Are you really free?

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I hate my life!, she mutttered exasperatedly while she typed.

I was sitting right next to her.  We were talking about her woes earlier.

Can you relax first before you finish that transaction?, I gently reminded her.

But what I really want to say is this.

Sometimes, pounding on something really hard never works.

You get tired.

Then, you lose your enthusiasm.

And, you forget there are other nails worth pounding.

You become the carpenter who works eight days a week and forgets that he is also a dancer who loves to salsa, a friend who enjoys hanging out with his crew or a traveler who enjoys adventure.

Your view becomes limited as you fixate on that one thing.

And the longer you don’t get it, the higher your anxiety rises.

They say, Good things come to those who wait.

I say, Good things come to those who are ready for that good thing.

How can an opportunity swing by if you have closed your door by thinking of all the wrong things which happened, questioning why you haven't gotten what you wanted or by grinding your teeth in anticipation because it’s taking so long.

One has to open the door to allow good things to happen.  That entails acceptance of what is, looking at the brightside and trusting that whatever will happen is for the best.

Set what you are holding too tightly free.

If it's your right, it will come to you.  In the meantime, can you please wait happily? 

meditation by Release Your Wings

P.S.  Please know that when I say you, I'm addressing myself too.  More often than not, I write about the lessons I need to learn, as well.

I am what I think

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I watched an amateur hockey game between 8 year old JJ and 6 year old Ravi today.  Both were very competitive and determined to win.  JJ was psyching himself the whole time during the game.  He was talking to himself very loudly.  He was saying, "I will win this thing" over and over.  Ravi on the other hand was very focused on the defense.  He tried to score but most of the time he was simply blocking JJ from hitting the goal.  His chant was "no, no, no" the whole time.

Can you guess who won?

It was the boy who kept saying "I will win this thing."  

I feel that it's the same thing in the game of life.  The one who has a positive self-talk wins.

Watching these two kids play served as a checkpoint for me.    

I asked myself, " What do you think during crunch time?  Do you say 'I can do this!' or 'It's too big a task for little old me?'  Do you believe that you can actually make things happen or do you still doubt yourself?"

I realized that what I tell myself repeatedly matters a LOT.  

It's the one determining factor which will clinch if I will be in the winning or losing end.

Thinking Positively Works!

Picture from http://psychcentral.com

Ever since I decided to bid adieu to the infamous truck (Please see The Garbage Truck Has Been Stalking Me if you don't know what I'm talking about), I never came face to face with the stinky vehicle again.

Good job!
Kudos, self! You drove the truck away!  I vow that I shall never never never (for emphasis) waddle in waste thoughts again.  To seal the deal, I gave myself specific thoughts to think about daily.  "It's ok, everything's fine." or  "I'm taking responsibility for healing myself".  I also pick 3-4 points to ponder from my meditation class.  I really keep my mind busy on focusing, experiencing, or reflecting on pure, positive, and beneficial thoughts throughout the day.  (I'll tell you in on a secret, it's impossible to keep the mind blank.  It's occupation is to think, think, and think some more.  The key is to guide it to hold on to the right things.) So, if I see it going elsewhere, I gently redirect it back to it's assignment for the day.

Anatomy of Complaints
Now that I'm ok, I gathered my learnings while I was immersed in the mud of negativity.  For now, I'd like to focus on the three things I deduced about complaints.

1. Whenever I complain about something or someone. It's never about them. In reality, there's something lacking inside me.  Complaining is the red flag that tells me I am unhappy.
2. Then, when I don't feel good about myself, I try to look for happiness outside.  Like a half-filled canister, I yak and yak about my misfortune and I go around begging for other people's sympathy.
3. As I continue to evade the issue, I may even go as far as projecting my unhappiness to others.  I point out their mistakes and faults.  I am unhappy, so no one should be happy.  

What happens then
If left unchecked, then I move along my life taking support from others or scarring other people.  Like the garbage truck, I spread repulsive, heavy and peaceless vibration everywhere I go- whether it be my  home, or workplace.  This consequently, attracts more adversities, leaving me in a deeper hole. 

My hope is that, we wake up soon enough before we dig our own graves.  All it takes, is a matter of attention and a determination to shift our mode of thinking.
  

Meditation Commentary on Positive Focus by EasyMeditation