Let Us Eat Cake

“The other day a young person asked me how I felt about being old. I was taken aback, for I do not think of myself as old. Upon seeing my reaction, she was immediately embarrassed, but I explained that it was an interesting question, and I would ponder it, and let her know.

Old age, I decided, is a gift. I am now, probably for the first time in my life, the person I have always wanted to be.  Oh, not my body!  I sometime despair over my body, the, the baggy eyes, and the sagging butt.  And often I am taken aback by that old person that lives in my mirror, but I don’t agonize over those things for long.

I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, my loving family for less gray hair or a flatter belly.  As I’ve aged, I’ve become more kind to myself, and less critical of myself.  I’ve become my own friend.  I don’t chide myself for eating that extra cookie, or for not making my bed, or for buying that silly cement gecko that I didn’t need, but looks so avant garde on my patio.  I am entitled to overeat, to be messy, to be extravagant.  I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging.

Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 a. m, and sleep until noon? I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60′s, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love … I will.

I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the bikini set.  They, too, will get old.

I know I am sometimes forgetful.  But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten … and I eventually remember the important things.

Sure, over the years my heart has been broken.  How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when a beloved pet gets hit by a car?  But broken hearts are what give us strength and understanding and compassion.  A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.

I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turn gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face.  So many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair could turn silver.  I can say “no,” and mean it. I can say “yes,” and mean it.

As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about what other people think.  I don’t question myself anymore.  I’ve even earned the right to be wrong.

So, to answer the question, I like being old.  It has set me free.  I like the person I have become.  I am not going to live forever, but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be.

 And I shall eat dessert every single day.”

 ~Author Unknown~

When I read the above quote, I was struck by how much of this quotation resinated with me. As a matter of fact, it all of it spoke to me. When I wasn’t looking I have become my other. The grey hair makes my head look like I have great highlights.

I, like others of my age,  feel as if I’m no order than 20, just  a kid finding my footime.If I’m to live until 100, I am more than half way through my life. There is so much more to see, experiennce, learn and do. If you’re pulled to do a  ”bucket list”, now is the time. Tick tock the clock losses a second at a time, which means we need to step up our game and do what we want or needed to do. 

I am happier that I’ve ever been. Frankly, I’m too tired, too old and too cranky to get sucked into someone else’s drama; don’t start none. won’t be none. The light and the love of a Lightworker is what interests me;to be a part of a “village” for children is important to  me;  to love a man with my whole heart is what is important to me; to love my daughter, som-in-law and beloved grandson O’Farrell is what is important to me; to be a productive citizen is what is important to me; to love my Buddha” body just as it is is what is important to me; to love and protect my beloved mother, Beatrice is what is important to me; to love all my family and all my friends with all of my heart is what is important to me; to teach others through my intuition and spirituality is what is important to me; to freely share the light and love of Father=Mother God is important to me; to share laughter is what is important to me, and to leave this world a little better for my being here is what is important  to me.

Don’t run out and each so much sugar that you send your body into a coma; that is not what I’m adoicating, just use descernment to make your life choices and by doing so, we will all be able  to eat more cake.

 

STREET CLEANER

Conflict comes to all of us at one time or another; it’s a fact of being human. Conflict is a natural disagreement resulting from people that differ in understanding of their needs, values, beliefs, and attitudes.

Needs are things that are perceived as essential to our well-being. Conflicts arise when we ignore our needs, the need of others’, or a group’s needs. “I need a certain amount of income to sustain me in the manner to which I have become accustomed.”

 Values are priorities or standards, or the misperceptions of what is of priority to our well-being. “There is value in earning an honest dollar.”

 Beliefs are firm opinions; trust or confidence of something beneficial to our well-being. “I believe my God is better than your God.”

 Attitudes are opinions, a way of thinking or behavior reflecting this opinion. “She walked into the room with the attitude she was far superior to anyone else in the room.”

 Power is another important influence on the number and types of conflicts that occur. This also influences how conflict is managed. Conflicts can arise when people try to make others change their actions or to gain an unfair advantage.

