BE THE CHANGE YOU WISH TO SEE

IN THE WORLD 

These words of Mahatma Ghandi rang true then and ring true now. They transcend time, history, space, geography, situations, and particular historical events. Many of us have heard Ghandi’s quote, we’ve even seen it on t-shirts, bumper stickers, refrigerator magnets. But what do these words really mean? What was Mahatma Ghandi thinking about when these words spoke to him and through him? What did he want to share with the world through these simple and profound words?

As I reflect upon his statement, I think about people who have gone against and continue to go against the herd; not following the path well traveled; standing up for something even if it has been uncomfortable, unpopular, or has seemingly alienated them from others, especially well meaning family and friends. I think about those individuals who have lived and continue to live their lives in that "change"....who see nothing "other"...who see and experience only connectedness, oneness, and beauty in all things. That to me is being and living the change that we wish to see in the world.

It means acting kindly when others are kind; it means acting kindly when others are unkind. It means forgiving those who ask to be forgiven; it means forgiving those who don’t ask to be forgiven. It means listening, appreciating, and loving through difference and adversity. It means giving of ourselves truly and authentically, living our lives in harmony with who we really are. It means breaking through our comfort zone and taking risks and not just following the course that others have drawn for us. It means shedding our masks, our outer shells...the prescribed and proscribed roles we play. It means loving others, loving all, loving unconditionally. It means consciously living in a non-judgmental way. It means making a decision each and every day to live in the light, to be the light, to exude the light, to share the light.

Ghandi also reflected, "God is in every one of us, and, therefore, we have to identify ourselves with every human being without exception." When we truly understand and live from a place of connectedness with all - - with the natural world, with fellow human beings, with the Universe, we begin to operate on a different plane, experiencing joy and love in the most unexpected ways. We connect with the eyes of a homeless woman on the street...we see the love and light within those eyes even if they have seemingly dimmed to her; we connect with an animal that has stopped to pick up an acorn off the ground; we connect with the trees that sway in the breeze and which give us oxygen to breathe, we connect with a baby basking in the contentment of existence, we connect with a man in a coma, with a young child living on the other side of the earth. Our connections grow deeper, less judgmental, and more loving... not only with others, but with ourselves. We understand that our thoughts, feelings, actions are reflected and mirrored back to us in infinite ways, both consciously and unconsciously. We live in the deliciousness of life and with the knowledge and conviction that a greater love and truth is guiding and supporting and loving each and every one of us and our fellow human beings.

Be the change...it means connecting with our unique gifts and talents and sharing them with the world. We stop living in fear and begin to claim our true selves, living from that place of inspiration, passion, and love. When we share our special gifts, we share our love. As we share our love, we find the cracks and crevices where love can easily fill the spaces even in the most hardened of places. We invite others to join us and we do not fear, knowing that we are all well and that we are exactly where we were meant to be, experiencing that which was meant for us. We live in an awakened and heightened state of consciousness and being. We appreciate and understand the power of love within us and focus that love towards the change that we wish to see in the world.

WHAT CHILDREN TEACH US

Have you ever just stopped to watch and observe a child singing a song to herself or a group of children playing together in a sandbox? Puddles, sand, dirt, flowers, leaves, snow, rain, insects...all capture the delight and imagination of children. An adult sees a puddle of water on the street and carefully walks around it...a child inevitably and deliberately jumps in it. Leaves on the ground are enticing opportunities for throwing, jumping, building, playing. Children find joyful opportunities at every turn. Children have a natural, instinctive delight and curiosity and they see the world through lenses that we as adults have long thrown away.

Why do children naturally repel negative newscasts and are much more interested in playing and exploring rather than being fed negative news clips? Perhaps it is because they have not yet been dumbed down by prejudice, judgment, and negative energy that later translate into rigid thoughts and beliefs by adults.

Watch a baby...what does a baby need and crave? To be soothed, to feel warmth, love, human contact, connection, physical touch. Babies need this to not only thrive, but to survive. I recall my own experience when I was working in Ukraine for the Children of Chornobyl Relief Fund. I spent many days and weeks visiting various hospitals and orphanages throughout this beautiful country. One particular visit to an orphanage stands out vividly in my mind. This was a “special” orphanage for disabled and sick children. There were hundreds of children, ranging from infants to 18 years olds living together in very difficult and oppressive conditions. Some children slept four or five to a crib, some tethered to their cribs with rope connected to their foot or arm. When I initially approached the entrance to the orphanage, a group of 20 or so children began to walk towards me, arms extended, eyes hollow, craving and begging for human contact and connection. I hugged each and every one of them and was so overtaken by their overwhelming need for physical contact. As I soon learned, the orphanage was severely understaffed and under resourced and many children spent days or weeks without being held or comforted. Their diapers were changed and they were fed...their basic physical needs met; yet, their most critical and basic needs of love and comfort went unfulfilled. I will never forget their eyes, some penetrating, some lost, some deeply craving, some empty.

