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MajestyJo
Average Member
Canada
590 Posts |
 Posted - 10/01/2007 : 16:02:02
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Follow through and complete
"Activity is not achievement. It is not enough to rush about beginning a lot of things and keeping busy. A well-spent life is one that rounds out what it has begun."
-- Eknath Easwaran
Intention and the words we speak are powerful. When we say we are going to do something, we set energy in motion. When we fail to act or complete our intention, we drain our energy. We lose our power.
We would be wise to choose our words carefully -- to really mean what we say and to honour the commitments we have made.
"Genius begins great works; labor alone finishes them."
-- Joseph Joubert
"Good to begin well, better to end well."
-- English proverb
This is one of my defects or what I like to call challenges. The mind is willing but the flesh is week. When I have difficulty thinking through the pain, I have trouble meeting my committments. My web sites have suffered as a result of the chronic pain I have as a result of fibromyslgia, osteo arthritis, polymyalgia (rheumatoid), degenerative disc disorder, frozen rotator cuffand arthritic gout. The only thing I take is extra-strength tyenol and celebrex for my arthritis, and Baclofen for the shoulder.
I have been volunteering twice a week but I am back doing only one day as we have had a volunteer who quit come back to work. I was playing bridge three times a week, then I was going twice a week and now I am lucky if I go once every two weeks when the pain is bad.
Being able to share on sites like this helps me to get out of myself and my pain and focus on something positive.
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Love Always,
Each Day is a New Beginning, so have a great one. |
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MajestyJo
Average Member
Canada
590 Posts |
Posted - 10/02/2007 : 17:37:38
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A hot tub for the mind
"Imagine a hot tub for the mind. That is what meditation is; it can bathe your mind in relaxing thoughts."
-- Eknath Easwaran
With today’s fast pace of life, too many of us don’t have any sense of how it feels to be free of stress. It’s difficult to relax if we have physical pain or irritation, strong negative emotions or scattered, worrisome thoughts.
The practice of meditation helps us find the peace within that is so elusive in our outer world.
"Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths, or the turning inwards in prayer for five short minutes."
-- Etty Hillesum
This reminds me that meditation doesn't have to be long. It can just be a point of surrender, a time of turning thing over and asking for help.
Today I went to the library and the market, I paused on the way out of the mall and said a prayer, asking for direction and strength to get home. I decided to go out for fish and chips, walked into the restaurent and met a dear friend who I met in early sobriety. Of course it helped that is he 6'1", 180 lbs. good looking, a gentle soul, and a gentleman.
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Love Always,
Each Day is a New Beginning, so have a great one. |
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MajestyJo
Average Member
Canada
590 Posts |
Posted - 10/03/2007 : 01:52:52
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Dare to risk
"To try is to risk failure. But risk must be taken because the greatest hazard of life is to risk nothing. The person who risks nothing does nothing, has nothing, is nothing. He may avoid suffering and sorrow, but he simply cannot learn, feel, change, grow, live, and love."
-- Leo Buscaglia
Daring to risk is an essential step to self empowerment. This is the key to breaking out of stuck thinking and behaviour. It is about breaking through the comfort zones and barriers. It is about experiencing new levels of mind and feelings. It is about experiencing more life.
"A life spent in making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing."
-- George Bernard Shaw
"Only those who risk going too far can know how far they can go."
-- Unknown source
Don't know about you, according to this, I lead a very honrable life for a lot of years. One of my favorite sayings in recovery is, "I may make a mistake, but I'm not one." When I came into recovery, there wasn't much of me left. Every time I picked up, I gave a piece of me away. Especially in relationships, there was no me left.
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Love Always,
Each Day is a New Beginning, so have a great one. |
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MajestyJo
Average Member
Canada
590 Posts |
Posted - 10/03/2007 : 09:02:05
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Intuit and do it
"Everyone who has ever taken a shower has had an idea. It's the person who gets out of the shower, dries off, and does something about it that makes a difference."
-- Nolan Bushnell
Creativity and intuition are meaningless unless you put the ideas that arise into action. We must make some effort to do things differently or to do different things, or our lives remain the same.
