Wednesday Quotes on Joy

"The great teachings unanimously emphasize that all the peace, wisdom, and joy in the universe are already within us; we don't have to gain, develop, or attain them. We're like a child standing in a beautiful park with his eyes shut tight. We don't need to imagine trees, flowers, deer, birds, and sky; we merely need to open our eyes and realize what is already here, who we really are -- as soon as we quit pretending we're small or unholy." -- Unknown

"Participate joyfully in the sorrows of the world. We cannot cure the world of sorrows, but we can choose to live in joy." -- Joseph Campbell

"We could never learn to be brave and patient if there were only joy in the world." -- Helen Keller

"I do it for the joy it brings, cause I'm a joyful girl. 'Cause the world owes us nothing, we owe each other the world." -- Ani Difranco

And on that note, let me say that while I've been a little scarce on my site, and a less frequent visitor to others' sites, I am officially announcing my reason: I am three months pregnant. Please bear with me as every day offers a new change.

Purpose of Holidays

While we all know what the holidays are for, and while we also grumble about what holidays have become, I still find it interesting that we have certain days in the year dedicated to some very positive principles in life: love, caring, reverence, gratitude, family, spirituality, and centering.

What a concept--society has made it acceptable for us to take some time off work to remember what is important in life. Take some time for yourselves, your loved ones, your life.

Commercialism may put a damper on your spirits, but try not to allow that. The industry is there for those who want to buy and sell and enhance your holiday. You have the choice of creating your own atmosphere and traditions in the ways that you wish to do so.

If there are holidays you do not celebrate, you can certainly give greetings to others, and in appropriate ways, allow others to know what you do or do not celebrate. It can be an opportunity to share differing ideas.

As for me, I do enjoy these holidays where I can sit back and take in all the people in my life and all the good things I have encountered. I also take some time for reverence, contemplation, meditation, and hopes and wishes.

Whatever you do, do what feels the best for you. Adopt others' rituals or customs, create your own, or treat every day with the same amount of importance.

Monday Quotes on Gratitude

"Feeling grateful or appreciative of someone or something in your life actually attracts more of the things that you appreciate and value into your life." -- Christiane Northrup

"Throughout history wise men and women have encouraged us to feel grateful for what we have. Why? Very simply because gratitude makes us feel good. When you're feeling grateful, your mind is clear, and therefore you have access to your greatest wisdom and common sense. You see the big picture." -- Richard Carlson,Ph.D.

"The only people with whom you should try to get even are those who have helped you." -- John E. Southard

"If you can't be thankful for what you receive, be thankful for what you escape." -- Unknown

On Stillness

We each have a different pace, a different energy level that we run on. And there are many phases in our lives that vary from hectic to calm.

If life tends to get away from us for a long period of time, we may be running on empty. Or we may be keeping up with such a tight schedule that we don't know where the months have gone or what our goals were in the first place.

At times, if I don't stay aware of what I'm doing, I can fill my schedule to the rim, because I have the time and the effort. But nowhere is it written that I HAVE to. In those times when my pace is too hectic, I rarely have feelings of being grounded and centered. That's when I need to remember, that in order to maintain some sense of balance, I need to have moments of quiet and moments of absolute stillness.

In stillness we have opportunities to listen to ourselves...even if we have nothing important to say. Those moments give us a chance to get realigned and refocused. We may have epiphanies. We may simply need to rest. Without realizing it, we respond to our own heartbeat and breathing. We know ourselves the best. This gives us the chance to just be with ourselves.

If a moment of stillness makes us uncomfortable, edgy, or impatient...we can ask ourselves what might be behind that. The answer may be enlightening. For some of us, it may not work at all. But at least we can try it a few times to see if anything changes.

And the moment does not need to be long. Even one minute can be beneficial.

Monday Quote on Stillness

"Simply be quiet. Be with your Self in the stillness. Do this daily. Just stop. Stop all your doingness. Stop all your thinking. Stop all your thinking. Just "be for a while. Take an hour every day at dawn and give it to your Self. Meet your Self there in the holy moment. Then go about your day. You will be a different person." -- N. D. Walsch

Love vs. Hate

Many say that love and hate both come from the same place in the heart. There is an intensity that measures one's attraction or aversion.

Focus on that which you love. Pour your energy into that. You will have less time and energy to focus on that which you hate.

What you feed within you is what will grow abundantly.

Writing Letters to Those Who Are Gone

Fall and winter tend to be times to reflect and reminisce, as the daylight diminishes. It's also a time for holidays, which can be mixed with positive and negative reminders of what we do now, and what we used to do. In general, this is a time to revisit with ourselves.

Many times we continue to think about and miss the people we loved who are no longer with us. We even carry unresolved feelings that sometimes filter through the rest of our lives. While it takes time to do this, writing a letter can actually be a huge release. Even if you are at peace with the loss and the person, a letter gives you a chance to stay connected. In this way, you still maintain the relationship on your end. If you used to get support from someone, you can continue to write about your feelings.

You may even want to write a letter to someone from your past whom you no longer can get in touch with.

Quite some time after I lost both of my grandmothers and a high school friend, I was having some struggles in my personal life and my career. One of the things that a counselor highly recommended was that I write to these three people. I didn't see at all how that was related to my issues, but I took an evening to write the letters.

Somehow, it really did help. If nothing else, it kept me clearer about what was really a current issue, and what was in my past that I had been struggling with alone.

Even if you have written a letter before, there is no limit to how often you can write. If you regularly journal, this can be one of your entries. You might not know how necessary it was until after you've done it.