What is Codependency?

The term codependent is tossed around a lot these days. Colloquially, we might refer to codependence as two people in a relationship who never seem to leave each other’s sides, or perhaps that friend who always orders the same lunch as ours. But what does codependence really mean?
After all, our lives are shaped by our relationships. To some extent, we all rely on our loved ones, friends and colleagues to consider our happiness, and we try to do the same for them. So when does the normal desire for harmonious relationships with our fellows grade into a pathology?

Codependence as a concept was first written about by Melody Beattie in 1986 in her bestselling book, Codependent No More. Beattie sought recovery for her own addiction issues in the 12-step movement first established by Alcoholics Anonymous, which offers a set of guidelines and traditions designed to help its members live without alcohol. The goal of members of the fellowship is to achieve and sustain sobriety, whilst also carrying the message of recovery (that is, staying sober within the fellowship of AA) to other suffering alcoholics.

While going through the program, Beattie observed her own behaviour in relationships and found she was neither independent, i.e., able to take care of herself, nor interdependen! t, whereby two or more individuals agree to trust and rely on each other. Instead, her happiness was entirely focused on the happiness of her significant other, and her response to that need to make them happy was compulsive and involuntary. Like an addiction, it warped her relationships, cut her off from herself and wreaked havoc in her life.

How does this destructive situation arise? Psychotherapist Dariane Pictet says, “Codependents have learned to value themselves as a helper. When you grow up with alcoholic parents, around someone narcissistic or with a mother that puts herself first, you will learn at 2 or 3 years old that you have to serve the mother or father and that’s how you get the brownie points, that’s how you get recognition and have some kind of safety in the relationship.” We all exis! t in relationship to one another, we adapt or change, and define who we are within and outside of these interactions. Codependents habitually hide behind others.

“When we look deeper behind what, in Jungian psychology, we call persona, the face that we show to the outside world,” Pictet explains, “we see huge walls of resentment, raging anger and fury.”

While the pop-psychology definition of codependence focuses on mental well-being and self-confidence, codependence, as described by Beattie, is about letting go o! f shame and a liberation from childhood trauma.

In the structure of the 12-step fellowships, the first step that the sufferer needs to take on their road to recovery is to acknowledge their status as a codependent. In Facing Codependence, Pia Mellody, who wrote on codependence around the same time as Beattie, outlines the core symptoms:

Difficulty experiencing appropriate levels of self-esteem.
Difficulty setting functional boundaries.
Difficulty owning our own reality.
Difficulty acknowledging and meeting our own needs and wants and being interdependent with others .
Difficulty experiencing and expressing our reality moderately.
Realizing that you may be codependent can be an astonishing moment in your life, but really it also marks the start of a new adventure. “In psychology we love breakdowns,” says Pictet, “When someone realizes they have been cut off from themselves, that’s actually extremely significant. There always comes a time where people say, ‘But I don’t know who I am!’ and of course that! 217;s the beginning of everything, but it’s also a terribly painful point: when you realize that everything you thought you knew about yourself is just an adaptation to others and it wasn’t coming from your core.”

It takes courage to begin this journey of self-examination. Meditation can help, by offering a degree of perspective on our thinking, a calm approach to powerful emotions. Therapy or 12-step programs can also work in many cases, offering not just insights, but the fellowship of others who have walked the same road. While the pop-psychology approach reassures us with quick-fixes that we’re encouraged to believe might work in an afternoon, it leaves aside the layers and complexity that each one of us has inside ourselves, developed through our conditioning by culture or upbringing.

In its original definition, recovery from codependence is simply about being yourself and no one else. We all are by nature valuable, vulnerable, imperfect and lovable. The message is, embrace who you are. Of all your relationships, maybe the most valuable one you have is the one you have with yourself.

https://www.headspace.com/blog/2016/02/17/how-do-you-know-if-youre-a-co-dependent/?platform=hootsuite

“I SEE YOUR BEAUTY”

HOME / SELF-LOVE / “I SEE YOUR BEAUTY”

By Global Love Admin

By Reba Linker

“Take full account of the excellences which you possess, and in gratitude remember how you would hanker after them, if you had them not.” ~ MARCUS AURELIUS

Do you know how beautiful you are?

Well, I do.

How do I know something about you that perhaps you don’t quite know or
believe about yourself just yet?

