Today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday. Was is worth it?
By Mahatma Gandhi
Is it Worth it?
.
Hint: the answer is “No”
The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance; the wise man grows it under his feet.
James Openheim
Will you take a moment, right now, to stop whatever it is you are doing, and close your eyes, then smile. Just feel that. What do you notice? Then open your eyes, continuing to smile. How does that feel?
It is not always realistic to go from feeling totally down in the dumps to smiling and feeling joyful. But consider this: when you smile, the brain secretes chemicals from neurotransmitters such as Endorphins, which reduce pain, as well as Serotonin and Dopamine, which affect the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) and the sympathetic nervous system (SNS), causing a positive shift within our entire being- the thoughts we have, the feelings we emit, and the state of our physical body. SMILING IS A NATURAL DRUG.
Have high blood pressure? Studies have shown there is a measurable reduction in blood pressure when smiling. Give it a try if you have a blood pressure monitor at home- sit for a few minutes and take a reading. Then smile for a minute and do another reading. Do you see the difference?
Smiling is an interesting circle- you can start from either side of the spectrum: experience something happy, and find yourself smiling about it! Or take a moment to pause and smile, and you can experience the feeling of happiness. And when we take the time to experience the feeling of happiness, we become magnetic to more happy things to occur in our lives!
Over the past month, I take moments out of every day just to crack a big smile, for no good reason, other than to just do it and see what happens. And you know what? It has me feeling more confident. I feel healthier, and more vibrant. I feel magnetic to what I desire in my life, and more open to the awareness that as I do what I can do, from where I am at, to achieve what I have in mind, smiling more is instilling a greater sense of success, from within. I am seeing this being reflected in the reality around me- especially in my business! I then intentionally send this feeling out into the world, seeing success and prosperity filling everyone’s lives.
WHAT FUN! And it’s FREE! We can ALL afford to take 60 seconds out of every day, or perhaps every hour, to pause, smile, and just bask in the various effects it has on us.
We are powerful little creatures, with enormous capabilities. Our power rests in our choices- nobody can make you focus your attention on a particular feeling. We have free will to let any train of thought or emotion run it’s course through our minds and bodies. We can use our smile as a tool for transformation, for ourselves and for sharing! And finding the wholeness within ourselves.
Namaste,
~angie la
As I was scanning my eyes over the buffet of bumper stickers plastered to the passenger side of a car, this one jumped out at me. I had never seen that before! Never heard that before, never thought of that before- “What does that mean to me?” I wondered, and toyed with the idea in my head. Immediately my mind showed me an image of a person, being bombarded with information and opinions, mainly mass media: magazines, television, newspapers, radio, advertisements, etc. Then i thought of a parent, pointing their finger at their child, telling them they are not enough of this, they are too much of that, etc. Then we can bring in religion. And societal ‘norms’. And culture. And the list goes on and on…
I thought of how quickly we tend to compare ourselves to each other, to the status quo, to what everything “out there” is telling us. We are constantly being told how to be. We are being told how to look FOR the world and how we should SEE the world. So we don’t always see the truth about ourselves. Most people have maybe never even pondered , let alone remembered that WE ARE FINE THE WAY WE ARE.
You may not like your body, you may not like the way you appear to others, you may look in the mirror and resist what you see, whether it’s your face, your skin, your hips, your hair, but
YOU ARE FINE THE WAY YOU ARE. Take a deep breath. Take a load off! Can you feel any relief from this possibility??
It’s easy for us to get overloaded and mislead by everything around us. But the truth of you is inside you- always was, always will be, You cannot lose it. You’ve just forgotten it’s there. I am a bodywork practitioner, and that’s why I LOVE doing massages for people- it chills us out, quiets us down, in body and mind, allowing our truth, each individual’s deep well of wisdom and uniqueness, to easily float closer to the surface, eventually permeating out into what appears to be beyond the boundary of our bodies- into what we call ‘reality’
When we stop fussing, mussing, worrying over and trying so damn hard to look good, be ‘appropriate’, make a positive impression and be accepted by people, and we instead put our intention and focus on feeling peaceful, grounded, centered in our True Self’s awareness… we just naturally shine! And we become magnetic- to other people and to what we want. That’s hot. It’s attractive! And innate within us- patiently waiting, right now, to flood every cell of you and influence all the ways you go about and interact with the world: through your thoughts, words and deeds.
