As I stepped out of the shower and reached for my freshly-laundered, oversized, luxurious Hotel Collection bath towel, I couldn't help but to reflect on a bath towel I saw crossing the road earlier this morning. Yes, a bath towel crossing the road.
I was about to turn left onto a six lane, major road when I noticed a woman crossing in the intersection. She was pushing a metal basket containing a plastic laundry hamper. On top was a folded, bright pink towel with a bungie cord securing it over the other laundry as she pushed her cart home. It was just about noon and nearly 90 degrees on a typical Florida May day. I was frozen in a moment of gratitude. She had a pleasant look on her face and I realized maybe she was experiencing a moment of gratitude too.
How often do you stop and think, I am so happy and grateful that when I want a fresh towel, I can just pull one out of my closet or if you spill something on your favorite shirt, you just walk into the other room and toss it into the washing machine, pick a cycle and go back to your business? Not only am I grateful to have my own washing machine, but my own car, whereby if I needed to actually go to a laundromat, I would not be traveling by foot. On top of all that, at that very moment in time, I am grateful to say that someone else was busy cleaning my home, washing my sheets and towels for me.
In my own moment of gratitude, I realized that perhaps she was grateful too. She is blessed with her health and the mobility of her arms and legs. She has the means to have clothes, towels and be able to wash them at the laundromat. Perhaps in that moment, she had more than she has ever had.
I share this with you as a reminder to remain in a state of gratitude and free from judgment. In the physical and material world, there will always be people who have more than you and there will always be people who have less than you. Wealth and things come and go, gratitude is the constant means to eternal happiness.
Next time you catch yourself feeling impatient as you wait for someone to cross the street, use the opportunity to be grateful that you have the convenience of a car. If you don't have to walk your clothes to the laundromat, you are beyond blessed. Inhale patience. Exhale judgment. Inhale Gratitude. Exhale expectations.
Being Happy Healthy and Fit means being Grateful for all that you do have especially the small things which are really the big things. Be grateful for your health, happiness, family, freedom and washing machine.
Happy Healthy and Fit
Tuesday, May 28, 2013
Monday, May 13, 2013
People Are Like Candy
The shiniest wrapper doesn't always contain the best-tasting candy. Often times, the best-tasting candy doesn't even have a wrapper.
In fact, homemade chocolate or candies with only a few ingredients, where the true essence and deliciousness, are not masked by chemicals and preservatives are the best. Homemade candies may not always be the most appealing to the eye, but once you get passed that, you will find them to be irresistible.
People are the same way. Perhaps, it is getting more and more apparent as I continue on my own spiritual path of transformation or maybe it is just a natural part of developing wisdom with age. When it comes to people, less is more. Less Wrapper. Less Shine. Less Bravado. Less Walls. Less Lies. Less Flash. All of those are like chemicals designed to preserve the ego while providing zero benefits.
Judging a person by appearance is like judging a candy by its wrapper. Sure, it's easy to be attracted to the person with fancy clothes, a new sports car, credentials, a showy watch and stories of grandeur. It's just as easy to overlook the person slightly unkempt, quiet and not seeking attention, as it is to pass on the homemade, melt in your mouth candy because it is lacking a wrapper.
True spiritual transformation is about ascending ego. It is about taking off your false armor, tearing down your own walls, removing your wrapper and letting your true delicious essence be known. Is it possible that you will lose a few friends in the process? That depends on how you define 'friend.' When you decide to live in Truth, your Truth, it is like turning all the lights on full blast in your house at one time. It can be a little shocking and uncomfortable for others initially. The fear is their own flaws may be exposed.
The Truth is the True self doesn't have any flaws. When you lose your ego and insecurities, you become a being of True Love. Like a homemade candy, you become irresistible to those who appreciate you.
Be confident in who you are. Just as a fancy wrapper doesn't have anything to do with the contents when it comes to candy, a new car or expensive purse doesn't have anything to do with the owner's pureness of heart. Less is more. Trust in your natural ability to let your heart shine. It is all you need. Catch yourself judging others, you just might be missing out on the sweetest part of life~ connection to another soul.
Life is Short. Make yours Magical.
In fact, homemade chocolate or candies with only a few ingredients, where the true essence and deliciousness, are not masked by chemicals and preservatives are the best. Homemade candies may not always be the most appealing to the eye, but once you get passed that, you will find them to be irresistible.
