I was surfing the Internet recently and came upon this article, TEN GREAT WORDS, by Jim Carroll, futurist, trends and innovation expert. He gives talks based on these words to business t groups, and I thought--hmmm! These can apply to individuals--to all of us.
1. OBSERVE: Take off the blinders and think different, like Apple. We can try new things, innovate in our daily lives. Opportunities are all around us. I’m taking a class in Visioning with Rev. Betsy, and we’re not simply using using prayer and visualization to get what WE Want, but going deeper to ask: what is God’s idea of itself AS my life; and how must I grow to embody this vision?
2. THINK: This is a big one for Religious Scientists, because we know thoughts are things, thoughts power emotions, emotions generate actions. We create our own experience with those thoughts, feelings and actions. As Ernest Holmes says, “Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life.
3. CHANGE: Ask: Am I open and receptive to new ides, new ways of doing things? What’s serving me? What isn’t and what can I change? At a recent workshop, I had an visualization experience, where I went into a crystal palace...and found my higher self. I collapsed into her arms, sobbing. Two things were bothering me. First, the loneliness since my husband transitioned four years ago, and second, I was so disappointed in myself--that I hadn’t made more of myself in these four years of being on my own.
Later, at home, watching a movie about loss, I had a good cry. After I was done, I thought: What was THAT about? These are two things I can CHANGE. So I began working on some projects and completed an E-book. Then I called people to arrange social engagements. I observed myself, did some thinking, and made some changes.
4. DARE: Ask: what kind of risk can I take to improve my life? It doesn’t have to be dangerous. It can be simply stepping beyond the comfort zone. Dare to be great; dare to lose weight; dare to run the marathon; dare to walk the Camino. Be imaginative.
5. BANISH: Eliminate words like should, ought, must; phrases like I can’t; that’s stupid. Banish indecision and procrastination, and tap into your own wisdom on what’s right for you. I’m visioning with a partner in the Visioning Class, and one of the messages we get for each other is: Take baby steps and move forward toward our dream.
6. TRY: Yoda said, “There is no Try, there is only Do.” Some say TRY is a failure word. When we say "try," we don’t expect success. We may fail. Does that mean we lose confidence? No! We keep at it. We try again. Eventually we DO.
7. EMPOWER: When I know I am a person of power and authority, I empower myself. When I accept a mandate for change, to do what’s right and perfect for me, I empower myself. When I know I am a co-creator with God, I allow God to work through me, for me, as me. I am open and receptive to the cosmic healing power, the cosmic power of love. I allow it to operate in my life, and I empower myself.
8. QUESTION: Challenge long-held assumptions, eliminate long-held habits. Really look at them, question them. Recently a friend was hospitalized and it looked like he might lose his toes...he has diabetes and likes to drink. Medical intervention was effective and saved his toes. He dodged a bullet, and doctors told him to stop drinking; I told him to stop drinking; he said he would stop drinking.
I don’t know if he stopped, but I realized that I had been drinking a glass or two of wine each evening. I questioned myself--is this really contributing to my overall good health? Is this something I should eliminate?
9. GROW: There are so many ways to grow, personally and spiritually. Classes here at the Center, groups through meetup.com, workshops, extension classes--you name it. I receive DVDs every other month with tips from professional photographers. Netflix has some great documentaries on many subjects. Online learning is expanding, offering many free courses. Ask: Is there something new I can learn?
10. DO. Yoda would be happy here. Be Proactive--take action. Decide what to change, banish negative thinking, dare to step beyond your comfort zone and make a positive change. Be Bold. Think: What did I come here to do? Who did I come here to be? What is my vision for myself? What is God's vision of Itself as me? Figure it out, and then DO IT. Treat and use your feet! Use affirmative prayer and then take action.
Jim Carroll added an 11th word: ENJOY!
And so it is.
