HOW I TURNED MY LIFE AROUND

Willie Nelson sings about life going from one crazy thing to another in his lyrics “last thing I needed first thing this morning was to have you walk out on me.” Welcome to what my world – was.

It started innocently a few months ago with my cat waking me up daily at 4:45 AM to go out. I couldn’t get back to sleep, didn’t stop to take naps, and stayed up until midnight. Too many activities and long days fried my adrenals, and I had to take a couple of weeks off from work. With my energy at its lowest and pain from a jammed hip bone at its highest, I received shocking news about a friend that left me reeling.

Because of my exhaustion I was more susceptible to things affecting me, and the downward spiral began. My computer broke. I ordered a new PC only to learn most of my address book had to be manually replaced – this saga continued for five weeks. My AC stopped working in 100° weather. Meantime, my cell phone went awry, and I missed a group coaching call. My headset, mouse and income went kaput, and even my toilet clogged. To say working was a challenge is an understatement.

I kept positive by going to sleep and waking up focused on gratitude and journaled about what was working. However, during the day, I thought about what wasn’t working.

I felt sad resignation as I listened almost imperceptibly to my deceased mother’s mantra “if it’s not one thing, it’s another.” An old program of what-else-can-go-wrong ran in the background.

After a while I lost interest in bouncing back and thought I’d ride it out to the bottom.

HERE’S WHAT I MISSED

Imagine going to work wearing a great pair of shoes and tie or handbag… dressed in shabby pajamas. Likewise, I thought I was upbeat because I gave verbiage to being positive and practiced gratitude in the morning and night. However, my beat up attitude was running like a computer program in the background.

Sandwiched throughout the day between my positive focus, I visualized and felt what I didn’t want – what next? I used my attention and depleted energy to spin around what was wrong instead of what I chose to happen. So, I created more problems.

God was neither punishing or ignoring me. Life didn’t have it in for me. There wasn’t a metaphoric lesson or karma catching up. I wasn’t cursed, and Satan wasn’t interfering. I wasn’t doing anything wrong that needed a pause to redirect. I was enough and doing enough, and I wasn’t doomed for failure. I wasn’t doing any of the gazillion conclusions people erroneously come to when they wonder why is this happening to me. Why aren’t things working?

No outside force was responsible for my life. I created results from my attitude and attention. The universe energetically matched my thoughts and feelings.

Energy flows where attention goes. What else can go wrong? My prayers were answered. The universe replied with new calamities.

Visualizing isn’t just what happens during a visualization exercise. It includes predominant feelings and thoughts during the day.

You, too, create more of what you focus on and can make new choices. You can do it without owies from beating yourself up or building a case to support the stories you tell about your life.

THESE 5 STEPS CAN HELP YOU THROUGH CHALLENGES:

1. Ask your inner powerhouse, your soul energy, to empower you.
2. Visualize with feeling what you choose throughout the day.
3. Take one step at a time.
4. Find and implement ways to rest and take care of yourself instead of tolerating fatigue.
5. Talk with supportive people. Masterminding your goals and dreams empowers you and refocuses your vision.
   

Remember, the fastest way out of a hole is to stop digging it. No matter what’s going on, it’s not going to last forever. This too shall pass.

Now it’s your turn. What are your predominant thoughts and feelings throughout the day? Any old programs running in the background? How about dumping those pjs?

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THE OIL SPILL – THIS TOO SHALL PASS

Are you angry about the oil spill? Is someone or something frustrating you? Would you be happy if it weren’t for…

Take action, if possible, and remember “this too shall pass.”

What did you agonize about five or ten years ago? Maybe you felt stuck and saw no way out. However, circumstances changed, even if it was a variation on a theme. You changed and will continue to do so.

Life continues and shifts into something new.

Reflecting on a friend, I noticed how many changes she went through. They seemed all consuming at the time, that the pain or pleasure was endless. And then they passed.

• She survived Katrina; her city was devastated and without utilities for weeks.

• From morn to night for months and with no prior know-how, she purchased, gutted, and remodeled a store while negotiating with contractors and city boards for licensing. She briefly sold merchandise and then sold the building for a profit.

• A very young and dear family member passed after a brief illness.

• She won an iPod at a conference; it was stolen from her luggage at the airport.

• She went to the theater intending to be part of the backstage crew and instead auditioned and played in her first and only onstage role.

• Although an amateur photographer, she displayed her photos in a gallery.

All this occurred while in her late fifties and early sixties. Each time she was fully involved, and then things changed. Nothing stays one way forever.

Experiences come and go. Not only tough things pass, so do the precious ones.

Like roses, life’s ephemeral. Roses are beautiful, yet they too pass. They teach us to appreciate the moment and confidently express ourselves while alive.

No matter where you are now, this too shall pass.

You have this moment right now. Yesterday, in a minute or a week, next year, a lifetime – these are more moments, more nows.

Wars; illness; death – it seemed at the time the world would never go on, and yet it did.

You even survived a loss of love in high school, and you thought you’d never get over that pain and loss. Yet you did. Learned from it and moved on.

Something good comes out of everything.

Having lived in the Big Apple, I couldn’t imagine how people could ever come together in a spirit of universal kindness and camaraderie. Then 9/11 happened, and the beautiful spirit of the New Yorkers and world shined brightly.

In the midst of an oil spill tragedy, you have an option to look for what’s positive:

• Many now feel more inspired to take care of the planet.
• Exposed safety violations will lead to protecting lives and habitat in the future.
• We’re learning some tar balls are from other nefarious spills and practices that have been polluting our waters for quite a while.
• We have less toleration for corporations who care more about profit than lives and the planet  and are more willing to do something about it.
• We’re more inspired to find alternative sources of fuel.
• This event serves to create change.

People usually prefer status quo and don’t want to change unless something undeniably gets their attention.

The oil spill happened. Your life is as it is.  It doesn’t mean you approve of everything. However, from here, how do you choose to proceed?

Keep in mind, though, it’s not the end of the world, and this too shall pass.

If you don’t like something you can use your emotions to fuss up for the sake of feeling those emotions. Or you can think, feel, or do something differently.

You have a choice in how you interpret events.

When things don’t go your way, do you feel sad, depressed or angry, make mountains out of molehills,  find peace within, or take different action? If you choose worry, fear, and anxiety, remember this too shall pass. You can interpret life in a new way and focus on what you choose instead.

Put things in perspective.

Good or bad, circumstances change. What interpretation are you putting on events in your life? Remember, this too shall pass.