People are the same way. Perhaps, it is getting more and more apparent as I continue on my own spiritual path of transformation or maybe it is just a natural part of developing wisdom with age. When it comes to people, less is more. Less Wrapper. Less Shine. Less Bravado. Less Walls. Less Lies. Less Flash. All of those are like chemicals designed to preserve the ego while providing zero benefits.
Judging a person by appearance is like judging a candy by its wrapper. Sure, it's easy to be attracted to the person with fancy clothes, a new sports car, credentials, a showy watch and stories of grandeur. It's just as easy to overlook the person slightly unkempt, quiet and not seeking attention, as it is to pass on the homemade, melt in your mouth candy because it is lacking a wrapper.
True spiritual transformation is about ascending ego. It is about taking off your false armor, tearing down your own walls, removing your wrapper and letting your true delicious essence be known. Is it possible that you will lose a few friends in the process? That depends on how you define 'friend.' When you decide to live in Truth, your Truth, it is like turning all the lights on full blast in your house at one time. It can be a little shocking and uncomfortable for others initially. The fear is their own flaws may be exposed.
The Truth is the True self doesn't have any flaws. When you lose your ego and insecurities, you become a being of True Love. Like a homemade candy, you become irresistible to those who appreciate you.
Be confident in who you are. Just as a fancy wrapper doesn't have anything to do with the contents when it comes to candy, a new car or expensive purse doesn't have anything to do with the owner's pureness of heart. Less is more. Trust in your natural ability to let your heart shine. It is all you need. Catch yourself judging others, you just might be missing out on the sweetest part of life~ connection to another soul.
Life is Short. Make yours Magical.
Sunday, April 7, 2013
The Real Problem with Male Yoga Teachers
In the past few weeks, I have had several new to me yoga students greet me with a bit of a sheepish smirk. When I introduce myself as 'Randi' which happens to be my full and given first name, I hear things like~ 'I haven't been coming to your class, because I thought Randi was a guy.'
If it was once or twice, I would playfully disregard it. However, this aversion to male yoga teachers has come from both men and women. Surprisingly, well educated, professionals have expressed this shared opinion. It has inspired me to share my own views.
Teachers come in all shapes, colors and sizes. Teachers are those with a passion for learning and a yearning to share compassion. The greatest teachers may not have any formal teaching education, but instead bring life experience, heart and light into this world. I improved my Chakrasana, yoga backward roll, by watching a small child in gymnastics. I have improved my ability to meditate watching the elderly sit on a park bench.
When it comes to actual professional, male yoga teachers, I have had many. I am grateful for my first teacher, Ian Lopatin, who co-created At-One Yoga in Phoenix, Arizona. Ian was a practicing lawyer that decided to pursue his passion and switched careers early on. He is often credited with spreading the real 'power yoga' movement by adding hip hop to breath and flow. I also had the joy of learning from Aaron King and David Romanelli, who were also co-creators in the At-One project and have gone on to light up the world through, teaching, coaching and writing. Dave Oliver, another one of my favorite teachers and mentors used to teach Ashtanga to my whole family. His passion for the history, philosophy, healing benefits and storytelling has influenced my own teaching style tremendously. Dave who didn't step foot onto his mat until he was 40 years old and had an injury has been teaching ashtanga yoga for over 20 years. Together with his wife Cheryl, they teach yoga teachers from all over the country. Lastly, I credit Sumit Banerjee, who has created a tremendous movement in the Hot Yoga world. His teaching style and method have influenced me tremendously as well. Although, it was Ian, who first encouraged me to become a yoga teacher, it was Sumit, who was able to get me to breakthrough my own mental blockages and gain the confidence to stand up and teach. Then, it was Dave and Cheryl Oliver who officially got me Yoga Alliance certified.
After a journey that started in 1997, I am pleased to say that I have an amazing female yoga teacher, Sharon Denton, that I am also proud to call my friend and mentor. I believe that every step along the way has brought me to appreciate right here, right now. I am grateful for all of the other wonderful and amazing teachers that I have had along the way, but wanted to encourage everyone to be open to the teachers they are blessed with at the time of the blessing. Keep in mind that Patanjali, Guruji and Krishnamacharya were all men. Thank goodness for them!!
