“I am SO happy! My life is perfect! I couldn’t possibly ask for more! I am healthy! I see good in all people and living creatures! I see the beauty in nature! I appreciate every single little thing about right here and right now! I am present! I have everything I could ever want or need! I am so lucky that I have work that I love and that returns so much to me! I am so lucky that I have so much free time to spend with my son, my friends, and my family! I have the best son in the world who gives me opportunities daily to prove to myself that I am a loving, patient, kind mother! I am so in love! I have the best partner in the world who treats me like a queen and gives me opportunities daily to show myself what a great partner I can be too. No one can ever hurt me! I am full of energy! I am never bored! I am beautiful! I can eat whatever I want and still be healthy and pretty! I am getting younger! My home is so perfect for me and my family! I am intuitive and I am always guided in the right direction! And I actually pay attention to the guidance, thank goodness! I AM SO EXCITED!!! How did I find so many great people to share this experience?? I am the luckiest person in the entire world! Life is good! Life is so much better than good!”

This is what I try to do every day. It only takes a few minutes and I actually feel very excited when I write this. (How can I not with all those exclamation points?) I can actually feel the vibration in my body rising and the happiness increasing. I can feel physical effects and I am simply talking to myself. Incredible! And what if there is such thing as the Law of Attraction – then I have just started attracting a whole lot more happiness! Sometimes what I write isn’t actually something I am experiencing NOW. However, I always speak as though it is. And honestly, 90% of what is written above is a reality of my life. Some of it wasn’t always, but I have been saying these statements for a long time. I never gave up even when there was no evidence of it in front of me. And now I have some things I never ever thought I’d have. Five minutes a day – that is all it takes. Sometimes I spend a little more time fantasizing about certain aspects of these as I drive in the car or wash dishes, but I still consider it FUN!

Try it! It may just work like I think it does!

Sorry it's been so long since my last post!

Wow, am I the worst blogger in the world, or what? :) I have thought about posting every day. But I have just been caught up in life and I haven’t found the time! The good news is that I AM creating Heaven on Earth, I really am. I am so incredibly happy and blessed that I have no complaints at all. Life is good. And in the process of this creation, I have acquired some insights. Hopefully these will inspire you if I share! :)

I have read over and over and over that by actually wanting something, you push it away. I understood the concept. The popular theory, the Law of Attraction, states that 'like attracts like' or more specifically like feelings are attracted to other like feelings. So if you feel happy then you attract more happy feelings. If you feel wealthy, you attract more wealth, etc. So it makes sense that if you WANT something, then you are feeling like you don’t have it – or else you wouldn’t WANT it! So you are feeling the lack of it or you are feeling the wanting of it, both of which are not having it. Right? I mean, I get it. But how to you get stuff you want if you can’t WANT it?? Wow, the tough questions!!

I guess I didn’t know the answer. I practiced lying to myself or trying to fool myself that I already had something I wanted. I can’t honestly report that this works – although I am not giving up on trying. I didn’t really like the idea of just not wanting it – because I obviously want it!!

I also practice appreciating all I have in hopes that I will attract more things that I appreciate. I think this may be effective because I sure do appreciate so much in my life and it seems like more and more appears in my life daily that I appreciate greatly.

But the insight I have found recently is slightly different, and I’m not entirely sure it is encouraging, EXCEPT that I may be gaining understanding of how to actually control/create my life! I have found recently that the things I want…the things that I remember at a very specific time thinking, “I really want…” but then I didn’t really think too much about it again. Or the things that I really wanted but I gave up on. Those things seem to magically appear!

Let me give you two examples. I remember standing in my bathroom and thinking for just a moment that I wish I had more friends to do things with when I don’t have my son. It was almost fleeting. I wasn’t stressed or upset about it. I just put a desire out there and I didn’t fight against it by worrying about it and attracting more worrying about it. And now, within the past two months, I have so many great friends that I can’t even find enough time for all of them! Hence, no blogging recently!

Secondly, I had decided that I was good alone. I've always felt like I didn’t need a partner to make me happy – and there is truth to that. But I was always looking and hoping, I guess. But one day I was just good with it, you know? I guess I was just at peace with where I am and I had no concern with being in a different place. Then, almost immediately, it was as if doors to love just opened up! It is almost like I literally had this force field holding away what I wanted until I didn’t want it anymore.