I know because I’ve traveled the path from insecurity, depression and
defeatism (behind a confident-ish façade) to the deep knowledge and
acceptance of my own power and beauty. I know what it is like to live
without my own inner sense of beauty, and living through that experience
taught me how essential a healthy sense of self-love is to our
existence.

It’s like the drowning man who, as he thrashes to reach the surface
suddenly and profoundly understands the importance of air. He may have
lived his entire life without giving air a thought, yet in his moment of
need he knows its importance and he knows it not just for himself, but
for everyone else as well.

Self-love is just like that. If you have it, it doesn’t require a second
thought. It’s as natural a part of your being and actions as the air you
breathe. But if you lack self-love, you understand it in a different
way. Missing self-love, and feeling the debilitating consequences of
that lack, you know its vital importance, not just for yourself, but for
everyone. You know that it is as essential to life as air, food or
water.

Luckily, despite the childhood lessons that led me to squelch my inner
flame – lessons that taught me that my feelings, thoughts and needs did
not matter – I held onto a glimmer of the light that is my essential
being, and a distant memory of the pure innocence and beauty that I once
felt.

It has taken many years to recover what was lost, reclaiming what was
mine, and re-learning a whole new way of being that accepts and honors
my feelings, thoughts and needs, and I now have fanned the faint spark
into a beautiful flame.

My experience allows me to see the spark in you, and recognize it as the
same divine spark that lives in me.

I know the difference between what’s true and what’s false, and what
brings happiness and what does not. I know that what you seek is already
within you. I see your beauty and I see your divinity, just as I see my
own. I see it so clearly. I see the light shimmering within you,
waiting, hoping to receive the healing gust of truth and recognition
that will fan it into full flame. You are already all that you seek.
Experiencing that will change everything.

I see my own beauty, and yours, in two distinct ways:

I see the divine spark. I see the holy, sacred fire that is and always
will be: pure, radiant, and limitless.

And I see the container, the vessel of that flame. I see the shape and
form. I see the nicks and scratches that tell the story of where we’ve
been and how we’ve moved through life.

And the trick is that we have to love the container, the shape, the
nicks and the scratches, in order to get to the divine holy spark.

And we are beautiful. All the nicks and scratches are beautiful, for
they tell our stories.

For example, one might easily think of me: “How sad to have lived
without a feeling of self-love for so long!” And yet at the same time,
how glorious, for that lack is precisely what gave me the insight that
enables me to see my beauty. And that experience is what allows me to
recognize the beauty in you, and gives me the gift to help others see
their own beauty as well.

So my nicks and scratches – the marks of my journey – are beautiful, as
are yours. Love them, and love your divine inner light, for I am and you
are, truly, divinely beautiful. All of me and all of you, inside and
out, is beautiful, lovable and precious.

What is Energy Healing? A Full Answer.

Via Dara Steinberg

What Energy Healing Is and Is Not.

Maybe you have spent many years on your spiritual journey, and you long for personal guidance so that you can go deeper. Perhaps you feel like you want to go in a different direction professionally, or you are trying to figure out why there are so many negative people in your life.

You may be looking for inspiration, trying to find that old life spark, or you could be trying to figure out why it is so difficult to get through your day.

I’ve been there.

I spent more than 20 years on a spiritual path before I started working as an energy healer. I started reading spiritual books and practicing yoga when I was a teenager.

I was not one of those people who felt particularly confident my life’s direction. I knew I wanted to help people, but I did not know how I should do it. I dabbled in different career choices and even lived and taught at a yoga ashram for more than two years.

After returning to New York from the ashram, I got my Master’s degree in occupational therapy, got a job working with children, married a wonderful man and moved into the house of my dreams. I practiced yoga and meditation daily, but there was still something wrong. I was having trouble getting myself out of bed each morning, and I felt as though I was dragging myself through my days. I was not happy in my day-to-day life, and I couldn’t figure out why. Wasn’t I doing all of the “right” things?

I finally decided to see an energy healer, a clairvoyant who said that she could read my energy field and help me to connect to my soul.

She changed my life.

What Energy Healing Is Not.

Energy healing is not about “fixing yourself” or becoming a “better person”—we’re not broken!

Energy healing is not about achieving perfection. We are spiritual beings living a human life, and this human life happens to include facing challenges, experiencing pain, having fun, falling off the wagon and getting back on.

Energy healing should not be used as a method for delaying your life. Many people on a spiritual path put off living their life’s calling and doing the things that they need to do, because they think they are not ready yet (e.g. “I will start this project, make this decision, break up with this person when I’m healed, better, smarter, more peaceful…”).