This lesson has stayed with me ever since...that humans need each other, that children reflect back to us so clearly that which is important and essential for life. It really comes down to one thing...love. We all come from love, we all are a part of love, we all need love, we all are innately born to love; yet sometimes we cut ourselves and others off from the very thing that gives us our spark and zest and passion for life...love. Children are natural reflections of love...they show us in so many ways how to love, how to give, how to receive, how to be joyful, how to live in the present moment, how to connect. Take the time to observe children in their natural state...it will do wonders for your spirit.

WHAT IS PAIN ANYWAY? 

What is pain anyway? A finger cut by the whisk of a paper, seeing a dog lying helplessly on the street, arguments among family members, watching your parent die. We all have "experienced" pain in one form or another, but what is it really? Can we see it, touch it? Why does it seem to dictate much of our daily actions? Do all beings experience pain at some points in their lives?

Pain, like any other emotion...although seemingly so real...is just an illusion. It is projected out of fear. It keeps us in bondage to the painful thought, the painful feeling, the painful event...as we relive over and over and over again the "painful" experience. That vicious cycle prevents us from really living in harmony with our true selves. But many of us say, physical pain is real, it hurts, it's bad. Yes, physical pain as well as emotional pain is very real to us; however, experiencing pain provides us with an opportunity to grow - an opportunity to stretch ourselves mentally, physically, and spiritually. Pain forces us to dig down deep into our souls and to come out the other side.

Pain is there to teach us that we might not be living in harmony with our true selves, that we are disconnected from our whole being, that we are not trusting. Know that whatever painful experience you have, it will not last forever, as nothing remains constant. Things are ever-changing...painful experiences end...just as pleasurable experiences have their cycle of beginning and end. What we do have at any point in time is the choice to either embrace the pain, feel it experience it and then release it to the universe...or to cling onto it like an addictive drug, owning it, identifying with it, labeling it as our own, as if we were the pain, as if we were that which is an illusion anyway.

When we think of pain, we live in a life of duality...if there's pain, there's pleasure. Pain is bad, pleasure is good...we seek more pleasure, we repel the pain in our lives. Although we may define life in these terms, good, bad, pain, pleasure, happy, sad...our true infinite selves know only love and joy and peace...a place where fear does not exist. Pain is just a message to us that fear is close by. Pain could not exist without fear. So, how do we apply this to our daily lives? Try to become the observer of your pain, distancing yourself from it, detaching from the outcome. The practice of yoga, meditation, deep breathing, visualizations, can be helpful. The painful experience is here to teach us, to guide us, to help us to build our inner muscle, to help us to see beyond the pain. When we being to live our lives free from our bondage of pain...or from allowing pain (or the avoidance of it) to dictate our lives, we become freer, lighter, more in tune with our true selves and at peace.

 

PAIN AFFIRMATION: The pain I feel is here to teach me something. Today I move closer towards experiencing pain as an observer, rather
than as a direct receiver. Although I may not understand it at this exact
moment, I trust that there is a reason and place for this experience
and that I can only grow from this place of pain. I know that this will
pass and every storm eventually ends and that calm
and peaceful days are on their way.

LOVING THROUGH THE LENS OF PERFECTION 

How many times in the course of the day have the following thoughts entered your mind? "I'm fat. My thighs are huge. I have wrinkles. I have to lose weight. My body is ugly." We have become so accustomed to these negative thoughts that we accept them as a part of our daily lives. In fact, we are often completely unaware of the thoughts that race through our heads in the course of a day, week, month, or year. Dr. Deepak Chopra once quoted a study in which researchers concluded that the average person thinks approximately 65,000 thoughts per day. They also went on to conclude that of these 65,000, approximately 95% are exactly the same thoughts that passed through their minds the day before. If we flood our minds with negative thoughts day after day, we are perpetuating a vicious cycle of negative thoughts, negative energy, negative outcomes. We attract the exact energy and experiences that we don't want. We don't understand why we just can't lose the weight, why we feel tired and achy all the time, why [fill in the blank here]. We believe that external forces, our jobs, our families, our spouses, our stresses, cause us to overeat or feel lousy. Yet, we all have the power and the energy within ourselves to create the wellness and healthy lives and bodies that we truly desire for ourselves.

