Are you telling a great Story?


My friend Emeli has chosen Stories as the theme of her next workshop, based on stories can carry us, or break us: Collective Potential. At different times in our lives we listen to different stories, some empowering , others that take us to the depths of despair. What is it that has us choose to stop listening to the empowering ones? I have a friend who never seems to do this , he says he does it by concentrating on living in the moment.

There are many varieties of quotes that relate to our stories, I think I have chosen wisely in the 15 I have selected today, let us begin our journey.

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1. Delicious ambiguity, what a beautiful term. Add some zest to your life by not knowing what the next moment is going to be.

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2. What were your favourite kids stories, I liked Charlie Brown.  Sir Terence David John “Terry” Pratchett, OBE was an English author of fantasy novels, especially comical works. He is best known for his Discworld series of 41 novels. Pratchett’s first novel, The Carpet People, was published in 1971; after the first Discworld novel, The Colour of Magic, was published in 1983, he wrote two books a year on average. His 2011 Discworld novel Snuff was at the time of its release the third-fastest-selling hardback adult-readership novel since records began in the UK, selling 55,000 copies in the first three days. His final Discworld novel, The Shepherd’s Crown, was published in August 2015, five months after his death.

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3. That voice in your head speak in words like I am and I always. The stories of our life link us, such as I have two sisters Ruth and Jann and an older brother Hugo. Christina Baldwin is founder of , Peerspirit.com living on our planet with Nature powerfully.

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4. As young children we have imaginary friends, believe in Unicorns and the fae. Society seems to delight in suppressing these as we grow older. Terry Prachett speaks to those of us that survive this.

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5. My writing teacher Catherine Deveny, The Dev says you should always be truthful in your words. then you don’t have to remember what you said or wrote, because it is the truth.

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6. 7 billion of them, each unique. Make it as good a one as it can be.

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7. This to me is a Sacred Story from a life of Sacred love.

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8. Perfectionism is the booby prize, how do you enjoy the journey?

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9. Memories are often written in a song – some Elvis : Memories.

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10. Neil Gaiman gave one of the most inspirational commencement speeches ever about making some art, its long but worth the time : Make some Art.

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11. Putting Yellow stickies on our fridges to express our feelings to our beloved, a noble past time.

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12. Sacred Love – to be told or tell someone I Love You and realising that It never has to be said again but that it will for the rest of their lives.

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13. Terry Prachett again. Who is going to write your story, moi or someone else?

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14. ANNA QUINDLEN is a novelist and journalist whose work has appeared on fiction, nonfiction, and self-help bestseller lists. She is the author of eight novels: Object Lessons, One True Thing, Black and Blue, Blessings, Rise and Shine, Every Last One, Still Life with Bread Crumbs, and Miller’s Valley. Her memoir Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake, published in 2012, was a number one New York Times bestseller. Her book A Short Guide to a Happy Life has sold more than a million copies. While a columnist at The New York Times she won the Pulitzer Prize and published two collections, Living Out Loud and Thinking Out Loud. Her Newsweek columns were collected in Loud and Clear. She loves London : Streets of London.

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15. A reminder for number 15. Only you can remember how you see the world, so tell those stories proudly. You are a divine being.

Remember behind every favourite song, there is an untold story. Please tell your Sacred stories.

Namaste until next time my dear friends.

Namaste2

 

 

 

 

 

 

Space is the Place!!


My friends Emeli and Jodi run a social enterprise called Collective Potential, their mission is to: Create spaces for people to connect in real life and provide experiences and resources to create fulfilling lives: Collective Potential website.

It got me to thinking about what does this term creating space mean? Perhaps its talking about astronaut space, physiological space, acreage space, there are many to choose from. I have chosen from a wide range of modalities for the 15 quotes today, lets begin:

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1. One of the two most famous philosophers in the world Unknown and Anonymous, Unknown says that we need to let go to allow better things to happen to us.

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2. Never devalue your worth for another, never.

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3. Well known blogger Melanie Koulouris is famous for her Life has taught me poem. This is a beautiful quote about the need for space on your spiritual path.

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4. If you are leading a totally full life, there are time you may need to delete some of it to allow for growth. Randy Gage, author of Mad Genius, a manifesto points out that this means people as well.

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5. Busyness means that life can become a bit hum drum with all of that doing, remember to have space for a creative outlet amongst it all, mine are dance, Tai Chi and singing.

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6. Something borrowed, something new, something blue: that space that is happening is occurring for the new shiny you to emerge from the ashes. Time for the title song : Sun Ra’s opus.