So, What Is Energy Healing?

Energy healing is the process of stripping away that which stands in the way of our ability to experience who we are.

Maybe you have watched the HGTV show “Addicted to Rehab” with Nicole Curtis. Nicole restores old homes, and unlike many house flippers of today, Nicole believes in preserving the existing architecture of older homes rather than demolishing or modernizing them. When Nicole starts working on a home, many families have already lived there, and they have covered the original work with paint and linoleum or subdivided the home until it is unrecognizable. Nicole strips away the layers of paint and linoleum and uncovers hidden gems throughout the home. Is there a burn mark on the original wooden floor from that fire in 1969? You bet there is, but Nicole believes that these “flaws” add character and tell the story of the house.

So, when people come to see me for energy healing and energy readings, they are kind of like these old houses; they have layers and layers of old stuff in their energy field. These are typically layers of other people’s energy that the person did not even realize were there. No wonder they are walking around feeling tired, confused and uninspired. As a clairvoyant, I am able to see those layers of stuff, and as a healer, I am able to help move the stuff out, strip away the old paint, move out the old furniture and restore you to your former glory.

The thing is, I need your help to do it!

A Good Energy Healer Will Give You Tools.

Once Nicole Curtis is finished cleaning up the home and restoring it to its original glory, a new owner moves in and it is up to them to maintain it. The new owners may have to learn some tricks for keeping the home in good shape, but it’s up to them to make sure that the maintenance is getting done. In the same way, a good energy healer will give you the tools that you need to help you clear your energy field and maintain your spiritual home (your body!).

The Goal Is Not to Keep Your House Clean All the Time!

Most home owners find that their homes will get messy on a regular basis because of daily use. If they live with kids or have a lot of people over regularly, then they may have to clean their home more often. Sometimes they may have a slammin’ party, and it may take a few days to clean the house afterward. But that’s the point! Life is for living. Energetically, you get dirty—and hopefully some fun was had (maybe some tough lessons were learned)—but then you clean up the mess. A good energy healer will give you the tools that you need to clean out your energy field on a regular basis so that you can experience your original glory and live your life!

10 Minutes to Peace: A Daily Practice to Ease.

Via Sarah Norrad

If 10 minutes was all it would take, would we do it?

If we could transform our world from a doing one to a being one, would we? More peace, greater clarity and increased energy without having to change anything, but by just adding a bit of stillness.

10 minutes of sitting when we first get up would do this, could we say yes?

It is one of the simplest activities and yet seems like one of the hardest. It requires us not to achieve, but to let go. We feel intimidated around meditation, because we still think we can’t do it. We argue that we don’t know how.

Well, this is not entirely correct.

News flash: There is no right way to meditate. Just like there is no wrong way to live a life. We will each come to it with our own spin.

I found mediation when I was in my teens and struggling with an eating disorder.

It was the one thing that could stop my spinning head and racing heart. It was simple, but at first, it was admittedly scary. I was worried that if I just sat there that my mind would blow up even bigger, that I would be engulfed by a mudslide of thick, grimy thoughts.

Well, sometimes this was true. I also thought that there was no way that I could be that still! My mind told me that there were too many things to take care of. My head said that after I was done all of those things, then I could sit and find peace.

I saw though that even when I checked every box off of my to-do list, peace never came and the time to sit and mediate didn’t seem to either.

There were many excuses I had. Back then I was what we would call a type A personality. I excelled in school, was disappointed with anything less then an A+. I was on the leadership team, the captain for volleyball, dance and also worked 25 hours for the government each week.

If I was not at work or school, I was at the gym. Admittedly, this was no sustainable lifestyle, even for a youngin’, but it was the one my mind thought I should do.

However, my heart kept telling me something was not right, that something could change, that I deserved to feel less judgement and more ease. I didn’t know how to find this, so I started reading books on Buddhism.

Some of it sounded really heady and dogmatic, but then, I found a book by Pema Chödrön.

The book began to sprinkle bits of self-love into the ground of my thirsty soul. Then I discovered the Shambhalacentre, which is Buddhist based meditation centre of which Pema Chödrön was a part.

It focussed on the practical side of mindful living, one that looked more at how to experience greater happiness and joy, rather then learning a list of names of gurus and mantras to chant.