Take a deep breath. Instead of trying to fix or change what you’re seeing, just let it be. This goes for your body, as well as any and every situation in which you could ever find yourself. When we let it be, it can then have the space and opportunity to change, right before your very eyes. If it doesn’t change, then at lease your concept of it will- Cuz everything starts within, behind the eyes. What ideas and perceptions you hold inside, determines what your eyes will see outside.
Botox, make-up, the right clothes, cologne, teeth-whitening kits, most personal care products- don’t even care of us at all-they are toxic and poisonous. What most people put on and in their bodies is an underlying futile attempt to help us feel whole.
Wholeness starts within. Seek within. Change the way you see things, and worry less and less about how you look on the outside. Go to the core of you, the truth of you, which nothing can alter, and will not be masked for much longer. Things are really shifting right now on our planet, are they not?! We are being called now ,to change the way we see each other, our relationship to the planet, and our connection to what many refer to as God. Through this fresh way of seeing, we are making manifest heaven on earth. Heaven floats within you!
May you blissfully float in and exist from the Heaven within you.
~Namaste~
Greetings and salutations!
the following is a message that I feel is very worthy of sharing with those of us who are seeking wholeness, especially on this day many call “valentines day”. This message was sent out yesterday from the founder and leader of Young Living brand essential oils. if you don’t know who or what i’m talking about then here’s my quick shpeel: Young Living is passionate and serious about producing therapeutic-grade products; Gary has the strictest standards for purity, potency and safety when it comes to the essential oils that Young Living produces, and he is passionate about bringing a higher quality of life to all of the world. if you are new to ‘essential oils’, they can be considered, but are far from limited to the word aromatherapy. they are basically considered the blood of a plant/tree/fruit/flower and this blood contains enormous healing potential, and is imbued with the intelligence of nature.
I am a distributor of these oils-
i use them in a variety of ways daily, on myself, on dogs, and in my massage and healing practice, so i have stories from using the oils myself, as well as from other people over the last year and a half, since I first heard about Young Living.
i hope you have a wonderful valentine’s day! know that i love you, and care for you so very much. You are an invaluable piece of the giant Cosmic Puzzle, I will say. and that is no small thing! I mean, your ability to realize grander dreams and desires for ourselves and others, is important. Your health, happiness, fulfillment and satisfaction in life IS IMPORTANT. i think you came here to this thing we call “Life” to evolve and achieve deeper fulfillment in your own unique and perfect way. And really, right here and now, you are doing that just perfectly. You are perfect, whole and complete. You are lovely. I love you!
if you would like to get to know more about the Young Living essential oils on your own, you can click here or just get in touch with me.
peace!
~angie
Happy New Year!
At this time, a week after the celebration of Christmas, we find ourselves gearing up for one more round of parties, celebration, and perhaps some deep reflection and quiet contemplation. And we carry on a tradition of making , what many people call, New Year’s Resolutions.
I was pondering this word on the night of the solstice- when the light begins to return for longer periods than the darkness- and it dawned on me (no pun intended!) that the evening of the solstice felt more like “New Year’s” to me than anything. A new year was beginning for me that night, as the darkness would be given less time to linger, and the light would be filling our days moreso. What a great way to think about how we are moving into a new chapter in our lives. The chapter of 2010-
But the meat of what I got to pondering, on that cold, crisp night here in Minnesota, where I live… was the word “resolution”; what’s with this making new year’s resolutions stuff? I find there is a lack of feeling and motivation behind this word, resolution.
