Hello
Today I want to concentrate again upon where my focus rests!
Today is a grey day it is windy and the sky is dark, our new fence in the front garden has blown down....
Today the dark clouds are edged with gold and orange light, the wintery haze in the distance is framing the hills like a romantic old painting. It's a day to wrap up warm and stride through the fields and feel the earth and the astonishing power of nature......
I have had a hard time all day keeping my focus on thoughts which feel good and I have consistently noticed that once a good feeling train of thought has begun on its merry way, taking in all the beauty and reproducing in its own likeness it gathers speed and momentum and I begin to feel marvelous, excited, inspired, hopeful, romantic and delightful and much more. When an unpleasant feeling train of thought sets off from platform nine Klara Station, it also gathers speed and momentum, the thoughts also replicate themselves only the path is downwards, it is speedy and compelling, consuming and addictive.......
I experimented with this today, as if it were a game, I wanted to see if I could choose my mood? What is mood anyway? perhaps it should be called mode instead and treated much the same as a musical mode. Western music is written in modes, the two most obvious and well known being major and minor (most chart music I have experienced is in one or the other). Musical modes are often used by composers to convey feelings.....
I have often felt subject to mood, or even at the mercy of my own moods, but am I really? If mood is really a mode then surely it is possible to choose how one would like to feel? I am not at the mercy of my feelings, I have now had enough practice at choosing my thoughts to know that my feelings follow and echo my thoughts; thoughts of things I enjoy, like or love have feelings which accompany them which feel pleasant and conversely thoughts of things I dislike have accompanying feelings which feel unpleasant.
So today in my experimental world, nothing physically changed in my environment, my earth-plane remained the same all day, my relationships to the other people in my family were consistently consistent, my house remained in the same state of tidiness, my fence did not leap up and reconstruct itself, washing did not sort itself and food still had to be cooked.
What on earth am I getting at?
I CHOSE HAPPY FEELING THOUGHTS,
I CHOSE SAD FEELING THOUGHTS,
I CHOSE ANGRY FEELING THOUGHTS,
I CHOSE APPRECIATIVE FEELING THOUGHTS,
My feelings were all internal, influenced only by me, by my chosen mode, my happiness came from within, my sadness came from within, I TRIED IT ALL OUT TO SEE HOW IT FELT.
I generated differently feeling thoughts about the same things, for example the first two paragraphs are exactly that, in the first I focused on bad feeling thoughts about the weather and landscape, and in the second paragraph I focused on good feeling thoughts whilst observing exactly the same scene. Right now the sky is a wonderfully brooding shade of dark pink and I choose to associate it with good feeling thoughts!
I have had enough of my experiment! I'm going to spend the rest of the day with good feeling thoughts! Doing this experiment helped me to feel powerful, it helped me to concrete in my mind that its my CHOICE how I view my life, and really the only thing I can truely control in my life is THE WAY I FEEL.
I'm going to feel great today!
Today I am thankful for the wind
I am thankful for my heart which pumps my blood without me even needing to think about it
I am thankful for my brothers and sisters
I am thankful for the wisdom of children
I am thankful for the ever changing stunning picture which is the sky
I am thankful for my mothers wisdom
I am thankful for the myriad of shades of eye colour
I am thankful for all of my toes
I am thankful for my creativity
I am thankful for short grain brown rice!
love Klara.
Friday, 20 January 2012
Thursday, 19 January 2012
A Rampage of Appreciation for You.
Hello
Today is my three week blog writing birthday! I have so much to celebrate!
Last night I went to see the Chinese State Circus with my family, WOW! Human beings are so amazing! The precision with which the performers moved was both incredible and beautiful, and I feel enormously thankful to them for sharing their dedication and grace with me. The show was divided into sections with different themes, half way through watching a section where the performers were juggling panama type hats, I imagined spending my day thinking up interesting and impressive things to do with hats! What a fun thing to be doing with your human experience.
My world, the way it is right now, is not exactly as I would CHOOSE it to be (although I'm sure there are those who would argue otherwise!) My heart and soul yearns to live in a more natural and physical way. However right now in my current reality my world is as it is, and like it or not, I do gain greatly from the work of others, even when I choose to think better feeling thoughts!
There are so many fun and pleasurable things to do with our lives. Today I want to offer a prayer of thanks for all those people who work at things which benefit me in some way, jobs that I don't want to do, work which I can't do, things that I have no training in, and especially to those beings who do the work which I don't want to even know about!
This is a Rampage of Appreciation!!...
I give thanks for the people who I will never meet who work long hours for low pay in factories on the other side of the world making clothing which I enjoy wearing, Thank you I send you my love. I give thanks for the wonderful people who grow delicious food on the other side of the world, for the mango growers, I love mangos thank you mango growers you make my life more juicy and delicious. I am so thankful for all the farmers all over the world who work hard and produce the amazing variety which I am fortunate enough to experience WHENEVER I feel to. Wow! I am so fortunate THANK YOU.
I GIVE THANKS for the people who quarry stone to fix the roads which I can then drive safely on, thank you, I am so thankful for the people who spend their days mending the roads too, thank you for your expertise, thank you for making the roads which I use safe.
I give thanks for the people who clean public toilets all over the world, thank you. I give thanks for the people who work in the sewers, I am so grateful to you. I give thanks to plumbers who have piped water so when I turn on my tap clean water flows! I love turning on my tap and drinking the clean water which magically comes out, how amazing! Thank you for the people who invented my power shower, I love my power shower!
I give thanks for the people who care, for the people who spend their days and nights caring for those who need help, I love those people, thank you thank you to the people who save lives, and make lives more comfortable, thank you you amazing people who I don't know and have never met. Thank you to those I have met too, who have made their lives a work to help me and others to live more fully. I love the carers.
Thank you to the rescuers, thank you to the people who risk their lives daily to save other people who they don't even know! I give thanks for you. You make the world so beautiful. Thank you to everyone who has gone before who gave their lives for others, you blow me away, thank you.
