Puzzles

I've always loved puzzles, from the earliest time I can remember I always loved solving them. Throughout my work career I've been able to continue figuring out ways to make things happen. Several of my ex-bosses would be amazed at the way I get from point A to B. I don't think the same logical way that everyone else thinks. I can, but normally I don't because the "normal" solutions have already been tried & not gotten the results that were needed. This is especially true with computer issues, if I'm allowed to "play" I can usually figure out a way to make something work.

That hasn't been the case for the last week. My desktop computer had some major issues & after a week of trying to "solve" them I finally gave up. What does this have to do with this blog? Everything!! We all face puzzles in our life & how we deal with them can set the tone for the rest of our life. Don't allow yourself to let the puzzle turn you negative. I worked very hard to try & figure out what was going on the past week & although I got frustrated in not being able to figure it out, I never got upset. What I did was try & learn from what was going on.

This is my approach to everything that's a challenge or a puzzle in my life. Learn from what's going on in my life. The next step for me is to let go of the puzzle & allow the answer to come to me. Many times in my life I would only solve a difficult situation by getting away from it. I might be doing something completely different & the answer to the puzzle will come to me. This is the way God/universe works. The harder we try to get a solution to the puzzle the more difficult it can be to find that solution. But, if we allow ourselves to let go of the need to solve the solution, God/universe will send us the answer at the most unique times. It's in this detachment that everything God/universe has for us will be realized.

Detachment is one of the most difficult lessons any of us can learn. I have learned this the hard way at times in my life. I have "made" things happen that later didn't turn out the way I thought they should & I've learned that if I detach from the results the answer that comes is always better.

Allow yourself the time to let go of the need for the solution to the puzzle in your life. Let God/universe assist you by opening your heart & truly listening. Every puzzle has a solution & how we decide to discover that solution shapes the rest of our life. Don't be afraid to ask God/universe for help with the puzzles in your life. Then detach from the results & the answer will appear. Enjoy life through detachment & find the joy you've been looking for.

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day: "We all face "puzzles" in our life. Detach from the solution & allow God/universe to help & you will discover a more joyful life!!"

Earth Day

I realize it's not an original idea to write about Earth Day today but I have such a deep & meaningful connection with the earth that I feel compelled to do it anyway. I hope you'll indulge me & enjoy a look back & forward at Earth day.

Earth day began 40 years ago (1970)& the world has come along ways since the first earth day. Overall air pollution is way down & lead in the air is nearly non-existent. All these improvements have come about because of the people that support making the planet a better place. People like you & me. Without the grass roots support the changes in the past 40 years would have never happened.

Unfortunately, we still have a long way to go. In the past 40 years carbon dioxide has increased in the air to the point that the global average temperature has increased by 1 degree Fahrenheit. I know this doesn't sound like a huge increase but actually it is a sign that the Earth is warming up.

I personally believe that the Earth is a living planet that will do what it needs to do to survive. The extremes we've seen in weather & natural disasters is the Earth's way of trying to self correct, to bring the planet back to it's natural cycles. The earth will survive in spite of us but if we continue the way were going we won't be able to live here anymore.

All is not lost. Each of us can make a difference & together we can save the planet. Start by recycling everything you can, it's a small step but it will help. Plant a tree. Volunteer with a group that cleans up city, state or national parks. Talk to your legislators have the restore the national park budget to what it should be so we don't lose these precious gems. Also push them for stronger clean air laws & have them move forward with the climate change initiatives.

Take time to reconnect with the earth. This connection will help revive your soul & change the environment we live in. I believe in the human spirit & I know that there is nothing we can't do if we work together. Let's make a pledge to help the earth not just on Earth day but everyday of the year.

I hope you have a great weekend, till Monday,

Bill

Quote of the day: "Make Earth day everyday of the year & help us save the planet."

Birds

The beautiful songs of the spring birds draw me into a wonderful place that I love to journey to. I listen to each of their individual songs & enjoy being back in nature. Yes, I've been back riding my bike. Many of you know that last summer & fall I started riding my bike. Two weeks ago I began riding again in the state park near our house. I've truly enjoyed listening to the birds every morning & I am often reminded of this quote: “Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.” by Henry Van Dyke

Do you worry about what others think of you or are you willing to sing your song anyway? We talked before about living in a state of fear but is that fear holding you back from what you truly want to do? Can you be the bird & sing your song anyway? We worry too much about what others think in our life. Some of us even change our life based on what others think. The journey to living a life of joy always begins within & if there's a song within you that needs to be sung don't let anyone stop you from singing it.

