A little Peace, Please
by Lance Duffield
I was watching the Middle East blow up on the TV news a few days ago. Planes, and guns and missiles and lots of people running around yelling and screaming. It appears that one of the options for your Toyota pickup in that part of the world is a 50 caliber machine gun or a rocket launcher mounted in the bed. I don’t know, but that may be standard equipment. Anyway, they all appeared to be quite angry. There were burned out buildings, and blown up cars and dead people lying about. And then there was a well dressed group of people standing in front of a beautiful backdrop talking about how this should happen and how that should not happen, and what “he” and “they” have to do if “he/they” want peace. And then the guy who they’re talking about is on next and he’s telling them, whoever they are, to mind their own business. They’re his people and he can kill them if he wants to. He didn’t actually say that, but actions do speak louder than words, don’t they?
The little Buddhist in me wondered……………….?
What if there was a place we could go to learn the art of Peace?
I wonder what it would be like? What’s the curriculum? What does the syllabus look like? Who would be the instructor? What kind of people would be there? I’m thinking it should be part of some sort of core curriculum; a required course that you need to pass before you can be…………… say…………………….. a human being.
So, what is the currency of Peace? We certainly seem to have a handle on the currency of war; weapons, destruction, maiming and killing? Kind of a really big version of “The Octagon”; a sort of mixed martial arts with F-15’s, Tomahawk missiles, aircraft carriers and really big guns; where both sides are beaten and bloodied and one side either gets knocked out, is submitted, or the United Nations or NATO eventually render a decision?
I have a working title for a book I’ve always wanted to write; Is it Just Me or What? Does this actually make sense to anyone?
So, what is the currency of Peace? What do we need to trade in to choose peace instead of that. We have that choice, you know.
Most often, when we think currency, we think dollars and cents. In this situation I see a lot of dollars going up in smoke, and not much sense. How many families could be fed; how many schools and hospitals could be built, how much energy could be put to more productive use for the cost of one cruise missile? They cost about 1.25 million dollars a copy. The US Navy shot sixty-five of them into Libya the first night of NATO operations. That was a month ago. I’d do the rest of the math, but then………………………, you get the point.
I think everything has a currency. Our beliefs have a currency, our religion has a currency, our ethics and principles have currency. Currency is what we are trading in at any given moment. It can be ideas, philosophies, beliefs, points of view. And we are willing to trade as long as we feel we are being listened to, understood and treated fairly; with honesty and respect. When we are giving and receiving fair value; we are connected. We are open, honest, generous, allowing, caring and committed; we are trusting and trusted, confident in ourselves and others; and we are at peace.
It is when we feel threatened, when we perceive that our currency has no value; when we feel we are losing. When something we hold dear is being taken from us, attacked; we no longer want to trade in the currency of peace and we revert to “The Octagon”; we trade in the currency of war. We become disconnected. We rush to protect what we perceive to be at risk, to protect what’s ours. We are no longer at Peace; as nations, as tribes, as human beings.
What about each of us, as individuals. The foregoing is about “BIG” peace. The kind of peace between tribes, nations. The kind of peace that could end world hunger and genocide across the “big blue marble” we share. What about a little peace? What about a little peace with our parents; peace with our children, peace with our spouse? What about peace with our neighbors, and the crossing guard down the street, and that really annoying guy at work? What about the checker at the grocery store, and the guy driving the big rig down the highway? What about the teenage girl in the little red car putting on her make up, talking on her cell phone, and drinking a latte? OK, we have to draw the line somewhere.
What about just finding a little peace within ourselves? When we feel that rising impatience, that frustration, that anger; to just think about letting it go. I’m not saying “let it go”, just start by considering that you could. One of my favorite quotes from Wayne Dyer is “I can choose peace instead of that.”