I give thanks for people who devote their lives to protecting, preserving and encouraging wild life. Thank you for the people who care for our land, thank you to the people who spend their lives researching so that we can reduce and minimise our impact on natural habitats. I love our wild places and I love the people who protect them and enhance them, thank you.
I give thanks to the number crunchers, to the people who understand how this incredible internet thing actually works and keep it going so that I can have access to people and places all over the world in my own house! Thank you. Thank you to the people who labour making all the parts of computers, thank you for my computer.
I give thanks to people who work on the rubbish that we generate every day, thank you to the people who work to find solutions to our debris, thank you to the people who sort through our detritus daily. I give Great Thanks for the Earth and for Great Spirit which inspires people with wonderful solutions.
There are so many services which people perform for one another and the earth, far too many for me to individually give thanks for or even to know about, so I end my Rampage with one huge thank you for all the things which individual humans do which benefit me.
Thank you.
I Love You.
love Klara.
Today is my three week blog writing birthday! I have so much to celebrate!
Last night I went to see the Chinese State Circus with my family, WOW! Human beings are so amazing! The precision with which the performers moved was both incredible and beautiful, and I feel enormously thankful to them for sharing their dedication and grace with me. The show was divided into sections with different themes, half way through watching a section where the performers were juggling panama type hats, I imagined spending my day thinking up interesting and impressive things to do with hats! What a fun thing to be doing with your human experience.
My world, the way it is right now, is not exactly as I would CHOOSE it to be (although I'm sure there are those who would argue otherwise!) My heart and soul yearns to live in a more natural and physical way. However right now in my current reality my world is as it is, and like it or not, I do gain greatly from the work of others, even when I choose to think better feeling thoughts!
There are so many fun and pleasurable things to do with our lives. Today I want to offer a prayer of thanks for all those people who work at things which benefit me in some way, jobs that I don't want to do, work which I can't do, things that I have no training in, and especially to those beings who do the work which I don't want to even know about!
This is a Rampage of Appreciation!!...
I give thanks for the people who I will never meet who work long hours for low pay in factories on the other side of the world making clothing which I enjoy wearing, Thank you I send you my love. I give thanks for the wonderful people who grow delicious food on the other side of the world, for the mango growers, I love mangos thank you mango growers you make my life more juicy and delicious. I am so thankful for all the farmers all over the world who work hard and produce the amazing variety which I am fortunate enough to experience WHENEVER I feel to. Wow! I am so fortunate THANK YOU.
I GIVE THANKS for the people who quarry stone to fix the roads which I can then drive safely on, thank you, I am so thankful for the people who spend their days mending the roads too, thank you for your expertise, thank you for making the roads which I use safe.
I give thanks for the people who clean public toilets all over the world, thank you. I give thanks for the people who work in the sewers, I am so grateful to you. I give thanks to plumbers who have piped water so when I turn on my tap clean water flows! I love turning on my tap and drinking the clean water which magically comes out, how amazing! Thank you for the people who invented my power shower, I love my power shower!
I give thanks for the people who care, for the people who spend their days and nights caring for those who need help, I love those people, thank you thank you to the people who save lives, and make lives more comfortable, thank you you amazing people who I don't know and have never met. Thank you to those I have met too, who have made their lives a work to help me and others to live more fully. I love the carers.
Thank you to the rescuers, thank you to the people who risk their lives daily to save other people who they don't even know! I give thanks for you. You make the world so beautiful. Thank you to everyone who has gone before who gave their lives for others, you blow me away, thank you.
I give thanks for people who devote their lives to protecting, preserving and encouraging wild life. Thank you for the people who care for our land, thank you to the people who spend their lives researching so that we can reduce and minimise our impact on natural habitats. I love our wild places and I love the people who protect them and enhance them, thank you.
I give thanks to the number crunchers, to the people who understand how this incredible internet thing actually works and keep it going so that I can have access to people and places all over the world in my own house! Thank you. Thank you to the people who labour making all the parts of computers, thank you for my computer.
I give thanks to people who work on the rubbish that we generate every day, thank you to the people who work to find solutions to our debris, thank you to the people who sort through our detritus daily. I give Great Thanks for the Earth and for Great Spirit which inspires people with wonderful solutions.
There are so many services which people perform for one another and the earth, far too many for me to individually give thanks for or even to know about, so I end my Rampage with one huge thank you for all the things which individual humans do which benefit me.
Thank you.
I Love You.
love Klara.
Wednesday, 18 January 2012
Thanks to a Little Help From My Friends.
Hello
Wow today is my twentieth blog! It seems amazing to me that I have managed to write a blog every day for twenty whole days. I am half way through my ninth week of CHOOSING GREAT FEELING THOUGHTS. In truth I am completely astonished to have managed to go eight and a half weeks through such a gloomy looking winter with a grand total of only three bouts of misery - the first lasted about twenty minutes, the second about an hour and the last around thirty minutes - and yes I have been counting because it's important to me. I like to see results and progress, and I like to chart it so I can look back and have evidence, just incase my mischievous mind tries to tell me otherwise!
One of the things my mind used to get up to was subtle trickery. The bouts I described in the above paragraph were different to the days I wrote about here in my blog (When the Rampage is Savage, and Is Your Glass Half Full?), I would describe them as a very familiar feeling, which thankfully now is becoming less and less familiar, a feeling of gloom, and always my mind would say "It is always like this, I always feel this way, no matter how hard I try this always comes back" and those thoughts would be enough for me to surrender to it and find myself sinking further and further into the deep of despair.
So when that feeling arose in me on those three occasions, and it seemed to come from nowhere, I was so distressed at the onset of the feelings that it actually fed the voice of doom. On the two shorter occasions I asked for help from my partner, (he is fully supporting me on this journey, we even have a code word which he uses to help me recognise and arrest those thoughts before they can get a grip on me) and he was able to help me redirect my mind before things got out of hand.
