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  • Coyote Karrick 12:24 pm on February 9, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , , manifest,   

    Enjoy the getting to… 

    When I was working as Outward Bound instructor we’d get a group of people together in a new and potentially uncomfortable situation and go on an expedition.

    That expedition had an ending point, but along the way there would be a million little and big moments. Embarrassing, fun, exciting, fear provoking, incredible, hilarious, awkward, uncomfortable, challenging…

    Fun, neutral, or awful moments depending on the perception of the individual. Surprisingly very few students in the 100s that I saw went home early, and in the end nearly everyone spoke about having a satisfied and happy feeling from completing the course.

    We could have only gone on expedition in perfect weather, skipped the hours of rowing, luxuriated on beaches, or stayed home with our regular comforts.  So, why so rewarding, so enticing, and so worthwhile? We know it’s the journey and yet…

    Aren’t there times in life where you find yourself resisting what is, and making yourself miserable because you’re not there yet.  “I’ll be happy when…I fall in love, I get the job, I have financial abundance, I lose this weight, there’s world peace…”

    It helps me to remember that joy is found in our being, and by being means we’re on the adventure. 

    And there’s great satisfaction in anticipation.  Believe me after a long day exposed to the elements, a sleeping bag under a tarp on a thermarest is a dreamy delight.

    We either make ourselves miserable or happy.  The amount of work is the same.  – C. Casteneda

    Enjoy the ride to…As much as the arrival!

    And if you are in a “tight spot,” a place where everything feels wrong, you can start by saying, “I intend to look for improvement.”

     

  • Coyote Karrick 12:18 pm on February 9, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , marriage, , romance   

    Things I love about being in love this time around:
    “What was good in your day?” The way we check in with each other.

     

  • Coyote Karrick 10:17 am on February 9, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , , , , , ,   

    Pivoting, changing your tune, feeling better, looking on the bright side, moving from half full to half empty, finding a way, releasing resistance, using the force, letting go, getting your groove on, your head in the game…

    And then doing it 1000 more times throughout any given day!

    Call it whatever you like, there are a million ways to turn the direction of your thoughts and thus the balance of your feeling.  Many people say that meditation is the way.  That can’t be, there’s never just one way. There is that which works best for me in any moment – it’s practical and effective, and may not be the same thing that worked yesterday.  That’s why learning how to read my inner-guidance has been the key.  I do meditate almost every day now and enjoy it.  I enjoy the process (not just the idea of it) and I think that makes all the difference.

    After my meditation retreat, I put pressure on myself to meditate an hour in the morning and an hour at night.  Just the idea of living up to that standard was a kill-joy.  I mentally made it a “have to,” part of a self-improvement project.

    It helped me tremendously to start noticing anytime I was about to do something because I “should.”  At which point, I get quiet (a few conscious breaths in and out) and then ask myself, “What do I want here?”  I start with a central desire, “I want to feel well, I want to be happy.”

    This process is fairly simple, when we get going on it, and starts with attention but little or no effort (in fact isn’t that the crux of it…let go of effort…it takes more effort to stay not feeling well than feeling well…it’s all about trained habits…).

    I’ll share more and forever about this turning process.  I get excited as I see again and again how it effects my life.

    Today, I woke up feeling like I didn’t sleep a wink and as surly as a high and dry pirate.  I just wanted to stay in bed, but the dog got me moving.  I figured I’m already up so I’ll make the best of it.  A little time to adjust my thinking, looking for better feeling thoughts – reading a few lines of something uplifting – helped me feel soothed even excited about the day.  Surly girl transformed once again.

    It’s exciting to know that we have within us the power to make the shift!  Again and again…

    We can fall in love with the process, see it as part of our life adventure, and influence the world around us from our place of feeling good.

