STOP TALKING ... START LISTENING ... AND REPEAT AFTER ME!

We all face obstacles, moments where we wonder, "How am I going to survive this?"

We struggle to find out why, we fight for answers, and sometimes we just decide to give up. We come from the "flight or fight" mentality because it's all we know.

We all have those experiences where we either come out swinging or we bury our heads in the sands of denial. It's human nature, it's the way we've been conditioned.

It's hard to face criticism for things we wish would go away. It's hard to hear the truth when we want it to be false. And a lot of us become fatalists when we let our minds wonder into the future that hasn't even happened yet. That's right, we project an outcome before the event even takes place.

Why?

Why??

and

Why???

Because it's easier to kneel to the condition than to rise to the occasion. WE THINK, it's easier to expect pain instead of healing, chaos instead of peace, poverty instead of prosperity, failure instead of success.

We let the world's conditions dictate our outcome.

We are not the world's conditions, We are not our neighbor's story.

Our lives aren't written in permanent ink!

We are ALWAYS changing, events and experiences are never the same, and just because history has dictated certain outcomes in other people's experiences, doesn't mean that's the end-all-be-all story of our lives!!

People bend perceptions and expectations all the time. Things evolve and change because we do. Technology changes and we discover new and inventive ways to create, produce, and execute better more efficient ways of doing things.

There are so many moments in this life where we bend perceptions and make them a reality. Where facts that we thought were law become the stepping stones to pushing precedence and limited thinking.  That's right, just because a precedence has been set doesn't mean that's the be-all-end-all. It never is.

It's time we stop saying we've lost the race before it's even started. Stop looking at the hare and thinking because it has long strong legs it's going to win the race. <---we already="" how="" know="" out.="" span="" story="" that="" turned="">

We aren't limited by what has happened. We aren't the outcome of what appears to be. We are exactly what we decide we are going to be. It's time to let go of what the world thinks we are and start embracing the Truth of who we are!

First Person POV Statement....

(read aloud if you need to)

**************************

I am a mighty moving force. I deserve all the good, all the grace, and all the love waiting on my discovery. I am a gift living in the present. I am the miracle the universe produced and keeps producing with every breath I take.

I let go of my old ideas and embrace my new thinking today! I release the fear, guilt, pain, shame, and anger that doesn't serve who I am.

Today I let love, peace, health, abundance, compassion, happiness, gratitude, and grace fill my cup until it's running over. Today I recognize that I am a blessing not only in my life but in the lives of everyone I come in contact.

The goodness within me greets the goodness within everyone I interact with today.

I am worthy of living a positive life.

I am worthy.

*****************

You are worthy! You are the biggest gift to this world, no matter your past mistakes or accomplishments.

Today, the world is blessed to have you in it! Remember that.

With LOVE and COMPASSION,

Gretchen.

DOGS AND BEES CAN SMELL FEAR...

DOGS AND BEES CAN SMELL FEAR ...

Well, so can our thinking! Our minds react and produce from whatever thoughts we think. If we come from fear, then our actions and reactions will manifest from fear based ideas.

Hear me out...

We have within us the power to produce exactly what we want in our lives. It's how and why we react that creates our experiences. If something devastating happens to us, it's within our scope of how we react that will manifest our experience.

Tragedy strikes so many people, and why is it that some seem to handle it better ... scratch the word better ... how about differently than others?  How come some people can find peace in the most tragic moments of their lives while others simply can't?

We are born without baggage, without fear, doubt, and conditions. We are an empty slate, waiting to be filled with all the wonders of this thing we call life.  We enter this world and are born to parents that are conditioned to living in a world or chaos, constant change, socialistic pressures, and demands put upon them that they must believe, act, and become conditioned to the world.

Without malice or hate, but out of love and compassion, most parents rear their children to fear actions of others, bend to the beliefs of others, and give into the conditional thinking that they have been brought up to believe is the truth. WE ALL DO IT. We aren't wrong for doing it, we can't live in guilt or shame for doing it, it's in our nature to protect, teach, and control those beings we've brought into this world.