On the third occasion I was alone, and although I eventually rang my partner for help he was unable to find the right words. I had to work quickly to stop the descent. I sat still and breathed deeply and when I opened my eyes I saw my phone and it came to me; send out a group text asking for ten things that make people feel wonderful!
So that is exactly what I did. The effect was even better than I could have imagined. Replies came in at a constant trickle over the next few hours, and what people said filled up my heart to the brim with joy! Many people responded with requests for my ten things too and several people even thanked me for asking them, it seems my texts came at a poignant moment for them too! For each thing that people listed that resonated with me I paused to imagine it fully and how it might feel, by the evening thanks to that inspiration and all my wonderful friends I was flying high back on my path CHOOSING GREAT FEELING THOUGHTS.
So today, in honour of all those people who came to my aid with their great feeling thoughts I share with you some of their beautiful replies:
I am Thankful for frozen spider webs
I am Thankful for slanting sunshine especially through water
I am Thankful for stormy walks in the woods
I am Thankful to watch children learn
I am Thankful for being able to watch birds feed outside my window
I am Thankful for discovering new music that delights me
I am Thankful for the look and smell of new tubes of paint and clean white paper
I am Thankful when my hair looks how I want it to
I am Thankful for when the music makes sadness feel beautiful
I am Thankful when I have high self acceptance
I am Thankful for hot air balloons
I am Thankful when I write a really good song
I am Thankful for swimming in the river
I am Thankful for when I suddenly get the joke
I am Thankful for feeling playful
I am Thankful for a crackling fire
I am Thankful for when I burst into the dance
I am Thankful for sunshine on my face
I am Thankful for kisses on my shoulder blades
I am Thankful for when I find a tea shop open in a little country town when I thought they would all be closed.
There really are soooooo many things to feel wonderful about and be thankful for. Thank you all, my friends
love Klara.
Wow today is my twentieth blog! It seems amazing to me that I have managed to write a blog every day for twenty whole days. I am half way through my ninth week of CHOOSING GREAT FEELING THOUGHTS. In truth I am completely astonished to have managed to go eight and a half weeks through such a gloomy looking winter with a grand total of only three bouts of misery - the first lasted about twenty minutes, the second about an hour and the last around thirty minutes - and yes I have been counting because it's important to me. I like to see results and progress, and I like to chart it so I can look back and have evidence, just incase my mischievous mind tries to tell me otherwise!
One of the things my mind used to get up to was subtle trickery. The bouts I described in the above paragraph were different to the days I wrote about here in my blog (When the Rampage is Savage, and Is Your Glass Half Full?), I would describe them as a very familiar feeling, which thankfully now is becoming less and less familiar, a feeling of gloom, and always my mind would say "It is always like this, I always feel this way, no matter how hard I try this always comes back" and those thoughts would be enough for me to surrender to it and find myself sinking further and further into the deep of despair.
So when that feeling arose in me on those three occasions, and it seemed to come from nowhere, I was so distressed at the onset of the feelings that it actually fed the voice of doom. On the two shorter occasions I asked for help from my partner, (he is fully supporting me on this journey, we even have a code word which he uses to help me recognise and arrest those thoughts before they can get a grip on me) and he was able to help me redirect my mind before things got out of hand.
On the third occasion I was alone, and although I eventually rang my partner for help he was unable to find the right words. I had to work quickly to stop the descent. I sat still and breathed deeply and when I opened my eyes I saw my phone and it came to me; send out a group text asking for ten things that make people feel wonderful!
So that is exactly what I did. The effect was even better than I could have imagined. Replies came in at a constant trickle over the next few hours, and what people said filled up my heart to the brim with joy! Many people responded with requests for my ten things too and several people even thanked me for asking them, it seems my texts came at a poignant moment for them too! For each thing that people listed that resonated with me I paused to imagine it fully and how it might feel, by the evening thanks to that inspiration and all my wonderful friends I was flying high back on my path CHOOSING GREAT FEELING THOUGHTS.
So today, in honour of all those people who came to my aid with their great feeling thoughts I share with you some of their beautiful replies:
I am Thankful for frozen spider webs
I am Thankful for slanting sunshine especially through water
I am Thankful for stormy walks in the woods
I am Thankful to watch children learn
I am Thankful for being able to watch birds feed outside my window
I am Thankful for discovering new music that delights me
I am Thankful for the look and smell of new tubes of paint and clean white paper
I am Thankful when my hair looks how I want it to
I am Thankful for when the music makes sadness feel beautiful
I am Thankful when I have high self acceptance
I am Thankful for hot air balloons
I am Thankful when I write a really good song
I am Thankful for swimming in the river
I am Thankful for when I suddenly get the joke
I am Thankful for feeling playful
I am Thankful for a crackling fire
I am Thankful for when I burst into the dance
I am Thankful for sunshine on my face
I am Thankful for kisses on my shoulder blades
I am Thankful for when I find a tea shop open in a little country town when I thought they would all be closed.
There really are soooooo many things to feel wonderful about and be thankful for. Thank you all, my friends
love Klara.
Tuesday, 17 January 2012
It's all Me!
Hello
I have had a glorious day today! I went for a walk and decided to address some of the things which have been bothering me. These things which have been troubling me could be described as relationship dynamics or patterns, either way they are situations, events and interactions which occur between me and the other members of my family. I noticed that certain unpleasant events and interactions occur repeatedly, and my tendency in the past has been to attribute these occurrences to the other people involved, laying blame and thus making myself the victim. A Victim of Circumstances!
Being a victim is not attractive to me, it's such a disempowered position to hold in life. So, what could I do instead?
