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Choice To Be Inclusive
Posted by: | CommentsTomorrow is an auspicious day, in more ways than one…We here in the USA, are inaugurating an international president, and we are shifting into a consciousness of becoming inclusive. Inclusive: including, relating to, comprehensive.
Barack Obama was born in Hawaii, with roots in Kansas, Illinois, and Kenya. He is an American, but his voice is international. His voice, his message of inclusiveness, is making ripples in the ocean of our world consciousness. The elements of diversity of the man who will soon become our president, is a microcosm of the macrocosm. President Obama speaks of inclusiveness, and the world reflects back his message. We are being born anew into one human family.
I grew up in Montgomery, Alabama, USA, in the era of the civil rights marches. I was blessed to have parents and other family, who taught me to respect and love all people, and to respect and love myself. Dr Martin Luther King, Jr’s church was in my hometown. It was a time of jingoism: extreme and emotional nationalism. I remember studying that word, jingoism, in school. I didn’t know then why I would always remember it. Now I understand the changes I’ve seen.
Tomorrow, our country reflects our changing world. We are finally creating a world, that Dr King once described, "a world in which my little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character." Children of tomorrow will know that any limitation in their own potential will exist only within themselves. They will grow up in the limitless consciousness of the human family that we are becoming.
Tomorrow, the world is sending us a symbolic message. Those of us who live in freedom around the world have great responsibility now. It is a good time to ask ourselves:
Am I using my gift of freedom to promote love on this planet?
How can I love my neighbors here on the planet?
In the Aramaic language, the language of the greatest prophets who influenced the great religions of the world, a neighbor is : anyone near me, anyone I think about, and their operating selves, and belongings.
There’s a beautiful directive of love that is popularly called The Golden Rule..."Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Did you know that the Golden Rule can be found in every major world religion? In Buddhism: "Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful." In Christianity: "And as ye would that men should do unto you, do ye also to them likewise." In Hinduism: "Do not do to others what would cause pain if done to you." In Islam: "None of you believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself." Judaism: "..thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." In Taoism: "Regard your neighbor’s gain as your own gain, and your neighbor’s loss as your own loss." These are but a few examples among many.
Remember that you have a whole human family of neighbors. Love them, love yourself, love your freedom, love this planet. Every day, I try to reflect on the words of Richard Bach, on a small plaque that hangs in my kitchen. He said, "The bond that links true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each others lives."
Respect and Joy….
Pass it on…Love your neighbors… Live the Golden Rule.
Joy & Blessings, Carole xx
Simple Surrender
Posted by: | CommentsI recently spent a few weeks in China. It wasn’t exactly a pleasure trip, but it turned out to be an incredible experience. I learned a few things about the country, but I learned quite a lot about myself. It took me several weeks after my return home to make the connection to the real benefits I received.
I often do volunteer work. You do, too! We all do volunteer work, even if we don’t recognize it while we’re doing it! 
I decided to help someone whom I met through amazing synchronicity, by supporting her on a trip to China, for medical treatment of her special needs child. I knew all along that I volunteered for a number of reasons…not just to help someone who needed help, but to see and experience the country and it’s people, and because I’m interested in the health treatments there.
I looked at the trip as a positive adventure. The trip was an adventure, but the adventure was in my personal growth, not in the intended experience. We don’t always get what we came for…sometimes we get more.
I set out for my adventure feeling that I was doing a good deed, and that I would enjoy my journey on many levels. I had no idea then, that there were expectations for my support, that I hadn’t volunteered for. I also discovered, to my great surprise, that I had an agenda of my own operating.
I often write and speak about agendas. I even developed a course called Surrender Your Agenda, and yet agendas sneak up on me all the time. An agenda, you know, is born in our minds, and consists of something we think we want to accomplish. That’s why we often call them personal agendas. While I was in China, my personal agenda, ran head on into someone else’s personal agenda. I’ve learned to realize that when I think I know the only way something should be, I need to give my agenda up to a higher purpose…I need to make a joy choice….I made the choice to surrender.
There are many times in life when things just don’t work out the way we imagined (in our wildest dreams sometimes!), times when we have walked head on into a situation which is very negative, even though we know we had good intentions! Are you feeling this? In these situations, we can fight, run, or surrender…..Let me tell you why surrender is the winning move.