    An atmosphere of sympathetic influence encircles every human being.  – Harriet Beecher Stowe

     

  • Coyote Karrick 4:18 pm on February 5, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , , , , ,   

    Practice Letting It Roll 

    We’ve been living together for a while when a movie causes me to ask him, “Does it matter to you how the toilet paper goes on?” Emphatically he says, “Yes! I have to pull it from the top!”  I’m surprised – news to me.  “So, what do you do when I’ve put it on the other way?” I ask knowing that I probably do it differently each time. “I change it.” He says and we both laugh.

    To me this illustrates one of the great things about being in this relationship, we don’t “sweat the small stuff.” We let it roll (no pun intended).

    It’s a choice how we respond at home, with our loved ones, in interactions with people at work or the stranger in the store.  Choosing to “sweat” anything tends to pervade all areas of my life and I’ve learned it’s just not worth the toll. It’s great to know what I want and what I don’t want, I just make it my intention to focus more on what I want than the other – in this case, I value a harmonious, fun, easy-flowing relationship with this dear loved one and I am happy to laugh at myself or make accommodations in which way I roll.

    OBSERVE YOURSELF: Are you placing too much emphasis on small stuff – the stuff that you don’t like? Decide to let it roll. Know your motives. Start a practice of noticing, writing about, and praising that which you appreciate. Check out the book Forgive For Good if you want some reading. It makes such a big difference in life and in all relationships!

     

    • thecatsman 4:21 pm on February 5, 2010 Permalink | Reply

      An excelent post about the power of positive thinking and that small stuff…..well it’s just that small stuff.

    • Betty 8:19 pm on February 8, 2010 Permalink | Reply

      What a blessing to be able to laugh at ourselves and stay focused on love in relationships!

  • Coyote Karrick 2:15 pm on February 3, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: faith, John Coltrane, music, spiritual   

    My music is the spiritual expression of what I am — my faith, my knowledge, my being … When you begin to see the possibilities of music, you desire to do something really good for people, to help humanity free itself from its hangups … I want to speak to their souls. – John Coltrane

    Citation
     

  • Coyote Karrick 4:55 pm on January 31, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , , , , , ,   

    Sing a new song! 

    Change the direction of your focus and feeling by singing a new song!

    It may take time, patience, and practice but you will find the relief of a fresh tune if you seek and allow it.

    For me, it requires coming back to what I call “center” through prayer, meditation, quiet study, or a practice of gratitude.  With a sincere desire to feel uplifted and by “sticking to it” I slowly start to feel a sense of peace coming over me and the circumstances become less problematic.

    I may not be yelping from mountain tops with joy immediately, but a feeling of peace does create an opening for acceptance then appreciation and then hope.  A new song is then unstoppable.

    A couple of days ago, I awoke with a tweak in my back so painful I couldn’t sneeze or bend to put on my shoes.  I was discouraged.  How will I get x,y, z done?  How long will I have to live with this?

    From discouragement it can be easy for thoughts to snowball and generate feelings of despair, unfairness, and lack.

    In times of challenge, I go to a handful of practices that I have seen help me time and time again.  I’m so grateful for the evidence of good that these practices bring to my daily life!  The back pain didn’t disappear right away, but the next day I felt optimistic and good enough to host our long planned neighborhood party.  Then today, I got to practice asking, receiving, and feeling gratitude for a friend’s help in walking the dog.  I also took some time to be still and meditate and then align my thoughts with the best feeling thoughts I could find.

    Better feeling thoughts may take some time to tip the balance of your mood but they will!

    Tonight a song popped into my head and inspired me to write this blog entry.  I was as on my way home from a successful walk alone with the dog (he’s a rottweiler more than my weight so I had been afraid earlier to walk him alone in case he saw the irresistible squirrel).  I hadn’t been focusing on my back at all, the light was gorgeous (just before sunset), the birds were singing, and everything IN me felt right with the world.  You know those moments – they may be fleeting but they are there for all of us!  I felt appreciative as I realized that I was feeling better as a result of the practices I had employed over the past few days.