"People spend too much time finding other people to blame, too much energy finding excuses for not being what they are capable of being, and not enough energy putting themselves on the line, growing out of the past, and getting on with their lives."
-- J. Michael Straczynski
One of the gifts I received in recovery was the opportunity to go to the Dini Petty Show in Toronto. On the way there, I said to one of the girls in the group, "I hope the topic today is something I am interested in. The topic was Intuitive Healing. I never forgot what they taught that day. Sore back is anger. Sore feet is insecurity, Sore throat is not being able to speak what you want to say, Sore ears is not wanting to hear what is being said, Sore eyes is not liking what your seeing. (I have actually had blurred vision while reading a passage from recovery material that I was in denial about at the time.) Sore chest is communication.
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Love Always,
Each Day is a New Beginning, so have a great one. |
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Shorttreeleather
Starting Member
USA
21 Posts |
Posted - 10/03/2007 : 19:30:21
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The above staement is so true. I never realized that so many things that you are negative about can have such profound affects on your system. I have a dear friend who has Congestive Heart Failure. I love her to death but she is ONE very negative person. I find it hard to be around her for very long. I keep trying to get her to be positive, but it sure is an uphill battle.
Shorttreeleather |
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MajestyJo
Average Member
Canada
590 Posts |
Posted - 10/04/2007 : 12:09:28
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Recognizing abundance
"If your everyday life seems poor, don't blame it; blame yourself; admit to yourself that you are not enough of a poet to call forth its riches; because for the creator there is no poverty and no indifferent place."
-- Rainer Maria Rilke
Where do you now experience abundance in your life?
If you are hard-pressed to find abundance in your finances or possessions, look to spiritual qualities. Do you experience abundance in a special relationship? In a quiet moment in a park? In a good laugh with a friend? The more you acknowledge abundance in your spirit, the richer your life will become.
"Not what we have but what we enjoy, constitutes our abundance."
-- John Petit-Senn
Our Canadian Thanksgiving is coming up this weekend. It is one of my favorite holidays. I will be spending it with my two sisters and my son. Even though gratitude is a year round thing, it is good to have a time set aside to celebrate the goodness of life.
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Love Always,
Each Day is a New Beginning, so have a great one. |
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MajestyJo
Average Member
Canada
590 Posts |
Posted - 10/05/2007 : 06:48:31
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Smile!
"Smile, it's free therapy."
-- Doug Horton
I’ve learned that if I put a smile on my face when I’m feeling down, my spirits will automatically lift. The body knows that a smile means happiness.
Knowing this doesn’t mean I’m always willing to do it. Many times, I have absolutely refused to cheer myself up. Isn’t that interesting!
It’s a clue that sometimes the ego positively enjoys being miserable. It can be enlightening to explore the pay-offs we get from our black moods.
"Depend upon it that if a man talks of his misfortunes there is something in them that is not disagreeable to him; for where there is nothing but pure misery there is never any recourse to the mention of it."
-- Samuel Johnson
I like the part about refusing to cheer myself up. I know I have had that attitude. I'm miserable and I choose to stay in it just for today. Grrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!
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Love Always,
Each Day is a New Beginning, so have a great one. |
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MajestyJo
Average Member
Canada
590 Posts |
Posted - 10/06/2007 : 06:32:21
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Time to change?
"When coasting in our comfort zones, we don't grow. We continue to do more of the same.... Maintaining a comfort zone can, paradoxically, lead to discomfort in the long run. If by being comfortable we avoid important life issues, internal tension accumulates.... Eventually, as both internal and external pressures for change persist, the ‘comfort zone’ ceases to serve us."
-- Eric Allenbaugh
It takes effort to change. What do you most want to change in your life? Make a list of what you can do to start the process. Try journaling, perhaps. Read books. Take a course. Find a mentor. Seek out support.
How will you commit time to make it happen? When are you going to start? Your life is passing quickly!
"Be not afraid of changing slowly; be afraid only of standing still."
-- Chinese Proverb
Complacency is a real killer of spirituality. I know that when I get caught up in the same old, same old, I get stagnate and not in touch with reality. I get caught up in my own little word and go back to the me who was selfish and self-centered and don't care about others.