Thursday, November 15, 2012
In the Redwoods
I had the opportunity this past summer to attend a performing arts family camp with my daughter and two grandchildren, Athena, age 4 and Samuel, age 6 1/2.
We spent the week in a tent, on a wooden platform, with cots and sleeping bags...very uncomfortable, but hey! It was camping.
My daughter signed us up for circus art, which I thought involved painting our faces and wearing red bulbous noses...but no! It was balancing on cylinders, pedaling small mini-pedals, walking on stilts..all in preparation for a big performance on Saturday night in costume.
I saw immediately that risking 70-something hips and knees was not good, so I spent my time documenting our experience for a photo book.
The camp is beautiful....set in the heart of towering redwoods north of Santa Rosa, with music and creativity filling the air. Athena spent most of her day with arts, crafts and games in Kid City, and we all gathered for time at the pool.
I became immersed in photographing our experience, and the many classes and performances throughout the camp... from swing dancing to rehearsals of “Mama Mia.”
I consider myself a family paparazzi...capture the moment; create a legacy. Photo books are my special legacy. The grandchildren love them, and they’re well worn.
In the midst of all this life affirming activity, the topic of death came up frequently from Samuel. What’s death, grandmama? He chooses to ask me because I seem closer to death. Are you the oldest in the family? How old are you? Are you going to die soon, like Larry? Larry was my husband, who transitioned over four years ago.
Who was my great grandmother; my great great grandfather, my great great grandfather? I’m going to live to be 100. Are you?
Once I said, Samuel, I’m having a fantastic day...I’m living in the NOW. What’s the NOW? It’s living right here and right now, in this very moment, experiencing life, love, joy and happiness.
Back in San Francisco, the father was off on a meditation retreat on the subject of...death and dying. I read through a couple of books in his library....The Denial of Death, which discussed how most human endeavor could be explained by an unacknowledged undercurrent of death anxiety. Amassing wealth, becoming a hero, creating legacies, tending to the next generation. These were all manifestations of death denial.
Another book, by Irvin Yalom, focused on existential psychotherapy...as we are aware of ourselves and our amazing consciousness, we are also aware of our earthly existence as eating, excreting beings and eventual mortality.
Yalom sees a nothingness before birth, our brief sliver of life-light, then nothingness after. Religion was invented to comfort us, to assuage our death anxiety.
Despite this atheistic view of death as opposed to our spiritual view of the immortal soul, the conclusion on how to live is similar...make the most of this life, live our best lives at full throttle; have no regrets.
Ernest Holmes says...knowing we are Spirit having a human experience, we prepare not to die but to live. The thought of death should slip from our consciousness altogether, and when this great event of the soul takes place, it is as an eagle, freed from its cage, soars to its native heights. Thus the soul, freed from the home of heavy flesh, will rise and return unto its Father’s house, naked and unafraid.
The grandchildren are not exposed currently to any spiritual teachings. As a grandparent and ordained Science of Mind minister, I’m figuring out how best to help them.
And so it is.
We spent the week in a tent, on a wooden platform, with cots and sleeping bags...very uncomfortable, but hey! It was camping.
My daughter signed us up for circus art, which I thought involved painting our faces and wearing red bulbous noses...but no! It was balancing on cylinders, pedaling small mini-pedals, walking on stilts..all in preparation for a big performance on Saturday night in costume.
I saw immediately that risking 70-something hips and knees was not good, so I spent my time documenting our experience for a photo book.
The camp is beautiful....set in the heart of towering redwoods north of Santa Rosa, with music and creativity filling the air. Athena spent most of her day with arts, crafts and games in Kid City, and we all gathered for time at the pool.
I became immersed in photographing our experience, and the many classes and performances throughout the camp... from swing dancing to rehearsals of “Mama Mia.”
I consider myself a family paparazzi...capture the moment; create a legacy. Photo books are my special legacy. The grandchildren love them, and they’re well worn.