But as we grow up, and we learn that we are separate entities from our parents, we begin to discover we were brought into this world already possessing everything we need. We are powerful beings, we are the only living things on this planet that actually has volition and are self-aware with a consciousness. We can actually rationalize our actions, and reactions, and we don't have to rely upon just instinct.

When we set out to discover the limitless power that resides within us, we begin to see how our actions, reactions, and inaction effect the situations in our lives. We learn that the law of Cause and Effect is real, powerful, and nobody is immune to it. The Law of Reciprocity, within our thinking is a very real and powerful thing. What we put out into the world, the thoughts we think, the actions we take, will produce a result. It's a 100% non-negotiable law of nature.  

Think about it ... how many times have we feared something was going to happen and boom, it happened? Sure, we can say, "well, I've had that happen before, so I knew it was going to happen again." But see, there is the challenge. Why did it happen in the first place?

Let's look at precedents... Yes, precedents, something that sets the bar of what to expect the next time... We are taught to believe that if a precedent is set, that is all that we can expect to happen. We reach for that bar and when we get there we believe that's the best we can achieve because nobody has gone beyond that... until someone does.

It was believed nobody was faster than the 4 minute mile until someone broke the record. It was believed that we couldn't break the sound barrier ... until someone did it. And it was believed that a human being couldn't survive jumping out into the stratosphere in just a spacesuit and float back down to earth ... until someone did it.

We are all conditioned to believe we are limited in our actions, that we can't stand on the edge of what was done before and leap into what can be done now. We are conditioned by fear, by lack of belief, and by the conditional thinking of the world.

When we react or act from a fear based belief, we are giving into the idea that we aren't worthy enough, that we aren't good enough, that we don't deserve the best that life has to give us.

Truth is ... you deserve the best of everything! You deserve happiness, you are worthy of love and compassion, you have a right to live the best life you know how to live. It is within your power to challenge that which has been done before and work to reach beyond it. If everyone lived within the belief and fear of the world, imagine the world we would be living in.

I'd be pissed if some dude was still dragging my a$$ around by my hair. We wouldn't be communicating with people from around the world today, and we would be stuck in the conditional thinking that innovation didn't exist.

It's easy to say, don't let fear rule your life, don't let the feelings of inadequacy plague your thoughts, and don't let the words or actions of others steal your voice, but it's another thing to act upon it.

So, what I'm saying is, take baby steps. Take one moment at a time and ask yourself, do I really need to fear this? Are the sharp, painful words of that person really the truth of who I am? Why am I allowing the conditional thinking of those around me, define my experience?

Because the truth is, you are the most important person in your life. Without you, you wouldn't be here... your life wouldn't exist, and that wouldn't be acceptable. So take the time and learn to love yourself, honor who you are, respect yourself, and change your self-talk, your limited thinking, and your unworthy thoughts. You are the miracle of life. You are the prize the universe gave to the world. Take a moment today to discover the limitless potential you have within you, waiting on your discovery of it. You'd be surprised what you are capable of, when you give yourself a chance to believe in your inner strength and limitless power.

May PEACE and LOVE be yours today!

Love,

Gretchen

#BigO #O #OlongOLongPost #PowerToYou #PlugIn #BeTheChange #YouAreAwesome #DontGetDerailedByLimitedThinking

As You Give, So Shall You Receive

For the last couple of years I’ve been changing. Okay, well, I’ve been changing and growing my entire life. But lately, for the last several years I’ve gone through a mental growth period. A Spiritual journey that if I look back, I can see how its unfolded slowly, sometimes painfully, sometimes perfectly, sometimes even prolifically.

In the last couple of months, intentionally or otherwise I’ve really started to embrace the idea of trying to live a selfless life. See, I’ve been wrapped up in the idea that if I produce or do something, I look for what’s in it for me. Normal, or what society has trained me to think. If I do something for someone, what’s in it for me? Whether it comes from that person or someone else, if I give, I’ll be given back to right?

