Author Archives: Andrea
Current mood: doing the happy dance
A shell of his former self
Be like the sunflower
How beautiful to decide to deal with the monster under the bed
I love it when friends write about past mistakes they’ve made and what they’ve learned from them; when they take responsibility for what they’ve attracted in the Now as a result. A friend writes: “I think it is fair to say that my friends, family, peers and loved ones know that I don’t exactly have a propensity toward anger. Assuming that is true I did something a couple of days ago that would make up for a lifetime of refraining from this destructive emotion of anger when I wrote a letter that was unmerited, unjustified, critical and on the mean spirited side to another professional who has only had my best interest at heart. This begs the ultimate question “Have I lost my ever loving frickin mind”? The letter reflected nothing less than projection which reflected an anger that is totally displaced. Bringing pain and heart ache into the lives of others is not consistent with any form of spirituality that I am aware of.
You want to heal and teach? Tell the story as it really happened
I already know what the spin will be. The spin will be the house was in foreclosure, the court date was coming up and everyone was moving out anyway. That doesn’t negate a year of unnecessary blowups, refusal to help when asked, not paying rent, habitually lying, disrespecting your parent in their own home, letting your girlfriend do the same and causing a massive scene of hateful words upon departure. Living across the street, I hear more than I want to hear. He has never left a relationship honorably, not even with family. Both of them spin tales in their blogs about their journey of enlightenment, not writing about what actually goes on day by day, the real life lessons. Yes, he acted dishonorably and won’t admit it, but she takes it to a whole new level of continued outright fabrication. If it was me? If I had done that? I’d be sorry for the hurt I’d caused. I’d own up to what I did and recognize I did it out of a place of imbalance. I’d apologize for being unconscious and acting selfishly. Now that’s a hot topic for a blog post – the truth about a difficult situation and how you really handled it. That is what teaches, that is what heals. But, since it’s not me, I don’t expect that to happen. Continue reading
Whoever you are, the door is always open
A friend writes, “I didn’t want to leave it this way. I wanted to say I’m sorry I hurt you. You did nothing but help and I lied and took advantage. I loved you in my way. Your kindness, your light, I couldn’t handle it. Another excuse I know. But I wanted to leave with the door open between us. I am sorry.”
A morning meditation
… Sit twice a day for 20 minutes at a time …
Morning meditation. A lot to be thankful for. A new day, a new beginning, a fresh start. Starting right now, I can be more mindful as I go about my day, to draw every bit of juicy sweetness out of it as possible. I want to expand myself to live my most full and meaningful life. I want to live a life that encourages opening eyes to the simple wonder we live in and to how powerful we all are. Truth and transparency set you free like nothing else. Doubt leaves, Grace descends. The more I look to be grateful for, the more profoundly I am blessed.
RELATED: Meditation links
A walk through the hours of the day in a Benedictine monastery
Elizabeth Griffin writes :”I have often had an image of myself as a monk in housewife garb. It’s a portrait that does not present any sense of struggle as much as reminding me of who I am within. I know my path is not a cloistered one. Still, I have always been interested in a hermit’s ethic. To my delight, I recently discovered the books of David Steindl-Rast. He is a Benedictine Monk, originally from Austria, who resettled in the States and lives in a Monastery in Big Sur, CA. He wrote a book called Music of Silence, in which he walks the reader from morning until night from the point of view of his religious order. The day is broken into parts that are accompanied by chants and prayer. So each segment of the day has characteristics on which reflection can take place.
As a parent, do you enable or disable your children? Do the tv shows they watch enable them or disable them?
I didn’t raise kids, although we had custody of a stepdaughter for 3 years. She was independent, she was smart, she was street savvy. That was all good since her mother left her on her own so much from age 4 until we got her at age 10. I had insights this year about why the new generation is like they are. Many of them have had to raise themselves. Many of them are under-educated and emotionally over-charged. A friend has two children she’s left unattended overnight all year long as she spends nights at her boyfriend’s. They are used to raising themselves. Their home schooling leaves them unprepared and under-socialized, their peers and role models are on tv. Each is emotionally halted at about age 10. Continue reading