We all need others in our life. We are in fact social creatures & God/universe uses others to show us messages that we need to learn. But, we shouldn't live our life to please another person. We should take the time to discover our true voice & sing our song to the world.

Imagine a world where we never heard a bird singing, I don't want to know that world. I love to listen to the birds. We each have a beautiful song within us. Believe in your talents & let them shine to the world. Today is the day to begin to sing your song. I believe in you & I look forward to hearing your song.

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day:"Enjoy the beauty of the birds song & listen to your soul to discover your own song. Sing to the world & discover true joy."

Time

Tick, tock, tick, tock, tick, tock why do we worry so much about time? We are consumed with the passage of every second, every minute, every hour & every day. We try to organize our lives around time. We stress ourselves out trying to stay on time.

It wasn't always this way. When clocks first started appearing in Europe in the 13th century many of them didn't even have hands. They were just bell-towers to call people to church. Then hands were added to the clocks but they still weren't very important in our society. Most towns only had one clock in the center of town to let people know what time it was.

Overall, people weren't concerned about time, they went about their daily lives without being concerned what time it was. They judged their days by the sun & appointments or meetings were set on a loose schedule. It wasn't really until the invention of the wristwatch in the early 1900's that time began to take over our lives.

So what's my point about all this? Make time in your day to just "be". Stop letting the clock rule your day. I understand that we have to be on-time for work or for appointments but stop stressing yourself out about every second of everyday. Allow yourself time with no expectation of results. Let yourself get lost in something you do with no concern about time. It's always amazing to me how quickly time can pass when we are totally into what we're doing. Allow yourself time to enjoy.

Don't allow the clock to rule your life. Take control by letting go of the constant need to have everything in life scheduled. Lose yourself in the present moment & discover the joy you've been missing in your life.

Till tomorrow,

Bill


Quote of the day:"Let go of the need to schedule every moment of your life & discover the joy in just being."

Uncertainty

One of toughest things to deal with in our life is uncertainty. Uncertainty happens to all of us but how we deal with it in our daily life defines our path forward to a better life. I personally have had a lot of uncertainty in my life since being laid off nearly 11 months ago. Like everyone else I battle with uncertainty from time to time. But I've found different ways to deal with the occasional overwhelming feeling of uncertainty in my life.

I've discussed that change is part of our life whether we want it to be or not & many times uncertainty proceeds the change we're going to see. So how do you deal with uncertainty in your life. Do you become a turtle & hide? Do you just coast until things get clearer? Or do you embrace the uncertainty & open yourself up to the coming change?

In my life I've embraced change. I try to always look forward to new challenges in my life & I am willing to allow things to happen in my life without getting swept away into negative emotions. Uncertainty can make us very nervous & this nervousness can lead us down the path of negative emotions. So how do you work through the nervousness of uncertainty? For me, I follow the same path I do for most things in my life. I go within. I accept the uncertainty & ask for signs to help me find the path through the uncertainty.

I believe everything begins from within & one of the struggles that many of us have, is that we are always looking outside for the answers in our lives. If we take the time to know ourselves & set our intentions for the things we want in life. God/universe will always send us signs to help us along our path. When things are uncertain we need to be more open then ever to the signs that appear in our lives. Many of us struggle with this process because we don't see the signs appear in our lives. Usually when you've tried setting intentions to move yourself on in your life & you haven't seen any results. It's because you haven't detached from the results of your intentions.

Detachment can be the single hardest lesson that we all need to learn. (I wrote a blog on it a while ago take a look back Oct 2009) & many times when things aren't happening in our life the way we intended them to work it's because we are attached to the results. The easiest way to highlight this, without going into detail about detachment, is to say that when we're attached to the results it's like screaming at God/universe for the answer. When we detach from the results we are simply requesting an outcome & allowing God/universe to work with us to create the outcome.

