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Living Consciously April 24, 2009
Once in a while we have a flash of intuition which feels like strong guidance. We simply know to do something very specific like attend a certain lecture or call a particular friend. When the guidance does not seem to threaten our preferred reality, we follow it. That is not always the case when we feel the deep urge to change our lives, however. We may wonder why we are thinking about leaving our job in these economic times. Why would we give up a well paying position to follow a whim. The difference between whim and a real spark of inspiration from our higher knowing, is in its persistence. It becomes an idea that will not go away. More |
Living Consciously April 23, 2009
I left my home for the office yesterday wearing cotton slacks and a light sweater. What a surprise at five o clock to find my car covered in snow! I thought it was Spring! I had forgotten that the weather forecast suggested a drop in temperature. I didn’t want to hear it. I wanted it to be warm and sunny. More |
Living Consciously April 22, 2009
I got in the elevator in my building intending to go to the third floor. I was at basement level. I pushed the button and the door started to shut, then opened again with a jerk. I pushed the button again and got the same response. I was about to get out for fear that something was terribly wrong with the mechanism and I did not want to get stuck somewhere between floors. I took a few steps intending to find the manager to report the problem. It was then I realized that I was unconsciously pushing the button to the floor I was on and it was me who was confusing the issue. More |
Living Consciously April 21, 2009
Have you noticed how when you become conscious of something you begin to see it everywhere? In school I would have that experience with new words. Suddenly everyone was using it! I would hear it on the television, from my friends parents, in a book. There is a similar function of self awareness. Once we become conscious, does it not follow that we will continue to discover more and more of what we are? More |
Living Consciously April 20, 2009
One thing I loved about early childhood was being so close to the ground. That world of the very small was my personal playground. The backyard was teeming with life; butterflies, beetles, spiders, toads, ants, worms, birds, flowers and lizards. I spent hours peering into the center of pansies because I was convinced I saw a queen sitting on her throne there. I would gently squeeze the wings of a butterfly together so I could gaze into her face and then softly return her to her resting place on a leaf. Water droplets on my skin were as fascinating as rainbows made by the lawn sprinklers and dirt was an endless source of fun. More |
Living Consciously April 17, 2009
There is a video on the internet of a woman auditioning for a well known talent show. She was, by the standards of movie star beauty, rather plain and unadorned. She wore no makeup, her hair uncoloured and without style. She was not young and seemed older than her 47 years. The judges and the audience were rolling their collective eyes, whispering to one another, clearly embarrassed for the poor dear and expecting a terrible audition. More |
Living Consciously April 16, 2009
Have you ever been lonely? It is a strange feeling to be surrounded by a sea of people and feel marooned on your own private emotional island. With 6 billion human beings on this planet, it would seem impossible to be lonely. The advice therapists often give to alleviate the problem is to reach out to others, volunteer to help someone else. Giving of your time can be a positive reminder of our value, there is some wisdom in that prescription. Even though keeping busy has been used as an antidote for just about anything we want to avoid feeling, it does not heal the root cause. More |
Living Consciously April 15, 2009
There is an old blues song called I put a spell on you. Casting spells is an old school way of speaking about the power of mind. You can probably remember a fairy tale about the witch placing a curse on someone. But no one can invade our own private mind space unless we are susceptible, unless we are open to receive. We would have to believe that someone else had power over us in order for them to influence our interior reality. It is a tightrope walk to be open- minded enough to learn new things, to hear diverse opinions, to embrace difference, and at the same time to keep the integrity of our own consciousness. More |
Living Consciously April 14, 2007
If you’ve ever watched a tiny ant push a crumb uphill you have seen diligence in action. This is real determination and strength. We carry our food home in the trunk of our cars or on some other conveyance on wheels. For most of us in this wealthy culture, strength and determination are not required. However, as our minds begin to contemplate the possibility of catastrophe, we need both. What if we lose our job and our income decreases? In times of economic downturn it is more important than ever that we lead our minds into a real expectation of Good. More |
Living Consciously April 13, 2009
