Relationships

Relationships can be an amazing addition to your quest for a more joyful life. The love you discover in another person can lift you to new heights. The drawback is that instead of having love within yourself to give to someone else we expect the other person to give us love to fill us up. Love is truly the answer for everyone but we need to begin with loving ourselves first. Without love of yourself any relationship will run into problems down the road. Discover the love we all have inside of us & you'll have more love in your life then you can imagine.

On your journey to self discovery the support of a partner can help you overcome the demons of the past but there are a few things to be careful of. I unfortunately discovered these the hard way in the past.

1. Change - although you may be going through a great deal of change individually in your journey, you can't change your partner. Change is a personal choice & even when you've discovered things in your journey that really help you. Your partner may not be helped by the same discoveries or just simply may not want to change at all.

2. Control - When we feel like we have so many "balls" up in the air & we're trying to deal with all of them. One of the first things we try to do is to take control over everything in our lives to be able to handle it better. The truth is that we can't control anything in our life except for ourselves & our reaction to whatever happens. This is a hard lesson for some people. Observe life & listen to the messages that God/universe is sending you don't try & "make" things happen.

3. Rescue - When we are injured ourselves we look for someone to be partnered with that we feel we can rescue. It makes us feel better about who we are to be able help someone else overcome their demons. The truth is that as in #1 we can't "will" someone better & we can't hurt deeply enough to remove the pain from someone else. If you want to help others (which is a great thing to do) volunteer for organizations & give freely of yourself to causes.

4. Forgiveness - The greatest gift you have to give in a relationship is forgiveness. Remember the reason why you feel in love with person & understand that we are all human & therefore imperfect. Forgive with all your heart & let go of the mistakes your partner has made.

Remember that we are all on our own journey & together we are always stronger then on our own. Discover the beauty of the people in our life & cherish each relationship you have. As I've said in the past; every person that enters our life is there for a reason, discover that reason & the universe will unfold before you. Love with all your heart & live a more joyful life.

Till Monday...enjoy your weekend,

Bill

Quote of the day: "A relationship can be a beautiful way to discover a more joyful life."

The beginning of joy

Yesterday I left you looking in the mirror. I challenged you to move beyond the past & find your true life's purpose. Today I continue the journey that I took from a life that appeared to have everything but was never truly satisfying....sound familiar?

The journey that I embarked on may have taken longer than others on the same journey but the truth is that the work & journey have been very worthwhile. So back to my story. Many years ago when I had my epiphany that my life was hollow I began to try & figure out how to live a more fulfilling life. My problem growing up & still to some extent was over analyzing everything in my life. I have always been fairly intelligent & my mind always takes over whenever a problem presents itself.

I began to try & figure out how to change to live a more joyful, fulfilling life. A side note to anyone in this situation now, over thinking doesn't work!! I had just started going out with my wife Heidi & she gave me a book that began the change I always wanted. This book was "The Return of Merlin" by Deepak Chopra. I had never read any of his work before & Heidi knew I really liked Arthurian Legend so I believe she hoped that connection would get me to read the book. Well, that book changed my life. The lesson that Deepak imparted in the book was so interwoven with the story that I didn't realize that I was starting to understand what I needed to know to change my life. I would highly recommend this book if you haven't read it.

This book was the beginning of living a more fulfilling life. The journey I embarked on was a very personal journey that took me many years to get to where I am today. I discovered that most of my life was based on my EGO, I still battle with it some today & I found that the mind is a wonderful part of who we are, but it's not who we are. To truly discover yourself you need to move beyond the thoughts in your head & connect with your soul. I learned that the only way to move forward is to let go of the past & that the emotions connected to the past can be changed & rewired by accepting them & releasing them.

Finally I discovered the only way to truly life a more joyful, fulfilling life is to live in the present moment because it's truly all we ever have. I went through heartache & pain to discover these secrets. I continue everyday to try & learn more & become an example of what living a joyful life is all about. I hope you'll stay with me on this journey & I hope I've been able to help you begin to evaluate your life. The change you seek is possible, believe in yourself & know that every step forward is creating the life you want to live.

Till Tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day:"The journey to joy is something we can all discover. Begin today & find the life you've always wanted."

Mirror, Mirror

Who do you see when you look in the mirror? Are you the same person? Or are you a person who talks a good game but never lives what they say? I think we've all known people in our lives that always say the right thing & act just the right way but never really live the life they portray. Their life to a large extent is hollow & they never take the time to realize it. Do you know someone like that? Or could this person be you?