You don’t have to be Nelson Mandela, or Gandhi, or Mother Theresa to create a little peace. You don’t have give up your current life and commit all of your energy and treasure to world peace and ending hunger across the globe. Just by thinking…… a little peace…. might be enough. You may be the one; the Hundredth Monkey that Ken Keyes wrote about in his classic 1981 book of the same name: the notion that when enough members of the same species comes to think and act a certain way, that thinking can transform the entire species; that thinking and the resultant actions becomes part of everyone’s consciousness, no matter where they are. If that is true, and I’d like to believe it is, than you might be the one that moves the universal mind from trading in the currency of war to trading in the currency of peace, just by thinking and acting on the notion that a little peace might be a good thing.
May a little peace be with you.
Possibility
“When you choose to open the door of awareness you create a new world of possibility.” wr
Certainty
“Embracing uncertainty leads to all possibility and that’s one thing you can be certain of.” wr
Unstick Your Life…………”Awareness”
by Wade Roberts
Most people can easily find reasons to not move forward in their lives and many people are so well programed they instantly default to limited negative thinking without any awareness of what they’re doing or how it’s effecting them.
Being stuck and unhappy is more about our awareness and how we’re thinking than anything else. How many reasons or excuses do you need to keep yourself stuck in a negative attitude, a bad relationship, a job you hate or just stuck in survival mode? That’s right – just one, and most people can create a nice list of several to justify and validate why they’re unhappy and not moving forward, fear being the number one reason for most people.
Many people default to FEAR thinking. (False Evidence Appearing Real)
So, understand that most fear is what we make up in our heads based upon some past experience or programing that stops us from moving forward. If you really think about it the fear that is meant to protect us shows up in a much different way. I’m talking about the fear you know is just stuff in your head. With a little acceptance and having the awareness that you’re creating the fear in your head the illusion of fear can start to breakdown.
“When you choose to open the door of awareness you create a new world of possibility.”
How would you change your thoughts if you knew that what you repeatedly think about with emotion is what you most often create and attract.
Just look around and observe the relationship between what you’ve been thinking and what you’re getting. The evidence is there, good or bad, don’t judge it, resent it or avoid it, just accept what’s right in front of you and the fact that somehow you’ve been contributing energy to what’s happening through your thoughts.
The question isn’t “Why did this happen or why am I getting these results?” The question is; “What have I been thinking about and how can I change my thoughts to create and attract something positive and much more fulfilling?”
At this point I can only imagine what you’re beginning to think; “What about all of the terrible things that happen to people?” I’m not attempting to explain all of life outcomes, just provide you with strategies to move forward. I don’t think we’ll ever understand all of the things that happen.
I’m suggesting that there are trails of validation that tell us that our thinking plays a vital role in what we’re getting.
Think about how you’re connected to a source of creative power that most of us don’t truly understand. People refer to this source of power by all sorts of names; God, Buddha, Yahweh etc. but for this purpose lets just call it creative power. It’s the same energy and intelligence that keeps the planets rotating in their orbits and keeps your heart beating 100,000 times a day.
What if this power responds to our thoughts as though it’s a restaurant server taking food orders. How important is it for us to know what we want and adjust our thinking to match that? Most people have a difficult time deciding what they want and very often once they get it they wish they had ordered what someone else has. “Theirs looks and tastes better”; disappointed, you reluctantly accept it, not appreciating that you got what you ordered. Ok, maybe it’s not just the way you thought you ordered it or maybe the quality isn’t up to par, but remember you still ordered it and you chose to be at that place.
Start living a life of awareness; be aware of when your ego is overshadowing you and creating conflicts between what you want and need and who you really are.
When things aren’t working, what have you been thinking about and how will you change your thoughts to create something else.
Ok, let’s see how your awareness is working now. Are you now open to greater possibilities or did your thoughts and conditioning just cut the concept right off as not true or not possible, or maybe you’re starting to hear a bunch of “buts”…. But my situation is much worse than someone else’s, but you don’t understand or maybe you shut down completely and are ready to stop reading. Be strong and be clear that you want to get the value that’s right in front of you, keep reading.