What is the real problem with male yoga teachers? There simply aren't enough! Go ahead and open your mind and open your heart. Be grateful to all who have decided to take their yoga off the mat and become yoga teachers. When you see someone named 'Randi' on the schedule, don't prejudge and shortchange yourself. Go and go with all of your heart, it just may change your life.
Namaste~
If it was once or twice, I would playfully disregard it. However, this aversion to male yoga teachers has come from both men and women. Surprisingly, well educated, professionals have expressed this shared opinion. It has inspired me to share my own views.
Teachers come in all shapes, colors and sizes. Teachers are those with a passion for learning and a yearning to share compassion. The greatest teachers may not have any formal teaching education, but instead bring life experience, heart and light into this world. I improved my Chakrasana, yoga backward roll, by watching a small child in gymnastics. I have improved my ability to meditate watching the elderly sit on a park bench.
When it comes to actual professional, male yoga teachers, I have had many. I am grateful for my first teacher, Ian Lopatin, who co-created At-One Yoga in Phoenix, Arizona. Ian was a practicing lawyer that decided to pursue his passion and switched careers early on. He is often credited with spreading the real 'power yoga' movement by adding hip hop to breath and flow. I also had the joy of learning from Aaron King and David Romanelli, who were also co-creators in the At-One project and have gone on to light up the world through, teaching, coaching and writing. Dave Oliver, another one of my favorite teachers and mentors used to teach Ashtanga to my whole family. His passion for the history, philosophy, healing benefits and storytelling has influenced my own teaching style tremendously. Dave who didn't step foot onto his mat until he was 40 years old and had an injury has been teaching ashtanga yoga for over 20 years. Together with his wife Cheryl, they teach yoga teachers from all over the country. Lastly, I credit Sumit Banerjee, who has created a tremendous movement in the Hot Yoga world. His teaching style and method have influenced me tremendously as well. Although, it was Ian, who first encouraged me to become a yoga teacher, it was Sumit, who was able to get me to breakthrough my own mental blockages and gain the confidence to stand up and teach. Then, it was Dave and Cheryl Oliver who officially got me Yoga Alliance certified.
After a journey that started in 1997, I am pleased to say that I have an amazing female yoga teacher, Sharon Denton, that I am also proud to call my friend and mentor. I believe that every step along the way has brought me to appreciate right here, right now. I am grateful for all of the other wonderful and amazing teachers that I have had along the way, but wanted to encourage everyone to be open to the teachers they are blessed with at the time of the blessing. Keep in mind that Patanjali, Guruji and Krishnamacharya were all men. Thank goodness for them!!
What is the real problem with male yoga teachers? There simply aren't enough! Go ahead and open your mind and open your heart. Be grateful to all who have decided to take their yoga off the mat and become yoga teachers. When you see someone named 'Randi' on the schedule, don't prejudge and shortchange yourself. Go and go with all of your heart, it just may change your life.
Namaste~
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Get Into the Game of Life and Play to Win!
If you find yourself repeating the same scene day after day and life feels like a daily grind of monotony, it's time to break your patterns. It's time to start winning.
A video game has many levels and so does life. The first level on a video game is usually pretty basic, it gives you an idea of how to play and then as you progress, the challenges are slightly more obscure and come at you faster, however, the greater challenges are met with greater rewards, of which most are intrinsic feelings of accomplishment and satisfaction.
In life, level one can be viewed as survival. It is associated with scarcity and fear. Level 10 is reaching the state of bliss, ecstasy and abundance, a term in yoga known as samadhi. The way to ascend from survival to bliss is by learning the rule, removing the obstacles, elevating your consciousness and breaking your patterns. Life is like a video game. If you continue to do the, settle and quit playing. This applies to personal development, relationships, love, work and happiness.
You cannot play on Level 3 and Level 1 at the same time. You must be willing to release the things that no longer serve you. Identify your patterns, your personal blockages and fearlessly remove them. How? Make a decision. Decisions are like sharp scissors. The moment you make a decision with your heart and mind, is the moment that you cut off the old and make room for the new.
If you have ever played a video game, even as a child, you can recall that in order to ascend to a new level, you must overcome the obstacles, face the challenges and persevere. You can usually see what you need to do, but you must resist the temptation to do the same thing over and over again. Even when you can intellectualize what to do, your muscles have memory and insist on repeating the patterns. In the video game, you must make conscious changes to your strategy or you will be stuck in the same place until you tire of the game. The same thing yields true in life. You must break your patterns and create change.