I know when I was younger that I not only knew people like this, I was one of them to large extent. I never truly wanted to look inside because I was afraid of what I might find. I really didn't like who I was because I never felt good enough. I walked through life pretending that everything was fine & that I was a great person. But when I looked in the mirror I knew the truth. I knew I was a hollow shell of a person. I knew that the way I dealt with things that happened in my life was to just bury it. The pain & hurt was hidden from view but would always come back to the surface. I stumbled through life, being very successful, but never feeling fulfilled and when something went wrong I would crash & burn. The spiral would drag me down quicker & the pain would be great. Not because of the event that just happened but because of everything that happened before.

I then decided that this way of life wasn't working for me anymore. I decided that the only way to live a fulfilling life was to look inside & deal with the pain of the past. I've written in the past about the process I went through. It wasn't easy but I learned that the past only has power over us, if we give it that power. If we're willing to let go of the pain, we can truly change our lives.

So who do you see when you look in the mirror? Know that you can be anyone you want to be. Know that nothing can hold you back, if you're willing to take the time for self discovery. We are all beautiful amazing people, stop pretending to be who you think you should be & become who you truly are!

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Fog

Are you living your life in a fog? Do you stumble from one day to another? Do you live only for the next big thing, the vacation or the weekend or whatever gets you excited?

Many of us are just content with coasting through our lives. Never really doing anything to upset the apple cart. We live each day only as a means to the end & we're content with the fact that there's no real problems. We're happy to think that life is about living only special moments & we live for them no matter how infrequently they come around. We are for all practical purposes just comfortable with our life.

Does this sound familiar? I use to be like this. I use to think that as long as things were ok everything was good. But I've learned that that's not the way to live your life. Life is about enjoying each moment of everyday. Not about coasting until then next big thing. Life is about learning & growing, discovering our true purpose & understanding that the only way to live a more joyful life is by letting go of the past, instead of being trapped in it.

Sometimes the work is hard & it's painful to grow & move beyond the old ways. But ignoring the issues only holds you back from the true joy you can experience with an open heart, living each moment to the fullest.

I've learned that if you ignore the issues in your life they will continue to come up over & over again. I believe the reason for this is because until we learn what we have to learn, in our life, we can't rediscover our true connection with our soul & thus God/universe.

It is only with an open heart that we can discover the love we have inside. Stop coasting through life & begin living it in each moment.

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day:"Move through the fog of your life, live in each moment & discover the joy life has to offer."

Power

The truth is power can be good or bad but today I'm not talking about power to control or even the power to lead. Today I want to discuss the power each of us have inside. Do you realize how powerful you truly are? You have the ability to change everything in your life with just your thoughts & the pure connection to your soul.

To me the soul is our connection to everything. It is the truest & most natural connection that we have. The unfortunate thing is we lose this connection as we grow because we discover our EGO. I've written many times about the EGO so let's just say that no matter what we do, the EGO will never been satisfied. It may be satisfied for the moment but never very long at all. It always wants more & always wants the next best thing. It takes us over so much that many of us spend our entire life just trying to make it back to our true connection with God/universe, our soul.

The journey of life is to rediscover that true connection with our soul. Some of us can, at times, reach that connection & when we do miraculous things happen. Everything in our life works in perfect harmony & just flows when we are truly connected to our divine source, the soul.

We have the power to not only change ourselves but to change the world around us when we have this true connection. Everyone today is searching for the quick & easy answer to make their life better. The answer is not something we seek outside ourselves. Don't look for what you think will make your life better. Instead look inside. Believe in you. Find the quiet within, discover the true connection with God/universe that is your soul. Sit quietly reflect on your life. let go of the pain of the past. Find the peace & love you have inside. Allow that love to fill you up & overflow to the rest of the world. Discover the joy of life in perfect harmony. Take the time to discover your true power within.

Till Monday, I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Bill

Quote of the day:"Discover the power you have within yourself. Connect to your soul & rediscover the harmony we all can live in."

The Beauty of each day

I've always been a person who starts each day anew. I've been able to leave yesterday behind & look at each day as a new beginning. Sometimes the quiet of the morning is just amazing to me. It fills me up for the rest of the day. We, as many people in the U.S., have gotten a bunch of snow over the last few weeks. I would guess that we have at least 15-18 inches on the ground. It's been rather inconvenient getting around but as I sit in the morning looking out the front windows it's just so beautiful. The quiet of the neighborhood, the snow blanketing everything & the sun gently rising.

Yes these are moments I've learned to cherish. When I was younger I could never slow down, even when I saw beautiful things in my life I only stopped for a moment. As I've gotten older & gone through a true life changing transformation, I've learned to really enjoy each moment of the day & the mornings have always been my favorite.