In some states the freeway system includes a fast lane for cars carrying more than one person. It was instigated to help control the emission levels in the atmosphere. Take one car off the road, multiply that by thousands and there is a measurable improvement. The same is true with recycling of any kind. It is the collective effort that makes the difference. More |
Living Consciously April 10, 2009
In marketing taste tests of various products, results show that the majority of people respond to the packaging more than the product! When the bottle size and the label of a good quality brandy were changed to look more like that of the most popular brand, sales figures increased dramatically. Changing the colors on a can of seven-up caused people to insist that there was more lime added to the drink. They were incensed that someone was messing with their favourite beverage! More |
Living Consciously April 9, 2009
Sometimes the answer to a personal problem is in the right question. If we only ask why did this happen to me we will spin around in the egoic realm of self deception. The question has to be some version of what do I need to develop in myself to grow through this or rise above it? More |
Living Consciously April 8, 2009
Once I had the privilege of spending all day watching a small group of Tibetan Monks create a sand Mandala. First, they painstakingly filled long metal tube-like applicators with colored sand. With one pointed mindfulness they tapped out the sand creating intricate patterns, all of which were spiritually symbolic. Working together, the monks were, at various times, silent, chanting or laughing amongst themselves. They tolerated my occasional questions with sweet patience and boyish smiles. More |
Living Consciously April 7, 2009
Isn’t it interesting how we fly through the air seven miles high, at 600 miles an hour and calmly read a book, take a nap or chat with our seat mate. One reason that this altered reality is suspended is that we cannot feel the speed. Under normal circumstances, there are few physical sensations, after take off, to indicate what we are actually doing. We are able to just accept that air travel is what it is and here we are taking advantage of it. More |
Living Consciously April 6,2009
I heard the Geese arriving two nights ago as they landed on the banks of the river, honking their high-fives to one another. It is a long trip north from Mexico, no doubt some have been lost on the journey. Their return every year marks the end of winter; soon the trees will be budding and green will seem like a new toy for a few days. More |
Living Consciously April 3, 2009
The biggest fear that plagues humanity is that no one is listening; that there is no responsive power, that there is no mechanism to support us in fulfilling our desires. Is it this subjective fear that has caused us to invent a Father God figure who takes care of his children? Some people are stuck in that image, blaming a punishing God for the ills of the world, while others reject it but are left feeling bereft of support. There is a more plausible model for how this universe functions at the point of individuality. It is simply that Life supports life and, as self realization evolves, Life supports life according to what is realized. More |
Living Consciously April 2, 2009
You have seen the warnings signs that begin with “in case of ”followed by instructions, such as, in case of fire do not use elevator. People lock their doors or take out insurance “just in case.” Do we ever see signs warning us of impending good? Imagine you are walking down the street and you see a poster which announces happiness just around the corner. You would start smiling, would you not? How about a street sign that warns you to Stop Complaining! Or Don’t worry, be happy. More
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Living Consciously April 1, 2009
The first Day of Spring came two weeks ago and the snow kept falling. Nature has her own rhythms and she is fairly reliable. Surely the daffodils will rise up and take over the land before too long? There will be green again and trees bursting with life and the birds will sing in the morning. We count on the changes of the seasons even if they are not always as punctual as we would like. There is an underlying trust in the inevitability of outcomes where nature is concerned. But have some unexpected event drop on us and we recoil in horror. How could this happen? We are doomed! Things will never be the same! More |
Living Consciously March 31, 2009
Do the best you can. This is the advice we have been getting since childhood. Whether we are about to take a test, be interviewed for a new job or dance in a talent show, someone is bound to say, just do the best you can. It is an incomplete statement, for none of us ever does the best we are equipped to do. We do the best we can according to what we believe. We may have had the best training available, but if we are unsure of ourselves, we cannot do our best no matter how much we may want to rise to the occasion. More |
Living Consciously March 30, 2009
I have read that more men die on Monday morning than at any other time, and that the next most likely occurrence is a few months after retirement. They cannot live without the stress that caused their death, which creates a new kind of stress which chips away at their self respect. More |