So I know this sounds discouraging because people don’t want to give up wanting what they want, but I’m going to offer the solution that I have found effective. (I have also read this countless times.) Have faith. Have enough faith in the Universe, in God (if you choose to use that word – I use the term God as in the All That Is, the Source of Everything). Trust in the creative process and in yourself (who is, in actuality, a piece of God). Have faith that this is how it all works. I think Jesus, and the Buddha, and other such masters, understood that we are all fragments of God, of the ultimate creative source. We were sent here to play and learn and make things! And if we just believed in our power, we’d create them a whole lot quicker, and we could move on to creating even greater things! So that is my advice of the day. As Jesus said, “Knock at the door and it shall be opened. Ask and you shall receive.” I’m not trying to preach here – I’m just saying maybe he was onto something! :) Put the desire out there and have faith you'll get it, and you will end up creating your Heaven on Earth!! You don't have to WANT what you already have -- and if you're faith in you (and my faith in me) was strong enough, we'd understand that just by asking for it, it is already given to us. We never have to want again! How is that for the beauty of the Universe?

Have control over your thoughts. I can pretty much guarantee that this is what those we deem as “masters” have that the rest of us don’t! And how do the do it? They pay attention to what they think and they meditate! I know that I have personally been failing miserably at this recently. I find myself realizing the nonsense that is running around in my mind and I say, “Why? Why am I wasting energy and time on these thoughts!?”

I believe the hardest part of creating a life you want is being aware of your thoughts and having control over your thoughts. Pause throughout your day and pay attention to what you are thinking about. It is quite interesting. I know half the time I am thinking about something I should have done, or I need to do. Or I’m thinking about other people’s business. Or maybe I am replaying last night’s events or thinking about a TV show I watched. Nonsense! It is all nonsense!!

And why is my mind running wild with garbage? I believe it’s because I’ve been all wrapped up in my dramas lately and haven’t taken the time to meditate much. As a matter of fact, I am so involved in my dramas that I find it nearly impossible to quiet my mind TO meditate!

And I can tell you that I have significantly more nonsense clogging my brain when I don’t meditate. My regular routine (when I am disciplined) is to meditate for 20 minutes in the morning and 20 minutes in the evening. Now I could write for days about meditation. I think it is a VERY important topic.

Let me explain to you my process and how mediation benefits me on a physical level. One, it really does slow down the mindless chatter that invades my head all the time. I have read this is worse for women because we have a larger corpus callosum, so there is a greater connection between the two hemispheres of the brain. Meaning that there is ALWAYS something rattling around in our brains! And if we can turn it off, it came with MUCH practice.

So here’s my process: I exercise, or at least do some yoga stretches. This helps tremendously. Why? I don’t know. But the yogis are on to something. Next, I relax my body. I used to have this elaborate process where I had to lay flat, picture my toes turning to sand and blowing away in the wind or visualizing my legs turning to water and washing away. I’d do that all the way to the top of my head, until I literally could not feel my body. I have practiced meditation so much that I can just sit down (if I don’t have an impeding drama I can’t shut off in my mind), take few deep breaths, and fall into a meditative state quite easily. My hearing is more acute and I cannot feel the rest of my body. You know you are in a meditative state when you cannot feel your body. Now, you may feel one part of your body. For example, you may feel like you are all hand or all head. I usually feel like I am behind my forehead. It sounds odd, but it is a very pleasant feeling. It can feel very much like having a buzz. I believe this is why people have called meditation a “wise high”. I often get a distorted physical sensation that could be similar to being high. Not that I would know!

Additionally, meditation can be likened to a buzz because it helps you focus on the present. This is so incredible important and so incredible challenging. I think most of us realize that nothing matters other than this present moment. And most of us are missing it. Our head is dancing with the garbage clogging our minds and we are missing the present moment. Meditation is like the Drano. I am going to talk more about this next time. For now, I’m going to stretch, sit in the lotus position, and get out the meditation Drano!! It is time for the nonsense to get washed down the drain!

I had a moment of clarity today. It was literally one moment. It lasted for mere seconds but luckily it felt so real, it stuck with me. It is going to sound entirely too simple. I know this. But it just may be the key -- the key to happiness, to peace.

