Change

"Change will not come if we wait for some other person, or if we wait for some other time. We are the one's we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek."

Let Go

To 'let go' does not mean to stop caring;
it means I can't do it for someone else.

To 'let go' is not to cut myself off;
it is the realization that I must not control another.

To 'let go' is not to fix;
but to be supportive

To 'let go' is not to be in the middle
arranging all the outcomes;
but to allow others to effect their destinies

To 'let go' is not to be protective;
it is to permit another to face reality.

To 'let go' is not to regret the past;
but to grow and live for the future.

To 'let go' is to fear less and love more.

Attitude

The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company... a church... a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past... we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way.
We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so it is with you... we are in charge of our Attitudes.

Exchange Love for Hate

We cannot change the past, but we can change our attitude toward it. Uproot guilt and plant forgiveness. Tear out arrogance and seed humility. Exchange love for hate-thereby making the present comfortable and the future promising.

- Maya Angelou

People In Life

In life you realize there is a role for everyone you meet. Some will test you, some will use you, some will love you, and some will teach you. But the ones who are truly important are the ones who bring out the best in you. They are the rare and amazing people who remind you why it's worth it.

Rippling Effect

In a world of six billion people, it is easy to believe that the only way to initiate profound transformation is to take extreme action. Each of us, however, carries within us the capacity to change the world in small ways for better or worse. Everything we do and think affects the people in our lives, and their reactions in turn affect others. As the effect of a seemingly insignificant word passes from person to person, its impact grows and can become a source of great joy, inspiration, anxiety or pain.

Your thoughts and actions are like stones dropped into still waters, causing ripples to spread and expand and they move outward. The impact you have on the world is greater than you could ever imagine, and the choices you make can have far-reaching consequences. You can use the ripple effect to make a positive difference and spread waves of kindness that will wash over the world.

Positive Thinking

Thoughts are like drops of water. When I think the same thoughts over and over again, I am creating this incredible body of water. First, I have a little puddle, then I may get a pond, and as I continue to think the same thoughts over and over again, I have a lake, and finally an ocean. If my thoughts are negative, I can drown in a sea of my own negativity. If my thoughts are positive, I can float on the ocean of life.

Spiritual Growth

My spiritual growth often comes to me in strange ways. It can be a chance meeting or an accident, a disease or the loss of a loved one. Something inside urges me to follow, or I am forcefully prevented from living in the same old way. It is a little different for each person. I grow spiritually when I accept responsibility for my life. This gives me the inner power to make the changes in myself that I need to make. Spiritual growth is not about changing others. Spiritual growth happens to the person who is ready to step out of the victim role, into forgiveness, and into a new life. None of this happens overnight. it is an unfolding process. Loving myself opens the door, and being willing to change really helps.

Change

All of us experience changes in our lives. Change is the one constant in our lives. There are changes that we look forward to and change that we fear. However, one this is for sure. Things will not stay the same no matter how much we would like them too. When a life change occurs, we have two choices in how to respond. We can despair that a change has come and assume that thing will be worse, or we can look with excitement at the new possibilities that the change presents.

Life

"Life has a way of going in circles. Ideally, it would be a straight path forward - we'd always know where we were going, we'd always be able to move on and leave everything else behind. There would be nothing but the present and the future. Instead, we always find ourselves where we started. When we try to move ahead, we end up taking a step back. We carry everything with us, the weight exhausting us until we want to collapse and give up. We forget things we try to remember. We remember things we'd rather forget. The most frightening thing about memory is that it leaves us no choice. It has mastered an incomprehensible art of forgetting. It erases, it smudges, it fills in blank spaces with details that don't exist. But however we remember it - or choose to remember it - the past is the foundation that holds our lives in place. Without its support, we'd have nothing for guidance. We spend so much time focused on what lies ahead, when what has fallen behind is just as important. What defines us isn't where we're going, but where we've been. Although there are places and people we will never see again, and although we move on and let them go, they remain a part of who we are. There are things that will never change, things we will carry along with us always. But as we venture into the murky future, we must find our strength by learning to leave things behind."

Strength

I asked for Strength and the Universe gave me difficulties to make me Strong. 
I asked for Wisdom and the Universe gave me problems to Solve.
I asked for Prosperity and the Universe gave me a Brain to Work.
I asked for Courage and the Universe gave me danger to overcome.
I asked for Love and the Universe gave me troubled people to help.
I asked for Favors and the Universe gave me opportunities.

I received nothing I wanted......
I received everything I needed.

Improvement

Always remember that problems contain values that have improvement potential.

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.
-Martin Luther King, Jr.

Life Goes On

“I’ve learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow. I’ve learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights. I’ve learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you’ll miss them when they’re gone from your life. I’ve learned that making a “living” is not the same thing as making a “life.” I’ve learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance. I’ve learned that you shouldn’t go through life with a catcher’s mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back. I’ve learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision. I’ve learned that even when I have pains, I don’t have to be one. I’ve learned that every day you should reach out and touch someone. People love a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back. I’ve learned that I still have a lot to learn. I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
-Maya Angelou

Obstacles

Stand up to your obstacles and do something about them. You will find that they haven't half the strength you think they have.