How do you play to win life? It's easy. Simply learn the rule and I say rule, because there is only one. Love. Replace lower vibrations with higher ones. Replace hate with Love. Replace fear with Love. Replace jealously with Love. Replace judgment with Love. I don't mean the romantic, cupid love, but true unconditional love.
Being Happy Healthy and Fit means getting into the Game of Life and Playing to Win!
A video game has many levels and so does life. The first level on a video game is usually pretty basic, it gives you an idea of how to play and then as you progress, the challenges are slightly more obscure and come at you faster, however, the greater challenges are met with greater rewards, of which most are intrinsic feelings of accomplishment and satisfaction.
In life, level one can be viewed as survival. It is associated with scarcity and fear. Level 10 is reaching the state of bliss, ecstasy and abundance, a term in yoga known as samadhi. The way to ascend from survival to bliss is by learning the rule, removing the obstacles, elevating your consciousness and breaking your patterns. Life is like a video game. If you continue to do the, settle and quit playing. This applies to personal development, relationships, love, work and happiness.
You cannot play on Level 3 and Level 1 at the same time. You must be willing to release the things that no longer serve you. Identify your patterns, your personal blockages and fearlessly remove them. How? Make a decision. Decisions are like sharp scissors. The moment you make a decision with your heart and mind, is the moment that you cut off the old and make room for the new.
If you have ever played a video game, even as a child, you can recall that in order to ascend to a new level, you must overcome the obstacles, face the challenges and persevere. You can usually see what you need to do, but you must resist the temptation to do the same thing over and over again. Even when you can intellectualize what to do, your muscles have memory and insist on repeating the patterns. In the video game, you must make conscious changes to your strategy or you will be stuck in the same place until you tire of the game. The same thing yields true in life. You must break your patterns and create change.
How do you play to win life? It's easy. Simply learn the rule and I say rule, because there is only one. Love. Replace lower vibrations with higher ones. Replace hate with Love. Replace fear with Love. Replace jealously with Love. Replace judgment with Love. I don't mean the romantic, cupid love, but true unconditional love.
Being Happy Healthy and Fit means getting into the Game of Life and Playing to Win!
Friday, February 15, 2013
Breakdown Headstand to Breakthrough Fear in Yoga & Life
I have been teaching headstand or, as the pose is known in Sanskrit, Shirshasana a lot lately. Generally, there are three kinds of students: ones who can headstand alone, ones who take their mat to the wall and ones that sit on their mat and smile, as if I am going to let them sit this one out.
The biggest obstacle to a successful headstand is fear. Sometimes that fear is the result an attempted headstand gone bad and sometimes it is the result of someone telling someone else about a headstand injury. Then, there is simply the fear of turning upside-down, being out of control or the inability to do it. The same fears that exist in headstand exist in life.
After watching students, pull their mats to the wall and never making improvements, I have come realize that the way you approach your headstand is the way you approach your life. Do you Go for the Goal, Play it Safe or Stop in fear?
Going for the goal in any relationship, sport, business or activity requires getting proper training from an expert, asking questions, practice and discipline. In terms of the headstand, this approach means staying on your mat, without the illusion of the wall for security. Learn that headstand is not really a headstand, but an inverted balancing pose requiring strong use of the arms, core and bandhas.
Just like experiencing success in true love, business, arts or athletics, the benefits of proper headstand are infinite and boundless.
Playing it safe in headstand is not really safe at all. This is when you pull your mat to the wall, place your head on the ground and kick up. You are going through the motions and not experiencing the pose or benefits. Kicking your legs up until the wall catches you is not accomplishing anything. It is preparing you to topple over and injure yourself when you try this away from the wall. Looking at someone else doing the pose and taking this approach is like deciding you want to get married and ordering a bride out of a catalogue. Ultimately, it is a recipe for dissatisfaction and potential disaster.
For those who stop completely in fear, it is understandable that if you don't know what you are doing, you do not want to risk injury. Do not let fear hold you back from a life of balance, love, health, fulfillment and empowerment. Do not listen to what someone else says about headstands. Those are probably the same people telling you to hold onto your miserable job or stay in your dysfunctional relationship.
Expansion and growth require release. The release is fear. I do not recommend trying to learn headstand on your own anymore than I recommend kicking up to a wall. However, I have been experimenting over the past several weeks with teaching students how to build a proper foundation, Lift up from the belly, shift weight out of the head, tuck the tailbone and squeeze the legs. The success rate has been 100% regardless of age, ability or gender. The empowered smiles have been universal.