Such a delicate balance/dance with the Universe. We are told give and ye shall receive. You sow what you reap. BUT, what if we aren’t meant to? What if we aren’t designed that way? What if we are designed to sacrifice, surrender, and give without expectations? What if in the act of giving selflessly, without expectations is the key to eternal mana from heaven?

“As you give, so shall you receive.”  

What if it isn’t about WHAT you give but HOW you give?

I think about that, ponder that statement for a deeply, personal, real moment and decided it isn’t what I give, but how I give. It’s about my attitude when I give. Am I looking for something in return? Am I giving because I believe the more I give the more I get back? Or, am I in the right state of selflessness when I am giving? Am I doing the act of giving so I will be acknowledged for doing something? Do I post inspirational posts to get the responses that feed my ego or do I give my words to people selflessly? It’s a real dilemma for someone who wants to give without restraint. It’s a real moment of awakening when looking back at my life and evaluate myself honestly, openly, and without judgment.

This isn’t a moment designed to make me feel guilty, or helpless, actually it’s empowering to discover where my true power resides. My real, raw, inner power doesn’t reside in the giving of the “thing”, my real raw power resides in the thought behind it, my intention.

Am I being selfless in what I give? Am I giving without restraint? Giving without conditions? Giving without any forethought of, what’s in it for me? If I can’t honestly answer those questions with a yes, then the actions, the condition, the idea of a selfless, enlightening, freeing moment won’t exist in the action.  

It’s the Law of Cause and Effect. My giving, whatever it is, time, talent, treasure is the Cause and what is produced, what happens when I give is the Effect.

“As I give(Cause), so shall I receive(Effect).”

When I give, that is the reward! No matter what. The smile, hug, the thank you, the “things” that return to me are just an added bonus.

I know this seems radical to some. Some people may think, “But G, people will take advantage of you.” Well, to those who believe that I will say this … not really. If I’m not focusing on the effect of my action, but the cause of my giving, those things “added unto me” will be wonderful but not the reason I did the act in the first place. If I am truly pure in my intentions the results can be nothing less than pure. If appearances are on the contrary, then that is in the eye of the beholder and not the one acting out of pure intention.

Listen, I’m far from perfect in this concept. This is what life is for, to practice and keep practicing and when I feel I’ve gotten pretty good at it, continue to practice this concept. Does it mean I say yes to everything? Absolutely not. But when I am inspired to give, inspired to help, asked for something, and I find I’m doing it for nothing more than because I want to, without conditions, and without expectations then I’ll know I’m on the right track.

I strive for freedom from disappointment, from expectations, from pain, hurt, jealousy, suffering, conditions. Living in the moment, being present in a moment, without worrying about 5 minutes, 5 hours, 5 days from now. How empowering would that be?

I must let go of ego. I must let go of outcomes. I must let go of expectations. I must be fully present in the moment with the person, or people I’m with. It’s about striving to live a pinpoint, in the moment type of life. If I trust the Universe to put me where I’m supposed to be, then I need not worry about the future. Every action and reaction, every intention will build, put in place and be made ready for me.

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and rely not on your own wisdom. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6.

It’s time I started trusting in the power of intention, trust that the Almighty has every answer to every question I could ever possibly ask. It’s time to let go and let God. This Omnipotent Presence will not lead me astray but point me in the right direction to my highest and best good. I don’t have to rely upon my own idea of what I believe should occur. I don’t have to try and figure it out. All I have to do is know, with all that I am, right and perfect action is taking place and the path of my journey will be made easy, straight and with ease.

Thanks for hanging out and reading my ramblings!

LOVE, Gretchen.

 

There's No Place Like Home (Wizard of Oz Pt. 2)

 There's No Place Like Home. (2nd Installment)

Dorothy Meets the Scarecrow...

