I've decided to stay with the positivity theme throughout the month of November and through NaBloPoMo. (Try typing that fast! Dare ya! :)
Elizabeth Gilbert, in her now well-known book Eat Pray and Love, suggests that each day we ask ourselves the following questions and write it down:
1) "What do I really, really, really want?"
2) "This was the happiest moment of my day........ "
3) Change your mantra. (Be careful what you say. Words are things. They have power.)
Ordinarily, I would write this off as New Age claptrap but the truth is that I see the relevance of it. For the past 13 months here, I've done a reasonable job (I think) of being a cultural dissident. I've dissected US culture and western culture on a fairly consistent basis and have explained why I chose the cultue I chose.
'Nuff already!
Any influence I may have had has already been had. Influence I haven't had won't be had.
Time to move on.
So.. at least for now, no US culture, no US politics, no discussion of the very deep flaws I see at the root of both.
It's no longer my business. What happens in the US is no longer my business. The flaws in the culture are no longer my concern.
I've decided to focus on wellness and on the sacred. In most cases, these will be things that may only be sacred to me ~ but I'm willing to take the risk of seeming selfish. Those who know me know that is not true.
I'm just sick of being depressed.
So... I hope you will all continue to come by for a dose of something good, something uplifting, something wholesome.
I will do my best to discontinue kvetching at this site unless I truly have something to kvetch about. Ninety-nine percent of the time, I truly don't.
Today's questions:
1) I really, really, really want meaningful communication, here and in my private life. I really, really, really want to see the gentler part of my life. I want to focus on the good things I have, even here.
2) The happiest moment of today was spent ordering a collapsible treadmill so that I can use it in my small living space. With the weather changing, I don't want to miss out on my walks.
3) The mantra I am changing today: I will never have a warm, caring and supportive community until I move to Thailand.
Replaced with: I will have it here. I will be missed when I move. I am no longer a social pariah or outcast. I will draw people to me who are willing to give and receive friendship.
So... what are your answers? :)
~*
Friday, November 02, 2007
NaBloPoMo and Positivity....
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31 comments:
inspiring.
1. I really really really want another piece of chocolate.
2. The happiest moment of my day was spent having dinner with my family.
3. The mantra that I am saying: I will put away all of the summer clothes this weekend so we have room to walk in our bedrooms.
1.I really,really,really want to start using my talents to create a more meaningful life and start a new career.
2.The happiest part of my day was lunch with my nephew.
3.The mantra I am now saying is: I will be brave. I am stronger than I thought. I will be proud of myself. I will paint more often.
Thanks for this Chani, I needed it today.
I love this post. I'm off to bed and my brain is not working so well right now, but I'm going to think about those questions first thing tomorrow morning. I do believe that our thoughts shape our experiences...to a certain point, of course. Thanks for the positive thoughts.
I really, really want to stop focusing on the negative thoughts that cause stress and to enjoy my life more every day, in the present, without worrying about the future.
The happiest moment of my day was spent exchanging a hug with a friend after a brief conversation about orchids.
The mantra I am changing today: If I had been loved and encouraged more, I could be a better and more accomplished person.
I am replacing it with: I can be as good as I want to be, and make a difference in the lives of those I care for.
Good for you! It's easy for me to fall into the habit of being negative. I like the idea of making a conscious effort to stay positive. I'll consider those questions. I don't want to rattle of something meaningless, but I think they are good questions to ask ourselves each day.
Even when the conscious mind isn't paying attention, the subconscious doesn't miss a trick. I believe that words have incredible power and that we should always remember that when we speak. And listen.
As of two years ago my mantra has been: I can slow the progression of my disease down and I WILL die of old age, not ALS!
this was a wonderful post, chani. i need to take this advice and work on some positives at my place, too. i kind of am already trying.
1)i want to be content in the moment. not always thinking about what is next, or tomorrow, or later.
2) cuddling with my daughter on the couch while she read to me and i dozed.
3)my mantra today--i am a smart strong person.
now i am off for the weekend--blessings, friend.
Great post and great idea!
Okay here goes:
1) Today I really, really want to have one of those great all the good things come together smiling moments with my kids.
2) So far the best moment of today was seeing the pride on my daughters face as she rode her bike to school for the second time.
3) It is good enough.
Julie
Using My Words
1) "What do I really, really, really want?" I really want to exercise.
2) "This was the happiest moment of my day........ " Several. When my daughter told me i was her hero. Dinner with my family. Hugs in the morning. Cat sleeping on my lap, snoring.
3) Change your mantra. (Be careful what you say. Words are things. They have power.) Move.
I'll have to think more about the last one, after i go for that bike ride.
Oh, gee. I wish I had read this earlier :)
I think having a theme for NBPM is a great idea.
OK. I have got to go get my own treadmill set up. It's jsut been sitting there... and soon, it will be cold.
1) "What do I really, really, really want?"
I really want to give my time to people I feel good, healthy and strong with.
2) "This was the happiest moment of my day........ "
Finally finishing my grant application and hitting send. The accomplishment feels good.
3) Change your mantra. (Be careful what you say. Words are things. They have power.)
What I am saying to myself now: "I don't have to have all the answers right now. I don't ever have to have all the answers. I just have to make the best decisions in the moment".
1) I really want my children to be kind people.
2) The highlight of my day was when I couldn't stop myself from crying in front of Zachary and he was extra kind to me and tried to cheer me up. Clearly, the negativity hasn't seeped in yet.