Uncertainty can be a difficult time to get through but by opening yourself up & allowing God/universe to work with you, anything is possible. Embrace the change you see in your life be a Co-creator with God/universe & create the life you've always dreamed of.

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day:"Embrace uncertainty when it appears in your life. Open yourself up to the signs God/universe is showing & you'll create a more joyful life!"

Guilt

One of the deepest negative emotions we have is Guilt. Guilt has been used to manipulate people for thousands of years. Guilt is one of the main differences between us & other animals on our planet. Guilt is ingrained in our culture & in most of the major religions in the world. It can be one of the most difficult negative emotions to move beyond.

So, have you ever felt guilt? Do you know how to move beyond it? The basis of guilt is the fact that we are extremely hard on ourselves & the way to move beyond is to forgive yourself. We all make mistakes & no matter what mistake we make in our life, the way to move past the mistake is forgiveness. I know this sounds easy & to some extent it is. The hard part is to actually forgive yourself.

Remember that whatever happens in your life, once it's done it's in the past & can't be changed. We all battle with our past & the only way to move beyond the past is to forgive yourself or the others that have done you wrong. So, how do we forgive ourselves? For me, the first step is to realize that I am an imperfect being. I make mistakes, it's part of being human. Then I accept responsibility for the mistake I made. What does that mean? Correcting the mistake as best as I can. Asking for forgiveness from the other people that were involved in my mistake or admitting that I was the one that did something.

The next step for me is to allow myself the time to feel remorse for what I did. Once I move beyond that step, I forgive myself & I ask God/universe to forgive me as well. We live in a beautiful world & one of the most amazing things about it is that if we are truly sorry for our mistake we will always be forgiven. Once I forgive myself I let go of the guilt.

I live each day as a new beginning. This way I'm always in the present moment. Part of this process to let go of the past & part of letting go of the past is releasing guilt & forgiving myself. You are beautiful person but you'll never be perfect. Understand your faults, forgive yourself & move on to a more joyful life!

Have a great weekend,

Till Monday,

Bill

Quote of the day:"Guilt is one of the deepest negative emotions. Forgive yourself & let go of the guilt & you will discover a more joyful life!"

Releasing Anger

I've learned in my life to let go of anger. Sometimes it can be difficult especially when life sends you some challenging situations. I had one of those challenging situations yesterday & it showed me how far I've been able to come in my life.

Many of you know that over the past couple of months I've been helping my friend out with his business. He's a great guy & I'm happy to help him while I'm looking for work. As I usually do I went up to his place yesterday, the day went well & I got everything caught up for him with his books. A few minutes before I was ready to go I hear an employee of his calling my name, saying come quickly. This employee tells me that my truck just got run into from a truck hauling a doublewide trailer. My truck was just parked on the street in a legal parking spot.

I went out & checked the damage. It wasn't too bad but I haven't been in an accident in a long time. I could of gotten really upset when the truck driver came back to talk to me about it. But I chose to take the high road. I made a decision that even though he crushed part of my truck it was still drivable & I was certain it would be fixed.

The policeman who came within a few minutes, even commented to me; "You're taking this really well". I said; "Things happen, I'm sure he didn't mean to hit my truck." The policeman then said to the truck driver; "How are you doing?" & the truck driver responded "I was better before this". I finished the exchange by saying to the truck driver; "Don't worry about it, things happen & it's not a big deal." He actually smiled at me.

So what's point of this story? The point is we always have choices in our life regardless of the situation. We can choose to get angry & be consumed by the negative emotions that surround us or we can choose to find peace in the situation & help others to get through it. In the past I wouldn't have always chosen to take the high road, as I've written before I use to have a very bad temper. But through lots of self work I've learned to move beyond the anger & take the high road in life. You can do it too!! Not just with anger but with any negative emotion. You can learn to let it go & move back to a place of peace & love.

Life is too short to allow negative emotions to take over your life. Allow yourself to feel what you're feeling & then let that emotion go & return to love. No matter how angry you get now at the littlest things, you can move beyond to a better place!! I believe in you & I know the process works because I've done it myself. Let go of the anger & discover more joy!!

Till tomorrow,

Bill

Quote of the day:"By letting go of anger & moving back to a place of peace & love, you will discover more joy in every moment of your life."