Surrender often gets a bad rap. Surrender doesn’t mean lose, in fact, in it’s purest sense it simply means to "give up to." Surrender was the answer in China, because my agenda was fogging up my purpose for being there. My purpose involved being loving to others, and myself. The agenda that existed in my mind, however, consisted of having this be a win/win experience for everyone involved. The dynamics of two opposing agendas was causing friction. I had a choice…to stick to the agenda in my head, or to check with my heart, for an answer. I chose to surrender the agenda, cancel, and give up what I wanted, so that I could remain loving to myself and the others involved. It was a simple choice.
I came home with some incredible benefits. I have no negative feelings about the trip, even though it was far removed from the joy it could have been. I have happy memories, and any angst disappeared when I looked for the good in the situation. I now see the connections that were made ….the beautiful people I met there, who will be friends for life, and the amazing growth and understanding that I gained. The expression, "Go in Peace,’ has a new meaning for me.
Joy & Blessings, Carole xx
Purpose or Agenda?
Posted by: | CommentsAre you like me? I don’t always take the time to consciously think about what I’m doing, or why I’m doing it…I just do it! I find that I have more things to do, than I have time to do them, and I’m often concerned with just getting things done! Sometimes I need a wakeup call. It dawns 
on me that a lot of the behavior I want to believe is coming from my purpose, probably isn’t from my purpose at all…it’s coming from my agenda.
"We teach what we need to learn," is an old adage, but it’s so true. Will Rogers said something also about learning that really applies to me. He said that there are "ones that learn by reading, a few who learn by observation, and the rest of them have to pee on the electric fence and find out for themselves." Guess where I am? Standing in line to get to the fence! The good part is…I remember what I learn, and it often shows up in my writing.
What does all this have to do with the subject, "Purpose or Agenda?" Whether we’re actively looking for our purpose, our life purpose, that is, our reason for being here….or, we simply believe that our experience is better, richer, and more fulfilling when we embrace our purpose…purpose is still important to us. Why then, do we get so caught up in our agendas that we lose sight of purpose?
Purpose can be defined as: intended or desired result; the aim or reason for which something is done or is used. Purpose and agenda are sometimes used interchangeably, but they mean far different things. Agenda is: a list, or an idea, of what we want to accomplish. Agendas tend to be personal, not always well formulated, often impulsive, and not based in wisdom, education, or experience. It is our agendas which can lead us to the "electric fences" that Will Rogers spoke of.
A few years ago, I developed a course on overwhelm, for women, because so many people around me were stressed and overwhelmed, and were lacking joy in their lives. It was while I was working on this course, and bringing joy back into my own life, that I learned the difference in having a purpose, and having an agenda. You see, I couldn’t have my own agenda while I was writing the course. The course had a plan of it’s own, and it named itself: Surrender Your Agenda: Overwhelm to Joy. The course taught me how to surrender, to have a purpose, to be focused on a goal, a result, a reason…I was coming from my heart. My agenda, that is…my idea of how, what, why, when, and where, wouldn’t work…that agenda was coming from my head.
Find some quiet time….give yourself permission to see clearly what you need to know. Journal, because journaling will help you dig deeper into what you have hidden from yourself. Quiet your mind, connect with your heart, and allow yourself to know who you want to be in the world. Ask yourself: "Where do I have a unconscious agenda that is not in alignment with my deepest purpose?"
When you check with your heart, and realize that you may Surrender Your Agenda to serve your purpose, you will find that your heart has the perfect answers you’ve been looking for. Joy & Blessings, Carole xxx
Plenty of Consciousness
Posted by: | CommentsThe ultimate alignment you can make with the Universe, the big U Universe, AKA Spirit….is to simply be willing to be used for good….
I remember the day that I realized I needed to change my consciousness, and create a new life. I had been getting along pretty well until that day, knowing deep down that I was lucky and blessed. My life was good, and getting better, but I realized that I wasn’t giving enough back for all the blessings I had received.
I woke up that day….and I’ve been determined to stay Aware and Alert and Awake ever since! Sometimes, I remember, and actually succeed in doing that!