The practice that was taught to me there was simple: I was to sit (anyway I liked, but preferably with back straight, chairs were OK too) and I was to stay. And I was to come back to my breathe. In and out, hot as I exhaled and cool as I breathed in.

I was to watch my thoughts and see them as passing clouds. I was too bring my focus back to my breath and my posture when it wanted to run after and chase said clouds.

This was it. It was not magic and it was not as mysterious as I had thought. But, it did pause me for long enough and require a great enough attention to begin to settle me down. The type A in me had work to do in meditation, bring my mind back to breathe and my heart had the space to begin to speak when I became that still.

My meditation practice has lengthened, shortened and morphed in lots of ways over the years.

I spent a lot of time trying out different things, but this is the practice that I always come back to. And it is the one that is portable enough for me to do anywhere. All we need for this one, is a place to park our butt.

Something happens, when we come back to ourselves in this ordinary way. When we stay put for a few minutes things slowly start to be more ok. We can gradually realize that life and ourselves is probably not so bad.

As Pema Chödrön says, “Making friends with ourselves is the key to a more sane, compassionate planet.”

Here we start to build a pact to ourselves, that for these few minutes everyday, we won’t abandon who and what we are. We will accept it.

Try it out. It is not as scary as it seems.

If at first the mind wants to tell us otherwise, just remember it is a passing cloud. Sit, put the timer on your phone for 10 minutes and breathe. I promise, you will start to be a little more at ease.

Do it when you first get up, there are less excuses before the sun has had time to rise.

12 Crazy Easy Ways to Go Green & Save Money.

Via Lynn Shattuck

I love the knowing I’m using less of the earth’s finite resources. I also adore finding new ways to stretch my own financial resources.

Doing both at the same time is icing on the homemade, whole grain cake.

Here are 12 crazy simple ways to help the environment while padding your wallet, too:

1. Compost. I’ve got a black thumb and don’t garden, but I still compost. According to the EPA, food that ends up in landfills breaks down and produces methane, a noxious greenhouse gas. I heartily stash our coffee grounds, fruit, vegetable and grain waste in a compost bin, which keeps it out of the landfills. It also means we use less of our town’s pricey pay-per-bag trash bags.

2. Bulk up. If your grocery store has a bulk section, check out prices for items like grains and spices. You will likely save a lot of money, as well as packaging—plus bonus points if you bring your own containers.

3. Cool down your laundry. Washing your laundry in cold water saves money and energy, and also could expand the life of your clothing. Hang your clothes to dry for extra energy savings.

4. Be a borrower. Need a fancy tool but don’t want to cough up the cash? Ask a neighbor if you can borrow theirs, or see if your town has a tool library.

5. Buy second-hand. Your cash will go much further if you purchase needed items second-hand. Additionally, you’ll be helping keep gently used stuff out of the landfills. Try shopping at thrift stores or join a local trading/selling network for kids’ clothing and toys, furniture and kitchen gadgets.

6. Make your own cleaners. Did you know that all you need to clean the surfaces of your home is a little vinegar and water, and maybe a few drops of essential oils to make it smell better? You can also make your own laundry and dishwasher detergent. Making your own cleaners can help you save money on expensive, and often toxic, cleaners. You’ll also use less packaging by reusing the containers you store your cleaners in.

7. Head to the library. While libraries have been around for thousands of years, I still find them revolutionary. You can borrow books, magazines and movies? For free?!? Many libraries also host a bevy of cool community events, like free readings, children’s programming, live music, writing groups and discounted tickets to museums.

8. Unplug it. Even when plugged in appliances are turned off, they’re still sucking up energy. By unplugging items that you’re not currently using, you can save energy and lower your power bill.

9. Eat less meat. I know… bacon! But the livestock industry is an enormous drain on natural resources and a huge contributor to methane emissions. Decreasing the amount of meat you consume and replacing it with less expensive food like beans, nuts and grains for protein is both frugal and good for the environment.

10. Go paperless. Sign up for online, paperless billing for your utilities and other regular bills. Going paperless saves paper, the cost of a stamp, and cuts down on the amount of clutter entering your home.

11. If it’s yellow, let it mellow. Think twice about flushing every time you pee—at least while you’re at home.

12. Check for rebates. Many states offer substantial tax credits or rebates for switching to more sustainable heating systems, efficient appliances, electric vehicles, installing solar panels, and more. Search here to see what’s available in the U.S.