Over the past many months (nearly 9) since I've been out of work I've truly enjoyed the time I take in the morning. I still wake every morning by 6 & for many months this summer & fall I would ride my bike between 25-30 miles in the state park near our house. My appreciation for the beauty of the morning has grown incredibly through this practice.

Start each day with a few moments to appreciate the beauty around you. Let go of all the noise from the day before. Be reborn in the glory that is your life. Open your heart to the beauty around you & fill yourself with love. By beginning each day with this simple practice you too can lead a more joyful life.

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of day:"Find the beauty of each day by starting with a few moments to truly appreciate the world around you."

Truth

Ok, so I woke up this morning with Jack Nicholson's quote "You can't handle the truth" in my head & as I do every morning when there's a clear word or message in my mind; I give it some thought & try to decide whether there's something there to write about. I wondered how many of us can handle the truth about who were are?

Do you know who you truly are? Can you be honest with yourself? So many of us live in a fog when it comes to who we really are. We put on a face, or several faces, for the world but never truly explore who we really are.

In order to move forward to a more joyful life & be able to live in a true state of bliss we need to understand who we are & where we're coming from. This exploration into ourselves is something that most of us try to avoid at all costs. First off we avoid taking this journey simply because it takes time. Many of us use this excuse to justify not taking this journey. The second reason we avoid this journey into ourselves is because we're afraid of what we'll find.

Most of what we create in our mind isn't the truth. We allow our mind to run away with various thoughts. These thoughts sprinkled with our fears create a world that isn't real. We are so filled with the fear of what we might find inside that we never take the time to actually explore.

It doesn't matter what your deepest thoughts or desire are. The point is to discover who you are at your deepest level. Every thought & every pattern we create in our life can be changed but in order to live a life of more joy we need to know the starting point.

Once we understand who we are at our core we can begin to overcome the pain & fear that has held us back. Be honest with yourself, no one else needs to know the truth. Accept who you are, let go of the fear & become the person you've always wanted to be.

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day:"Be honest with who you truly are, move beyond the fear & into a more joyful life."

Perfection

With the Olympics on my mind I thought about striving for perfection. Do you try to be perfect? Do you expect others to be perfect? These are both very difficult questions. I use to be a person who always strove for perfection & expected everyone else in my life to be perfect. For me this came from my feeling of never being good enough in my father's eyes. To make up for that feeling I tried to be perfect in everything that I did & I would get very anger with the others in my life when they made mistakes. But I would, of course, get even more angry with myself when I made a mistake.

This desire to be perfect was a driving force for many of the early years of my life. It totally consumed me & although I was still a positive person the life I lead was not very fulfilling. In fact my life was very inconsistent even when I always made the "right" decisions. The problem is that we are all humans & as human beings we make mistakes. It is through this realization that no matter how hard I try, I will make mistakes that I began my transformation.

Accepting that we all make mistakes & forgiving ourselves & others for the mistakes we make can move us to a new understanding of who we are. Striving for perfection leads us to trying to take control of everything in our life instead of allowing our life to unfold in front of us. Control rarely works the way we think it should & we end up blaming ourselves for the failures we experience in our lives. The truth is that if we live our life in the moment & let go of the need for control amazing things can happen.

In the Olympics all the athletes strive to be perfect even though they know that perfection is nearly impossible. Striving to be better & striving to do the best you can in any circumstance can certainly help you grow as long as you understand that you will always make mistakes. As with the athletes who lose a 1/10th of a point for this or that understand that you don't have to be perfect to live a more joyful life.

Let go of the need for control. Trust in yourself & believe in the others in your life. Live in the moment & enjoy the beauty of your life as it unfolds before you.

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day: "Understanding that none of us, as human beings, are perfect can help us learn to forgive ourselves as well as others for the mistakes that are made. Through forgiveness we can lead a more joyful life."

Respect

What's happened to respect in our society today? It seems that everyone is so caught up in their own objectives that they don't have time to be respectful of the people that come into their life. I've mentioned before that I believe everyone comes into our life for a reason. If we don't pay attention to them & respect what they have to say to us, we'll never learn the message that they have for us. For our lives to move forward in the harmony we are meant to live in, we need to let go of our own expectations in all of the relationships that enter our lives.

The rudeness & noise that so many people deal with others is all EGO based. We all have EGO's & we need to realize that to live our life in harmony we need to overcome the me, me, me of the EGO. Every person deserves respect regardless of who they are, what they look like or where they come from.