In the midst of all this life affirming activity, the topic of death came up frequently from Samuel. What’s death, grandmama? He chooses to ask me because I seem closer to death. Are you the oldest in the family? How old are you? Are you going to die soon, like Larry? Larry was my husband, who transitioned over four years ago.
Who was my great grandmother; my great great grandfather, my great great grandfather? I’m going to live to be 100. Are you?
Once I said, Samuel, I’m having a fantastic day...I’m living in the NOW. What’s the NOW? It’s living right here and right now, in this very moment, experiencing life, love, joy and happiness.
Back in San Francisco, the father was off on a meditation retreat on the subject of...death and dying. I read through a couple of books in his library....The Denial of Death, which discussed how most human endeavor could be explained by an unacknowledged undercurrent of death anxiety. Amassing wealth, becoming a hero, creating legacies, tending to the next generation. These were all manifestations of death denial.
Another book, by Irvin Yalom, focused on existential psychotherapy...as we are aware of ourselves and our amazing consciousness, we are also aware of our earthly existence as eating, excreting beings and eventual mortality.
Yalom sees a nothingness before birth, our brief sliver of life-light, then nothingness after. Religion was invented to comfort us, to assuage our death anxiety.
Despite this atheistic view of death as opposed to our spiritual view of the immortal soul, the conclusion on how to live is similar...make the most of this life, live our best lives at full throttle; have no regrets.
Ernest Holmes says...knowing we are Spirit having a human experience, we prepare not to die but to live. The thought of death should slip from our consciousness altogether, and when this great event of the soul takes place, it is as an eagle, freed from its cage, soars to its native heights. Thus the soul, freed from the home of heavy flesh, will rise and return unto its Father’s house, naked and unafraid.
The grandchildren are not exposed currently to any spiritual teachings. As a grandparent and ordained Science of Mind minister, I’m figuring out how best to help them.
And so it is.
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Gatekeepers
Do you hear this a lot? The economy’s bad. I can’t find a job. I have too little money. Lack, limitation, scarcity! And yet, there seems to be an amazing transformation going on...not just here, but globally.
In the late nineties I realized that the computer revolution was passing me by, and I went off to the Occupational Center to learn Microsoft Office, Photoshop, Pagemaker, and even HTML and web design. But I wasn’t too heavily invested in the world of the Internet; I used it mainly for photography and email.
Recently I thought of starting an online business, and I discovered Internet 2.0 --a whole new era -- had arrived. I felt left behind again, and so --as is my low tech custom -- I took many books from the library to see if I could catch up. There are Dummy books, thank goodness! There is WordPress for Dummies, U-Tube for Dummies, and many others. Sometimes I have over 20 books checked out.
I became acutely aware that the gates of opportunity have opened, and the gatekeepers are losing power. What do I mean?
A gatekeeper controls access to something, like the city gate. A gatekeeper decides who is going to be blessed with a contract for a book, an assignment for a newspaper, a gig on a network comedy show, a recording deal for musical performance, even a job. Now people are writing blogs, self-publishing e-books as well as hard copies, doing U-tube stand-up comedy gigs, making independent music videos, using streaming video and podcasts to teach all kinds of courses, or becoming Permalancers, who work on different projects for flexibility and control.
These changes have been amazingly rapid, brought about by the tech innovations such as the i-pod, i-phone, i-pad, Facebook, Twitter, blogosphere, U-tube, e-books, Kindles and more.
While I was taping numbers on the backs of my telephone land lines, the net generation was changing the world. The Boomers and Gen-X are already old hat, and the recent generation is breathing apps, wigits, blogs and vlogs like oxygen. Connectivity and collaboration are big.
I’m not even a Boomer -- I’m pre-Boomer. Yet I’m fascinated with all the changes, AND all the opportunities.
One aspiring author, who had nine young adult books rejected by traditional publishers, decided to experiment with a 99-cent e-book on Amazon. She sold books, gained a following, offered other books at higher prices, and eventually became a millionaire. She may be an exception...but also an inspiration. Young Justin Bieber became a sensation through his U-tube videos and went on to become a mega singing star.
