Friday, October 30, 2009

Changes

I am still trying to absorb all that was discussed during my workshop with Wayne Dyer. Anytime I attend a workshop of this nature I usually come back with resolutions for myself. This particular workshop was pretty significant for me since I was there on my birthday. I felt that I would stick with whatever I chose to accomplish.

One of the resolutions I made was that I would start a gratitude journal which I would write in every day until my next birthday. I'm already experiencing a shift in my attitude. If something happens that would've normally upset me it seems as though I am able to shift the feelings faster. For example, my 4 year old broke the cabinet this morning. I did reprimand him but then was able to go back to my happy place after a meditation. This is something that prior to making this conscious decision to be calm I would have taken a lot longer to get over. I write in my gratitude journal every evening and sometimes I go back to read what I wrote before. It always has the same effect of putting a smile on my face.

Another resolution I made was that I would start teaching my 6 year old son how to meditate. My 4 year old also comes to hang out with us but he's not as into it. I figure he'll get there soon. We start by sitting quietly for a few minutes and taking deep breaths. Then I pick a word for us to contemplate and meditate on. A few of the words we've meditated on so far have been kindness, love and patience. We'll pick one word and use it all day. So if the kids are playing with one another and they're not being nice to each other we'll remember that the theme of the day has been being kind.

We also do nightly prayers with the kids. Partly of the nightly routine is to contemplate what happened that day and what we're grateful for. Each of my kids gets to say what they enjoyed about the day. My 4 year old said that he was grateful for his parents and brother, for his room, the posters and even the color on the walls. It was fun for me to hear what they came up with. We close out the day with talking somewhat of the day to come and praying for happy dreams.

One of the biggest changes that I can see in myself is this sense of peace. Being in the presence of people like Wayne Dyer and Ram Dass allows you to view life in a different light. Wayne Dyer has just been diagnosed with leukemia and Ram Dass has been in a wheel chair due to a stroke for about 15 years yet they are both in a state of gratitude and oneness with God. When asked if he could beat the leukemia Dyer answered that would involve a fight and he's not about fighting. He's going to ask his leukemia to live peacefully in his body. What a fantastic way to look at it? Anything that involves a fight or struggle will ultimately lead to fatigue no matter what the situation is. At a later time, he mentioned that with "God all things are possible" as far as overcoming his illness. I have used this as a mantra for myself as well. With God anything and everything is possible.

I'd love to hear your thoughts. Please leave a comment below, email me to mary@marysalfi.com or find me on Facebook.

With God all things are possible! I am loving awareness. These are awesome mantras to have as part of your consciousness.

With Love,
Mary

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Don't feel sorry for me; instead use the silence to go within.

I just got back from Maui. I went there to attend Wayne Dyer's workshop - have I mentioned that I love Wayne Dyer? The weekend was incredible; absolutely full of thoughts and ideas that will take me a while to assimilate into my being. I will be writing many posts on this workshop.

One of Wayne Dyer's teachers is Ram Dass. This was a man who was a Harvard professor but was not fulfilled with that. He ended up in India and studied with a guru. He wrote the book "Be Here Now" which I am in the process of reading. Ram Dass lectured for a long time without getting paid for any of his work. All that he made was donated. A few years back, Ram Dass suffered a stroke which left him in a wheel chair.

Wayne Dyer invited Ram Dass to come talk to us this weekend for a little while. His speech is extremely slow due to the stroke. When he first began talking it took him about a minute to get the following sentence out "don't feel sorry for me; instead use the silence to go within." He was referring to the silence between his words. He could say a word and then take 10 seconds before saying another. The tendency was to feel sorry for him but it was just not possible after that statement.

I was in awe of this man after he delivered his talk. Some of the insight offered was to be in a constant state of love. He talked about truly loving the room he was in and all the people and the walls on all sides. He gave us a mantra to contemplate: "I am loving awareness". Isn't that a fantastic mantra? I have used it every day since hearing it. I just repeat it all the time.

I probably have not done Ram Dass justice with this little post about what he talked about but I had to share with you a snippet of my experience. I did use the silence between his words to go within and to realize what my life is about and who I am. After that I realized that we are all one and an extension of the source we all came from. I also realized there is much to be grateful for in my life and that I was going to start a gratitude journal recording my gratitude for one full year. It has been awesome to realize that I am grateful for my husband, kids and family but also for snow, a cup of hot tea and books.

I would love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment below, email me to mary@marysalfi.com or send me a note on my Facebook account.

Use the silence that's in your life as an opportunity to go within and connect to the divine being that you are.

With love,
Mary

Monday, October 5, 2009

Stop Complaining and Explaining!

Have I mentioned that I love Wayne Dyer? I am reading his book "Excuses Begone!" and I read this phrase a few nights ago: stop complaining and explaining. I have been contemplating it since.

Often we feel the need to be right or to be heard or to be justified. This sentence puts an end to all that. There's no need to justify your actions to anyone. You are accountable only to yourself. If you can look at your actions and be ok with them then I say "enough said".

Another fantastic Wayne Dyer phrase is "what you think of me is none of my business". That is so true. We all have our thoughts or our truths and we are all right in our world. Therefore, for anyone to judge another is something that is impossible. It's like comparing apples to oranges. Using my set of truths on another is a recipe for disaster.

We all want to be accepted and loved which is fine. It's just not ok to alter who we are for that purpose. Again I go back to the questions of who are you? What do you love to do? What do you want to accomplish in your life? What are your goals? These are questions that are a must in our quest for happiness. Living our lives to please others oftentimes leads us to disappointment because we are being measured by someone else's scale and we're never going to live up to someone else's truth. You can only live up to your truth.

When we're disappointed we feel the need to complain which leads to explaining because we want to be heard or justified. At times, the best thing to do is to shift our focus from the negative to the positive. Once we open ourselves up to seeing the good in our lives then it flows to us with abundance. Wayne Dyer also talks about choosing the kind of Universe you want to live in. Do you want to live in a hostile universe or a friendly one? It really is up to you. If you choose the friendly one then everyone and everything is on your side. Nothing else can be a part of your reality because your choice blocks anything else.

I found this sentence to be very profound and I started using it immediately. It really is up to you to change the course of your life at any juncture. You're never too old and it's never too late. Just make the decision to stop complaining and explaining and start doing. Any excuse that may be a part of your reality right now can be eliminated with a choice.

What is your choice? Are you going to complain and explain or are you going to get up and do?

I'd love to hear your thoughts. Please share them with a comment below, by emailing mary@marysalfi.com or find me on Facebook.

Also, I have a new Spiritual U class coming up in January. You do not have to live in Denver to sign up for the class. For more information visit http://www.marysalfi.com/Spiritual_U.html

Just doing,
Mary