In our forgone days we had great respect for others in our life, especially the elderly. We would always take time to listen to the wisdom that our elders had for us. We may not have always agreed but we would listen & respect what they had to say. This knowledge passed down through the generations has served us well in moving the world to a better place.

In our current time most of us are so caught up in our own agenda that we don't have time to listen or respect the others in our life. The messages we need to hear to move our life forward & to be in a more joyful place will never be heard if we don't respect the people that come into our lives.

Love & respect go hand & hand for me. If we can all begin from a place of love we can learn to respect all the people of the world & grow in love even more. People that feel their thoughts aren't respected or loved rarely share the wisdom they have. This wisdom can be the key that we need to progress beyond where we are. We will never know the messages that God/universe is sending to us, unless we take the time to open our hearts & respect everyone who comes into our life.

When we respect others, others will respect us. Take the first step to a more joyful life. Find the harmony we are all meant to live in. Be the person I know you can be.

Till Monday, I hope you have a great weekend,

Hugs,

Bill

Quote of the day: "By respecting others we can find the messages God/universe is sending to us. These messages will change our life. Open your heart, love & respect everyone who enters your life & you will have a more joyful life."

Cleaning Out & Restoring Yourself

Many of us think about doing a complete cleaning in the Spring. I personally look at cleaning in many different ways. Like many of you I try to do a complete cleaning in the spring & usually in the fall but I believe in the movement of things throughout your life. This movement of the stuff in our life can actually help us become more open & help our life, spirit or energy to move forward. Many of us get stuck in our old ways refusing to let go the things in our life that don't really work for us anymore. We become stubborn with everything in our lives & then we wonder why our life isn't moving forward the way we want it to.

The simple act of "cleaning out" can allow new things into your life. Sometimes this "cleaning out" isn't easy. I recently cleaned out my closet & donated many of my old clothes to Goodwill. Several of these old clothes had a very deep meaning to me & not unlike music when we see a piece of clothing it transports us back to the moment we acquired it or wore it. For me many of the clothes I let go of were from trips I've taken in my life or from shows I was in as an actor. Letting go of these "memories" can be difficult but the thing to remember is that the memories aren't in the "things". The "things" are just something to help us remember the memory & we hold onto it like it really matters. The truth is holding onto the past can keep us stuck in the past. Instead of holding onto a "thing" why not keep a book with the special memories. By letting go of "things" we can open our self up to new possibilities.

This of course if also true of thoughts & sometimes just the process of "cleaning out" things can actually change your thoughts & open you up to new possibilities. There's an amazing truth in the universe & that truth is that "Letting go of the past & allowing things to happen in the present moment will create more joy in your life then you can imagine." When you feel stuck try "cleaning out" something in your life & you may discover that by "cleaning out" you truly restore yourself to the beautiful person your are!

Till Tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day:"The simple act of cleaning out things in your life can open you up to new possibilities. Discover the possibilities today & lead a more joyful life!"

Giving Back

One of the greatest things we can do in life is give back to others. The "others" that we give back to can be anyone, it's the act of giving back that makes a difference. With the craziness of today's economic situation many people have stopped contributing to charitable organizations because they simply don't have the funds to give money to any charity. I truly understand this as I've had a tough time being out of work contributing to any worthwhile cause. I still try to give a little here & there because I believe so strongly in giving back.

Giving back doesn't have to be giving money. There are so many ways to give back to others in your life & none them have to be money if that's a difficult thing to give. The important thing is to make the effort to give & to give freely. I have been very active in trying to give anywhere I can. I have contributed to some non-profits with my business knowledge & writing skills. In fact I'm becoming more & more involved with different organizations to try & help out anyway I can. I have also started helping my friend with his business. He's been a great friend & I'm very happy to help him out. It doesn't matter who you give to. It only matters that you're giving. So what are you going to do today to give back?

The act of giving back to others will open you up to so many more possibilities. In addition this "giving back" should fill you up with love, compassion & understanding depending on where you're giving to. Find the joy of giving of yourself, help a friend,an organization or school. Give freely of yourself & watch the universe open up before you.

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day:"The act of giving back to others is the greatest gift you can give. Open your heart & give freely & the universe will open up before you."

Malaise

The Monday after the Super Bowl should be a national holiday! Ok maybe not but it's amazing how the morning begins on the day after the Super Bowl. To start with unlike many people throughout the country I'm a Colts fan so there's a certain malaise built in when your team loses, especially when they were the favorites. Truthfully I think we all have days when we are just in a state of malaise.