A couple of days ago I happened to read a chapter of my sisters new book, "The Relationship Revelation" by Pollyanna Darling (www.imaginariabooks.com), the chapter I read was called "It's All You." My sister is a follower and practitioner of The Magician's Way philosophy, it has brought her great joy and success and lead her to writing her fantastic book. So I am reading it partly because she is my sister and partly because she is an inspiration to me and many others. Ah yes so the "It's All You" chapter, it reminded me of something Pollyanna and I have talked about a great deal - you get what you expect to get!
What I mean by this is that in my experience (oh no, more history?) beliefs that I hold about the world and other people affect what happens in my reality. At first I found this a ridiculous idea and I certainly didn't want to agree with it, but after a while of experimenting with it I had to admit that it did appear to be true! I have no idea how it really works, but it goes something like this (and it can seem something of a chicken and egg scenario):
- My boss is always angry and disappointed at me, no matter how hard I try it makes no difference.
The obvious thing to do would be to focus on what I think I'm doing wrong and try to rectify it, or to address my boss directly to find out what they think of the situation. However all of this may actually be unnecessary if the answer lies with me - if I am the creator (not the victim). Just suppose the situation was actually caused by a belief I held, for example - I am unsuccessful, or other people don't like me - I would always be approaching the situation from that orientation, and lo and behold it becomes a self fulfilling prophesy. The other person fills the role I expect them to.
Think of what you would love to happen (I hear Pollyanna saying) and focus on that instead. That way when you arrive in the interaction that has been troubling you, you will be actively holding what you would love in your mind - I would love success, I love getting on well with other people.
The only way to find out that this works is to try it, and perhaps it's more complicated than I have described it here, but I have tried it many times with great success. I don't know why it works but it does.
So today on my beautiful walk I spent time alone thinking about the things in my family life that had been troubling me, and I searched my mind for the limiting beliefs which might be influencing how those situations played out, and then I focused on what I would love. The next thing I did was to spend some time giving thanks for my family, I focused on everything I love about them and held that in my mind for some time.
At home this evening we had a lovely time, I kept my focus on what I would love our interactions to be like, and I kept CHOOSING THOUGHTS WHICH SUPPORTED WHAT I WOULD LOVE. There were a few cross words here and there but mostly I really enjoyed my evening, I was surrounded by loving smiling faces and now I feel euphoric and joyful. I 'm so glad I started reading my sisters book, I didn't realise it would support my journey so well, but it has! Yippeeee.
Today I am Thankful for my sisters and brothers
I am Thankful for the reminder that I am responsible for my reality
I am Thankful for scots pine trees
I am Thankful for my creative power
I am Thankful for owls
I am Thankful for choice
I am Thankful for kisses
I am Thankful for change
I am Thankful for hugs
I am Thankful for LOVE.
Love Klara.
I have had a glorious day today! I went for a walk and decided to address some of the things which have been bothering me. These things which have been troubling me could be described as relationship dynamics or patterns, either way they are situations, events and interactions which occur between me and the other members of my family. I noticed that certain unpleasant events and interactions occur repeatedly, and my tendency in the past has been to attribute these occurrences to the other people involved, laying blame and thus making myself the victim. A Victim of Circumstances!
Being a victim is not attractive to me, it's such a disempowered position to hold in life. So, what could I do instead?
A couple of days ago I happened to read a chapter of my sisters new book, "The Relationship Revelation" by Pollyanna Darling (www.imaginariabooks.com), the chapter I read was called "It's All You." My sister is a follower and practitioner of The Magician's Way philosophy, it has brought her great joy and success and lead her to writing her fantastic book. So I am reading it partly because she is my sister and partly because she is an inspiration to me and many others. Ah yes so the "It's All You" chapter, it reminded me of something Pollyanna and I have talked about a great deal - you get what you expect to get!
What I mean by this is that in my experience (oh no, more history?) beliefs that I hold about the world and other people affect what happens in my reality. At first I found this a ridiculous idea and I certainly didn't want to agree with it, but after a while of experimenting with it I had to admit that it did appear to be true! I have no idea how it really works, but it goes something like this (and it can seem something of a chicken and egg scenario):
- My boss is always angry and disappointed at me, no matter how hard I try it makes no difference.
The obvious thing to do would be to focus on what I think I'm doing wrong and try to rectify it, or to address my boss directly to find out what they think of the situation. However all of this may actually be unnecessary if the answer lies with me - if I am the creator (not the victim). Just suppose the situation was actually caused by a belief I held, for example - I am unsuccessful, or other people don't like me - I would always be approaching the situation from that orientation, and lo and behold it becomes a self fulfilling prophesy. The other person fills the role I expect them to.
Think of what you would love to happen (I hear Pollyanna saying) and focus on that instead. That way when you arrive in the interaction that has been troubling you, you will be actively holding what you would love in your mind - I would love success, I love getting on well with other people.
The only way to find out that this works is to try it, and perhaps it's more complicated than I have described it here, but I have tried it many times with great success. I don't know why it works but it does.
So today on my beautiful walk I spent time alone thinking about the things in my family life that had been troubling me, and I searched my mind for the limiting beliefs which might be influencing how those situations played out, and then I focused on what I would love. The next thing I did was to spend some time giving thanks for my family, I focused on everything I love about them and held that in my mind for some time.
At home this evening we had a lovely time, I kept my focus on what I would love our interactions to be like, and I kept CHOOSING THOUGHTS WHICH SUPPORTED WHAT I WOULD LOVE. There were a few cross words here and there but mostly I really enjoyed my evening, I was surrounded by loving smiling faces and now I feel euphoric and joyful. I 'm so glad I started reading my sisters book, I didn't realise it would support my journey so well, but it has! Yippeeee.
Today I am Thankful for my sisters and brothers
I am Thankful for the reminder that I am responsible for my reality
I am Thankful for scots pine trees
I am Thankful for my creative power
I am Thankful for owls
I am Thankful for choice
I am Thankful for kisses
I am Thankful for change
I am Thankful for hugs
I am Thankful for LOVE.
Love Klara.