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7. Our job is to turn our minds down and listen to the body, our home. In the silence we can welcome the rest of the world.

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8. Saying Hello to the new and goodbye to the old. There was a famous song written about this in the sixties by the lads from Liverpool : Hello Goodbye, check out those outfits.

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9. Little boxes all in a row, modern architecture of convenience has seen the beauty of previous time periods be  eroded into fitting in as many people as we can on one block.

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10. Come home my darling, you know where I am. How many of us enter our sacred space on a daily routine. The bliss king Joseph Campbell says this is where to go to when you feel lost.

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11.  I promise to laugh with you, cry with you, and grow with you. I will love you when we are together and when we are apart. I promise to support your dreams and to respect our DIFFERENCES, and to love you and be by your side through all the days and nights of our lives.

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12. Turn around, you are going the wrong way. Yes you, are you listening?

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13. You can be anybody in this space, most definitely not the authentic you.

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14. Enter your space ship of light. Back in 1972 David had something to say about this : Space Oddity.

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15. Democritus was an influential Ancient Greek pre-Socratic philosopher primarily remembered today for his formulation of an atomic theory of the universe. He was born in Abdera, Thrace, around 460 BC, although, some thought it was 490 BC. Atoms and empty space, puts it in perspective doesn’t it.

In other words, all of those points that I made about how to hold space for others can and should be applied to yourself first. Give yourself permission to trust your own intuition. Give yourself only as much information as you can handle. Don’t let anyone take your power away. Keep your ego out of it. Make yourself feel safe enough to fail. Give guidance and help to yourself with humility and thoughtfulness. Create your own container for complex emotions, fears, trauma, etc. And allow yourself to make decisions that are different from what other people would make.

Namaste until next time my dear friends.

Namaste2

 

 

The Quality of Happiness!!


I chose this subject because I have begun reading Luminita Saviuc’s AKA the Purpose Fairy’s 15 Things you should give up in order to be Happy. Luminita had been faithfully writing her blog when this particular one received over one million hits.

What fascinates people about being happy? it is the most popular answer when we are asked what do we want in life and one of the most common things sung about, remember the iconic song by Pharrell Williams : Happy!!

There are thousands of words that have appeared on happiness quotes over the centuries and I have chosen some featuring the word and others that point to it for our journey down our happiness trail: Let’s begin.

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1. There are many forms of happy throughout the word, possible 7,000,000,000 of them as we are all unique individuals.

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2. Have you been told you are gorgeous today? There, I bet that put a smile on your face.

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3. Will I listen to one of my 30,000 – 98 days worth of music on my Itunes, watch a Netflix documentary or read one of my favourite Brian Johnson’s Philosophers Notes, you have the ability to choose to do what makes you happy moment to moment, it is not in the hand of others.

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4. Sorry for spilling it everywhere, with happiness comes awesomeness.

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5. Mandy Hale is affectionately known as The Single Woman TM around the world. In just over two years, Mandy has garnered a massive Twitter following of a half a million people from across the globe. With a heart to inspire single women to live their best lives and to never, ever settle, Mandy cuts to the heart of the matter with her inspirational, straight-talking, witty, and often wildly humorous take on life and love.

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6. Is it kosher to put another list in the middle of an existing list? I’m not sure but it’s a great list.

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7. Lots of films on happiness are made with a magical happy ending. Methinks they have forgotten the main gist of life.

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8. Too much thinking, that’s what my brain used to say to me during my mental health period. Luckily I discovered the work of Arion Light : The Activation School. This has allowed me to make this a possibility in my life.

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9. Don’t be burgled by this, stay Happy.

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10. Johny Cash agreed by covering this classic song : You are My Sunshine.

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11. One of the world’s greatest philosophers, Unknown points out the pleasure of dancing in the rain : Too much fun, We’re so Happy.

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12. Ben is an author and psychologist, he was widely known for his syndicated column, “The Marriage Clinic,” and for his many books, including I WILL, and I CAN.

He was active on the West Coast as a consulting psychologist and was much sought after as a lecturer throughout the states.

He’s best-known books are:
* Haste Rico Mientras Duermes/Become rich while you sleep (published by Editorial Sirio, Dec 1996)
* I Can (published by Wilshire Book Company, May 1985)
* I Will (Dec 1978)
* Grow Rich While You Sleep (Dec 1976)
* I Will The Art of Discovering Life’s Riches Gracefully (published by Prentice-Hall Inc, 1961)
* I Can! the Key to Life’s Golden Secrets (published by Cadillac Publishing Co. Jan 1955)

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13. Austin O’Malley was brave enough to write a book entitled The Cure for Alcoholism, unfortunately for society it wasn’t a big seller. I’m not sure what he means here but I think it means to live a quiet life.