(Highly recommended you read the 1st installment--- here)

There are moments during Dorothy’s journey where she finds herself walking or skipping along the wide winding road laden with bright yellow bricks of promise without issues. Her journey is a peaceful one with Toto (her little dog), scampering at her feet. And yet, just as the moment where comfort outweighs her fear, she comes upon a fork in the road. Undecided on which way to go she talks to herself out loud, and that's when she's startled by a talking scarecrow in a field of corn. The Scarecrow tries to direct her the best way he knows how, but in the end comes off as confused. However, Dorothy listens to his story, and shows empathy for him by bending the nail down on which he is hung and frees him from his paltry existence. The Scarecrow asks if he can join her on her journey to see the Wizard, his hopes pinned on the idea that the wizard might give him some brains. It’s the perfect situation which allows her to express her compassion for something unlike herself. She tells him that she has a wicked witch after her and shows concern for his safety but when he tells her he’s determined to go with her, she agrees to his joining her and Toto’s journey to Emerald City.

I believe miracles show up in all different ways. Now, I’m not saying on your journey down your ‘yellow brick road’ you’ll come across a talking scarecrow that only wants a brain, I believe in a lot of things deemed miracles, but that ain’t one of them. What I am saying is, you may come across someone during your life's journey that may need your help, or need your attention, or someone who may not be as fortunate as you. It's wise for you to remember, it isn’t the work of your hands that makes you memorable, but how wide you open your heart.

Like the scarecrow, there will be people in our lives who feel dumb, they believe or have been told they aren’t worthy, or they’re stupid and have no business doing what they are doing in life. It’s a sad fact in which the words flung upon the young and innocent leave the deepest wounds. For all I know you could be reading this and blurt out, “Gretchen, Oh.My.God, I’m the scarecrow!”

But let’s make something clear, something we should all be aware of … people come into our lives for a reason … PERIOD. Sometimes they are fleeting, sometimes they come in and stay for a short blip of time, and sometimes we meet people and they’re in our lives up until we take our last breath. It’s my belief that everyone’s brilliant and life affirming and intelligent with a special place in this universe. I know, I know, we’re all measured to a standard that for some is unobtainable, but let me say this, some people are book smart, while others are street wise, some may have mastered how to run a household, while others are better building things with their hands, but the fact of the matter is, we each have something to contribute to the betterment of this world. Each and every one of us possess this capability; it’s just that we’ve lost our confidence along the way. As a society, we’ve lost the ability to connect with the potential which resides deep within each and every one of us. We’ve been told not to be vulnerable, or show weakness, we’ve been told we shouldn’t be too confident, or come across arrogant. We’ve been “shoulded” on our entire lives! 

It's time to STOP “Shoulding” on yourself and others. It’s vital when people come into our lives to remind them of how brilliant, loving, dynamic, joyous, and smart they truly are. It’s imperative that we keep reminding ourselves of how brilliant, loving, dynamic, joyous and smart we are too. Dorothy, never once agrees with the scarecrow! She heard his woes-me story, gave him her ear to listen , and then when he invited himself into her journey, she agreed to his company, wholeheartedly.

Every answer to every question we’ve ever had lies deep within us. Either we’ve never been told about our potential or or we keep forgetting about it because we are constantly bombarded with definitions and phrases that convince us or train us to believe we are limited, less than, or weak. When Dorothy asked the scarecrow questions he answered, when she couldn’t free him from the post he was nailed upon, he told her what to do. Maybe it’s the simple fact that we’ve never been taught how to stop and listen, or we merely forgot the mechanics of becoming still and knowing. Self confidence, inner peace, love, harmony, and personal strength can’t happen so long as we keep building soundproof walls that continue to isolate us in a self-induced prison of shame, guilt and blame.    

Why do we look upon the less fortunate as “less than”? Who wouldn’t fall in love with a singing scarecrow without a brain? Why must we define others by what they don’t have or what they are lacking in their lives? When our actions speak louder than our words we will truly understand the dynamics of reaping what we sow. When we celebrate the strength in those around us, we are uplifted in our own lives. Dorothy’s heart was large, bigger than those whom she met, and yet never once did she make anyone feel inadequate.