I tend to shut off the world and it's problems and live my own life. I don't take on the cares of the world, I can't do anything about them. If people kill each other off around the world, it isn't my stuff unless I take it on. I just try to live safe, happy, and take care of my own space. A friend told me many years ago, "You could listen to the news and read a paper once in a while, it won't hurt you." I don't know about anyone else, but I always use to take on the cares of all the people around me and didn't have time or care for myself. |
Love Always,
Each Day is a New Beginning, so have a great one. |
Edited by - MajestyJo on 10/06/2007 06:40:01 |
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MajestyJo
Average Member
Canada
590 Posts |
Posted - 10/06/2007 : 06:37:44
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Love your shadows
Each of us has characteristics we define as ‘good’ and those we define as ‘bad.’ The parts of ourselves that we continually reject want to be acknowledged and loved. Until we honour these aspects, they will continue to assert themselves. They will do whatever they can to get our attention.
What aspects of yourself do you reject?
Take a few moments to open to the parts of yourself that you do not love. See each one honestly for what it is. Explore the wounds and the motives that gave rise to its condition. Love a wounded part of yourself and it will heal.
"Strangely enough we strengthen love in ourselves when we raise into consciousness the shadow side of our lives. Conversely, when we keep negative feelings out of sight, they smother the love that seems to lie deeper and closer to the real self. This is probably why there is so much pain in not loving. The life that is not able to express the love which is so integral to it grows deformed."
-- Elizabeth O'Connor
Great post for me. Learning to love myself has been a struggle over the years. I tend to look at the outside and judge myself accordingly. I have not grown old gracefully. It was a big step for me to let my hair grow out and be naturally gray. It wasn't until it was a nice colour, I quit smoking and it didn't turn yellow that I could do this. Vanity and pride can get me every time. I felt better at 57 than I did at any time in my life. I was a blonde by choice back then. |
Love Always,
Each Day is a New Beginning, so have a great one. |
Edited by - MajestyJo on 10/06/2007 06:40:39 |
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MajestyJo
Average Member
Canada
590 Posts |
Posted - 10/06/2007 : 23:01:27
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Go for depth
"Mastery does not come from dabbling. We have to be prepared to pay the price. We need to have the sustained enthusiasm that motivates us to give our best."
-- Eknath Easwaran
Our world now offers us a smorgasbord of opportunities. In the personal growth field alone, there is a myriad of books and products, all promising relief from what ails us. It’s easy to flip quickly from one program to another when something new captures our imagination.
If I long for change in my life, however, I need to do more than skim the surface. I need to make time and take time to both learn new approaches and then -- most importantly -- to apply what I’ve learned. If I jump around to new techniques too rapidly, I won’t benefit from any of them.
"Genius is only the power of making continuous efforts."
-- Elbert Hubbard
This reminds me that I need to walk my talk. I need to work my program in all aspects of my life. It is one things to know the words but it is more important to take those words and apply them to my life and live them. Acting out in old patterns and behaviors don't cut it for me. Why should I want to act out in my disease when I have been given a better way of living.
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Love Always,
Each Day is a New Beginning, so have a great one. |
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MajestyJo
Average Member
Canada
590 Posts |
Posted - 10/07/2007 : 08:05:14
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Dream!
"The most pathetic person in the world is the person who has sight, but no vision."
-- Helen Keller
What’s the big picture for your life? Always have a larger, purposeful, even spiritually ideal picture of where you are going. Your mind needs to have a clear and challenging vision to draw you ever upwards.
"Far away there in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them, but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them, and follow where they lead."
-- Louisa May Alcott
"The only limits are, as always, those of vision."
-- James Broughton
I am reminded that aspirations aren't the same as expectations. I may aspire to something, but I don't expect them to happen in any given way. God and I don't always think alike. How many times I have said, "Are you sure about this?" Of course, when I stopped to think, I had to laugh. He is never the doubting one.
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Love Always,
Each Day is a New Beginning, so have a great one. |
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MajestyJo
Average Member
Canada
590 Posts |
Posted - 10/07/2007 : 11:40:05
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Bring awareness to your generosity
"Generosity lies less in giving much than in giving at the right moment."
-- Jean De La Bruyère
While it’s important to give, it’s also essential that we not give more than we can afford. Only you can determine the appropriate amount of time or money you can give away, but it should not cause you hardship. We need to respect our own needs as well as the needs of others.