We hear the term, Consciousness, tossed around, yet not defined. I love this definition of consciousness by Eric Butterworth, one of my greatest inspirations....
"Consciousness might be defined as: All your ideas & attitudes & beliefs…..both the things that come to you, and the things that have been accepted by you. It is your feeling about life, about God, about yourself. You are a spiritual being, living in a limitless spiritual world, but you manifest only as much of that limitlessness as you feel at one with. This is consciousness."
Most of us go through life trying to be a "good person." When I heard someone say one day, "What I’m receiving now, I’ve given in the past," a heartbulb went off. If a person is happy, prosperous, and loved, that truth sounds good…If life is sad, lonely, and lacking, it’s a hard pill to swallow….but, it’s still true.
There are few of us who wouldn’t like to receive more LOVE, SUPPORT, KINDNESS, PROSPERITY, AFFECTION, JOY, ATTENTION, COURTESY in our lives. An ancient principle applies here….the law of Cause & Effect is absolute law, and never fails. It took me years to acknowledge this principle, and honor it in my life…."We get what we give"….tough to believe when it’s teaching us hard lessons, but in some way, we’re receiving what we’ve given in the past….pure and simple….and since I haven’t yet attained sainthood, I get some pretty stinky stuff sometimes.
I have a little box…I like boxes….the box says, "Dance like no one is looking, Sing like no one can hear you, Love like you can’t be hurt." I added, "Give like you have plenty."
You know why you have to give unconditionally…you know in your heart…Giving, being of service, making a contribution, is a JOY CHOICE…You benefit everytime you give, even if it’s not received…and many times it won’t be received…Keep giving anyway. You will open up the flow to bring more consciousness into your life everytime you give.
My dad’s name was Worth…it’s one of my favorite words for a multitude of reasons. Dad was a giver. He and my mom taught me to give…I’ve had lots of givers in my life. They taught me that it doesn’t work if you give to receive….If you give, you feel worthy of receiving, and then you receive naturally.
What can you do today?…BE OF SERVICE ON THE PLANET…..GIVE!
Giving comes with a guarantee from the Universe….you got it! The big U Universe!
- Go way past just thinking of service as time or money
- Give anytime you can…we’re not talking about Sacrifice…that’s an S word that’s not connected to Service!
- Give to friends, strangers, loved ones anyway you can
- Take time for living things! Communicate with people…talk to the elderly woman in the supermarket, acknowledge a service person, hold a door open, smile at someone, help!
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Give more than is asked of you
Don’t store it! Share it! You learned that at 3 years old…share your joy, share your abilities, share your attention, share your time, share your love.
Complete the assignment you have here on earth….remember that assignment….the gifts you’ll receive are priceless!
Joy & Blessings, Carole xxx
Pagra is the Real Connection
Posted by: | CommentsI’m so blessed….I have a variety of friends….all types! If you think about it, I bet you have a variety of friends, too. I like many types of people, and you probably do, too. My friends have a variety of interests and personalities, and time spent with them is stimulating. My friends are different ages, cultures, ethnicities, and backgrounds. I can’t think of one of them who is just like me….If I had to spend time with people just like me, I’d be bored!
Friends bring a lot of growth, interest, understanding, and support to our lives. I personally believe that the people in our lives are here for a multitude of reasons, but mostly they are here to teach us, as we are here to teach them.
Over 25 years ago, I studied, and later instructed, a course based on developing loving attitudes. In the course, we used an ancient language, the Aramaic, to explain concepts of what it meant to be loving to others, to ourselves, and to Spirit. Aramaic is a language which was spoken by some of the greatest spiritual leaders of all time, and the language is still alive in the world today.
Anyone who knows me, knows that I love words! The Aramaic language has the most fascinating and complex words I’ve ever studied. The words of the Aramaic are rich in implications of psychology, physiology, and spirituality…translation is difficult to less complex languages.
An Aramaic word, PAGRA, is a principle which I keep alive in my own life. Pagra, in fact, means new life, and it refers to relationships among people.