Making these small but simple changes can help the earth and your pocketbook.

Throw Away Your Scale (OM)

Redefining Health

by Madisyn Taylor

No matter what our weight, we can use the cues from our physical and mental selves to judge how healthy we are.

Health is not a numerical concept and cannot be defined using statistics. Human beings, however, tend to want to quantify well-being into easily understandable figures. We feel compelled to ascribe numbers to every aspect of wellness, from the qualities of our food to our fitness levels to the physical space we occupy. As a consequence of social pressures, we turn our attention away from health and focus instead on the most contentious of these figures—weight—checking our scales to see how we measure up to our peers and role models. Yet each of us is equipped to gauge our relative healthfulness without any equipment whatsoever. When we have achieved a state of wellness, we feel buoyant and energetic. Some of us are naturally slim, while others will always be curvy. No matter what our weight, we can use the cues we receive from our physical and mental selves to judge how healthy we really are.

When you throw away your scale, you commit to a lifestyle that honors the innate wisdom that comes from within your body and within your mind. It is logical to examine how you feel while considering your health—a strong, fit, and well-nourished individual will seldom feel heavy, bloated, or fatigued. If you have concerns regarding your weight, remind yourself that at its proper weight, your body will feel buoyant and agile. Movement becomes a source of joy. Sitting, standing, walking, and bending are all easy to do because your joints and organs are functioning as they were meant to. When you are physically healthy, your mind will also typically occupy a place of well-being. Mental clarity and an ability to focus are two natural traits of whole-self health. Surprisingly, promoting this type of easy-to-discern wellness within yourself takes no special effort outside of satisfying your hunger with nourishing, wholesome foods and moving your body.

The numbers you see on the scale, while nominally informative, can prevent you from reaching your healthful eating goals by giving you a false indicator of health. You will know when you have achieved true health because every fiber of your being will send you signals of wellness. When you choose to listen to these signals instead of relying on the scale, your definition of well-being will be uniquely adapted to the needs of your body and of your mind.

For more information visit dailyom.com

Your Inner Goodness (KB)

Elisabeth Kübler-Ross once said, “There is within each one of us a potential for goodness beyond our imagining; for giving which seeks no reward; for listening without judgment; for loving unconditionally.” When we consciously appreciate the magnitude of what we are—a spark of the infinite Light of the Creator—then it becomes so much easier for us to share our energy with others. If we can start to connect with our inner goodness just a little more in our lives, if we can take the Divine energy that fills us and use it for the benefit of others, we can begin to experience life on an entirely different level. By connecting with this internal energy, we can be present and available for others, even if we don’t feel great, and even if everything isn’t as we think it should be.

On this day of your life

I believe God wants you to know...

...that your life has very little to do with what occupies

most people's "day-to-day" experience.

The purpose of your life is to express and experience

who you are. That is, to know yourself as an aspect

of the Divine. There are a thousand ways to do that

every day.

Look for the most exciting way for you to do it today.

What do you think it might be?

Mantra for Life

REPEAT.

Do the next right thing.

Pause. Breathe. Pray.

Cookie (S)

(Let's wake up) it's dinner time
Yup Turn up
Pull up to the crib and a nigga on silk
Come fuck with a nigga
Bout to Bang on a pussy like I'm pouring up [?]
Fuck with a nigga
You gon' wanna claim this dick
Fuck with a nigga
Fuck with a nigga
Come fuck with a nigga

Ohh, she roller coastered on it (ohh)
She threw it up I alleyed (hoop)
Then I beat the pussy til its (blue)
Girl you know I got that good yeah

Mmmmm Like an Oreo
I love to lick the middle like an Oreo (yup turn up)
Oreo, Oreo, like an Oreo
I wanna bite it, and get inside it til I get you gone
Mmmmm like an oreo 
I love to lick the middle like an oreo (yup turn up)
Oreo,oreo like an oreo
I wanna bite it and get inside it till i get you gone

You wont know how I get down
You wont know how I get down
You'll wonder how I'm the best and can do all this with my mouth
You wont know how I get down
You wont know how I get down
You'll wonder how I'm the best and can do all this with my mouth

Cookie, cookie, cookie, I'm a cookie monster
Break your back, crack it open like a lobster

Ayyy, I kill the pussy, dig a (grave)
She grab the wood like grippin (grain)
I told her put it in my face, let it rain let it rain (rain)

