A safe harbor where beliefs are respected and kindness prevails.

Persistent Thoughts

by

Have you ever had a thought, a conversation or an experience that you can’t get out of your mind?  Usually they are negative thoughts that persist despite all the other good in life that really should be taking precedence for us.  Why is it that that one negative overshadows all that is good?

The short answer is… because we let it.

Why do we let it?  Because there is some part of us that believes it  – might – be true.  It doesn’t matter if it is true or not we second guess what we think, feel or believe and usually because someone else said it out loud.  Now it’s stuck playing in our heads.  How do we stop the negative thoughts that someone else imprints on us?

First, don’t resist it.  I don’t know about you but if I tell myself not to think about it that is exactly what I do think about.  Instead take a few minutes and do nothing but think about it.   Give yourself the time to acknowledge its existence.  For some people that may be enough to release the grip the thought has.

Next, if the thought persists then take the time to analyze what it is about it that bothers you the most.  Is it because of who said it, how it was said or what was said?  Is it the last straw on top of a string of negative thoughts you’ve been having lately?  In your heart do you believe it or because you’re in a place of transition in your life you’re not yet strong enough in your beliefs to dismiss it easily?  Don’t try and resolve the thought at this point.  This is merely the time to understand if fully.

Now, distract yourself.  Do something you can lose yourself in.  Play with your children, watch a fast-paced movie, or perhaps work on a project that requires you to concentrate.  Choose something that doesn’t give you time to think about anything else.  The point of this step is to force yourself out of your own head and to broaden your perspective.  This step enables you to see that you can move on from it.

Anything you resist, persists.  And… Anything you try and bury will surface when you need it least. If instead you acknowledge it and make the effort to understand it you can move on from it.  Sure you may have to make a conscious effort to think differently but when you choose to think, feel and act differently you develop a strength that serves you well.  The negative thought, did not.

With love, Cheryl

At the Mercy of the Box

by

Girl Opening a Magical Present“Are you serious?” my friend asked the man at the counter.  She had just returned to the post office after he suggested that she come back in an hour because their computer system was down.  And, an hour later, it was still down.

“Yes, Ma’am, it’s still down.  I’m sorry about that.”

My friend looked at him and smiled.  “It’s not your fault,” she replied as she was leaving.  “Enjoy your afternoon.”

She took the 30 lb. box from the counter and returned to her car, and sighed.  This was the second post office she visited that day, as well as a box and ship store.  Of three establishments, none were able to ship the box for her.

The task to which she allotted about an hour of her time ended up taking two days.  When she told me about it, she shrugged her shoulders and laughed.  “When the third store didn’t work out, I knew I was at the mercy of the box.”

My friend didn’t recognize that her intentions had finally come to fruition.  Her life experience had been an immersion course in impatience, which impacted her family, killed friendships and compromised her health.  Once she decided to change her life by asking for patience and calm, she had experience after experience that challenged her: a work promotion and raise that took longer than scheduled, flight delays, getting stuck behind slow drivers, and finally, the 30 lb. box.

She laughed when she finally put together the puzzle pieces: her intentions created the experiences that helped her fulfill her wish.  Because she wanted patience, she created situations that would normally breed impatience, inviting her, over and over again, to make a different choice.  She told me that she now feels a sense of accomplishment and freedom that feel like a miracle!

Have you asked for attributes such as patience or strength and wonder why things suddenly feel like they got tough?  Here’s what you can do to put together the puzzle pieces:

  • IDENTIFY the attribute you are working on in one of these ways:

*Think about what you may have casually asked for in your heart of hearts.  You may have a secret wish in the realm of self-improvement that you may have put it into action without being aware of it; or

*See if there is a pattern of events happening recently that require you to show up more fully in ways that call on you to be patient or strong and trace it back to one of your self-improvement goals.

  • NOTICE when you have an experience that irritates you.
  • CHECK to see if it is calling you to practice the attribute you want to incorporate (such as being patient or strong)
  • ACKNOWLEDGE yourself when you choose to practice patience or strength, understanding that the experiences are a perfect reflection of your self-improvement intentions.

It only takes a little bit of imagination to allow your life to become on purpose, even in ways that initially feel non-preferred.  Once you practice the art of saying, “This experience serves me exactly as-is, even if I can’t yet identify how,” you will connect with your wondrous freedom of choice, reconnect with your creativity, and enjoy your future adventures with some extra pep in your step!

www.janetdthomas.com

Feedback