So, as I walked into my classroom today, I realized that everything is perfect exactly as it is. It was a simple thought that hit me like an all-knowing anvil dropping from the sky. Now, I have heard this said before. Of course, I always thought it was crap. I even thought it was a copout for settling for the things in life that we don’t like. I didn’t want to hear it. I thought about what that meant for me. For example, “Oh, I can’t afford to go on vacation, but I should just be happy staying home. Or my relationship is irritating me but instead of fixing it, I should just accept it and ignore what I don’t like.” I was having no part of this philosophy, even though it was presented to me over and over again.

Today, clarity. (Oh please let me hold onto to this for more than a few hours!) I’m grappling for a way to explain this. It was as if my head was opened and information was dumped in, a sort of ‘knowing’ without words. So I am digging for my own.

If I relate this to my goals for the year it may help. So I said I wanted to find a romantic relationship. I still believe there are advantages to sharing your life with someone. But today, I realize it is just as perfect at this moment to share my life with – well, the people I’m sharing my life with right now. I realize that some things would change if I were to be in a romantic relationship. For one, I’d spend more time with that person. Well, right now, I feel like there already aren’t enough hours in the day for the time I want to get in with the people I care about. I am doing something all the time with my son, friends, and family. And I am having so much fun. The reality is that if I started a romantic relationship that would change somewhat. Now, this doesn’t mean I don’t WANT one, but it means why LOOK for one. I think if I am doing my thing, and I happen across someone I want to spend more time with, then I simply will. Why would I ever put thought toward NOT having a romantic relationship when if I just focus on right NOW, everything is perfect? Oh, the power of NOW!!

I want a lot of money. Well, so if I had a lot of money, I probably wouldn’t have gone to work today. If I hadn’t gone to work, I wouldn’t have seen my students. And every day I learn from them, I laugh with them. This day would be different. And why not just love it for what it is. And just what if I actually said something that stuck with them – that helped them! :-) Ha ha! They would’ve missed out on that experience. Today is perfect.

I think the key is to put the intentions out there; visualize something you want; expect to get it; know you are the ultimate creator of your life – know that you even control the outside influences; and then just let it go. Have faith that it works – you desire it and because the Universe is so brilliantly designed, everything aligns and it comes to you. And then just smile at how things are, because they really are perfect. You are learning from something right now. You are influencing someone. You are changing. Even the hard things are gifts. Nothing is wrong – even if you perceive it as wrong right now, but you are learning appreciation from it. All of it is perfect. It really is. It really, truly is.

"Life is largely a matter of expectation." Horace
Today I want to talk about expectations. I think expectations are ultimately what create our experience. I have stated that thoughts become our reality, but in truth, I don’t believe every day random thoughts create much of anything. Continual thoughts with emotion behind them lead to beliefs, and beliefs generate our expectations. And, I believe, expectations are the building blocks of our very lives.

This weekend was a good example of this for me. I believe that I am very lucky. By lucky, I don’t mean accidental good things happen to me. I mean that I cause good things to happen to me. I expect good things to happen to me. I lost my debit card this weekend. I never panicked about this. I just knew it would be found and all would be fine. I expected it to turn out that way. Someone found my debit card and took it to my bank. Isn’t that amazing? I love people. It is one thing to find a card and just not use it, but to return it to the bank is really exceptional. I am so grateful. I knew all along it would turn out fine, but I’m always thankful for the generosity and good nature of people.

Years ago I used my thoughts to create this reality. I told myself over and over that I was very lucky. I would turn the radio off in the car and I would repeat this to myself over and over. I eventually believed I was lucky and I expected good things to happen to me. I can think of countless instances of how this paid off for me. Here are some examples:

*I was by myself, driving from Indiana to California (adventurous me!). At 2AM, I was in that stretch of Kansas or Utah or somewhere where very few people inhabit. I locked my keys in my car at a gas station. No AAA, closest friend three states away. As I stood there and scratched my head, a locksmith pulled up to the pump next to me!

*I needed a place to live, and I didn’t have much to spend per month. I got a call from a friend who found me a beautiful place to live, great location, great neighbors, huge rooms, fully furnished, for incredibly cheap! Really, crazy cheap!

*I won an eye surgery to correct my vision!

*I won a 42”, flat screen, plasma TV at a Super bowl Party!