Pagra is the creation of a new, or third life, or energy, which contains shared values, attitudes, beliefs, and goals of 2 or more people. Every 2 people, or group, shares some values, some attitudes, some goals….and what 2 or more people share creates their pagra. A couple, a family, a team, a group, a parent and child, all share a pagra….anytime we connect to another person, we share a pagra….that is, shared values, attitudes, beliefs, and goals.
Our pagra is living energy….therefore at times our pagra becomes bigger, stronger, and more powerful because we share more values, ideas, beliefs with another person, or group. At other times, our pagra can shrink when we share less and less.
Pagra is easy to demonstrate by drawing 2 (or more) circles…each circle represents a person. The circles move because they are living energy. Where the circles overlap, where people have shared values, the pagra exists. Imagine that 2 people share many of the same values….their circles overlap almost completely…a large pagra. When 2 people disagree, find that they have little in common, their circles move apart, and they may no longer overlap at all….they have little or no pagra.
When we give our attention, our energy, our focus to something in our lives, it grows in strength. When any 2, or more, people, concentrate on the shared values, ideas, and beliefs they share, their pagra grows in strength.
Pagra is the real connection we have with others.
Real connection is an awareness, and a joy choice.
Real connection cannot be made by one person.
Real connection requires 2 or more to make it work.
Real connection means looking for the common ground, the pagra, that exists in what we share with others.
Real connection means looking for the good in others, choosing to see what is good, is loving, is shared.
Choose to strengthen the pagras you have with people and groups you love and appreciate. Find ways to increase and understand shared values, ideas, and beliefs. Your life will be richer for it, and your joy will increase!
Joy & Blessings, Carole xxxx
Synchronicity Speed Dial
Posted by: | CommentsSynchronicity: coincidence of events that seem to be meaningfully related…..
For a long time, I made light of the synchronicity that was happening in my life. I really started noticing it about 15 years ago, but I know now that it was there all along. Before that, I think that I wanted to believe it was mere coincidence…but the truth is, coincidence is very different. Coincidence is an occurrence of two or more events at one time, apparently by mere chance. I never believed the Universe runs on chance, so why didn’t I believe synchronicity was happening for a reason?
If we’re human, we learn throughout our lives. We can’t avoid it. I’ve always liked to called myself a "lifetime learner," because I like to learn new stuff, and have new experiences. If I get real, though, I have to acknowledge that we’re all lifetime learners, whether we want to be or not. Some of us just happen to believe that learning is what we’re here for.
A few years ago, I began to seriously wonder if all my classes, and books, and lectures could be an excuse for not settling into a real life purpose. Was being that perpetual student a sign that I would never discover my real purpose for being here?
When I started to really hunker down and question myself about things like running out of time, and wasting my life, synchronicity appeared, or maybe I finally just noticed it. It was showing up regularly, quietly at first, barely noticable. I was still able to call the surprises just coincidences, but I couldn’t ignore that I was getting too much evidence for this to be true. I was choosing to ignore what was irrefutable….I couldn’t deny that something very symbolic was happening in my life.
One day, I decided to list some of my interesting coincidences in my journal, with an extra added twist….I wanted to look for connection, and to ask for direction for what was happening, and why.…I had a sneaky suspicion that this had to do with my asking for my life purpose….and I promised to listen to the answers I received.
Suddenly, the synchronicity sped up and increased, and more and more of my life started to connect. I began journaling more, meditating more, praying more. I was asking for direction, and I was listening, and I was expecting to receive answers. Synchronicity had become a speed-dial for me. I was realizing how quickly I could connect to direction when I flipped the switch. That switch was asking, then listening, then receiving answers….and only I could make that connection, or not.
Today, I can’t imagine living without what I once referred to as coincidence. It is such a joy to know that when I connect and cooperate with direction, I have unbelievably wonderful experiences that I wouldn’t want to miss, and would never find on my own.
Pay attention to the synchronicity that shows up all around you….It shows up in the unexplained ways in which you accidentally connect to the people, or the support you need….in the perfect timing that leads you to a particular result….in the needs that are met when you believe they will be, and listen for direction. There are really no accidents. Our loving, creative Universe runs in divine order, perfect balance….and is always inviting you to tune in, and receive all the answers you need.
Pay attention….Ask for help…..Listen for answers…..Act in love.
Joy & Blessings, Carole xx