I wondered how many other people hear that catch-phrase and imagine the plethora of topics that are common in our country: eating healthier, going on a diet, losing weight, getting in shape, paying off debt, quit smoking, quit drinking, quit this, quite that, stick-to-this, follow-through-on-that, etc. These things can sound like such a CHORE! And then it hit me: the very word itself, resolution, implies there is something to be resolved, and if something is to be resolved, then we must first have a “problem”.
Well, I don’t like the word problem. When we take into account the Bigger Picture, I feel that here, there are no problems. A problem is a matter of perception. They are just a sign-post that something is simply out-of-whack in our mind and our heart, and thus is spills forth into our outer lives. So we must bring it into the light, where it will be TRANSFORMED, brought back into alignment, and returned to us as a fresh perspective, a right outlook, a new energy that will fill us and point us in the direction of where we would like to be going.
After all, nothing can truly be destroyed, extinguished, or ended. ALL is energy, ever changing, in a state of flux, shifting and moving and altering form as it naturally evolves or as we come along and perceive it and project our energy onto it. So it’s not that bad habits need to be cut out of our lives- in fact, this can prove to be quite difficult! Going “cold turkey” just usually doesn’t work that well. But if we offer it to the Light, it will be transformed and shifted in the way that is most effective and perfect for us.
We are not here to resolve our lives or “fix” the world- WE ARE HERE TO TRANSFORM IT.
And Oh! What a grand opportunity that is.
May you know that you,
right here, right now,
are FULLY EQCUIPED to do just that-
During your day, periodically bring your attention back to yourself. Bring your awareness from wherever it is, from the ether, from the computer, from other people; wrap it up and bring it all back in, as if you are calling the troops home. Call your energy and your attention from everywhere it’s at back into you. Regroup your thoughts, breath deeply, calm and be present inside yourself.
If you do this you will be aware, present & most importantly alive.
Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan ‘Press On’ has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.
- Calvin Coolidge
When life throws a rock at you (in the form of opposition, challenges, sickness, ideas, etc) What do you do with this rock? Do you throw it away, perhaps throw it at someone else? Do you keep it and put it on the mantle next to the family photos, or do you shape it with a tool?
A rock can be useful.
Place it on the ground in front of you, fill in pot holes with it, put it in a puddle of water and step on it. Step on it, it’s a rock.
I have a story for you:
Once Upon a Time In a Land Far Far Away, there was a young king who suffered from mood swings.
He would be confident of his decisions and his own greatness, until he got depressed and fell into a deep depression. When this king was feeling blue, he would sit and stare, he would sleep for hours on end, he would do nothing, and he would also become convinced that he was worthlessness and unimportant.
If this king lived today, we would have called him bipolar or perhaps manic-depressive; but this was a long time ago, and back then no one had names for these symptoms. The king was left with no real help, he brought the best herb doctors and they gave him special attention only fit for a king, but his mood swings did not improve much.
According to a new report released by the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), happiness levels are highest in northern European countries.
Denmark, Finland and the Netherlands rated at the top of the list.
Outside of Europe, New Zealand and Canada also made the top 10. The U.S. did not.
The U.S. ranked the highest for child poverty and obesity among the western nations polled.
Other Very Interesting Findings include:
Adult height: Americans are not getting taller. The United States is the only country in the OECD where men and women aged 45-49 are no taller than those aged 20-24 years old, indicating no improvement in health and social conditions determining gains in height.
Health care: The United States spends the most per capita on health care, but despite their high levels of health spending the Unites States has relatively low life expectancy.
Net National Income: The United States is one of the richest countries in the OECD. In 2006, the United States had a per capita National Net Income in excess of USD 35 000. Only Luxembourg and Norway were higher.
Fertility: The United States has a much higher fertility rate than most other OECD countries of 2.1 children per mother, compared to an OECD average of 1.65.
Child poverty: Child poverty has fallen since the mid-1990s but one in five US children still live in poverty, a rate exceeded only in Poland, Mexico, and Turkey
Social protection: The United States is the fourth lowest in the OECD in terms of income shares of public social spending. However, when tax breaks for social purposes and private social spending are also considered, social spending in the United States rises above the OECD average of 28% to 31% of income.
Eating time: Americans spend around an hour and a quarter eating every day, slightly more than only Canadians and Mexicans but less than half the eating time spent by the French. Despite this limited time spent eating, their obesity rates are the highest in the OECD.
Leisure time of men and women: American men have nearly 40 minutes more leisure time than women per day.
Find the report here: http://www.oecd.org/document/24/0,3343,en_2649_34637_2671576_1_1_1_1,00.html
Let me ask you,
We may make more money per capita in the US but we spend most of it on health insurance and other ‘fees’ – These are what I call hidden taxes.
These hidden taxes go to corporations not to benefit other citizens; they suck money up the ranks to make the rich richer, making huge profits and paying CEO’s millions of dollars that are basically denied health care reimbursements to you.. In other words, money from your pocket to theirs.
Taxes are used by governments (i.e. we the people) to benefit the population at large, these fees are simply how some corporations (after lobbying congress) dip their hands in your pockets and ’steal’ your money.
Did you know that fear and excitement are essentially the same feeling, the only difference is the label we give them and our preconceived perceptions of the label.
Think about it. Both feelings are experienced in the belly. How we think about that feeling in our belly determines whether it has power over us or if we get power from it.
Excitement is energizing. Fear is paralyzing.
Be aware of this when you feel that paralyzing sense of fear and consciously turn it into an empowering exciting feeling.
This is how you can turn paralyzing fear into motivating exciting energy every time you face a life challenge.
Do this and you will discover your inner power to always convert challenges to motivations, hard times into growing opportunities, and as a result have a never ending source of motivating energy and a positive outlook on life.
My opinion on the use of drugs to treat mood-related issues has always been less than favorable. I have seen no reasons to alter the state of my mind with any drugs, ever.
I say, if you have anxiety or depression, this means there is a culprit behind it. You need to deal with the cause, and the emotion will become well balanced again. If you cannot deal with your emotions or thoughts alone seek a friend or a counselor.
You should not want to treat (and i use the word treat very loosely here because you are not treating anything with mood drugs) stress or depression and anxiety with mood altering drugs that rob you from your true self and usually get you hooked for life.
If you are experiencing unbalanced emotions or moods, I guarantee you there is a reason for it, whether it is a spiritual, a subconscious, a cognitive or even a physical reason; there is a reason. The reason may be an imbalance in any/or all of the eight dimensions of wellness (read about the eight dimensions of wellness here) All of these dimensions are interconnected so the cause of your lack of balance probably spans over many of these dimensions.
Do you really want to mask the problem, only to re-experience these emotions once the drugs wore off? If you take mood drugs you are only dealing with a symptom, not the underlying causes. If you go on mood drugs you are likely placing yourself in an endless loop of drug dependency, stuck, dependent on an outside, manufactured, and expensive medications to keep you well. While, what you need is already available for free, inside of you. You need nothing to be well, all you need is yourself (or a person to talk to), certainly not drugs.
Identify the cause, the imbalances and deal with them, if you do this you’ll see your anxiety evaporate into thin air. Further, you will be empowered by your experience, you will gain experience and you will take control of your life. On the other hand, you could seek refuge in drugs and hide from the real problems.
I find meditation to be a great tool to combat emotional and mood issues. I often tell people: “Say no medication and yes to mediation”. Meditation is one weapon you got, for free, that is inside of you. All you have to do is use it.
Make the move now,
“From Medication to Meditation”
What does Emotional Wellness mean? Emotional wellness is closely connected to the other dimensions of wellness. In the most basic sense, it refers to your ability to handle emotions in a constructive way in order to enable you to maintain a positive emotional state.
Emotional Wellness helps a person achieve positive self-esteem, helping them satisfy relationships and providing resilience to meet life’s challenges.
Emotional Wellness is:
Meditation For Dummies (Book and CD edition) by Stephan Bodian
Born A Healer: I was born a healer. You were born a healer, too! by Chunyi Lin, Gary Rebstock
New Light on Therapeutic Energies by Mark L Gallert
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