When do you give more than you can afford?
"Generosity is another quality which, like patience, letting go, non-judging, and trust, provides a solid foundation for mindfulness practice. You might experiment with using the cultivation of generosity as a vehicle for deep self-observation and inquiry as well as an exercise in giving."
-- Jon Kabat Zinn
When I first got involved in service, I found myself in debt because I wanted to help others and the caretaker in me couldn't say know. I didn't know I was suppose to take care of me first. It always seemed as though if I had food for two there was enough for three, if there was food for one, there was enough for two. A couple of my friend called my place Jo's Drop In Center. That is why one of my site's is called Jo's Kitchen. It is also because my out-laws are called Kitchen too and I never changed back to my maiden name when I was divorced. I didn't know I could do it for free until after the fact. That was good enough for a big time resentment on my Step Four.
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Love Always,
Each Day is a New Beginning, so have a great one. |
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MajestyJo
Average Member
Canada
590 Posts |
Posted - 10/08/2007 : 09:44:54
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Water wisdom
"When flowing water ... meets with obstacles on its path, a blockage in its journey, it pauses. It increases in volume and strength, filling up in front of the obstacle and eventually spilling past it....
"Do not turn and run, for there is nowhere worthwhile for you to go. Do not attempt to push ahead into the danger ... emulate the example of the water: Pause and build up your strength until the obstacle no longer represents a blockage."
-- from the öÊ Ching,÷Òresented in
öÕo Build the Life You Want, Create the
Work You Love: The Spiritual Dimension
of Entrepreneuring?by Marsha Sinetar
I really like this, this is a new concept for me, a ndw way of looking at recovery. When the time is right, my Higher Power will give me the strength, the wisdom, and the courage to go around, over, under, deal with what is in my path. What He lead me to, He will see me through.
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Love Always,
Each Day is a New Beginning, so have a great one. |
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MajestyJo
Average Member
Canada
590 Posts |
Posted - 10/09/2007 : 09:56:33
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No need for comparison
"Nothing is good or bad but by comparison."
-- Thomas Fuller
We are each unique, so comparing ourselves to others serves no purpose. Even comparing myself to how I was a while back is not usually helpful. Typically, comparison just brings the ego a false sense of either superiority or inferiority.
If we let go of comparison and choose instead to completely accept where we are, we can enjoy both peace and growth.
"Do not judge and you will never be mistaken."
-- Jean Jacques Rousseau
I compared instead of identifying for many years and stayed sick. I told a newcomer while we were talking to a long-timer, "Johnny was the first man I heard speak. He said, "That must have been good." I said, "No it was bad! I heard his story and thought I'm not an alcoholic. I kept coming and inspite of my denial. I just knew I didn't want to go back to where I had come from. Using, no matter what substance was no longer an option.
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Love Always,
Each Day is a New Beginning, so have a great one. |
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MajestyJo
Average Member
Canada
590 Posts |
Posted - 10/11/2007 : 04:23:49
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Follow your own path
"Life is complex. Each one of us must make his own path through life. There are no self-help manuals, no formulas, no easy answers. The right road for one is the wrong road for another ... The journey of life is not paved in blacktop; it is not brightly lit, and it has no road signs. It is a rocky path through the wilderness."
-- M. Scott Peck
We each have our own pathways to develop both personally and spiritually. They are based on our character and past experiences. No one else can identify our paths for us. Tune in to your inner guidance system and follow its direction.
"What every man needs, regardless of his job or the kind of work he is doing, is a vision of what his place is and may be. He needs an objective and a purpose. He needs a feeling and a belief that he has some worthwhile thing to do. What this is no one can tell him. It must be his own creation."
-- Joseph M. Dodge
For years I struggled with this. Being on disability and not being able to work was difficult. I tried many times to go back, but was just not able and again and again, I had to find acceptance of what is in the moment, and not beat myself up. Having he boards and being able to post and share my recovery has been a big part of my sense of well being and purpose. Helping others and getting out of self, has been a big savior for me.
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Love Always,
Each Day is a New Beginning, so have a great one. |
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Higher Awareness
