Monday Mindfulness

Cultivating Strength, Joy, Calm & Resilience

Tag Archives: Positive thinking


by Leave a comment

Beacon of Joy

Beacon of Joy 2

Do what feels good.  Not what feels good to the touch, but what feels good to the soul.

You know…that feeling that comes from way deep down, that bubbles up through your heart space and spontaneously makes the corners of your mouth turn up from the inside.  The stuff that breeds butterflies in your belly, causes goose bumps to ripple on the skin, and parts the clouds in a heavy sky.

If you move from that place of good, you cannot help but to be a beacon of abundant joy.

And, isn’t that what life should really be about?


by Leave a comment

Ebbing Seasons

100_4489

The distance between despair and happiness is no farther than traveling from one moment to the next.

Although often it feels never-ending and all-encompassing, despair is fleeting, like a season.

Winter grays, chills, and presses down heavily upon the earth as if it will never move along and yet, somehow, even as memory serves to guide us, we forget that this is just a point in time.

And, suddenly, with such precision, in the next moment Winter lifts its heavy veil and Spring arrives.

And, so it is with despair and happiness, ever swift and cunning, they ebb and flow in and out of our lives just like the changing seasons.


by 1 Comment

Celebrate Every Day Like It’s Your Birthday

Celebrate Every Day

Every day, heaven and earth celebrate the gift of you, so why shouldn’t you?

Let every day contain the same wonder and awe that came with you as you entered this world.

Revel in all that you see, be grateful for all that you encounter, and live every moment fully.

Let every day be the gift that it was intended to be.  There is no question the world would not be what it is without you.

So, celebrate the greatness of you…every day.


by 2 Comments

Next Steps

steps

How easy it is to get bogged down in the “what if’s”, to perceive experiences as negative, missed opportunities, or wasted efforts.

What if…instead we believed, truly, down to the core, that everything that happens — even all of these things that seem like mistakes, chances gone by, and dead ends —  happens just as intended?

What if…instead of making New Year’s resolutions, we simply resolve to maintain resolve?  Facing each moment with openness, acceptance, and love?

What if…instead of holding onto expectations and outcomes, we could see each day as a shiny, unwrapped gift, reveling in the thrill and wonder of that moment?

What if…it is all unfolding precisely as it should; every botch, bobble, and blunder just the next step in the great adventure known as YOU?


by 1 Comment

Make It A Day

It should have taken 20 minutes, but instead I sat in traffic for an hour and a half, I spilled tea in my lap, and I had a headache.  Immediately, frustration bubbled up in me and I said, “Grrr, I’m having such a BAD day!”   Why????

Why is it rational thought encourages us to label everything, to justify experiences, to identify feelings, and define our world as “good” or “bad”?   Rational thought is a great gift, but it sometimes gets in the way.

The ego steps in to say, “this is hard work, it’s a big challenge, so to help you feel better, let’s call it bad”. (or maybe even use more expletive words)

What qualifies as a bad day…or a good day?  Does it change over time as new labels are affixed to experiences?  Can experiences be relabeled?  Why is it easier to label the bad before the good?  Why do we need labels?

Perhaps, instead of creating labels for the challenges, the hard work, the setbacks, the traumas, they could just be there…all just part of LIFE.

Would I really be loved less if people around me didn’t hear me complaining, if I told of my day without defining it?  Is the outcome truly different if I call a situation good or bad?  Or, can I simply move through the experience and see these challenges as adding to who I am, but not defining me or causing that roller-coaster of emotions.

The tea in my lap dried up.  Deep breaths alleviated my headache.  I arrived in time and my day went on.

I think I will work on not having so many good days or bad days, but just having more days.