for all to suffer less............

I read this morning that the Dalai Lama has a new book being released today. I always admire what he writes so it will undoubtedly be on my reading list. In a review that I read there was a phrase that jumped out at me and gave me cause to sit back and reflect on it. It read 'to bring peace to a suffering world'. Yes, this is a simple enough phrase but all that it says is so huge in the world that we live in and it occurred to me that it resonates on so many levels. Suffering is all around us and we seem to simply accept it. I believe that can be changed.

We are not at peace as individuals, communities, countries, societies, cultures and as a planet. We can see that all around us if we look closely. We are all suffering at some level and this has increased over the years to a height now that is almost too tall to reach to begin to make a change? I think it is on the brink of being just out of our reach, but that this has it's own purpose also. We often may not notice the depth of a problem until it reaches these huge proportions and only then are we are faced with the reality of what needs to happen. The whispers have run out and the volume has been turned up quite a bit.

We have a 'sadness' that reaches deep into our core and when that sadness faces outward it comes out in ways that spell our behavior. Mother Earth also has a sadness in her and only recently have we begun to realize that this has been by our own hand that she cries. The really devastating part of all of this is that we think we are fine and we think that all is fine around us. It's just easier to live this way because then no one has to take responsibility for any of it. We can all be in denial. This has become our normal way to live and experience life. I believe it can be different though.

 I have believed for a long time that a person can choose to live a life without suffering and that it will make a difference not only in their life, but in the lives of many. This is not necessarily easy though because it will give cause first of all for us to make changes that we need to make and we know how unsettling that can be. But when we can understand and look inside of our own suffering, then solutions are available to us and we can implement them to build a life that is less stressful. As we choose this for ourselves we begin to live a life that is blessed with greatness on many levels. If we set out to try to 'change the world' we will find the task ahead of us overwhelming and probably sign off on that challenge pretty quick. But instead if we simply look at our own life and make changes that will work for us, it will transcend to others as needed. It will be effortless for us in terms of not intentionally setting out to change the world, but the effects of our changed life will be witnessed by others and they will observe and then possibly absorb this for themselves. It will have a 'silent' impact on many and for others it may resonate largely. We just need to live our best life possible. I understand that not every day will be free from suffering, but how we deal with our daily challenges will be observed by others and the 'silent' teaching then has the possibility to cross into their life also.

One person's life can impact many lives. Let's choose to live our best life and in turn ease our own suffering and possibly the suffering of others also. These efforts will bring about changes in the world. I believe that.............

Namaste

Breaking my cycle......

Slow down, let go, ease up, sit back, breathe, relax..........all of these things remind me of what I need to do to make my life one that when I awaken in the morning I will look forward to my day with positivity. I have had all those years of stress and strife and have ultimately come to the point where I can see that much of that came from choices I made and the results spoke for themselves. It's taken me a long time but it has been my personal journey so it unfolded as it was supposed to and many lessons were learned along the way and some lessons I have just realized recently. I believe that each day has a lesson wrapped inside of it if we just take the time to look hard enough to find it. For years it was as if my eyes had a veil over them and I could only see so much and that only allowed me to live a limited life. But then maybe I was only able to handle just that at the time. I know there are things that I can only understand now and I believe that is much due to the fact that I 'get it' because I am looking at it with more maturity than when I was 20, 30 or possibly even 40 and have a multitude of life experiences to draw on. And the irony when I look back is that I thought that I "got it" at all of those ages and was moving through life pretty well. I really never knew there was a better way until I felt such unrest in my life and wasn't going to accept any more of it. I knew that there could be something better and it started a few years ago when I just wanted (and needed) life to be simple. I had managed to complicate it to the point that my health was now not only suffering but on the threshold of chronic illness. If I had continued with the lifestyle that I had chosen the door would open itself and I would have walked into my future of ill health. That was my wake-up call. It was time to step back and take a long, hard look at what I wanted my life to look like. But hadn't I already and for many years known what I wanted my life to look like? I had been saying it to myself for years inside of my head. I just wanted a "peaceful and quiet" life. Nothing big. Just a 'little' life. It was like a mantra in my head all the time. But I wasn't living it or choosing it and now I had been pushed to the edge and it was time to again make a choice.  I was addicted to my own stress and all that went along with it. It was as if  'busyness' was my middle name. How much could I heap on my plate and still perform? When my plate was full I just kept getting a bigger plate. That's easy enough! Little did I know that this was going to catch up to me. But I kept moving forward in this way and I knew nothing else. If felt as though I was at my best living like this and it was my familiarity. I was doing everything within my power to sabotage the existence of my peaceful and quiet life. I was living the exact opposite of what I was repeating in my head. People tried to tell me that I was doing too much and that I needed to slow down but inside I secretly felt proud. My ego was saying that I was going to be different than everyone else and would be able to handle it. I was going to show them all that I could sustain this crazy pace and be just fine. After all we live in a society that applauds extreme productivity and performance. So I figured that the more I could juggle the better I would be and I would be seen as extremely productive and then measure up to something that society decided was acceptable. I have come to understand now that we are actually damaging ourselves with these choices. I know this firsthand......I suffered inside of what I thought was a good thing. I was living a lie. A lie that I had in my head that did stem from my upbringing where only productivity was applauded and I was also told that I would not amount to anything valuable in life. And being a child I could only agree to what I was being presented with because they were in charge and I looked up to them. I carried this into my adult life even when they were no longer in charge of my thoughts and choices. As an adult I interpreted value as 'doing' as much as I could in life at one time and I would be rewarded with acclaim. My lesson to understand this differently has been a long time in coming but I am so thankful that now I truly 'get it'. It took ill health and near chronicity to have me finally understand all of this. I didn't listen to the whispers and then the yelling started. It turned into screaming coming from my body and then I finally listened. I really 'get it' now. Having this understanding has not necessarily meant that I awoke one day and it was all easier and simple. No, it has been a very difficult shift for me. My mind and body were addicted to the pace that is was used to. It had a set point that was very high. Slowly that set point is coming down and it is getting easier though. I am able to catch myself more quickly now when I feel myself sliding back into those bad habits. It is a daily task for me to remember to live life more in an 'easy' way. Life is no longer the emergency that I was letting it be. I now know how 'peace and quiet' feels and I will admit that sometimes it still feels uncomfortable because I was addicted to a hectic lifestyle for so many years. I sometimes have to give myself permission to relax and live easily. I'm getting there though. Living my life the way I had been in the past was very hard work and it felt heavy. Now that weight is gone. I'm so grateful that I learned this lesson when I did. I still have many years ahead of me to enjoy the quiet and peaceful life that I now choose......

Namaste