Monday, 16 January 2012
Yakety Yak don't talk back!
Hello
All this talking about thinking has led me to start thinking about talking. I love talking, I love sharing information and ideas with other people. I particularly enjoy people who can talk for hours about subjects which I know nothing at all about. It has always amazed me how some people can get fixed on one or two interests and seem to go about acquiring information on them until they know pretty much everything there is to know on their specialist subject, I think these people often get called boffins or specialists, I admire these people immensely and I wonder what their thought processes are like. For example do they get overly concerned with image? are they self critical? do they care what I think? Perhaps if you are one of them and you find yourself reading this you could let me know? I would particularly like to know if specialists find themselves talking negative nonsense?
I really enjoy interacting with other people, but sometimes I find it very hard, and there are two main reasons for this:
Number 1: if somebody wants to talk about something which feels negative. You see I get stuck; I don't want to collude, I don't enjoy colluding and I don't think its helpful, I also think collusion can reinforce negative thinking. In addition to this I am rather good at empathising, TOO good in fact, I can end up taking it on, or I just go through the situation with the other person and can leave feeling upset as if I have soaked their feelings up like a sponge.
Number 2: if they ask me leading questions, like "how are you?" this seems like quite a normal innocent question at first glance, it probably gets said about a million times a day, but to me it is a wolf in sheep's clothing! How am I? I take it it's a question requiring a literal answer? At times it's almost like a cue for negativity.
What on earth am I talking about? The thing is occasionally I love a good moan!! yes I have said it! There is something in my makeup that has been addicted to talking about certain kind of things, things which seem to hold a lot of energy, and those things are invariably negative, I am going to write a couple of examples just to illustrate the point (honestly not so I can moan!) Usually they are things which get a big response of interest from the person to whom I am talking. It's obvious now I see it in black and white; its just an easy way of getting energy, easy because a lot of people are more than happy to partake - the energy must move both ways. So here goes:
"I'm so broke at the moment..."
"My car broke down yesterday...."
"So and so wronged me...."
Anyway I had to make them up otherwise I might have been moaning!! But you get the idea? If I'm going to be successful in changing the way I think to CHOOSING GOOD FEELING THOUGHTS, I believe it is paramount to also change the way I talk, and CHOOSE JOYFUL FEELING CONVERSATIONS.
Imagine how it would feel if everyone you met up with in the street, or chose to hang out with only talked about all the great things they were experiencing, and although it's true, we all experience genuine distress at times, and sharing it is very valid with the right people for the right reasons but I'm not talking about that. I mean habitual doom mongering, sensationalising dramas and just plain wingeing. I think it is habitual and although I have broken the habit, I do sometimes catch myself unawares CHOOSING TO TALK ABOUT THE WRONG THINGS for no good reason!!
If I'm to continue socialising and I love being with friends, then both vigilance and imagination are required .......
So let me tell you about my day.......
It was a beautiful blue sky his morning when I opened my curtains, the birds were singing and I could see the hills clearly in the distance. I had a comfortable morning cuddling my baby and when we searched online we easily found a remedy to soothe baby's earache. I finished all my paperwork and it flowed beautifully and took less time than I expected, so I was able to take my time getting ready to collect my other daughter from school. In town everyone was jolly and we saw lots of people who fill my heart with gladness for knowing them. We bought our weeks shopping, were reminded of a show we had forgotten we were planning to see, and we came home in time for a delicious dinner. Tonight I'm going to watch a movie I haven't seen for fifteen years called 'All of Me' its funny and heartwarming and I feel very excited to get to see it again.
I am So Thankful for the ability to see the beauty in the world when I look for it
I am Thankful for the spirit that moves people to clown around
I am Thankful for delicious food
I am Thankful for surprises
I am Thankful for my healing
I am Thankful for smiling faces
I am Thankful for your happy stories
I am Thankful for my cup of tea
I am Thankful for meringue
I am Thankful for my daughters willfulness!
love Klara.
All this talking about thinking has led me to start thinking about talking. I love talking, I love sharing information and ideas with other people. I particularly enjoy people who can talk for hours about subjects which I know nothing at all about. It has always amazed me how some people can get fixed on one or two interests and seem to go about acquiring information on them until they know pretty much everything there is to know on their specialist subject, I think these people often get called boffins or specialists, I admire these people immensely and I wonder what their thought processes are like. For example do they get overly concerned with image? are they self critical? do they care what I think? Perhaps if you are one of them and you find yourself reading this you could let me know? I would particularly like to know if specialists find themselves talking negative nonsense?
I really enjoy interacting with other people, but sometimes I find it very hard, and there are two main reasons for this:
Number 1: if somebody wants to talk about something which feels negative. You see I get stuck; I don't want to collude, I don't enjoy colluding and I don't think its helpful, I also think collusion can reinforce negative thinking. In addition to this I am rather good at empathising, TOO good in fact, I can end up taking it on, or I just go through the situation with the other person and can leave feeling upset as if I have soaked their feelings up like a sponge.
Number 2: if they ask me leading questions, like "how are you?" this seems like quite a normal innocent question at first glance, it probably gets said about a million times a day, but to me it is a wolf in sheep's clothing! How am I? I take it it's a question requiring a literal answer? At times it's almost like a cue for negativity.
What on earth am I talking about? The thing is occasionally I love a good moan!! yes I have said it! There is something in my makeup that has been addicted to talking about certain kind of things, things which seem to hold a lot of energy, and those things are invariably negative, I am going to write a couple of examples just to illustrate the point (honestly not so I can moan!) Usually they are things which get a big response of interest from the person to whom I am talking. It's obvious now I see it in black and white; its just an easy way of getting energy, easy because a lot of people are more than happy to partake - the energy must move both ways. So here goes:
"I'm so broke at the moment..."
"My car broke down yesterday...."
"So and so wronged me...."