Billionaire Peter Thiel, of PayPal and Facebook fame, wrote an article, “The Education Bubble,” in which he criticizes the humongous debt students and parents are taking on for the college degrees required by employer gatekeepers. That may change if the Un-college movement gains strength.
Thiel’s controversial and very competitive program, “20 Under 20,” offers $100,000 to young people who drop out of school for two years to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams. One Thiel Fellow, 19-year-old Dale J. Stephens, is the author of an upcoming book, Hacking Your College Education. He has a web site called Un-college.
So what does all this have to do with Religious Science? Ernest Holmes says, “We are open at the top." We are open to new ideas. As the world changes around us, we can use our tools -- the Law of Attraction, Spiritual Mind Treatment, the power of our consciousness, our knowledge of our innate divinity -- to co-create with Spirit a life that we design and desire, a life that incorporates the best of what this new and changing world has to offer.
As he says:
“Today the possibilities of my experience are unlimited. The Spirit flows through me, inspiring me and sustaining that inspiration. I have ability and talent and I am busy using them. This talent is divinely sustained and marketed under a Universal plan of right action.”
So ask yourself: What talent, what passion, what strengths am I sitting on that could move through these open gates? Will I fling the portals of limitation wide and allow Spirit to express through me?
And so it is.
In the late nineties I realized that the computer revolution was passing me by, and I went off to the Occupational Center to learn Microsoft Office, Photoshop, Pagemaker, and even HTML and web design. But I wasn’t too heavily invested in the world of the Internet; I used it mainly for photography and email.
Recently I thought of starting an online business, and I discovered Internet 2.0 --a whole new era -- had arrived. I felt left behind again, and so --as is my low tech custom -- I took many books from the library to see if I could catch up. There are Dummy books, thank goodness! There is WordPress for Dummies, U-Tube for Dummies, and many others. Sometimes I have over 20 books checked out.
I became acutely aware that the gates of opportunity have opened, and the gatekeepers are losing power. What do I mean?
A gatekeeper controls access to something, like the city gate. A gatekeeper decides who is going to be blessed with a contract for a book, an assignment for a newspaper, a gig on a network comedy show, a recording deal for musical performance, even a job. Now people are writing blogs, self-publishing e-books as well as hard copies, doing U-tube stand-up comedy gigs, making independent music videos, using streaming video and podcasts to teach all kinds of courses, or becoming Permalancers, who work on different projects for flexibility and control.
These changes have been amazingly rapid, brought about by the tech innovations such as the i-pod, i-phone, i-pad, Facebook, Twitter, blogosphere, U-tube, e-books, Kindles and more.
While I was taping numbers on the backs of my telephone land lines, the net generation was changing the world. The Boomers and Gen-X are already old hat, and the recent generation is breathing apps, wigits, blogs and vlogs like oxygen. Connectivity and collaboration are big.
I’m not even a Boomer -- I’m pre-Boomer. Yet I’m fascinated with all the changes, AND all the opportunities.
One aspiring author, who had nine young adult books rejected by traditional publishers, decided to experiment with a 99-cent e-book on Amazon. She sold books, gained a following, offered other books at higher prices, and eventually became a millionaire. She may be an exception...but also an inspiration. Young Justin Bieber became a sensation through his U-tube videos and went on to become a mega singing star.
Billionaire Peter Thiel, of PayPal and Facebook fame, wrote an article, “The Education Bubble,” in which he criticizes the humongous debt students and parents are taking on for the college degrees required by employer gatekeepers. That may change if the Un-college movement gains strength.
Thiel’s controversial and very competitive program, “20 Under 20,” offers $100,000 to young people who drop out of school for two years to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams. One Thiel Fellow, 19-year-old Dale J. Stephens, is the author of an upcoming book, Hacking Your College Education. He has a web site called Un-college.