You see, even though the scarecrow thought he didn’t have a brain, he sang about all the things he’d do if he had a brain. The scarecrow had his entire existence all “plotted” out if he ever “got himself some brains”. What he didn’t realize was he already possessed the abilities he sung about. He had within him the potential to do everything he wanted, if he’d let go of the idea that he wasn’t smart enough. Could it be that we too, have our own ideas of what we need or should be in order to be, successful, happy, healthy, loving, abundant, and joyous? We, like the scarecrow believe we don’t possess the potential to be greater than we are right now. Doubt aside, how often have we talked ourselves out of something because we believed we weren’t worthy enough, strong enough, intelligent enough? If we keep following the same patterns that got us to where we are, we’ll never embody our true potential.

It’s time to bend the nail that pins us to the post of our past beliefs and slide off the splintered beam that keeps us bound to our old ideas of who we used to be. Stand with those people who believe we possess the capability to be whatever our heart’s desire.

You and only you know what’s right for your life. You may start your journey heading one way on the, ‘yellow brick road’ and find it’s not the right path. That’s okay, because at least you’re starting to recognize what you want and what you don’t want. You’re beginning to live life consciously! Strengthen those legs you thought weren’t strong enough to carry you through, start believing that within you lies infinite possibilities in which you have an all access pass dangling from a lanyard for all to see. You are the believer that creates the beliefs in your life. You have the ability to change your mind and dance on the ‘yellow brick road’ of your journey.

It’s your life,and your opportunity to be anything you want to be. When you stop allowing others to define who you are and what they think you should be, you begin to embody your true potentiality. When you discover the limiting ideas, which have been seared across your brain are nothing more than a false belief you’ve unknowingly allowed to be planted there, you can begin to uproot them, weed them and replace them with the fruit producing positive ideas that strengthen who you are.

Dorothy never once believed what the scarecrow told her about his plight of being brainless. She heard him out, disclosed to him the struggles he may encounter if he went with her, and then let him decide for himself if he was going to join her or not. It’s time to have someone in your corner believing in you, telling you, you can do whatever you set your mind to; it won’t be the easiest thing you’ll ever do, but what’s gained if nothing is tried? You can climb back up on that rusty ol’ nail and hang from that splintered post, or you can tread along the ‘yellow brick road’ of your existence and see what happens. The choice is yours.   

Thanks for hanging out and reading my ramblings. 

***Stay tuned for the 3rd installment when Dorothy meets the Tin Man.

Are You Ready for This?

What does it mean to you … to be grateful?

Gratitude is one of the most powerful abilities we have.

To give thanks for ALL that’s in your life is one of the most empowering actions you can do. When you give thanks for what you have, or what others have done for you, or even the smallest of miracles that grace your life, you learn to recognize the strength that resides deep within your soul. When you come from a place of gratitude, an authentic space where you’re truly grateful, it gives you the ability to strengthen your connection to the universe. It’s your purpose, your birthright  to experience life, to use the manna poured upon you from the heavens in the most loving and unconditional way. You’re the light that overcomes the darkness, you’re the love that’s waiting for a place to show up. You’re the epitome of life that should be living out loud.   

I’m totally aware that life can be tough, scary, sad, painful, and dark. I understand the inequality and injustice of people who have been victimized, who struggle to live, who look at everyday as a burden. Believe it or not, I have scars that run deep, betrayal that’s formidable and experiences which have shaped who I have become. There was a time in my life that I was voiceless, sad, burdened and broken. But I learned at a young age that the more I focused on my sorrows, the less power I felt I had. The more I clung to what was wrong, the deeper I would fall into the definition of who I didn’t want to be.

We’re all living the best life we know how at this point. We can’t blame or shame people for who they are or the limited belief they have in themselves. We’ve been taught that we are powerless. From the cradle to the grave we are taught  to believe that we’re a product of our environment. Well, in some cases that appears to be the case … but that’s only because we were never taught how to change our thinking.

All of us have been suppressed by the consciousness of disease, doubt, worry, fear, anger, frustration, and jealousy. We’re exposed to the darkest part of humanity on a daily basis through the media, and yet, we’re expected to rise above the very noise which suppresses us. We’re bombarded every second of our lives with the world telling us how insecure, inadequate, and uneducated we are. We’re told that we are limited people, living in a limited society where only the righteous few have been kissed by enlightenment.  