Loss

I walk down the street
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk
I fall in
I am lost........I am hopeless
It isn't my fault
It takes forever to find a way out

I walk down the same street
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk
I pretend I don't see it
I fall in again
I can't believe I am in the same place
But it isn't my fault
It still takes a long time to get out

I walk down the same street
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk
I see it there
I still fall in-it is a habit
My eyes are open
I know where I am
It is my fault
I get out immediately

I walk down the same street
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk
I walk around it

I walk down another street

Your Destiny

Watch your thoughts; they become words
Watch your words; they become actions
Watch your actions; they become habits
Watch your habits; they become character
Watch your character; for it becomes your destiny

Peace

When you are experiencing peace, it's coming from with you, you are "doing peace". And this is true of anything else you might be looking for. Love, happiness, contentment, well-being come from within. Nothing external needs to change for you to have what you want......If you want to be happier, be happier. If you want to be more relaxed, relax. If you want more friends, be friendly. Sounds simple. It is.

Let Go

I release all fears of not being perfect. I am good enough. I am perfect in my own way.
I let go of all expectations. I am free to live the life I have dreamed.
I let go of the need to control others. I allow others to make their own way.
Possessions do not feed my spirit. I am liberated from the desire to hoard things.
I give things away freely.
I say goodbye to things and to people that are blocking my spiritual growth.
I let go of past relationships with love and clear my spirit of chains to the past to make way for new love to enter my life.
I breathe freely without constraints. My energy flows without care alongside the wayward winds.
The past is gone, the future uncertain. Today is now and I face it head on.
I let go of my regrets. I am grateful for lessons my past missteps taught me.
I release the chaotic mind. My mind is clear of distractions. I am focuses.

Love

There is so much love in this world, and there is so much love in my heart, but sometimes I forget. Sometimes I think there isn’t enough, or that there’s just a small amount, so I hoard what I have or I am afraid to let it go. I am afraid to let it out. But then I realize that the more love there is within me and the more I receive. It is endless and timeless. Love is really the most powerful healing force that there is. Without love, I could not survive at all. Love heals, so I give it and accept it without limitation.

Happiness

We are addicted to pleasure, in part because we confuse pleasure with happiness. We would all say that deep down, all we want is to be happy. Yet we don't have a realistic understanding of what happiness really is. Happiness is closer to the experience of acceptance and contentment than it is to pleasure. True happiness exists as the spacious and compassionate heart's willingness to feel whatever is present." – Noah Levine, Against the Stream: A Buddhist Manual for Spiritual Revolutionaries

Humility and Gratitude

"Humility and gratitude go hand in hand. The feeling of gratitude is an interaction between the mind and the body. Both will benefit from it. Awareness increases so that we become grateful for everything we are given. We have to learn, literally learn, to be grateful for what we receive day by day, simply to balance the criticism that, day by day, we voice because of powerful emotions." - Swami Sivinanda Radha

Faith

When you come to the edge of all the light you know and are about to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things will happen. There will be solid ground to stand on or you will be taught to fly.

Choose Love

Today I choose to let love guide my every thought, choice, word and deed. I imagine a world that works for everyone, and become that place. I AM a loving presence in the world, and allow that love to go before me, illuminating my mind and my path, and leaving every moment, every conversation, every person that I encounter better than I found them.

Today I remember that love is the greatest power, and that ultimately, nothing can stand before it. - Jeff Anderson

All Things Change

Even in the stillness of a yoga pose, energy is constantly moving and changing. Hanging on too tight to possessions, people, or ideas can cause us to get stuck. We enter and leave this world with nothing. Everything we have here is temporary. What are you scared to lose? What do you cling to?

Aparigraha

When we hold our breath, we actively prohibit the experience of a new breath. When we are holding so much that are hands are full, we prohibit the capacity to hold even one more item. When we set forth holding pre-determined ideas and beliefs, we inhibit our capacity to discover new ideas and experiences. We must carefully consider which objects and ideas we choose to hold on to. The more we have, the more we need to take care of. Our breath is a constant guide for us, continually releasing to make room for new breath. At some point, we simply must let go of the old to make room for the new. Each time we exhale consciously, each time we bring our awareness back to the breath - we are learning to be comfortable with letting go. We are learning to let go of what we no longer need, in order to make space for the growth that matters the most to each of us.

Miracle

“If you choose to see everything as a miracle, then where you are right now is perfect. There is nowhere to run to; there is nothing else to do except be in this moment and allow what is to be. From that place of radical acceptance, major change can happen. The first step in any transformational experience is acceptance and surrender to the present moment, the way that it is. From that place we have the awareness, humility and power to change what is.” — Mastin Kipp