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14. Cute quote photo of the blog, not sure I fully agree with this as I add service to happiness.

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15. Henry David Thoreau (July 12, 1817 – May 6, 1862) was an American author, poet, philosopher, abolitionist, naturalist,tax resister, development critic, surveyor, and historian. A leading transcendentalist,Thoreau is best known for his book Walden, a reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings, and his essay Resistance to Civil Government (also known as Civil Disobedience), an argument for disobedience to an unjust state. I love the beauty of this quote, Thoreau certainly lived it out in his busy life.

As I meander down the annals of time, I find I have more not less to be happy in my life about, to travel the journey with a smile on my face.

Namaste until next time, my dear friends.

Namaste2

 

Gratitude, Kindness Given!!


Is it a two way thing or something that is ultra personal? I have found from participating in a new Facebook group that it appears to be more of a two way thing: Daily Gratitude Space. The over 600 members of this group post a diverse range of things they are grateful for, from their family and friends, their favourite foods and such simple things as a sunny day or a walk in the bush.

People comment on each others postings and are often moved to put down what it reminds them of, a two way street. How does the world hold the power of gratitude, in the 15 quotes chosen there is a range from nearly no words to quite a lot. Lets begin the journey.

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1. You can be happy about being an utter bastard, but I can’t imagine it lasting that long. If you give your daily thanks to others it increases more and more in your life.

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2. John Fitzgerald “Jack” Kennedy, commonly referred to by his initials JFK, was an American politician who served as the 35th President of the United States from January 1961 until his assassination in November 1963. The Cuban Missile Crisis, The Bay of Pigs Invasion, the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, the establishment of the Peace Corps, developments in the Space Race, the building of the Berlin Wall, the Trade Expansion Act to lower tariffs, the Civil Rights Movement, the “New Frontier” domestic program, and abolition of the federal death penalty in the District of Columbia all took place during his presidency. Kennedy also avoided any significant increase in the American presence in Vietnam, refusing to commit combat troops and keeping the level of others, mostly military advisors, to only 16,000, compared to the 536,000 troops committed by his successor, Lyndon Johnson, by 1968. I’m sure the thousands of troops he did not send to Vietnam were grateful that he lived by his in his short life.

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3. A beautiful Mind-map of things we could be possibly grateful for on a daily basis.

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4. I posted a quote that said focus on your opportunities not your problems. I got a reply from a friend who said she enjoy talking about her problems with friends. I am studying a modality that states everything is a gift. I don’t know how she would have reacted to that.

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5. This is the simplest two word act of gratitude. I was known for not saying it in my mental health period, I’m getting better every day.

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6. This song that includes dozens of people from around the world expresses the power of Gratitude to me : Grateful, A Love Song to the World.

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7. I like the webpage this comes from – http://www.GratitudeHabitat.com. I’m sure its worth a visit to get more to be grateful for.

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8. Perhaps the thing we should be most grateful for, something we just assume will happen naturally. Think of the people you know who have passed unexpectedly, don’t take this for granted.

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9. Denis E. Waitley, is an American motivational speaker, writer and consultant. He has been recognized as the best-selling author of the audio series, The Psychology of Winning and books such as “Seeds of Greatness” and “The Winner’s Edge”. Waitley has been inducted into the International Speakers’ Hall of Fame. The yellow writing at the end made me think of another of my favourite gratitude songs : Big Yellow Taxi.

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10. Cute animal photo and quote of the day, Aaw!!

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11. Want a struggle free life, stop complaining so much.

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12. There are many words that can be mentioned when discussing and discovering the world of gratitude, here are the English Ones.

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13. Enough Said!!

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14. Gertrude Stein was an American novelist, poet, playwright and art collector. Born in the Allegheny West neighbourhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and raised in Oakland, California, Stein moved to Paris in 1903, and made France her home for the remainder of her life. She hosted a Paris salon, where the leading figures in modernism in literature and art would meet, such as Pablo Picasso, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Sinclair Lewis, Ezra Pound, and Henri Matisse.

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15. And for the last comment, we go to the queen of Gratitude, Oprah Winfrey. If you concentrate on what you don’t have ………, says it all really.

I am learning to be grateful more and more these days as I travel further down the annals of time, realising that life is not about what you own but what you feel within which is accessible through simple acts of daily gratitude.

Namaste until next time, dear friends.

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