So what does all this have to do with Religious Science? Ernest Holmes says, “We are open at the top." We are open to new ideas. As the world changes around us, we can use our tools -- the Law of Attraction, Spiritual Mind Treatment, the power of our consciousness, our knowledge of our innate divinity -- to co-create with Spirit a life that we design and desire, a life that incorporates the best of what this new and changing world has to offer.
As he says:
“Today the possibilities of my experience are unlimited. The Spirit flows through me, inspiring me and sustaining that inspiration. I have ability and talent and I am busy using them. This talent is divinely sustained and marketed under a Universal plan of right action.”
So ask yourself: What talent, what passion, what strengths am I sitting on that could move through these open gates? Will I fling the portals of limitation wide and allow Spirit to express through me?
And so it is.
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Divine Discontent
After a brief expression of crankiness, a friend indicated I may be experiencing "divine discontent"...a restlessness, perhaps creativity stirring within, a feeling of something bottled up and not being released, an undercurrent of creativity wanting an outlet.
The phrase spoke to me, and I wrote it down. With Google, I found a number of entries on the phrase.
On a blog, “Divine Discontent,” by Lisa A. Riley, she quoted Deepak Chopra: “Discover your own discontent, and be grateful, for without divine discontent there would be no creative force.”
She noted that religions and philosophies recognize the gift of Divine Discontent as a fountain of energy, which prompts us to grow and strive toward our full potential, to achieve a major breakthrough. Even after producing a creative work, we may feel a sense of lack and be driven to birth yet another new and important idea. If we welcome the presence of Divine Discontent we can allow it to be the incentive that drives us towards our creative potential.
By working with our divine discontent, we can tap into a productive source of energy instead of sinking into boredom or unhappiness.
As Thomas Edison said, “Discontent is the first necessity of progress. Show me a thoroughly satisfied man and I will show you a failure.”
Years ago, when I was 24, a childhood friend my own age, with several children already, said to me: “Well, Mary Beth, you have one good year left.” So basically, life was over at 25? At the time, my divine discontent led me to join the Foreign Service, and I was off to Brussels, Belgium for great adventures.
That was 50 good years ago. It seems amazing that I’ve lived through so much of 20th century human history...World War II, Korean War, assassination of John F. Kennedy, the beginnings of television, computers, cell phones...all ubiquitous in today’s world. Marriage, children, widowhood, grandchildren, working life, ministry and more.
Lately, I’ve been questioning my life since my husband transitioned over four years ago. The divine discontent is arising as crankiness, boredom, and a still unfocused need for reinvention. So I’m observing...where do I put my energies with the greatest enthusiasm? Where, when and how do I feel most alive?
This summer I went to camp with my daughter and grandchildren...to Cazadero Family Performing Arts Camp, in the heart of the redwoods. By the end of the week I felt fabulous...was it the fresh air, the lack of cell phone towers and emfs, the camaraderie and creative expression? My focus was documenting the experience; I created a photo book, "Welcome to Cazadero" as a legacy project for my family. They love it.
Last weekend I drove to Pismo Beach to meet my son who drove down from Monterey, and we enjoyed a lovely weekend. Thursday I went with a friend to Santa Barbara to enjoy and photograph butterflies at the Natural History Museum. Again, the beauty of the surroundings...the ocean especially, was energizing and invigorating.
I definitely feel better when I am engaged in creative expression....for me, photography, and enjoying nature and camaraderie with others.
Sometimes divine discontent can challenge us to look at our Spiritual life, our own connection to the Divine within. We can listen to our own heart for answers of who to be, where to go, what to do next. We have the answers; we are never farther from happiness, peace, creativity and fulfillment than from our own inner being, our own intuition.
I’m seeing my divine discontent as a normal quality of being human, and know it is part of the creative process that fuels achievement and healthy change. My discontent opens a channel to receive God’s ideas through me, for me, as me.