According to dictionary.com the definition of malaise is: "a vague or unfocused feeling of mental uneasiness, lethargy, or discomfort." I look at each day as a new beginning & when I feel a general malaise about things I try to reflect on where the feeling comes from. In general that's what I try to do about any feeling I feel. I believe strongly in the fact that we all need to pay attention to our feelings. I don't believe in denying your feelings but instead I believe in reflecting on why you're feeling the way you're feeling & then moving beyond that feeling back to a place of joy.

It's ok to have days that you need to recoup & pause. Nature itself has the winter & everything in life has a purpose. Sometimes we need the pause to refocus & move forward. Through understanding who we are & why we feel the way we feel. We can change our lives. It's through this recognition & acceptance of all of who we are that we can move beyond any malaise we feel.

Open your heart & accept the wonderful person you are even when the day isn't perfect. You can change your life today!! All it takes is moving to a place of love & acceptance.

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day:"Understand what you feel in any moment, accept this feeling & move on to a place of love. Through love you will always find a more joyful life."

Great Smoky Mountains

In my final tribute to the National Parks, we go to my favorite place to spend time east of the Mississippi. The Great Smoky Mountain National Park, I officially discovered this park when I was 4 years old. The only reason I know this is because we were traveling to Florida to see my Dad's grandparents & we had rented a pop-up trailer. My Dad got really sick, so we had to figure out how to set up trailer as we camped in the Smokies. So my mother two older sisters & me finally got the trailer set-up & we ended up enjoying our stay in Florida. Do I truly remember the Smokies,no not really but they do have film of us going up the Sky Lift in Gatlinburg, TN.

I returned to the Smokies on my own trip to Florida when I was 25. I traveled there several times between then & when I met Heidi. Once I met Heidi the Smokies became the place we always loved to go together. It was the first place Heidi & I "ran away" to when we first started going out & we have traveled back there at least a couple times a year since. It was 1997 when we first drove down to the beauty of the Smokies.

So why do I love the Smokies so much? It's a place to escape & reconnect with nature that's within a reasonable drive. We can get down to Gatlinburg from Indianapolis within 5.5 - 6 hours so it's ideal for a long weekend. Secondly, we've discovered a wonderful place to rent Mountain Chalet's from Chalet Village these Chalet's are amazing & keep us close enough to do things in Gatlinburg & the National Park but a world away from all the busyness of Gatlinburg & Pigeon Forge. Most of these Chalets are on a mountain above Gatlinburg, the views can be incredible up there & it's very quiet instead of all the noise of the city.

Finally, it's the beauty of the Park; the mountains are lush & green in contrast to the peaks in the Grand Tetons. The park is easy to hike, there are many "quiet walkways" that allow you to get out of your car & enjoy the park & there are many wonderful hiking trails. We have enjoyed hiking & seeing all the beauty of this park as well as enjoying all the wildlife, including Black Bear, Deer & many kinds of birds.

To explore this park I suggest starting your visit at the Sugarlands Visitors Center (It's the closest to Gatlinburg) then head off to Clingmans Dome for a short hike to a wonderful ranger tower where the views are incredible. On your way to Clingmans Dome stop at Mortons overlook a beautiful vista on the side of the road. After traveling to these places I would suggest heading back towards Sugarlands & taking Little River Road towards Cades Cove. On the way to Cades Cove stop at Laurel Falls. Laurel Falls is a short hike to a beautiful waterfall. I would encourage everyone to see these falls as the trails are all improved & not hard to walk the 1.3 miles to the falls & enjoy his view (especially in the spring as the falls are full of water). Continue to Cades Cove a beautiful area that includes a motor route to drive through the countryside. Cades Cove is the best place in the park to see wildlife on a regular basis. The loop can get very busy so go early & be prepared for a couple of hours to complete the loop.

For me the Smokies is like a second home. I can be stressed in my life & drive 6 hours to place of quiet that reaches into my soul. I would go more often if I could, I feel the true connection to the earth whenever go there. The beauty of the mountains the glory of the waterfalls & the wonder of the wildlife call me back often & I am forever grateful to have this wondrous place so close to my home. I believe in the ads for Gatlinburg they point out that they are within a days drive of 60% or 70% of the population of our great country.

Take time to explore the beauty of the National Parks rediscover who you are through this great tribute to the natural world. As John Muir said "I'm going out to go within."

Thanks for letting me share my inspiration with you. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Go Colts!!!

Till Monday,

Bill

Quote of the day: "Amongst the fog & the clouds lives a special place in my heart. No matter where I go in my life, I know I can always return to the Smokies, even if it's just in my mind!"

P.S. The picture is one of the many I've taken in the Smokies & the picture on my blog is also a picture I took from the Smokies

Chalet Village on Dwellable