We’ve all experienced that monkey mind programing that just keeps us messed up and on a treadmill of negative thinking. Stop it now by taking control of the forward direction and vision you’re committed to. Keep reading, keep yourself open to the possibility, focus on hearing the value, not from me but from yourself, listen to what you know inside of you to be true. Let go of your programed past and the world as you knew it. Let go and listen to a new set of possibilities. The fact that you have even been attracted to reading this post in the first place speaks volumes.
Well done! If you’re at this point you now know something great about yourself that you’re willing to change your thinking, beliefs and your life. Something inside of you wouldn’t let you stop a few moments ago. Who you really are was pushing through and kept you going. Now you know there is truth to what I said, because you did keep going. Be clear that if you’re the one observing the thoughts that pass though your head then you are in control of what you want to think about.
Thoughts may come and go but you decide which thoughts to embrace, reinforce, act on and the reasons you would do so. You have the ability to shape and guide what you are thinking.
Use this post as a tool for unsticking yourself and moving forward; remember we can always find a way to move forward even from the most difficult situations, people do it everyday by moving beyond their situation’s, excuses and reasons to stay stuck even when things look their worst.
Start moving forward by asking new questions that are about how and what to think and do differently to begin the gravitational pull towards what you want.
Remember to keep your wants real and start with smaller steps. Be committed and persistent to your new way of thinking and observe the new results in your life.
A Focused Mind For Change
by Wade Roberts
How do you know when it’s time to change? Change what? Change the results in your life!
You can feel it, life doesn’t seem to be working, you’re frustrated, disappointed and maybe you’re just unhappy.
Are your negative feelings being driven by the world around you because it’s not meeting your expectations? Is it not having the job you want, a relationship that works, money to spend, or not getting the opportunities that you think belong to you? You may think the answer is yes but the true answer is no. All that stuff is just stuff.
We can still choose to let go of the negative charge and be happy regardless of what is or isn’t happening. I know there are extreme negative experiences that people are subjected to but there are plenty of stories of people that go far beyond their circumstances to claim their happiness.
Some people may be quick to push back on what I’m suggesting. They may be able to defend their right to be unhappy and even have proof right now to back it up and you know what, they’ll be right. They’ll be right about their unhappiness because they’re more committed to that belief than a belief of greater possibility.
Especially during the past few years’ money seems to be the greatest focus for many people. I can personally attest to the financial stuff because I watched 30 years worth of work go up in flames during the country’s economic firestorm. I lost all of my financial security; savings, retirement and my house. Going on that roller coaster is definitely not fun and certainly challenging but not a reason to be unhappy. I went way past zero and haven’t recovered yet, but I know I will.
Regardless of your circumstances you can change how you feel and the results you’re creating and attracting. It doesn’t happen overnight, its about patience and persistence. We have access to the most powerful creating tool in the universe – our mind. We must persistently focus our thoughts and actions on new possibility. No buts, no excuses, just focus your mind and thoughts towards what you truly want. Don’t be ridiculous or silly, keep it real; it’s all based on believability. It comes down to your ability to believe in a greater possibility, just like believing the sun will rise tomorrow which you know that to be true. Believe in a new future.
Start by letting go of all your limited thinking, you know that stuff about not being good enough or smart enough or worthy, etc. All that old baggage is just distorted limited history that you’ve been dragging along the path. Throw that baggage away and start building a new history. Let go and start with you are capable and worthy of all you truly believe in.
Start small and work your way up. Notice the little things that start to show up, like parking spaces just where you wanted them and opportunities that come out of nowhere.
“If you can conceive it and believe it you can achieve it.” Napoleon Hill
No matter how messed up things can be remember, “this to shall pass”. Celebrate when it does, celebrate the small creations and before long you’ll be celebrating big creations. Remember to be happy, regardless of what’s happening.
Even through tragedy and sadness there can be happiness on the other side, you may have to work harder to get there but know that it’s waiting for you to claim it when you’re ready. Happiness is a state of mind and meaning. Not always easy, but always worth it. Find new positive meaning in the negative things that happen and you will be amazed how your life will change. Change what? Change everything!……….
Pay it forward, help others to see what’s possible for them even when they can’t see it for themselves.
