Sunday, July 5, 2009

The Past through Today

Why must we always use the past to allow us to think of ourselves as “damaged”? You are never damaged, only ill. Things that are ill can be cured.

Only we can cure ourselves. You must remove those harmful influences from the past that still infect your present reality. They are not part of who you now are. They exist only in your own mind.

Hugh Prather said “You are controlled by your grievances from the past, not by the past itself”. We must learn to excise those grievances and other harmful “demons” of our past. I don’t mean demons in the physical or religious sense. I mean demons of our own creation, those memories and attached feelings that we let darken our days and affect our dreams. There have been many lessons to be learned in our lifetimes. Many of those lessons were painful. We must take what we can learn from those lessons, but we don’t need to close ourselves in with the memories of the pain. That pain will insure that you remain ill.

What are we waiting for? Have we not hurt enough already? Sometimes, I believe, we can unconsciously get too comfortable in our pain. It may feel like it is all that we have. When we walk into a room, we scan the room with our eyes. We look at a million things, but only “see” what we focus on.. If we focus only on the pain, we ignore all other possibilities.
 

Coming Attractions

When I don't have anything new in particular to say, I will be posting some of my existing writings. Hope you had a wonderful 4th. Love to all.

Friday, July 3, 2009

I am a rock

When I was young, one of my favorite songs was “I am a rock” by Simon and Garfunkle. It assisted me in building a wall around myself for protection from the harshness of my life. It had me see myself as protected, surrounded by an impenetrable fortress, safe from harm. As I progressed through my life it shielded me from danger. But unknown by me, it also shielded me from positive things that I encountered.

A wall cannot discern between the things it is keeping out. It treats all that it encounters as equal. I eventually learned the harm that such a barrier can become. I missed many wondrous things because of my fear of being hurt.

My view has finally changed. I still see my inner “rock”, but it from a totally different perspective. I am not sitting out in the middle of a desert, separate from all, safe and secure.
I am a rock sitting in the middle of a mighty river. I am surrounded by a vast profusion of other rocks. I can see the shapes and qualities of all those others around me. I feel the ebb and flow of the waters of life all as they flow by. I let the waters assist me in moving in the direction that I wish to go. Those waters not heading my way, I let pass me and take others in their own directions. I no longer need walls to protect me, just the strength of my soul.