We’re handed life with the expectation to make something of it, and yet we’re never given the proper tools to build it. We’re told to make a difference in the world but never shown an instruction manual. We’re trained to live our lives on the surface of who we truly are! Words are carelessly tossed our way without forethought of how they will be interpreted. We’re told we are too fat, too thin, too smart, too dumb, too ugly, too beautiful, too this and too that, each and every word finding a place to soak into the fabric of who we are and with every interaction it becomes the dye that colors our existence.

I’m not writing this to give excuses or judge people who are living the best they know how at this point in their lives. I’m writing this to tell those of you ... who are feeling stuck, feeling overwhelmed, and burdened, that you’re not alone. I’m writing this in the hopes that someone will read these words and find their inner strength of who they are and what they mean to the world.

Your life isn’t meant to be stagnant. It’s always moving forward, always expanding, always changing at every moment of every day. Even if life feels like it’s moving at a snail’s pace, it’s always moving. It’s your responsibility to find your place in the world, your job to recognize the small moments where you can celebrate who you are. Nobody’s going to do it for you, and BOOM, that’s where gratitude comes in to play. When you live from a place of gratitude, the world opens up and pours blessings onto you. When you let go of the anger, frustration, jealousy, pain, hurt, and sorrow that has rooted itself into your soul, you clear the way for your inner spark to burn bright. Suddenly, you’ll begin to see that those experiences you called miracles are nothing more than everyday moments you let yourself shine.

It isn’t easy, letting go of past stories, definitions you’ve been saddled with, or the alter ego which keeps convincing you to believe all the bullsh*t you’ve been fed. It’s a lifestyle change, a way of thinking that will change the way you view the world. It’s empowering to know you have total control over how you view the world. Because, nobody’s in your head policing your thoughts, controlling your ideas. You’re the only one who has access to your head, so begin there! Change the self talk that fills your thoughts. When you say the words, “I am” decide to put something meaningful behind it. Make it a habit to find something in your day to be grateful for.

Find a moment where you would have had self deprecating thoughts, and praise yourself for resisting that negative pattern. You’re the most amazing, dynamic, beautiful, wonderful, worthy, intelligent, loving, compassionate expression of life there is! You just don’t feel that way because you’ve been told your whole life that you must be meek, humbled, guilty, poor, limited and small. Well, guess what? I’m saying you don’t have to be that way anymore! If you need permission to be happy, well, then I’m here to give it to you! You’ve always had the right to be everything you’ve ever wanted to be, don’t let the past transgressions of others be the deciding factor of who you are today! Today’s a new day, a brand new moment to find something to be grateful for.

So, I say to you, embrace your inner light, let it shine around you, remind yourself that you are the miracle that shows up every moment of everyday! You deserve to be happy, you deserve to live a gracious life. Start small, give gratitude for the littlest things, and I promise you, if you make giving gratitude a habit every day, you will see those things you're grateful for, and they will continue to show up in your life! 

Have a fantastic day, and I am grateful you stopped by and read my ramblings!

LOVE,

Gretchen

Self Love is Empowering

If you wouldn't say it about someone you love, then don't say it about yourself. There is power behind your thoughts and words, use them wisely when you self talk, in your head or out loud!

We are bombarded with words, thoughts, pictures, videos, books and images of an unrealistic idea of who we are told we should be, or look like. No matter what words are heard, no matter what pictures you ache to be like, or what belief system you subscribe to, you must not forget that you are beautiful just the way you are.

YOU ARE the miracle that life is made from. YOU ARE so important in someone's life. YOU ARE love in action. YOU ARE the expression of life dancing on the edge of new discoveries. YOU ARE brilliant. YOU ARE beautiful. YOU ARE smart. YOU ARE perfect just the way YOU ARE.

YES, you lady, YOU---> the one who feels ugly, stupid, less than, unloved, unimportant, and worthless. I am talking to the people who have been battered down by a belief that they are anything less than perfect. Victims of pain, suffering of the body and soul. I am talking to you.