Mmmmm Like an Oreo
I love to lick the middle like an Oreo (yup turn up)
Oreo, Oreo, like an Oreo
I wanna bite it, and get inside it til I get you gone
Mmmmm like an oreo (good time)
I love to lick the middle like an oreo (yup turn up)
Oreo, oreo like an oreo
I wanna bite it then get inside it till i get you gone

You wont know how I get down
You wont know how I get down
You'll wonder how I'm the best and can do all this with my mouth
You wont know how I get down
You wont know how I get down
You'll wonder how I'm the best and can do all this with my mouth

Girl I got a sweet tooth (aight)
Ain't nothin' sweeter than you (aight)
I'mma eat it up, beat it up, til you holler out truce (aight)
My bed could be your stage (aight), 
And I'mma make you a star (aight)
Your legs in the air and my hand all up up in your cookie jar
Yeah I'm hittin' the spot on your map, thats me going on tour
My Tom Ford your [?]
You throwin' ass, I'm catchin' it
The neighbors keepin' score
Louie Armstrong, I pick you up, eat that against the door

Mmmm
Like an Oreo
I love to lick the middle like an Oreo (turn up)
Oreo, Oreo, like an Oreo
I wanna bite it, and get inside it til I get you gone
Wanna know how I get down?
Wanna know how I get down?
You wonder how I'm the best and how I can do all this with my mouth?
Wanna know how I get down?
Wanna know how I get down?
You wonder how I'm the best and how I can do all this with my mouth?

Cookie monster

Are We Ruining Our Own Lives?

Via Ruth Lera

Yesterday I was snorkeling in pristine waters off the Hawaiian coast when I noticed I wasn’t having a good time.

I wasn’t feeling happy.

I wasn’t feeling joyful.

Even though the coral was beautiful, the water felt amazing, the fish were lovely and my body felt good, I wasn’t enjoying myself.

Why was that? I asked myself.

As I did a check-in with my internal self, I noticed I wasn’t having a good time because my mind was replaying an unpleasant conversation from earlier that day.

My surroundings were amazing and pleasant, but my mind state was somewhere else. Somewhere less than pleasant.

Of course, this observation can seem like a negative thing, but in fact it is the exact opposite.

Noticing that our mind state is somewhere in the past or future is the best news we can have, because only through this noticing can we make a change.

As soon as I noticed I was ruminating about a previous moment of my life, instead of experiencing the moment at hand, I made a shift.

I looked at the fish, I felt my breath in and out of the snorkel, and I savored the ocean water on my skin.

Immediately, I became happy.

Instantly, I was having fun.

It is incredible how easy it can be to improve our lives.

I didn’t have to buy anything, confront anybody, change my job or change my hair. I just had to notice where my attention was and move it to where I wanted it.

I wanted to see the beautiful colors of the fish. I wanted to feel the waves rushing above my back. I wanted to really be in the water.

And of course, I am making the process of this shift sound quite easy, but I am aware that it is much harder than it seems.

I like to say that mindfulness is simple, but not easy.

The instructions for mindfulness are as clear as can be: “Notice where your attention is, and then move your attention to where you want it to be.”

Not that complicated, but once you go to try it for yourself all types of things happen.

Your attention doesn’t want to move. Emotions and feelings arise. Self-criticism, fear and worry tell you that you need to keep your attention where it is.

This is normal.

This is why mindfulness is a practice. We never get it right; we just always keep practicing.

And why should we practice?

So we can stop ruining our own lives, of course.

There are always beautiful things around us, even if we aren’t snorkeling in clear ocean waves. There are people we love, animals who love us, trees, water and even our own face and heart.

We miss the beauty for the mess in our minds.

Our minds that tell us there is a problem, because we made a mistake or we aren’t good enough, or even because other people aren’t good enough.

We need to ask ourselves, Do we want to give our attention to these often self-destructive thoughts, or do we want to notice the beauty?

The answer isn’t as easy as we might think.

The mind thoughts are familiar; they are what we know, and they are often who we think we are.

But as I snorkeled alone, spying into the crevices of the coral reef, I knew I didn’t want to be the thoughts criticizing this person for not listening to me, for not responding kindly. Those thoughts, though familiar, were victim thoughts that made me feel bad.

I wanted to be the colorful fish. I wanted to be the flippers fluttering with the power of my strong legs.

So, that is what I became. In an instant, with the flick of the direction of my attention, I changed who I was—in that moment.

Who do you want to become?