3) I've been saying how upset I am all day. Instead, I need to say how good it is that now I have a sense of what really has been going on in my child's life.
And, you, Chani, by the way, are wonderful. I had started to think maybe I was wrong and maybe it was OK since all the kids were doing it. Your comment was one of the first and it helped me keep my values on straight.
1) "What do I really, really, really want?" - To see the beauty of what is instead of the beauty of what will be.
2) "This was the happiest moment of my day........ " Waking next to him.
3) Change your mantra. (Be careful what you say. Words are things. They have power.)I am a person of worth
Good for you! You know, someone once said to me "when you walk into a dark room and want to replace the darkness with light, you don't go around trying to chase out the dark - you simply light a lamp."
The moral here, of course, is that sometime we are most effectively rid of the bad things in life not by fighting them, but by replacing them.
By blogging about what you see is valuable and beautiful, you will be one more candle in a dark room. Only one tiny light, but maybe others will see you and want to have a light of their own. Who knows what could happen?
That is the why I titled my blog as I do, why I try to see things as I write them...
I have no answers, but I can say in no patronizing way, that I am very proud of you for lifting your perspective and insisting on good for yourself.
1. i really, really want to feel content and comfortable in my own skin
2. talking to my dear friend sue about how she saw a beautiful sunset with a green ray and stopped her car to pay it homage.
3. its not a rehearsal - live in the here and now.
Great post, great questions.
Now, my answers:
1. I want to be at peace in the moment, and unafraid for the future.
2. The happiest moment of my day was walking to the library with my daughter and hearing a homeless man singing "Amazing Grace" on a park bench.
3. My mantra: Action, NOT inaction...
I just stumbled upon your blog and wanted to say SAWADEE-KAH! from someone who has lived Laos for the past 4 years! I would like to retire to Thailand myself :)
oh, Yay! Chani! Can't wait to read all your positive stuff.
1) "What do I really, really, really want?" To live life to the fullest, sucking out the marrow like that poem from Dead Poets Society
2) "This was the happiest moment of my day........ " When a pigeon decided to come and visit my balcony and I went out to take photos. Since moving here I had not made any bird friends. I love the sound of a pigeon, those noises they make as they land and fly, the cooing. Maybe they don't make them in other countries, but they do here.
But there were so many happy moments. Seeing the light shining through my blue glass things. Walking to the supermarket and seeing half the neighbourhood there - and being lucky enough to still get the kind of bread I wanted even though everyone was buying bread like crazy people. Visiting my new spider friend on the balcony to see what he/she was up to. I decided to make spider friends when I found they ate ladybugs, which were eating my herbs. I could go on. :)
3) Change your mantra. (Be careful what you say. Words are things. They have power.)
I can do this is my mantra currently. ;)
Chani I am so glad to see you taking this step. Good on you!
Cheers!
Snoskred
www.snoskred.org
What a beautiful blog. I'll be visiting often. BTW, I think I "know" you.
what a beautiful post and a beautiful point of view. i hope to be inspired by you as we go along - i have had a hard time focusing on the positive for a while now.
My answer to the first question would definitely be to have no regrets about the way I raised my children and treated my husband and extended family.
I love the new theme for November and I am so happy to be able to read your posts now!
1.I really, really want to have partner in life that I share goals and dreams with.
2.The happiest moment of (yesterday) was spent painting my deck out in the sunshine.
3. My mantra for now is "I can achieve whatever I put my mind to."
I loved the Elizabeth Gilbert book. Listened to it on tape first. Good thing, her voice added so much to the experience.
I am not answering the questions you posed as much as responding to what moved inside of me while reading your words.
While researching here and there online I came upon a wonderful site utilizing self-reflection as a means of manifesting gratitude and joy in life. I got such a big "Yes!", I immediately signed up for the distance learning month long program on attention and self-reflection.
COOL!
I want to share.
Have a look-see sometime. Methinks you might likey. (smile)
http://www.todoinstitute.org/naikan.html
http://www.todoinstitute.org/ldlp.html
Love your words, mind, heart, soul.
Namaste.
~ Wendy
I will replace my worth is equal to my achievements with my worth is equal to how much I love.
And yes I will miss you if you leave.
A lot*
Hel
I love this post...
My answers:
1. I really, really want my mom and my brother to understand each other the way they used to.
2. The happiest moment of today was when my husband and my daughter hug me at the same time.
3. For years I seem to believe that walls keep me safe.. Today I am changing my mantra to-- Boundaries don't keep other people out, they fence you in. (from Grey's Anatomy) ;P
Wonderful post. Home is wherever you lay your head.
To concentrate on the positive sounds very exciting. (Also not very easy to do.)
I just wanted to tell you that I have read your last 12 posts in one setting, and I loved them very much. Since I'm doing NaNoWriMo I just can't comment very much, I'm sorry.
What do I really, really, really want? I haven't the vaguest idea.
The happiest moment of my day? When I saw the word "ampleur" in a book I was reading.
A changed mantra? From "I miss Sarah terribly" to "It's okay if I miss Sarah terribly.
What do I really, really want? To simplify my life and cut out any toxic negativity that hinders me from being the best I can be.
the happiest moment of my day was speaking to one I truly, truly love.
A changed mantra...ah, let me think about that last one. I am still thinking about all of this. Thanks for sticking with the positivity. It's great.
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