Living Consciously March 16, 2009
The power of creation is Joy. It is the energy that propels the unseen into visibility. It is the initiating push that brings form into existence. Joy is the irrepressible nature of God. It will not be hidden! It will not be kept in the invisible and when it is attached to an idea whose time has come, nothing can stop the manifestation of that idea. It must be fully expressed and fully endowed with all that is necessary to maintaining its integrity in form. More |
Living Consciously March 14, 2009
I just read an article that predicted the imminent collapse of evangelical Christianity. Millions of church members are abandoning their faith. The attendance level is much lower than even a year ago. What is on the rise is spirituality and attendance in places that support human potential and the philosophy of a personal power. More |
Living Consciously March 12, 2009
Somebody out there is celebrating something today; a birthday, an anniversary, a graduation, a marriage, a divorce, a winning, a healing. Every day there is something to dance about, to shout from the rooftops, metaphorically, to puff out our chest about. More |
Living Consciously March 11, 2009
It is a spiritual principle that we cannot change other people, but only how we see them. It is a shift in our perception that allows us to have a different experience of anything. That doesn’t mean that we put up with abusive behaviour, but when we see it as an expression of inner turmoil and that they are acting out of their own pain, we lift ourselves out of victim mode. We can then make wiser choices about how to heal the situation. More |
Living Consciously March 10, 2009
Remember when you couldn’t swim or ride a bike or dribble a basketball? It seemed like such a wonderful power to have, but once mastered, it turned into nothing special. Decades could have passed since we last took off on a bike, yet we could do it today without giving it much thought. That information is nicely stored in our subconscious and it is nothing special. It resides alongside how to remove a splinter from our finger, write our name or drive a car. It occupies a place in our reality along with how to feel when someone seems to reject us, when to blush, get angry or overeat. We are the keepers of survival tactics as well as operational skills. More |
Living Consciously March 9, 2009
My new computer is challenging me to accept change, yet again! It is a different system than my previous one and getting used to it is going to take some practice. The first thing I resisted however, were not the many differences in operating functions, but the manufacturer’s choice of a screen saver, that electronic picture that greets us every time we open the computer. I noticed that right off I missed the image of a village in France that I had installed on my old laptop. For a brief moment I forgot that it was me who had put it there in the first place and that I could recreate it at any time. More |
Living Consciously February 21, 2009
There is certainly a place for skeptics in our world. They temper the conversation and keep our erroneous projections in check, causing us to be ever more diligent in our proving of invisible principles. This is a very strange universe, however, and some things are impossible to fully explain but must be accepted. As the Nobel Prize recipient Dr. Charles Richet said to the critics of his study of clairvoyance; I didn’t say it was possible. I only said it was true. more |
Living Consciously February 19, 2009
I recently saw a wonderful play starring an eighty year old woman. She was on the stage for every scene of the ninety minute production and she was marvellous. Ironically it was about an older actress trying to learn her lines for a female version of King Lear. There were many humorous references to the ravages of aging. The character was in turmoil over not being able to remember her lines. But the real person didn’t miss a beat. She was proof positive that our brains can learn and retain information at any age. more |
Living Consciously February 18, 2009
Just as our bodies require good quality food to generate the energy we need to live fully, our minds require high quality thoughts for the same reason. What makes your feet get up and go out the door with a smile on your face? Besides a good breakfast, it is the eagerness that comes from a positive outlook. When we expect to enjoy our day, do good work, have some fun with other people, we are eager to get started. It is a positive and directive energy, which clears our mind and opens us up to creativity. More. |
Living Consciously February 17, 2009
There are three basic questions underlying all philosophy and religion. They are; What am I? Why am I here? Where am I going? How we answer them dictates almost everything we do. Modern spirituality teaches that we are: 1.fully endowed creating beings 2. here to express our natural attributes; 3.we are always conscious in the ever present Now and there is nowhere to go. More |
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Sunday July 25th Workshop with Ester Nicholson
At Calgary Centre for Spiritual Living. Wednesday, September 1, 2010 7:30 pm
Join us each Wednesday night for "Meditation & Satsang. 6:30-7:30PM ...Price = Love Offering