THE MENTAL RESISTANCE TO WHAT ARISES AND THE TRUST TO LET THEM BE

Here is an inspiring and insightful book that has touched my inner and outer world: “The Rogue Scorpion” by Lynda Faye Schmidt

 

— Thoughts of the previous evening bubble up in her head. She smiles, remembering how happy Catalina looked when she shared Kamila’s apology with her on the way to church, how being at peace with her sister, finally, felt like the most beautiful gift of all. Isabella forces herself to resist the temptation to think and relaxes into stillness. Less than a minute later, a line from A New Earth comes to her mind: “The greatest difficulty is the mental resistance to things that arise, and the underlying assumption that they should not.”

She sits with this wisdom and smiles again. She wonders, without self-judgment, only curiosity, if she will ever be able to feel at peace with all things. She thinks about how impossible it felt to accept other people’s ideas and judgments about her and Catalina, and how she struggled to be okay with it, despite knowing that other people’s stories are not her concern. Her smile broadens. With a tear of joy in her eye, she accepts herself as she is, with all her imperfections, knowing she has time to learn, and that she’s only getting started on her path. She tiptoes into her bedroom and quietly retrieves her sketchbook journal, then plunks down on the couch to draw.

Isabella feels like her pencil is being moved by divine intervention. She watches as though a bystander as the blank page transforms into a scene that depicts herself embodied as a sunflower. Her arms are branches that reach for the sun in the sky above. Her feet are roots, supported by the solid, moist earth.

— Dearest God, Creator of all things, it’s me, Isabella. I come to you in prayer, seeking your guidance, needing your loving strength more than I ever have before. I don’t know how to do this. I want to trust the process of life, and yet, I don’t know how to let my father go. I’m not ready. My father is the mirror in which the reflection of myself is the closest to perfection. He sees me with total unconditional love and acceptance. His love has been the rock of my foundation, and I’m afraid without it, I will crumble. Where will I turn to without his fatherly presence to comfort and guide me?

Even as I think these words, with you as my witness, I know the answer. I know that you are my father and my mother too. With your spirit in my heart, I’m never alone. You are with me, for eternity. You are with him too, and he will always be with me in spirit. It doesn’t mean it won’t be hard. It will likely be the hardest thing I’ve yet had to endure. But I know I can do this. I’ve got everything I need, including my beautiful Catalina. The people who love me will help me. We’ll all support one another. I made a promise to my father, and I plan on keeping it.

Thank you, dearest God, for giving me this awareness. For filling my earthly vessel with the strength, courage, and wisdom to live my life in faith. I don’t have all the answers. I don’t know what lies ahead for my father, or for me. But I trust that life will unfold according to your divine plan, with a purposeful design, beyond my comprehension.

Amen.

AVAILABLE ON AMAZON!

JOY

JOY

It didn’t come

swiftly, and certainly not expediently.

 

It didn’t come

racing in as if it were trying to beat the clock.

 

It didn’t come

in a reckless manner,

wildly demanding space for a home here.

 

At times, it peppered my days,

my life, though with never enough

substance, clout, or influence to sustain.

 

At times, it came

in waves, pensive,   with hesitation

as if it was suspicious of this container’s,

this body’s capacity to hold its’ value.

 

But one day, it came

unceremoniously,

to liberate.

 

It came with a grace

that was almost

startling.

 

It announced boldly

 

“I am JOY, and I will live HERE.”

Written by Mary Tinucci

https://thinkinpossibilities.com

MINDFUL MOVEMENT

THE MOST VALUABLE EXERCISE YOU’LL EVER PRACTICE

There is a single, small difference between the people that "do" and the people that "don't".

It's the difference between strength and weakness, progress and stagnation, success and failure.

Each and every one of us has it, have used it, and have used it successfully – every single time.

And every single time – we have an overwhelming sense of accomplishment, our efforts are justified, and we bask in the glory of a tough job well done, and done well enough to justify its means.

There are several single words that sufficiently describe this characteristic; though for some reason these words don't sound as potent and powerful as they did when we were children.

Flow – Presence – Concentration - Focus – Attuned – Attention

In descending order, these are my six measured by depth. On their own, any single one of these is sufficient in their effect on an outcome, though in this context "Presence" is more appropriate.

********************

As it relates to wellness, health, and fitness there is not a single person that ever got lucky by accident… not one.

Whoever has achieved a deliberate outcome was present in all of the decisions responsible for creating that particular outcome. They felt, they focused on what they were doing when they were doing it. These people didn't necessarily focus on fitness and health every waking moment, they just focused on it when they were doing it – they were Present. This presence-of-mind / presence-of-moment slowly and eventually permeates into other relevant moments, naturally and otherwise effortlessly bringing them sufficiently close to their intended destination.

This Presence in their current moment afforded them an advantage that without, there would be no success.

They're paying attention to what they're doing while they're doing it, then they're present in each moment that arrives after that… every meal, every activity, every set, every rep.

********************

Whether practical, physical, spiritual or emotional - effort and intensity are relative and subjective; some days hard is easy, and other days easy is hard – this is true for everyone. But, 100% is 100% no matter which way you cut it. If you only have 70% today - great, then do 100% of that. If today's a good day and you're bringing 105%, give 100% of that, too. The only way you know what you have is if you're paying attention to what you're feeling at this very moment.

Presence is critical in all things we hope to improve about ourselves, inward or outward. If you want to maximize your efforts in eating right, then you'll need to be Present when you're choosing your meals. If you want to maximize your efforts in being a more attentive father, then you'll need to be Present when the opportunity arises to shoot some hoops with your six-year-old son. If you want to maximize your efforts in having a stronger connection to God or the Universe, then you need to be Present when there's an opportunity to tune-in to those vibrations.

It's astounding how quickly things change when you pay attention to the moments that determine their influence.

For a moment… think… think about a single and seemingly inconsequential change you could make that only you might recognize but would give you satisfaction in making this one thing different than it is now.

Now think of just one thing that frequently reminds you of its current state.

Your homework is to look for the opportunities that arise where you can choose to change its very history and see what happens.

This is the easy part – the hard part is going to be spreading your awareness to every part of your life, once you've seen how mundane a task it really is.

This article was written by Matthew A. Scarfo

Click HERE to Learn more about Matthew’s work.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattscarfo/