Daily Thoughts

7/2/21

Adapting. Every day, we have the option of doing things the same way even though they aren’t working for us, or we can adapt and grow. The former is easy because we are comfortable in that belief and action despite the lack of functionality. We’re willing to stay in that comfortable bubble because of the fear of change. We choose to hang around the same people, visit the same websites, listening to the same music, etc. because it’s difficult to hear messages from those who push our buttons. Adapting doesn’t mean giving up all of those beliefs and actions; it means choosing to hold onto those things that work for ourselves, our families, and our communities while we let go of those things that are harmful to our families, our communities, and, in the long run, ourselves. Letting go of dysfunction opens the door to personal growth which then trickles down into our families and our communities.

From where I sit, I seek to adapt, change, and grow by letting go of those things that are dysfunctional. It won’t always be easy, but failing to adapt will keep me from being the best person that I can be.

Daily Thoughts

7/1/21

Baby Steps. As the world begins to return to some semblance of “normal”, it’s important that we take steps to prepare ourselves for the change. Diving right in where we were before is impossible because everything is different. Our interactions with people will be different because the world is different. Our perspectives and perceptions of others have been skewed by the isolation and the inundation of the 24/7 news cycle as well as access to social media. With this in mind, we need to remember to take baby steps. We need to remember that we are one community. We need to remember that disagreements are just that – disagreements. We need to embrace our commonality. We need to shift the focus from a broader ideology to thoughts and actions of how we can improve the lives of those around us, no matter the age, belief system, race, ability level, gender, gender identity, etc.

From where I sit, I see the commonality and take baby steps to closing the divide and re-create community. I invite you to join me on that journey.

Daily Thoughts

6/30/21

Appreciation. Appreciation is a precursor to gratitude. We can appreciate someone’s actions. We can appreciate kindness. We can appreciate efforts. All of these are more surface level, but they are necessary precursors to gratitude. As we learn to appreciate and recognize actions and attributes of the people with whom we interact, our gratitude for the lessons that we are learning as well as the changing quality of those relationships is strengthened and becomes a foundation of who we are. What are some things that you appreciate about a loved one, whether it is family or friend? What are some of their attributes that you can appreciate? How can you demonstrate that appreciation? How can you let that appreciation grow into gratitude?

From where I sit, I appreciate the kindness, love, and peace that I see in family and friends. I appreciate opportunities to learn, to stretch myself, and grow into gratitude. I wish the same for my family, friends, community, and world.

Daily Thoughts

6/29/21

We Are the Product of Our Choices. Every day we face the hardships of life. For some of us, those circumstances are dire. Some of those situations are not the direct result of the choices that we’ve made ourselves but the result of choices that others have made, and we are thrust into those situations. For others, we have made choices that have led us to where we are. No matter which of them we find ourselves in, how we react will lead us to the next level. Let me give you an example of. When I was injured in 1982, I was not actively seeking such a dire situation as paralysis, but when it occurred, I had choices as to how I would respond. Over the last 39 years, I have had other circumstances that have created opportunities to choose my actions. Each of those choices have affected where I am today.

Things are going to happen in our lives. Some of them we are going to have control over, while others we are not. How we react to those circumstances will affect how we live our lives in the future. That is the bottom line.

From where I sit, I realize that the circumstances of my life play a role in the choices I have to make. I choose to find the good. I choose to empower myself. I choose peace, joy, and love. That is my bottom line.

Daily Thoughts

6/28/21

Trusting Your Gut. Each of us has the intuition to know what is good for us to undertake and the people that should join us on a journey. When we listen to our inner voice – our intuition/our gut – we are hearing the voice of our True Self. When we ignore that voice, we make decisions that have the potential to be harmful to ourselves and to others that we care about. I know that I have ignored the inner voice that has warned me against doing certain actions, and I have suffered the consequences because of it. If your gut is telling you to either go for something or run away from something, it’s imperative that you listen. Take time to listen to that inner voice. Trust your gut. Follow your intuition, and you will be better off for it.

From where I sit, I tune into that inner voice and will trust my gut to make the right choice for me.

Daily Thoughts

6/27/21

Rain. There is beauty and danger in the rain. The rain is necessary for plants to grow. It is also necessary to help clean the air of pollutants. Unfortunately, sometimes it comes down so hard that it washes away chunks of earth. It can flood and destroy the structures in its way. We all need a little rain in our lives to help us grow. We also need life rafts when the floods of life threaten to overcome us and sweep away large chunks of who we are. What do you do when the rains come? How do you let it help you grow? How do you keep it from overcoming the things that you have put in place? Do you have a plan for what to do when the rains come? Do you have life rafts available?

From where I sit, I have experienced torrential downpours, and for some of them, I was not ready. I have learned to plan, to gather necessary supplies, to store up those things (establish a budget) needed to weather the storm, and to establish lifelines in case of emergencies. It’s an ongoing process, but I am learning to dance in the rain and to weather the storms of life.

Daily Thoughts

6/26/21

Inner Dialogue. When we hear messages from others, they can trigger the inner dialogue that will lead us to either act from love or for fear. When fear is triggered, we lash out to protect ourselves and harm the other. When we see this happening, we can either perpetuate the situation or choose to step back and recognize that what we are hearing is not what is being said but what has been said in the past by others. When we make the choice to recognize the inner dialogue that is being triggered, we begin the process of healing those wounds and establishing a healthier interaction with everyone. It shifts the focus from the ego to the shared experience with others.

From where I sit, I recognize how easily that inner dialogue can be triggered. I will strive to step back, let go of my ego, and let love, peace, and light replace fear.

Daily Thoughts

6/25/21

Evolving. I was born in 1962 and was an adolescent during the disco era of the late 1970s. I was listening to some Barry Manilow recently, and they were using one of the early synthesizers to create the background music for the song. It lacked a little something. Over the last 40 years or so, the quality of the synthesizer has grown. The same thing happened to the way I think about the world. As an adolescent (especially from the 1970s), there was a level of naïveté that was inherent in my upbringing. I wasn’t exposed to the diversity of thought that existed at the time but was not accessible to me. As I have gotten older and opened my eyes to other ways of thinking and acting, my own thinking and acting have evolved.

When we narrow our focus to those things that are within our comfort zone, we fail to evolve. When we open our eyes, ears, and hearts to other ways of seeing, thinking, and acting, we begin to change. Change is not comfortable. However, change is necessary.

Every day, we have opportunities to push against our boundaries.

Every day, we have opportunities for growth.

Every day, we have the choice to continue where we are or evolve into a better version of ourselves.

From where I sit, I seek evolution. If we all embrace evolution, there will be revelation and revolution!

Daily Thoughts

6/24/21

Setting the Intention. Many of us struggle with behaviors that we would like to change. Some of these behaviors are so ingrained in us that it seems impossible that we might be able to change them. The biggest problem that I know that I have for myself and have witnessed in others that I have worked with is the attempt to solve the problem immediately. We want to be at the end of the race before we’ve even begun to run it. Someone whose goal is to run a marathon is not going to start by running 26 miles. They’re going to build up to it. It begins with setting the intention to achieve that goal. Along the way, we may make missteps toward that intention. We need to forgive ourselves and start again.

From where I sit, I set the intention to achieve my goals. I know there will be missteps and backsliding that may occur, but every day, I awaken and set my intention for the day to do my best at achieving those goals. I ask you to set the intention to achieve your goals today. Together, will make this a better world by being the best we can be.

Daily Thoughts

6/23/21

Teach Only Love. In reality, there is only love. When we operate from any other standpoint, we are not living from who we are. Some people talk about “tough love” when they are trying to teach someone “a lesson”. There is no such thing as “tough love”. There is only love. Love doesn’t mean that we are going to allow ourselves to be harmed in any way. Love doesn’t mean that we are going to let someone take advantage of us. Love means taking care of ourselves, our family, our friends, and our community. Love means accepting people for who they are. Love means recognizing that the lived experience of others may be different from ours and that we need to work at understanding their experience from their perspective. It may seem daunting, but true empathy is the foundation of love. As the Native American saying goes, “Do not judge someone else, until you’ve walked a mile in their moccasins.”

From where I sit, I seek to teach only love, for that’s all that there really is.