*My son and I were in the Atlanta airport when they grounded tons of planes because they needed to be inspected. A door had fallen off of a plane earlier in the day. It was awful! So my son and I were in a line – hundreds of people in front of us, hundreds of people behind us. A gentleman came out of no where, offered us a Preferred Member pass, and we were the last two people on one of the very few planes leaving Atlanta that night!

I have way too many of these stories to list here. But I want you to think about your expectations. If they aren’t what you want them to be, then drill new thoughts in your head until you begin to believe them. Your expectations will follow your beliefs. Expect it and it will be reflected in your physical experience. I believe good things happen to me. And, therefore, they do!! So now it is time for me to go bigger! I expect to succeed at producing something spectacular this year! You with me?? :-)

Continuing my last post…I didn’t always see beauty in everyone. I’ve spent probably the last four or five years, trying to tap into a part of me that is bigger. My soul, maybe? The part of me that is all-knowing, that is all love? I believe that there is a broader ‘me’ that holds all of my knowledge, and this part of me is my direct connection with a greater understanding. Its okay if you don’t have this belief, I can’t say I have any real evidence of it, other than it feels like the truth to me.

So, I’ve spent all this time meditating and asking for clear communication from the ‘broader me’. And I think by intending to “listen” to a greater version of me, I’ve tapped into something incredible. And at the same time, I also started to feel more love and see more beauty in all things, even what I’d label, prior to this change, as “ugly” things. I think by intending to communicate with my Higher Self and intend to gain something from doing so, I changed. I changed in many positive ways. Namely, and the point of today’s blog, is that I started to love more and to judge less.

I mentioned in my last post that I believe we are all ONE. I won’t elaborate too much on this right now because I’m not sure I understand it enough to offer a clear picture. I don't think that we are separate, but a simpler explanation, for me, is that we are all made of the same fabric. We came from the same beginnings and we are heading toward the same goal. By that, I mean we are all trying to BECOME. We are all expanding and growing. We all want love and joy. I think we are all working toward that – there are just endless ways to get there. And once I realized we are all just trying to be happy and I saw beauty in the variety of paths we are taking to get there, I started seeing a lot more beauty, and casting a lot fewer judgments.

What if everyone looked at each other and saw beauty like I saw when I looked at the ATM woman (from the previous post); wouldn’t the world be a better place? Oh, what if? And what if everyone knew that their path to greater joy was perfect and so is everyone else’s. Oh, wouldn’t that be great? Wouldn’t there be more respect and love and security? I think so. This is my truth. This is how I choose to see it. And this is how I AM slowly creating my own Heaven on Earth. :-)

I’m sorry I haven’t posted in a few days. Sometimes life happens and I get caught up! :)

So, today I’d like to talk about how I see good in everyone. I believe this ties into my spiritual connection from within. I am trying to be honest with myself and throwing all sorts of scenarios around in my head, so I can admit it if I just see good in some people and not others. But, I think that in this area, I have grown considerably in the last few years, and I can honestly say that I see good in everyone. It isn’t as though I can’t see when someone is acting “bad” or “mean” or any of those negative terms we use. I can see it, but still, when I look at the person, I still see good. It sounds so simple to say, but I think this is monumental really.

Also, so often throughout my day, I watch people and I see beauty. The waiter, the cashier, the mechanic, the librarian… I really do see beauty in all of them. I was at the ATM the other day. I was behind this old pickup truck. This woman got out of the passenger door. She had on an old flannel shirt and faded blue jeans. I don’t think she spent much, if any, time looking in the mirror before she left the house. I watched her and I thought she was so beautiful. And I wanted to tell her, but I was in my car, and I realized she may think that I was being insincere. I realized that perhaps I could see more beauty in her than she could see herself. Maybe not. I hope not. I know it sounds too corny to be true, and it isn’t that way 100% of the time, but most of the time, it is true, I see the beauty in all things, especially living things, most especially people.

I’m going to elaborate more on this tomorrow; how my desire to tap into some spiritual guidance from within coincided with seeing beauty in people. I think I’m very slowly coming to the understanding that we are all one. That is so hard to wrap your brain around at first, I think. But maybe when you are getting closer to conceptualizing this, you see beauty in everyone, because you know they are also you. When I think about this for a while, it feels like my brain is tangled in knots! But perhaps the very fabric of our natures, of who we are and what we come from, is all connected. Perhaps we are all ONE.