As Theosophical Society leader Gottfried de Purucker wrote in The Esoteric Tradition:
"Everything grows and yearns to grow greater, to become grander, to rise, to advance, to evolve, and the objective is to become at-one self-consciously with the Boundless — something which never can be reached! Therein is infinite beauty, for there is no final ending for growth in beauty and splendor and wisdom and love and power. The Boundless Universe is our home."
So today, ask yourself? Am I bored, or restless, or discontented? What divine idea is waiting to be expressed through me?
And so it is.
The phrase spoke to me, and I wrote it down. With Google, I found a number of entries on the phrase.
On a blog, “Divine Discontent,” by Lisa A. Riley, she quoted Deepak Chopra: “Discover your own discontent, and be grateful, for without divine discontent there would be no creative force.”
She noted that religions and philosophies recognize the gift of Divine Discontent as a fountain of energy, which prompts us to grow and strive toward our full potential, to achieve a major breakthrough. Even after producing a creative work, we may feel a sense of lack and be driven to birth yet another new and important idea. If we welcome the presence of Divine Discontent we can allow it to be the incentive that drives us towards our creative potential.
By working with our divine discontent, we can tap into a productive source of energy instead of sinking into boredom or unhappiness.
As Thomas Edison said, “Discontent is the first necessity of progress. Show me a thoroughly satisfied man and I will show you a failure.”
Years ago, when I was 24, a childhood friend my own age, with several children already, said to me: “Well, Mary Beth, you have one good year left.” So basically, life was over at 25? At the time, my divine discontent led me to join the Foreign Service, and I was off to Brussels, Belgium for great adventures.
That was 50 good years ago. It seems amazing that I’ve lived through so much of 20th century human history...World War II, Korean War, assassination of John F. Kennedy, the beginnings of television, computers, cell phones...all ubiquitous in today’s world. Marriage, children, widowhood, grandchildren, working life, ministry and more.
Lately, I’ve been questioning my life since my husband transitioned over four years ago. The divine discontent is arising as crankiness, boredom, and a still unfocused need for reinvention. So I’m observing...where do I put my energies with the greatest enthusiasm? Where, when and how do I feel most alive?
This summer I went to camp with my daughter and grandchildren...to Cazadero Family Performing Arts Camp, in the heart of the redwoods. By the end of the week I felt fabulous...was it the fresh air, the lack of cell phone towers and emfs, the camaraderie and creative expression? My focus was documenting the experience; I created a photo book, "Welcome to Cazadero" as a legacy project for my family. They love it.
Last weekend I drove to Pismo Beach to meet my son who drove down from Monterey, and we enjoyed a lovely weekend. Thursday I went with a friend to Santa Barbara to enjoy and photograph butterflies at the Natural History Museum. Again, the beauty of the surroundings...the ocean especially, was energizing and invigorating.
I definitely feel better when I am engaged in creative expression....for me, photography, and enjoying nature and camaraderie with others.
Sometimes divine discontent can challenge us to look at our Spiritual life, our own connection to the Divine within. We can listen to our own heart for answers of who to be, where to go, what to do next. We have the answers; we are never farther from happiness, peace, creativity and fulfillment than from our own inner being, our own intuition.
I’m seeing my divine discontent as a normal quality of being human, and know it is part of the creative process that fuels achievement and healthy change. My discontent opens a channel to receive God’s ideas through me, for me, as me.
As Theosophical Society leader Gottfried de Purucker wrote in The Esoteric Tradition:
"Everything grows and yearns to grow greater, to become grander, to rise, to advance, to evolve, and the objective is to become at-one self-consciously with the Boundless — something which never can be reached! Therein is infinite beauty, for there is no final ending for growth in beauty and splendor and wisdom and love and power. The Boundless Universe is our home."
So today, ask yourself? Am I bored, or restless, or discontented? What divine idea is waiting to be expressed through me?
And so it is.
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