NOW is the Time for You to Start Living!

"Our main business is not to see what lies dimly at a distance,

 but to do what lies clearly at hand."

~ Thomas Carlyle

Today's post is HUGE. Why? Because, I am about to share with you the BEST thing I have EVER done for myself. I am about to share with you the second secret to happiness.  It's one of those things that is so easy when you live it everyday from your heart.  

Are you ready? 

Here it is:

STOP WORRYING!

Yep, that's it. The best thing I have ever done for my happiness is to stop worrying.  True happiness is found by being 100% present in each moment. Worry puts you in the past or the future, never in the present.  That means letting go of the need to be right, to be in control, to win at all costs, even to have everything you need right now. To worry is like being a fish out of water, gasping for air when all you have to do is slip back into the flow.  Choose easy folks!

In Dale Carnegie's book "Stop Worrying and Start Living" he advises us to shut off the past and cease to carry nervous worries of what may happen tomorrow.

"Let the dead bury the dead...shut out the yesterdays which have lighted

 fools the way to dusty death...the load of tomorrow, 

added to that of yesterday, carried today, makes the strongest falter.  

Shut off the future as tightly as the past...The future is today. There is no tomorrow.  

The day of man's salvation is now.  Waste of energy, mental distress and 

nervous worries dog the steps of man who is anxious about the future..."

Each day remember, one step enough for me.  Your peace of mind is to important to let even slight worries take hold.  It often serves me to picture my life as an hour glass in which only one grain of sand may pass through the narrow neck.  When I wake up in the morning I often feel that there are a hundred tasks that deserve to be done before the end of the day.  But if I do not take them one at a time and let them pass through the day slowly and evenly I notice that I begin to struggle and worry. That is when the frustration begins to mount.  If I don't take care of it right away my physical and mental body begin to break down.  Meaning I get sick, fatigued, nervous, agitated, spaced out or depressed.  My body always tells me before my mind.  

The secret to stopping the worry is to live from your heart.  When you live from the space of your heart it's easy to remember to take life one grain of sand at a time.  It becomes easy to take one task at at time and always with love and gentle kindness to yourself and others.  It becomes easy to live in the moment.  A dear friend of mine that lived 2,000 years ago gave us the sage advice to have no worry about the morrow.  Be focused on today, because today is all you have.  Allow time and space to accomplish the days tasks.  

When the time was right, the sea parted, the walls fell down, the lions went hungry, the sun stood still, the star appeared, the waves were calmed, five thousand were fed, the sick were healed, the stone rolled away.

Everything in your life is perfect just the way it is.  You are experiencing exactly what you deserve to experience in the most perfect way for you.  All in Divine timing.  I have learned that God is never early and He's never late and His plans for you are good.  NOW is the time for you to start living!!

When I Grow Up, I Want to be Kind!

"I want to be kind to everyone, for that is right you see. 

 So I say to myself, remember this. Kindness begins with me."

This beautiful children's song is so lovely and innocent.  The words remind me that I get to be first in showing kindness to others.  Go First! Be first to show love.  Be first to admit when things are not working.  Be first to call a friend or loved one. Be first to use this approach and I guarantee miracles will happen in your relationships. 

I learned from a very young age that being kind to others is a very admirable thing to do.  I was taught to forgive, be patient and supportive. Yet somewhere along the way I also learned that being kind to myself was a sign of weakness.  Massages, long naps, facials, even food falls under the category of pampering.  Taking care of our bodies and wanting to be beautiful falls under the category of being vain.

Somehow, somewhere, someone decided that kindness is something that can only be bestowed upon others.  Allow me to offer another interpretation of this beautiful children's song.  Kindness begins with me! Folks! Are you listening to this? Kindness to yourself is vital to your happiness, and your happiness counts!

My favorite word is Genshai.  I learned it from Kevin Hall, a delightful, bald, and inspiring man.  Genshai means never treat anyone small INCLUDING YOURSELF.

Why? Because they way I treat myself reflects the way I treat my children, my neighbors and my friends.  Are you noticing the ripple effect?

I believe Genshai is the secret word to unlimited happiness.  How many times each day do we scold ourselves and say critical things to diminish ourselves?  Be honest!

When you treat yourself unkindly by worrying, complaining, blaming, and belittling yourself it will reflect in your circumstances, your friends and your whole life. Honestly accepting our shortcomings but not diminishing ourselves is the key to making Genshai work.

Be good to yourself because no one else has the power to make you happy.

How can you honestly ensure your families happiness if you are not feeding yours?

I am reminded of this every time I am on a plane.  The flight attendants are always careful to remind us to put our own oxygen mask on before attempting to help anyone else.  When you feel happy and peaceful, you want to reach out to others and get that peace and love all over them.  But you can only give love if you love yourself first.

Let Genshai live in all of your thoughts and actions.  If your thoughts are filled with worry and doubt, you will begin to see it everywhere you go.  On the other hand, when you begin to think thoughts that are kind, gentle, loving and truthful you open yourself up to participating in miracles of love, joy and abundance!

Come into this moment.  Be present in the now! Wake up your Divine Light by truly loving and being kind to yourself.  Go about your day in peace and grow knowing who you are right here, right now.  When one's life is lived with such harmony, it is much easier to look in the mirror and love yourself more completely and wholeheartedly because you have afforded yourself every kindness possible.