Notice your approach to headstand, do you give your whole heart, part of your heart or none of your heart? Whether your headstand, love life or business is suffering, do not accept what you have been accepting and expect a change. Decide to breakthrough and go for it! Get some sound coaching from a trusted expert, apply it with heart and diligence, your best life is waiting!
Just as a true, magical love relationship can cure you of all past relationship pains, according to Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, proper headstand can cure you many ailments that resulted from improper headstand.
Need more inspiration to breakdown and breakthrough headstands? Some of the amazing healing benefits are improved, eyesight, glowing eyes, increased memory power, increased intellect, youthful rejuvenation and spiritual illumination.
namaste~
The biggest obstacle to a successful headstand is fear. Sometimes that fear is the result an attempted headstand gone bad and sometimes it is the result of someone telling someone else about a headstand injury. Then, there is simply the fear of turning upside-down, being out of control or the inability to do it. The same fears that exist in headstand exist in life.
After watching students, pull their mats to the wall and never making improvements, I have come realize that the way you approach your headstand is the way you approach your life. Do you Go for the Goal, Play it Safe or Stop in fear? Going for the goal in any relationship, sport, business or activity requires getting proper training from an expert, asking questions, practice and discipline. In terms of the headstand, this approach means staying on your mat, without the illusion of the wall for security. Learn that headstand is not really a headstand, but an inverted balancing pose requiring strong use of the arms, core and bandhas.
Just like experiencing success in true love, business, arts or athletics, the benefits of proper headstand are infinite and boundless.
Playing it safe in headstand is not really safe at all. This is when you pull your mat to the wall, place your head on the ground and kick up. You are going through the motions and not experiencing the pose or benefits. Kicking your legs up until the wall catches you is not accomplishing anything. It is preparing you to topple over and injure yourself when you try this away from the wall. Looking at someone else doing the pose and taking this approach is like deciding you want to get married and ordering a bride out of a catalogue. Ultimately, it is a recipe for dissatisfaction and potential disaster.
For those who stop completely in fear, it is understandable that if you don't know what you are doing, you do not want to risk injury. Do not let fear hold you back from a life of balance, love, health, fulfillment and empowerment. Do not listen to what someone else says about headstands. Those are probably the same people telling you to hold onto your miserable job or stay in your dysfunctional relationship.
Expansion and growth require release. The release is fear. I do not recommend trying to learn headstand on your own anymore than I recommend kicking up to a wall. However, I have been experimenting over the past several weeks with teaching students how to build a proper foundation, Lift up from the belly, shift weight out of the head, tuck the tailbone and squeeze the legs. The success rate has been 100% regardless of age, ability or gender. The empowered smiles have been universal.
Notice your approach to headstand, do you give your whole heart, part of your heart or none of your heart? Whether your headstand, love life or business is suffering, do not accept what you have been accepting and expect a change. Decide to breakthrough and go for it! Get some sound coaching from a trusted expert, apply it with heart and diligence, your best life is waiting!
Just as a true, magical love relationship can cure you of all past relationship pains, according to Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, proper headstand can cure you many ailments that resulted from improper headstand.
Need more inspiration to breakdown and breakthrough headstands? Some of the amazing healing benefits are improved, eyesight, glowing eyes, increased memory power, increased intellect, youthful rejuvenation and spiritual illumination.
namaste~
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Teach with your Heart to Experience Ultimate Riches
Last night, I was scheduled to teach a yoga class at a local in-patient rehab center. Usually, I like to arrive a little early to inspire and motivate the clients to participate. When I got there, a woman whom I have been working with for the past two weeks quickly let me know that she was the only one who would be practicing and I didn't need to stay for just her.
"You're here, I'm here, let's play," I smiled. To which, she made a few meager attempts at letting me know it wasn't worth my time. When I am called to teach, I also remember that inside the word 'teacher' are the letters to spell 'HEART.' A teacher teaches with their heart.
Considering it was just the two of us, I asked her what she would like to work on. I now had the opportunity to create a unique experience for her. She shared where she struggles physically and we spent the next hour opening up her hips, lower back and shoulders. After we bowed to each other and said namaste, she paused and looked perplexed. "It was all about me tonight," she said filled with gratitude.