    I hope you find the best routes for you between discouragement and hope.  There are many ways to tip your emotional scale toward one of well-being.  It helps to create an atmosphere of peace within and look in the direction of where you want to go.

    Then one day you are impelled to “YELP” from the mountain tops and share the love!

    What song are you singing today?  Is it serving your happiness, well-being, and the direction you hope to move?

     

    • pinotwind 6:29 pm on January 31, 2010 Permalink | Reply

      Beautiful post. My meditation was right along this line today. I see that your blog will be quite helpful in my desired exercise. Thank you.

      • Coyote Karrick 6:35 pm on January 31, 2010 Permalink | Reply

        Thank you. I wish you the best as we each experience more of that which we are. Radiant! Wise! Loving! Soulful! Etc! I enjoyed seeing your blog as well.

  • Coyote Karrick 2:45 pm on January 17, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: Martin Luther King   

    “Every King Holiday has been a national ‘teach-in’ on the values of nonviolence, including unconditional love, tolerance, forgiveness and reconciliation, which are so desperately needed to unify America.” - Coretta Scott King

    Citation
     

  • Coyote Karrick 12:45 pm on January 17, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , , presence,   

    @The dog’s water bowl… 

    Thoughts from filling the dog’s water bowl:

    Am I treating this moment with as much reverence as I want to be living?

    The thought brought me into the present and made me smile. When I’m in the moment I love living (or at least have more acceptance and peace, and an opportunity to learn from what is), but sometimes I’m off in my mind in the past or future and I miss it!  There but not really there.

    I am going to take three simple things I do regularly and observe my level of presence.  1.  Saying goodbye and hanging up the phone (I tend to rush it), 2.  Saying “I love you” (am I really feeling it?), 3.  Eating a bite of food (an ancient way to practice mindfulness! Bon Apetit!).

    Love to hear your experiments in developing more presence in your everyday life…

    The price of lasting love is continuing to pay attention to a person, a place, or a work that has become familiar.  – Sam Keen

     

  • Coyote Karrick 12:05 pm on January 17, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , , , , , ,   

    Anger, Frustration, Despair – Let Yourself Move Beyond! 

    Last night, I was rolling over a frustrating topic in my mind and at the same time trying to put sheets on the bed with my mate.  In the light of today I can look back on it and laugh! My thoughts were pretty negative last night, I was about to cry and here I was taking it out on the sheets and my mate (just by being in the vicinity of my energy).  Nothing was right and trying to do the task in a negative swirl was making things worse.

    Then I simply stopped, I realized (for the 1000th time) that nothing is more important than my well-being and I needed to take a few minutes to relax my mind.

    I am really grateful to be with a mate who understands how taking time to take care of ourselves is the best thing for our relationship.  After sitting in meditation for 10 minutes and another 10 minutes of quiet contemplation I felt relieved, the storm had completely passed.

    “I can see clearly now the rain is gone…”

    Sometimes it takes longer, maybe even days, but if you commit to a practice of bringing compassion and consciousness to your daily life (especially kindness to your self!) everything will go better and you will feel like you – capable, wise, graceful, empowered, and loving.



     

  • Coyote Karrick 5:58 pm on January 15, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , ,   

    To experience it we must feel it… 

    To experience love you must be love. To experience prosperity you must be prosperous (in heart & mind).  In both cases, we are hindered by a tendency toward guardedness, ingratitude, hopelessness, or a focus on scarcity.

    I am loving Twitter (JOIN US!) and the positive stories pouring forth every minute about people organizing and reaching out to help our neighbors in Haiti, not to mention all the people energizing for volunteer events in honor of Martin Luther King Day (Monday).

    I hope you are not being transfixed by the Television such that your mind cannot find the time to practice gratitude for any small thing that is positive.  There is so much good going on right now and we can all do something to help (in thought or deed).

    The ideals which have lighted me on my way and time after time given me new courage to face life cheerfully, have been Truth, Goodness, and Beauty. . . .

    - Albert Einstein

     

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