YOU are the most important thing in your world. Without you, who would experience life for you? Through you? As you?  You have a purpose, if you didn't you wouldn't be here. I'm not saying life is easy all the time, or telling you to ramble off a couple affirmations and everything will be peachy. That's not what I am saying at all. What I am saying is when you decide to discover the spark of greatness that resides within you, I want you to foster it instead of trying to blow it out. I want you to know that whatever is occurring in your life can be over come or can be made peace with.

It may seem difficult at first, finding that inner spark, that deep desire to be at peace, that source of greatness that resides hidden within your soul. But, if you take a moment to celebrate the smallest of accomplishments, the tinniest of moments you felt good, you will begin to feed that energy within you that knows what to do and how to do it. You need to trust in yourself, trust in the love that bubbles deep down. Believe in the miracle you are. Have faith in the beauty that is pushing to come out.

We have become prisoners to the ideology that beauty rests in the epidermis of what others see. We've continuously drank from the cup of being unworthy for too long. We've clung to the belief that our words are inadequate and our opinion is of no value. And for what you feel it's worth, I'm here to say, that simply isn't true! The truth is, you are just as important as any other person in this world. From the president to the crazy cat lady down the street. No one is more important to experiencing your life than YOU! PERIOD. You are so amazingly awesome, just the way you are!

So, here's the thing. I have this quote I go to, whenever I am feeling inadequate. It is very powerful to me. It reminds me that we are all made from the same stuff. It motivates me to find that inner spark and nurture it to a burning inferno. So here it is, I leave you with Marianne Williamson's quote she first published in a book, RETURN TO LOVE. (Disclosure:I never finished reading it. A convo for another post someday) But when words you need to embody speak to you, maybe that was the only part of her book I was supposed to read. ;)

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” ~Return to Love by Marianne Williamson.

There really aren't any more words needed by me on this post once you read the quote above. So, thanks for hanging out and reading my ramblings.

LOVE,
Gretchen

Even The Dalai Lama Gets the Hiccups!

As we wake up and brush shoulders with the morning and smile at the thought of a new day, or even as we breathe in the aroma of infinite possibilities while counting the tally marks of a life we've been so gloriously given, let us remember that even the Dalai Lama gets the hiccups.

Nothing is perfect all the time. Well, wait, I take that back, everything is perfectly imperfect. We all have moments where we come upon those type of people who rattle our cages. We watch them systematically create chaos in a peaceful moment, or stir the big vat of hate and anger when others have already decided to overcome it. We've all experienced those types of people that pummel the wasps nest with the biggest wooden stick they can find and walk away unscathed while the others get stung repeatedly. It is nothing new in a world where we praise the sarcastic and cuddle with the hardhearted. We celebrate the combative and get in bed with the wicked, and we do this so we can feel important; like we are part of the “team”. We will quietly stand on the sidelines while the asshole coach berates another player, because deep in our hearts we are relieved it isn't our face he’s yelling in. Hey, we all have done it, nobody is immune to life. If we were, we wouldn't be living it.

We are all born with instinct. When we come into this world we sleep when we are tired, we eat when we are hungry and we cry when we are in need. Blessed are the children, for they see with a pure heart. It isn't until the world lays at our infantile feet the life lessons learned by those who came before us. It is when the good-intentioned unconsciously impress upon us the limits we must believe we have. It is the beginning to where we see the world in a different light. We become the imprints of conditional thinking and shackled by what’s been done before. You see it in kids who don’t see color, race, sex or creed. They exist to experience life and that is it. They don’t worry about the future and they don’t live in the past. They wear their emotions on their sleeve and just as the river flows forward so does their ability to move on. It is at our most impressionable time of our lives and happens to be when we are taught what it means to limit ourselves and bend to what society expects from us. It is at that point we become conditional thinkers.