As I drove home, my heart was full and I reflected on the valuable lesson. Of course, your ego wants you to have a classroom full of people if you have been called to speak or teach something, but the truth is if you can positively affect one person in this lifetime, you have succeeded. Just because you have 50 people in your class and you call out yoga poses doesn't mean you truly connected to any of them. May your hope be to connect to just one.
When you have the opportunity to share your gifts with someone else, be fully present for whomever shows up. Look at the divine beings from the beginning of time, they did not have fancy billboards or marketing materials to send out ahead of time to guarantee a full-live audience. Jesus helped the people he met along the way. Even yoga, was shared from one teacher to one student in the beginning. Kabbalah was spread in the same way. Believe in what you are doing. Impregnate your every thought and action with passion and you are living a purposeful life. Trust that the rewards will come and they will be priceless.
Being Happy Healthy and Fit means making a difference in this world by being present and generous with those open to receiving what you have to gift. The best teachers teach with their heart.
"You're here, I'm here, let's play," I smiled. To which, she made a few meager attempts at letting me know it wasn't worth my time. When I am called to teach, I also remember that inside the word 'teacher' are the letters to spell 'HEART.' A teacher teaches with their heart.
Considering it was just the two of us, I asked her what she would like to work on. I now had the opportunity to create a unique experience for her. She shared where she struggles physically and we spent the next hour opening up her hips, lower back and shoulders. After we bowed to each other and said namaste, she paused and looked perplexed. "It was all about me tonight," she said filled with gratitude.
As I drove home, my heart was full and I reflected on the valuable lesson. Of course, your ego wants you to have a classroom full of people if you have been called to speak or teach something, but the truth is if you can positively affect one person in this lifetime, you have succeeded. Just because you have 50 people in your class and you call out yoga poses doesn't mean you truly connected to any of them. May your hope be to connect to just one.
When you have the opportunity to share your gifts with someone else, be fully present for whomever shows up. Look at the divine beings from the beginning of time, they did not have fancy billboards or marketing materials to send out ahead of time to guarantee a full-live audience. Jesus helped the people he met along the way. Even yoga, was shared from one teacher to one student in the beginning. Kabbalah was spread in the same way. Believe in what you are doing. Impregnate your every thought and action with passion and you are living a purposeful life. Trust that the rewards will come and they will be priceless.
Being Happy Healthy and Fit means making a difference in this world by being present and generous with those open to receiving what you have to gift. The best teachers teach with their heart.
Monday, January 14, 2013
When One Door Closes Say Thank YOU!
You are fired.
Your services are no longer needed here.
We will be going with a different provider.
I am not in love with you anymore.
I want a divorce.
I've been having an affair.
The above words are just a few examples of some closing doors. The knee-jerk reaction to a closed door is fear. It can be quite scary to be the recipient of a pink slip, eviction notice or divorce papers.
The truth is that these things don't just appear out of no where. They are a result. Regardless of how your situation came about, the best way to receive a closing door is with gratitude. After all, do you want to be stuck in an uninspiring job or career, just because it puts food on the table? Do you want to be involved in an unethical business just because it affords you more material goods? Do you want to be in a relationship or marriage with someone who does not love themselves and therefore cannot love you, just because it is comfortable? The only comfort in these situations is the comfort of the 'known.'
As the calendar turned from 2012 to 2013, I was gratefully reflecting on my own closed doors. After a divorce and a few difficult financial years, I had spent 2011 working in a small business consulting and accounting office. What began as a part-time job had shifted into an all-consuming lifestyle. As a free-spirited entrepreneur type, I would often feel like I had sold my soul for a paycheck. Being a non-smoker, there were days that I would enter the building as the sun was rising and leave only after it had gone down. Regularly, the Managing Partner who had hired me would bring me to his office and encourage me to take a more committed position and a raise.
The money and stability would tempt me and then torment me. The possibility of waking up in 15 years and realizing that I spent the 'summer of my life' behind gray walls, being told when I could eat lunch, go on vacation and practice yoga sent me into a state of terror. I didn't want to fully commit, yet I didn't want to leave. I was comfortable with the uncomfortable. When January 3, 2012 rolled around and I returned to the office from the holidays, I remember the sun was shining very bright for the winter. I walked into that office at 7:58am for the last time and by 8:02am I had already turned around and was walking out for the last time. I wish I could say that I had the courage to resign, but it is not true. I was told that my heart wasn't into it and it wasn't working out anymore.