Anyway I had to make them up otherwise I might have been moaning!! But you get the idea? If I'm going to be successful in changing the way I think to CHOOSING GOOD FEELING THOUGHTS, I believe it is paramount to also change the way I talk, and CHOOSE JOYFUL FEELING CONVERSATIONS.
Imagine how it would feel if everyone you met up with in the street, or chose to hang out with only talked about all the great things they were experiencing, and although it's true, we all experience genuine distress at times, and sharing it is very valid with the right people for the right reasons but I'm not talking about that. I mean habitual doom mongering, sensationalising dramas and just plain wingeing. I think it is habitual and although I have broken the habit, I do sometimes catch myself unawares CHOOSING TO TALK ABOUT THE WRONG THINGS for no good reason!!
If I'm to continue socialising and I love being with friends, then both vigilance and imagination are required .......
So let me tell you about my day.......
It was a beautiful blue sky his morning when I opened my curtains, the birds were singing and I could see the hills clearly in the distance. I had a comfortable morning cuddling my baby and when we searched online we easily found a remedy to soothe baby's earache. I finished all my paperwork and it flowed beautifully and took less time than I expected, so I was able to take my time getting ready to collect my other daughter from school. In town everyone was jolly and we saw lots of people who fill my heart with gladness for knowing them. We bought our weeks shopping, were reminded of a show we had forgotten we were planning to see, and we came home in time for a delicious dinner. Tonight I'm going to watch a movie I haven't seen for fifteen years called 'All of Me' its funny and heartwarming and I feel very excited to get to see it again.
I am So Thankful for the ability to see the beauty in the world when I look for it
I am Thankful for the spirit that moves people to clown around
I am Thankful for delicious food
I am Thankful for surprises
I am Thankful for my healing
I am Thankful for smiling faces
I am Thankful for your happy stories
I am Thankful for my cup of tea
I am Thankful for meringue
I am Thankful for my daughters willfulness!
love Klara.
Sunday, 15 January 2012
Wassailing and Extreme Shepherding!
Hello
Yesterday I went out in the evening to a Wassail ( an ancient fertility tradition from Southern England which involves singing and drinking mulled cider to awake the cider apple trees and scare away evil spirits, therefore ensuring a good harvest in autumn) we dressed up warm and stood out in a little orchard, which may have been someone's back garden, and by the fire and the light of the moon we sang to the trees. I had a lovely time. It interests me that I didn't know I was going wassailing when I wrote my rampage of appreciation to the trees, it seems like a response from the universe for me to be invited to celebrate the trees shortly after.
But, what really interested me about last night, is how I felt and how in the moment I was. We made a last minute decision to go, we had been invited to a Narnia party last night too, which sounded lovely and I'm sure it was, but it was quite far away and we are still staying close to home to meet our baby's needs. When we arrived there was lots of people I have never met before, and in fact the whole thing was completely unfamiliar to me. However I had a really lovely time, and why shouldn't I?
In the past (clearly history has some relevant uses!) I have found it very hard to socialise at times, there have been danger areas for me, particularly large groups of people, and even more so when I don't know anyone. The only way I can describe what I used to experience is that I would bully myself. Faced with large groups of people familiar or not, my mind would start up telling me a number of things about how I wouldn't fit in, and why I shouldn't even try!
For example: I'm not interesting, I'm wearing the wrong clothes, I'm too old/young, I'm not pretty, I'm the wrong shape, I have a weird voice, my hairstyle is odd, I'm a fool.
Just writing about it feels horrible, it amazes me that I even managed to go out with all that going on in my head! I don't know what purpose the bully in my head served, probably some sort of ego thing trying to keep me safe, but until recently I allowed me to say really horrible things to myself. Things I would certainly not say to anyone else, or put up with them saying to me! I managed to destroy my own self confidence on many occasions, and frequently found myself going home early just to alleviate the tension I was experiencing.
It feels so wonderful that I went out last night and realised this morning that I did not have one single bad feeling thought the whole evening, admittedly I wasn't out for long, just a couple of hours, but for the whole time I was out I remained in the moment. I was in the orchard, I was singing the song and saying the wassail chant, I looked into the fire, and I enjoyed watching and listening to the other people having a good time.
I didn't need to go inwards, to approve of myself, or to question whether the other people approved of me, because I already approve of myself. I LOVE MYSELF. I really am happy with who I am, and I believe it has a great deal to do with the massive increase in the amount of time I spend choosing better and better feeling thoughts.
CHOOSING GOOD FEELING THOUGHTS can be hard at times, I have many old thought habits to contend with, like the bullying, but the progress I am making is showing me the way, like a beam of sunlight, I know that I am winning.
I have known for many years that all I really want out of life is to feel good, to be content with my life exactly the way it is right now. I wish for more people to know about the power of CHOOSING THOUGHTS. It's a bit like being a shepherd to a flock of really unruly sheep, at first they are all over the mountainside and with only one dog (I wrote god then by accident!) who doesn't really know all the whistles yet, it takes time to get them all into one place, but after a while the dog learns to respond to my whistles and the sheep are all gathered together safely, and if they were thoughts not sheep they would be working for the common good.
So I'm going to do my best, I'm going to keep CHOOSING GREAT FEELING THOUGHTS, every day, every hour, every minute. I am starting to really enjoy my life, I am starting to really LOVE MYSELF, and I am starting to realise which parts of me really need attention and what really matters. I'm not getting upset anymore about whether other people like me or whether I live in the right place, I am finding deeper and deeper levels of joy every day through actively looking for things to feel thankful for and by actively choosing better feeling thoughts.
Today I am thankful for small pleasures
I am thankful for being able to gather ripe hazelnuts near my house
I am thankful for hearing my daughter sing in the shower
I am thankful for my pillow
I am thankful for bamboo socks
I am thankful for olives
I am thankful for ladybirds
I am thankful for eyelashes
I am thankful for ants walking in a line across kitchen counters
I am thankful for pencils
love Klara.