We live in a world ruled by the limited thinking of what has come before us. We live by man made laws designed to dictate what we must do to live systematically in a society with others. We all understand that most of these man made laws are in place to keep us safe. But we also live in a world dictated by something bigger than man made laws or the ticking of a clock or even the degrading judgment of others. There is a place within us that isn't affected by what we see or hear, but is ruled by what we innately know. There is a power greater than us, greater than any condition, experience, man made law or limited thought. It is our intuition, that power that swirls in your gut, that Infinite Source that we connected to and bonded with when we are born. Once we become conditioned by the world, we are taught to stifle that instinct, crush that power that surges within the deepest part of who we are.

But I am telling you, to let it out! It’s okay to feel love, peace, joy, happiness, harmony, light and abundance. You are beautiful, you are smart, you are free, you are peace and harmony. Just because someone, so long ago told you something, doesn't make it true! Did you read that? Let me write it again… JUST BECAUSE SOMEONE TOLD YOU SOMETHING, IT DOESN'T MAKE IT TRUE. We have got to stop looking outside of ourselves for validation, for peace, for love, for wholeness or joy. It is time to remove those shackles of our limited, impressions people so thoughtlessly pressed into our skin and start to reach deep within ourselves for the Truth of Who We Are. You are a light designed to dissipate the dark, you are a life, meant to live the most beautiful moments you can. You are life living consciously. Take today in your heart, and wear it there, that it is the best day ever. Today is your day and you are a miracle waiting for a place to show up. So, just show up! Show up today, live in the moment, let go of what you can’t control and embrace what you can. Be the best you, you know how to be right now, and I promise, as you do that every day, as you be the best you, you can be, each day will become new, each moment will be another opportunity to be the best you, you know how to be! Don’t forget, you only have to be stronger than your weakest thought, then eventually, your weakest thought will be replaced by your strongest intention.

Thanks for hanging out and reading my ramblings!

Taken in Lafayette, CA. on my iPhone

Unfortunate Thoughts of Writers

Everyone has been let down by circumstances. We’ve all paid for the moment that turns into nothing more than a memory hanging on the hooks of hollow smiles and bloated opportunities. Thrown into the ring, heart bleeding, ripped from our cavernous chest, expected to fight for a strong finish only to be splayed on the canvass face down. Knocked out by self deprecation and fueled by the maddening ideas that everything is somehow built perfectly somewhere just outside our reach. Displayed just far enough away to make us ache and dream for the day we too will feel the eyes of acceptance, the warm touch of approval and credence ribboned throughout the words of our heroes.

Instead, we find ourselves tangled in the thick ropes of our own fears. Judged by fleeting utterances, that relentlessly keep feeding our doubts. Tied up and tortured by the few envious words infused with jealousy and fear from others. When did we stop caring? When did the fascination with people’s follies or their belligerent tirades become more important or meaningful than an offered hand or a string of encouraging words?

Bloodied and weakened by the constant pummeling of who we are expected to be and how we are supposed to act, time won’t stop marching across our battered bones and ripped skin until every last word of our lives shows up on the parchment of our soul. Only then will the fighter within us rage against the constant malevolence of few and change the heart beat of the discontented. Then we can rise to the occasion and script our pen to paper and pour the blood of our soul across the pages in a purge so magnificent, the world will have to wake up and listen.

It is time to reach for the bones of our predecessors and sculpt the stepping stones of greatness within the rooms of our own minds. It’s time to close the doors riddled and shaped with contempt and criticism and open the door infused with intuition and honor. We must rise above the fray of pugnacious hostility, fear, guilt, and jealousy, purge them from our veins, drain them from our hearts, and uproot them from our minds.

True Power occurs when recognized and harnessed for a purpose. When searching outside the walls of our own souls, we may stumble; even misplace the only key that unlocks the secrets to embodying our permanent balance. But never will we lose the ability to look beyond the limited idea of who we think we are, and be reminded that what we are searching for, we are searching with. We are the key to our own happiness; we are the key to our own success. We are the only keeper of thoughts that reside in our own minds. It is what we do with those thoughts and ideas that shape our experience and in turn shape the world around us that counts. Make your decisions count, without being smug. Let your voice be heard, without shouting. And let your love be felt, without limits. And always be grateful for the journey!

Thanks for hanging out and reading my ramblings!