So, what can we do about this? How can we change these patterns? The first step is to become aware of our thoughts and become more attuned to the things that we actually reflect upon in the course of our day. As we know from the laws of attraction of the universe, whatever we focus upon expands. The more we focus on our imperfect bodies, our flawed skin, our [fill in the blank here], the more we seem to notice these perceived negative aspects of our bodies...they seem to get bigger right before our eyes! Yet, we forget the brilliance of our own human bodies...bodies that create, carry, give birth to and nurture life; hearts that beat over one million times per day; lungs that respire over 23,000 times per day, bodies that soothe, express, experience, inspire, create, energize. Our bodies do amazing things every second of every day, and yet we often forget and take these things for granted, instead choosing to focus on the negative instead of the miraculous. We take up space in our minds which keeps us from developing more powerful, healing, joyful thoughts that can propel us forward in a more positive direction. Our negative thoughts keep us living small, keep us within the imagined box that we have created for ourselves. Yet, we all have the ability to be much more deliberate with our thoughts. Positive affirmations, meditation, yoga, flooding of appreciation and love, these are just a few techniques that can help us get on our way to changing our negative thought patterns. They are just patterns and patterns can be broken.

When we view our bodies through the lens of perfection, we begin to notice all of the miracles that occur within our bodies at any given moment. We begin to see beyond our perceived flaws, we begin to expand our consciousness and begin to heal ourselves on a cellular level. We begin to trust in our bodies, we begin to honor our bodies, wanting to fill ourselves with healthy food, healthy thoughts, and joyful experiences. We begin to feel and appreciate the mind-body connection on a much deeper level, understanding that our bodies are here to teach us. When we are sick, our bodies reveal to us that we are out of balance and out of harmony. When we need rest, our bodies let us know that we need to slow down. We begin to flow with our natural rhythms, we begin to listen more closely to the subtle signs that are pointing the way; we begin to experience and believe in the perfection and absolute brilliance of our human bodies. We begin to live our lives through the lens of perfection - knowing that we are all whole, perfect, and beautiful in every way.

PERFECTION AFFIRMATION: Beauty surrounds me everywhere.
Goodness abounds. Abundance is ever flowing. Wellness is for me to embrace.
All is well. I am perfect in every way.

OBSERVE WITHOUT JUDGEMENT

I am so excited to be sharing my first thoughts with you. I hope that this letter will be the first of many connections with you. Summer is now upon us...long days and nights...full of beauty, bounty, and all possibilities. I spent the past several days in the beautiful and calming Catskill Mountains. Nature continues to awe and inspire in big and little ways - thunderstorms crackling, booming, and echoing across the rolling mountains, a tadpole swimming in an algae-filled bucket, three tiny frogs glued to a rock staring up at the immense sky, chanterelle mushrooms peeking through the moss and wet leaves in the pine forest, a tiny buzzing bee landing on my arm. It is this natural beauty that inspires us, that grounds us, that reveals to us that all is well, that the loving Universe provides, nurtures, and heals our deep wounds, our pain, our suffering. I reflect upon many things and receive a continuous flow of confirmations that all is occurring in its divine order, exactly as it is meant to. Observe without judgment...this is something that my yoga teacher repeats over and over. These three little words can help us in so many ways - whether we are reflecting upon external events, world calamities, wars, injustices, or whether we are judging internally - our weaknesses, our imperfections, our flaws, our bad stuff. Whatever it is, when we observe without judgment, we release the negativity from ourselves, we allow goodness to flow within, we love, we connect, we expand, we live more fully, more inspired,somehow lighter and freer. We are all here to live joyful and inspired lives. Our life paths, though sometimes not so joyful or inspired, provide clues for us - if we listen and observe without judgment; we can read, hear, see and feel these clues. "Is what I'm doing in harmony with my inner being? Am I living my best life? What are these emotions teaching me? What am I afraid of? What is causing my sickness?" Listen to the answers that come from within. When we tune in and clue in, we can pick up on these clues and use them to guide us on our paths. We tune into Source, God, Tao, Love...however we define it...and begin to recognize and observe and know on a profound and deep level when we are connected with Source and when we are disconnected to Source. We begin to trust our inner knowing, our inner being. We begin to trust that everything that is unfolding in our lives and in the world around us is here to teach us something. We begin to trust that the Universe is a loving one. Observe without judgment.