Yesterday I went out in the evening to a Wassail ( an ancient fertility tradition from Southern England which involves singing and drinking mulled cider to awake the cider apple trees and scare away evil spirits, therefore ensuring a good harvest in autumn) we dressed up warm and stood out in a little orchard, which may have been someone's back garden, and by the fire and the light of the moon we sang to the trees. I had a lovely time. It interests me that I didn't know I was going wassailing when I wrote my rampage of appreciation to the trees, it seems like a response from the universe for me to be invited to celebrate the trees shortly after.
But, what really interested me about last night, is how I felt and how in the moment I was. We made a last minute decision to go, we had been invited to a Narnia party last night too, which sounded lovely and I'm sure it was, but it was quite far away and we are still staying close to home to meet our baby's needs. When we arrived there was lots of people I have never met before, and in fact the whole thing was completely unfamiliar to me. However I had a really lovely time, and why shouldn't I?
In the past (clearly history has some relevant uses!) I have found it very hard to socialise at times, there have been danger areas for me, particularly large groups of people, and even more so when I don't know anyone. The only way I can describe what I used to experience is that I would bully myself. Faced with large groups of people familiar or not, my mind would start up telling me a number of things about how I wouldn't fit in, and why I shouldn't even try!
For example: I'm not interesting, I'm wearing the wrong clothes, I'm too old/young, I'm not pretty, I'm the wrong shape, I have a weird voice, my hairstyle is odd, I'm a fool.
Just writing about it feels horrible, it amazes me that I even managed to go out with all that going on in my head! I don't know what purpose the bully in my head served, probably some sort of ego thing trying to keep me safe, but until recently I allowed me to say really horrible things to myself. Things I would certainly not say to anyone else, or put up with them saying to me! I managed to destroy my own self confidence on many occasions, and frequently found myself going home early just to alleviate the tension I was experiencing.
It feels so wonderful that I went out last night and realised this morning that I did not have one single bad feeling thought the whole evening, admittedly I wasn't out for long, just a couple of hours, but for the whole time I was out I remained in the moment. I was in the orchard, I was singing the song and saying the wassail chant, I looked into the fire, and I enjoyed watching and listening to the other people having a good time.
I didn't need to go inwards, to approve of myself, or to question whether the other people approved of me, because I already approve of myself. I LOVE MYSELF. I really am happy with who I am, and I believe it has a great deal to do with the massive increase in the amount of time I spend choosing better and better feeling thoughts.
CHOOSING GOOD FEELING THOUGHTS can be hard at times, I have many old thought habits to contend with, like the bullying, but the progress I am making is showing me the way, like a beam of sunlight, I know that I am winning.
I have known for many years that all I really want out of life is to feel good, to be content with my life exactly the way it is right now. I wish for more people to know about the power of CHOOSING THOUGHTS. It's a bit like being a shepherd to a flock of really unruly sheep, at first they are all over the mountainside and with only one dog (I wrote god then by accident!) who doesn't really know all the whistles yet, it takes time to get them all into one place, but after a while the dog learns to respond to my whistles and the sheep are all gathered together safely, and if they were thoughts not sheep they would be working for the common good.
So I'm going to do my best, I'm going to keep CHOOSING GREAT FEELING THOUGHTS, every day, every hour, every minute. I am starting to really enjoy my life, I am starting to really LOVE MYSELF, and I am starting to realise which parts of me really need attention and what really matters. I'm not getting upset anymore about whether other people like me or whether I live in the right place, I am finding deeper and deeper levels of joy every day through actively looking for things to feel thankful for and by actively choosing better feeling thoughts.
Today I am thankful for small pleasures
I am thankful for being able to gather ripe hazelnuts near my house
I am thankful for hearing my daughter sing in the shower
I am thankful for my pillow
I am thankful for bamboo socks
I am thankful for olives
I am thankful for ladybirds
I am thankful for eyelashes
I am thankful for ants walking in a line across kitchen counters
I am thankful for pencils
love Klara.
Saturday, 14 January 2012
Seven Important Questions!
Hello
I woke up today feeling happy, I dreamed a few different dreams last night and almost all had as a theme CHOOSING GOOD FEELING THOUGHTS. I found this very exciting, because to me to dream about something means it must have made its way into my subconscious! This feels like a real achievement.
In the past I have made various resolutions to change my way of being, but there have often been occasions when the resolution has been put aside or simply forgotten. I have been thinking about thoughts (yes really!). I have been thinking about simple ways of noticing my own thoughts and whether I should be thinking them. A couple of nights ago I woke up in the middle of the night and heard these words:
"There are Seven Important Questions to be asked whenever you entertain a thought."
This seemed inspired, and very interesting to me and in that moment I made a quick decision; I decided to go back to sleep! Why did I choose that? The last time I had a Really Good Idea it was in the middle of the night, and it was such a great idea that I couldn't let it lie, I lay awake for several hours thinking about my idea and all the wonderful intricacies to the nth degree! In short I missed a lot of sleep because I allowed my mind free rein, and it accordingly rampaged around until I was exhausted and the effort required to quieten it down was quite substantial. It's not just bad feeling thoughts that can get out of control for me!! Thankfully I was still so excited about my idea the next day that I managed the resulting tiredness with a smile.
I was happy with my choice to go straight back to sleep, and became even more so when I sat down to write today; the Seven Important Questions (SIQ - LOL!) arrived in my mind like a V-formation of swans. So here they are:
1. Is the thought about me or someone else?
If the thoughts is directly referring to a being, myself or someone else i.e. it's personal, then go to question 6. however, if its non-personal and its about me go to question 2.
2. Is the thought historical?
In other words am I looking backwards to past events or conversations, I can't change the past there is nothing to be gained here, so I can think about something else, or I if I'm still unsure I can go to question 7. If the answer is no try question 3.
3. Is the thought about a problem?
If the answer is yes...