Initially, I felt the fear rise and then I took a breath and knew to replace it with love and gratitude. I didn't put up a fight. In my heart, I knew it was true. He deserved someone who was more committed and I deserved to be aligned with my divine purpose. After a breath, I said, "Thank you."
Although, in that moment, I had no real idea of what was to come, I knew it was the highest and best. When I reflect back, I see that although it served me at the time, I could have gotten stuck behind that door. When that door closed, I never looked back, I turned around and saw only infinite possibilities.
Today, as 2013 continues, I am grateful for the wisdom to know that crying over closed doors is like crying over spilled milk. There is no point in being angry or afraid. Why would you be angry if your spouse had an affair and it lead to a divorce and now you have found your soulmate. Wouldn't you be grateful? Would be angry if you lost a client that stressed you out and it freed up space for three new ones that pay you three times more money?
Learn to trust the Universe is full of abundance, opportunity and love. Sometimes, you just need to let go of your fear and of the Known, because magic is waiting in the Unknown! Love and Gratitude brings Appreciation and that is the key to Peace and happiness. To the man who set me free, I say, "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"
Being Happy Healthy and Fit is living in gratitude especially when doors close! Life is short. Make yours Magical!
Your services are no longer needed here.
We will be going with a different provider.
I am not in love with you anymore.
I want a divorce.
I've been having an affair.
The above words are just a few examples of some closing doors. The knee-jerk reaction to a closed door is fear. It can be quite scary to be the recipient of a pink slip, eviction notice or divorce papers.
The truth is that these things don't just appear out of no where. They are a result. Regardless of how your situation came about, the best way to receive a closing door is with gratitude. After all, do you want to be stuck in an uninspiring job or career, just because it puts food on the table? Do you want to be involved in an unethical business just because it affords you more material goods? Do you want to be in a relationship or marriage with someone who does not love themselves and therefore cannot love you, just because it is comfortable? The only comfort in these situations is the comfort of the 'known.'
As the calendar turned from 2012 to 2013, I was gratefully reflecting on my own closed doors. After a divorce and a few difficult financial years, I had spent 2011 working in a small business consulting and accounting office. What began as a part-time job had shifted into an all-consuming lifestyle. As a free-spirited entrepreneur type, I would often feel like I had sold my soul for a paycheck. Being a non-smoker, there were days that I would enter the building as the sun was rising and leave only after it had gone down. Regularly, the Managing Partner who had hired me would bring me to his office and encourage me to take a more committed position and a raise.
The money and stability would tempt me and then torment me. The possibility of waking up in 15 years and realizing that I spent the 'summer of my life' behind gray walls, being told when I could eat lunch, go on vacation and practice yoga sent me into a state of terror. I didn't want to fully commit, yet I didn't want to leave. I was comfortable with the uncomfortable. When January 3, 2012 rolled around and I returned to the office from the holidays, I remember the sun was shining very bright for the winter. I walked into that office at 7:58am for the last time and by 8:02am I had already turned around and was walking out for the last time. I wish I could say that I had the courage to resign, but it is not true. I was told that my heart wasn't into it and it wasn't working out anymore.
Initially, I felt the fear rise and then I took a breath and knew to replace it with love and gratitude. I didn't put up a fight. In my heart, I knew it was true. He deserved someone who was more committed and I deserved to be aligned with my divine purpose. After a breath, I said, "Thank you."
Although, in that moment, I had no real idea of what was to come, I knew it was the highest and best. When I reflect back, I see that although it served me at the time, I could have gotten stuck behind that door. When that door closed, I never looked back, I turned around and saw only infinite possibilities.
Today, as 2013 continues, I am grateful for the wisdom to know that crying over closed doors is like crying over spilled milk. There is no point in being angry or afraid. Why would you be angry if your spouse had an affair and it lead to a divorce and now you have found your soulmate. Wouldn't you be grateful? Would be angry if you lost a client that stressed you out and it freed up space for three new ones that pay you three times more money?
Learn to trust the Universe is full of abundance, opportunity and love. Sometimes, you just need to let go of your fear and of the Known, because magic is waiting in the Unknown! Love and Gratitude brings Appreciation and that is the key to Peace and happiness. To the man who set me free, I say, "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"
Being Happy Healthy and Fit is living in gratitude especially when doors close! Life is short. Make yours Magical!
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