Serious conflicts arise when people hold incompatible values or when values are not clear or one party refuses to accept the fact that the other party holds something as a value rather than a preference.

 Many people let their feelings and emotions become a major influence over how they deal with conflict. Conflicts can also occur because people ignore their own or others’ feelings and emotions. Other conflicts occur when feelings and emotions differ over a particular issue.

So, what do we do with conflict? How does a Lightworker handle conflict? Ignoring the situation won’t work, because we know sooner or later the issue must be dealt with or it will keep showing up until we find a remedy. So, one of the first steps is to get honest. I mean really getting honest with ourselves and that honesty enables us to ‘clean up our side of the street’. Once we are able to identify our crap, then it’s time to start cleaning up our side of the street, and that ain’t easy, but it is necessary.

 I was introduced to the twelve steps by my Cowboy. He came to Harmony looking for answers, which he found after a divine intervention, most likely orchestrated by his deceased spouse, the compulsion to drink was removed. He began to download metaphysical information and was led to join AA to maintain his sobriety and fulfill the calling to helping others toward recovery using both metaphysics and the twelve step program.

 The following are the steps that are outlined in Alcohols Anonymous’ “Big Book”. The subject is alcohol, but we can substitute alcohol for drugs, food, all addiction, fear, anger, hostility, the list is endless. Here are those steps toward recovery as provided by Bill W. and tweaked just a little to work for all of us:

      I.        We admitted we were powerless over alcohol (fill in the blank) that our lives had been unmanageable.

    II.        Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.

   III.        Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God, as we understand Him.

    IV.        Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

     V.        Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

    VI.        Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.

  VII.        Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.

  VIII.      Made a list of all persons we have harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.

    IX.        Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.

    X.        Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.

    XI.        Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, as we understood Him,   praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.

  XII.        Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics (and any others that can benefit from these steps), and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

 Now I image that anyone facing these twelve steps would be overwhelmed at the prospect. So don’t look at the twelve steps as one, but look at each step as just that, one step at a time. With time, and patience, we can work toward our spiritual growth. We are the authors of our own story, therefore, we can write a different ending.  One thing to keep in mind is the actor, which is you, can be self-centered, ego-centric, mean spirited, self-pitied, self-deluding and retaliatory, so let’s claim spiritual progress rather than spiritual perfection. Life doesn’t stay put, life is fluid, always moving, so there is always change and that change must be factored into your plan of recovery.

We have to quit playing God, it doesn’t work; only God can play God and that’s alright. We are the actors of our story and God is the director. With our connection to the God of our understanding, we can find the power, and wisdom and the will to walk these steps. As metaphysicians we know that the road may be rocky, but we are equipped to take on all the challenges that may be further down the road.

 Action is the last character to our story. Without action, we are no further along than sitting back and looking at a post card. We see paradise but have no way to get there, and we want to get there and bask in the light of Mother/Father God, or the God of your understanding. We want to see and experience it all for ourselves.

Once we walk through all the steps, when we have taken our own inventory; when we have connected with the God of our understanding then I believe we have cleaned our side of the street; after that we can sit back and see what new adventure life has in store for us.

Namaste’

You and Your Body Are One

If you have read any of Louise Hay’s books you would know that she believes that emotional/mental pain translated to physical dis-ease. I know that she is absolutely right from personal experience. Stress, unhappiness, disappointment, fear, and regret are just some of the things that cause dis-ease. Mine was not living an authentic life. I had a job I hated and a marriage that was over before it had begun. I knew it was doomed by the end of the first year, but I stayed in it for five years. I hated myself and I hated my life. I had no creative outlet and it felt as if my soul was dying.

If you check out her book, “You Can Heal Your Life”, you may have a better understanding of what is going on in your life. Take this time to learn from your body, listen to it, and then find a way to change your thinking which in turn will change your health. New ways of thinking CAN, without a doubt, change how you feel about yourself and your body. Allow any dis-ease you may be dealing with become your teacher. Learn the lessons before you and see yourself as whole, healed and healthy and your body will too.

Namaste