4. Does the problem have a solution?
If the answer is yes, I can stop thinking about it now, if the answer is no I can ask myself the next question...
5. Is this an appropriate time to think about a problem?
I used to get drawn away from the present an awful lot, and my children would say "mum you've got that weird look on your face again", and they usually had to say it several times to bring me back to the present. Also if there is no solution to this problem then thinking about it is really daft! and will probably stress me out, so I can think about something nice instead.
6. Is this thought about me or someone else, something I would comfortably say to my best friend who I love very much and would never want to hurt?
If my thought is critical, unkind, rude, mean, spiteful, jokey in a derogatory way, an assumption, or just plain nosey (and I'm sure there are far too many wrong ways of thinking of myself or others to list here) then I should definitely think about something else and if I'm still not sure I can go to question 7.
7. How does the thought make me feel????
I could probably dispense with all the other questions really and just ask this one, because if the thought doesn't feel good or better than good; if it doesn't feel great then I'm clearly choosing the wrong thoughts!!!
Perhaps I'm being silly, I have overthunk the whole thing with my SEVEN IMPORTANT QUESTIONS and my SIQ acronym, but really that's just one of those tricksy thoughts I have generated to bamboozle me! It's staying on top of the thoughts that counts, CHOOSING GOOD FEELING THOUGHTS as often as possible, and being ALERT. Be ready for your thoughts, cut them off at the pass, drop an avalanche of great feeling thoughts on them, or as my friend told me nearly eight weeks ago "you must be watchful, ready to pounce, like a tiger". This is self-mastery, it takes work and dedication.
Today, I am Thankful for my bow and arrows
I am Thankful for how incredibly beautiful the stars in their multitudes are on a cold clear night
I am Thankful for my baby's first sign for milk
I am Thankful for little fluffy clouds in the cold blue sky
I am Thankful for my dinner
I am Thankful for my progress
I am Thankful for my small successes
I am Thankful for big lego
I am Thankful for rainbows
I am Thankful for the insights and inspirations which come at night when the world is sleeping.
love Klara.
I woke up today feeling happy, I dreamed a few different dreams last night and almost all had as a theme CHOOSING GOOD FEELING THOUGHTS. I found this very exciting, because to me to dream about something means it must have made its way into my subconscious! This feels like a real achievement.
In the past I have made various resolutions to change my way of being, but there have often been occasions when the resolution has been put aside or simply forgotten. I have been thinking about thoughts (yes really!). I have been thinking about simple ways of noticing my own thoughts and whether I should be thinking them. A couple of nights ago I woke up in the middle of the night and heard these words:
"There are Seven Important Questions to be asked whenever you entertain a thought."
This seemed inspired, and very interesting to me and in that moment I made a quick decision; I decided to go back to sleep! Why did I choose that? The last time I had a Really Good Idea it was in the middle of the night, and it was such a great idea that I couldn't let it lie, I lay awake for several hours thinking about my idea and all the wonderful intricacies to the nth degree! In short I missed a lot of sleep because I allowed my mind free rein, and it accordingly rampaged around until I was exhausted and the effort required to quieten it down was quite substantial. It's not just bad feeling thoughts that can get out of control for me!! Thankfully I was still so excited about my idea the next day that I managed the resulting tiredness with a smile.
I was happy with my choice to go straight back to sleep, and became even more so when I sat down to write today; the Seven Important Questions (SIQ - LOL!) arrived in my mind like a V-formation of swans. So here they are:
1. Is the thought about me or someone else?
If the thoughts is directly referring to a being, myself or someone else i.e. it's personal, then go to question 6. however, if its non-personal and its about me go to question 2.
2. Is the thought historical?
In other words am I looking backwards to past events or conversations, I can't change the past there is nothing to be gained here, so I can think about something else, or I if I'm still unsure I can go to question 7. If the answer is no try question 3.
3. Is the thought about a problem?
If the answer is yes...
4. Does the problem have a solution?
If the answer is yes, I can stop thinking about it now, if the answer is no I can ask myself the next question...
5. Is this an appropriate time to think about a problem?
I used to get drawn away from the present an awful lot, and my children would say "mum you've got that weird look on your face again", and they usually had to say it several times to bring me back to the present. Also if there is no solution to this problem then thinking about it is really daft! and will probably stress me out, so I can think about something nice instead.
6. Is this thought about me or someone else, something I would comfortably say to my best friend who I love very much and would never want to hurt?
If my thought is critical, unkind, rude, mean, spiteful, jokey in a derogatory way, an assumption, or just plain nosey (and I'm sure there are far too many wrong ways of thinking of myself or others to list here) then I should definitely think about something else and if I'm still not sure I can go to question 7.
7. How does the thought make me feel????
I could probably dispense with all the other questions really and just ask this one, because if the thought doesn't feel good or better than good; if it doesn't feel great then I'm clearly choosing the wrong thoughts!!!
Perhaps I'm being silly, I have overthunk the whole thing with my SEVEN IMPORTANT QUESTIONS and my SIQ acronym, but really that's just one of those tricksy thoughts I have generated to bamboozle me! It's staying on top of the thoughts that counts, CHOOSING GOOD FEELING THOUGHTS as often as possible, and being ALERT. Be ready for your thoughts, cut them off at the pass, drop an avalanche of great feeling thoughts on them, or as my friend told me nearly eight weeks ago "you must be watchful, ready to pounce, like a tiger". This is self-mastery, it takes work and dedication.
Today, I am Thankful for my bow and arrows
I am Thankful for how incredibly beautiful the stars in their multitudes are on a cold clear night
I am Thankful for my baby's first sign for milk
I am Thankful for little fluffy clouds in the cold blue sky
I am Thankful for my dinner
I am Thankful for my progress
I am Thankful for my small successes
I am Thankful for big lego
I am Thankful for rainbows
I am Thankful for the insights and inspirations which come at night when the world is sleeping.
love Klara.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)