I CAN!

I Cancel All Negativity!

Make this your new mantra, and there will be nothing but smooth sailing ahead.

Of course many of you might say, “That is easier said than done!” And that statement itself would be continuing with a negative pattern of thinking. It implies that it is not easy to stay positive in every aspect of living.

The truth is that it is easy once you decide to make a conscious effort toward reprogramming your brain. One way to do that is to get in the habit of asking yourself every time you utter a sentence or have a thought if it was a positive or negative statement or thought. If your thought was negative then say, “cancel, cancel” to yourself either silently or out loud as a tangible way to modify your behavior. Yes, I am serious. While you are standing in line at Starbucks judging the person in front of you for no apparent reason, stop, take self responsibility and say, “cancel, cancel.” It requires some slowing down of the mental processes and some honest and deliberate evaluation, and that is all there is to it. Voila!

Granted, it doesn’t happen overnight, but with persistent effort and dedication to refocusing and changing your thoughts, you can cultivate a new way of looking at and reacting to life, and there will be improvement in every aspect of your existence. You will have more vitality, more laughter, more fun, more prosperity, and more joy.

Just remember your new mantra: I CAN! (I CANCEL ALL NEGATIVITY.)

And if you need a little nudge to get you started on your new path to positivity, check out this site for some inspiring and uplifting quotes: http://www.quotegarden.com/attitude.html

Good Advice

While the euphoria and jubilance that soared onto the world’s stage the evening of November 4th is still in the air, I would urge everyone to go to this site: http//www.theroot.com/id/48726

There you will read a moving letter to Barack Obama from Alice B. Walker, the Pulitzer Prize winning author of “The Color Purple.” Ms. Walker also coined the word "womanist" for African American feminism: “‘Womanist’ is to ‘Feminist’ as purple is to lavender.” Here’s a wonderful line from The Color Purple: “I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don't notice it”..

While Ms. Walker’s letter to the President Elect gets right to the heart of the profundity of this historical moment in time when a black person has been elected to the highest office in the land, it also contains good counsel for us all, and that is to cultivate happiness in our own lives. She reminds him to please remember to relax happily in his new role, so that we can relax too. She tells him that success is really an inside job that is within the reach of us all and it isn’t achieved in the acquisition of objects and fame. It is being at home and comfortable in one’s own skin. She tells him that he did not create the mess the world is in, and that in this most difficult role that fate has delegated to him, to please seek balance and take time to enjoy his family. The whole world is watching, and if he can stay centered and at peace he will serve as a role model for us all, and that in itself is a great service to humanity.

Her reminder is a cue to us all that preservation of the soul is our salvation and our sanity, and that our smiles are a reflection of our souls’ condition.

She closes her letter with a phrase that just lingers with me,
“We are the ones we have been waiting for.”

Thank You

If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is "thank you," it will be enough. -- Meister Eckhardt

This is the month for gathering our friends and family to feast and express thanksgiving, so I thought it would be appropriate to give a little nudge to remind ourselves to say “thank you” as a matter of course throughout our days. It is such an easy gesture and it almost always uplifts its recipient so the question is, “Do we do say thank you enough?” Is it in your own natural way of being? Are you grateful?

William Arthur Ward expressed it eloquently: “Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.”

And though it may take a few minutes of our time, why not write a little note of thanks to someone who least expects it? Just imagine how much pleasure can be given with that simple act?

A little advice: If you thank someone and they brush it off as no big deal please take the next step to say, “Well ,it made a difference to me so thank you again.”

Here’s a lovely lecture to get you motivated. http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/laura_trice_suggests_we_all_say_thank_you.html

Free AND Easy

What could possibly be free and easy in today’s economically stressful times? Not only is it free and easy, it will make you happier and healthier. Can you guess what the answer is?

Smiling! Not only does a smile make you more appealing and approachable, studies have shown it can lower your blood pressure and improve your immune system. And the irony is that even if we don’t feel happy, and a smile is the last thing we feel like doing, the quickest way to reverse those unhappy feelings is to smile. Just like the song says: “Smile, though your heart is breaking…….”

Still not in the mood to smile? Here is a joke that just might give you a kick start and get you grinning. And after that happens, go to the end of the blog and check out the test to see if you can tell a genuine smile from a fake smile.

While attending a “Marriage Encounter Weekend” Walter and his wife, Ann, listened to the instructor declare,

“It is essential that husbands and wives know the things that are important to each other.”

He then addressed the men in the audience and challenged them with the following question, “Can you name and describe your wife’s favorite flower?”

Walter leaned over, touched Ann’s arm gently, “Pillsbury, All-Purpose, isn’t it?”

Thus so began Walter’s life of celibacy.

Are you smiling yet? Good. Now check out the test to see if you can spot the fake smile: http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/mind/surveys/smiles/