching at me and there are a number of ideas of where and what to do next but so far nothing is heart pumping clear. 

“How can I serve?” is one of the most important questions we can ask ourselves if we want to deepen our spiritual life.  Ram Dass used to ask his teacher what he should do when he returned to the US from his visits to India.  His teacher Maharaji-ji would always respond that he should serve people.  He would then ask how and his teacher would say feed them; take care of them. 

Is there a higher form of living then being of service to the people and the planet?  How are you of service to your fellow beings?  What inner messages are calling you to make a difference in people’s lives?  If you had totally freedom to help people in any way, how would you help them?

Serving others provides wonderful lessons: in being present, in humility, in patience, in mindfulness, in giving up control, and in loving and having compassion for others. 

Take a few minutes, hours, or days to explore how you would like to serve others.  Make a commitment to take action.  Then in the next week give of your time, your resources, your ideas, your energy in a meaningful way.  Sometimes the simplest is the best (feed people, help at a food bank, housing for the homeless projects, tutoring for adults, clean up a community etc).  If you are willing do this giving weekly you will get in the habit of service and your life will be enriched in more ways they you can imagine.

If you want to find ways to serve you can try this organization or find local volunteer opportunities. Here is an example of a program you can get involved in:

Food That’s In When
School is Out

NOTE: I keep hearing from people who really appreciate my recent e-book Spirited Living:

"Hi Joe. Read your book and loved it. It is very encouraging, inspiring, and not afraid to tell your reader what nonsense to leave behind. I loved it!"  Bill Monroe LCSW

You can get your very own copy if you go here now.



Entering The Stream

My reading and inner practices have been very inspirational lately.  Reshad Feild and Ram Dass have been my two favorite writers these past few weeks.  My mindful walks, runs in nature, and my OBE’s have also clearly shaped my experiences lately.  I want to share the ways of flow that might touch something expansive in those who read this. 

I grew up in the Pacific Northwest where streams and rivers flow in abundance.  Entering a stream is a wonderful metaphor.  We can turn our lives into an amazing flow. 

There is a stream in Oregon called the Roaring River and it is runs through endless rocks and makes lots of noise.  This roaring is the mind.  As we enter into this roaring inside we can acknowledge the chaos of our mind and determine to do something about it.  Once we have the awareness of the noisy mind we can then flow into deeper possibilities

The Roaring River then flows into the Clackamas River, which is bigger and more powerful.  As we begin to focus on our inner practices we can quiet the roar.  This tuning inward can feel good but often it is disrupted by life in big ways.  The Clackamas has a series of dams on it for generating hydroelectric power.  These dams disrupt the flow as does the conditioning of the mind.  Recognizing the inhibited flow allows us to go in search of freedom and a deeper knowing.

The Clackamas River then flows into the Willamette River, which is even bigger and more powerful.  The Willamette River flows through the urban areas of Oregon especially Portland where there is so much going on and so many distractions.  Like the Willamette River we too have many distractions.  Our personality wants to do so much and experience so much. There is also our higher nature that is committed to this deeper exploration and so we must note our distractions, have some fun, and also keep our inner work going deeper.

The Willamette River then flows into the mighty Columbia River that begins in the snowfields in British Columbia.  When the Willamette joins the Columbia River there is the meeting of great forces.  These flowing forces are similar to when we join our inner practices with our higher nature.  This joining of forces naturally keeps us expanding.  Entering into this flow is all encompassing where the individual self is washed away and there is only expanding consciousness. 

The Columbia River enters the Pacific Ocean and becomes one.  This is a complete joining leave the rivers of identity behind.  This unification on a personal level with the Infinite is where each of us, in our silence, feel drawn to go.  This oneness is total freedom from dogma and doctrine and is the natural expression of you and I as we reach the realization of who we are. There is no “I-ness”, there is just the One