Another problem that keeps us from manifesting our creativity is a resistance to act. I’m not talking about being creatively idle… The resistance to act is of a different sort. It is an odd contention that rises up inside and keeps us from beginning and then keeps us from following through.

Often we like to dwell in the rapturous realm of imagination, passion, and ideas but hate to follow through with the leg work that brings those images, passions, and ideas into actual existence. I’ve had to learn this many times: Tapping the flow of the soul is only half the creative process; the other half is figuring out how to do commerce with the practical world.

Here are some quotes I wrote in my journal in 2001:

Cultivate peace at home. Home is that magic circle in which the weary spirit finds rest. It has an influence that binds us with a spell that neither time nor change can break. Peace at home breeds a successful and happy life.

- Tracey McBride in Frugal Luxuries

The next quote is a quote that I dreamed. I think I made it up. In my dream I knew the answer. The first answer was “cosine.” The second answer was: “It is those barred most strongly from the way who knock most loudly at the gate.”

…even the wrong turns and side roads have meaning and purpose, if only to teach us which way the path to oneself does not lie.

- Gabor Mate in Scattered

This is interesting. So far, the quotes all fit in with a journey. The wanderer starts out at home, then is barred from the way and knocks loudly at the gate, takes some wrong turns and side roads and thus learns something. Let’s see if the rest of the quotes go with this theme. That would be too cool.

We must not cease from exploration and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we began and to know the place for the first time.

-T.S. Elliot

Dig it! This kinds of brings the whole thing back around to home. These are the only quotes in this journal of many moons and this is the order they are in. Very cool. This last quote is also very appropriate for my current project of reading old journals. I’m exploring, hoping to arrive, and know myself more fully than I did before.

The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination

Harvard University Commencement Address
J.K. Rowling

Part 1

Part 2

Quotes

Failure: “…rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life.”

Imagination: “In its arguably most transformative and revelatory capacity, it is the power that enables us to empathise with humans whose experiences we have never shared.”

Wow, you rock the Casbah, J.K., (even though I’m not that into HP)

The birds they sang
at the break of day
Start again
I heard them say
Don’t dwell on what
has passed away
or what is yet to be…

Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack in everything
That’s how the light gets in.

This would be a pretty quote to illustrate.

In his new book, he talks about how the different parts of our brain can work together in harmony. There are a few ideas in his book that I’d tweak and some additional information I think would be useful to add that I might talk about in another post. He suggests a lot of homework that I haven’t done yet, so I can’t speak to the effectiveness of this program. I have hung a lot of the affirmations he suggests up in my house and I’m beginning to see the value and wisdom of them.

In his book, he says that, among other parts, we have the emotional legacy of our baby self who had limitless possibilities and was all powerful. About typical affirmations that say that anything is possible he says, do you really want your two year old self running the show? Hmmm… Read below to see they type of statements he suggests you tell yourself.

AWAKEN YOUR STRONGEST SELF: Speaking from Your Higher Brain*
Neil Fiore, PhD

When you, from the perspective and roles of your Strongest Self, speak these compassionate statements to the frightened and overwhelmed parts of you, you can:

• Create inner peace by connecting your identity to something stronger and wiser than your ego
• Transition to a new, robust self-image
• Access support and strength to cope with changing situations and relationships
• Reduce the stress and anxiety of struggling alone, separated from your True Self
• Empower yourself with the protective role, higher perspective, and compassionate voice of your Strongest Self

The following inner dialogue is more powerful than typical affirmations because you are speaking to a part of you that is separated from your larger support system and, therefore, is easily overwhelmed and stressed. You are empowered to protect and guide the parts that have limited––and out-dated––ways of coping with life. You, from your new perspective, can shift to an expanded identity that empowers you to protect your body and smaller “selves” and guide them toward inner peace.

In the compassion voice of your Strongest Self, you replace stress with safety and
connection by saying:

• Regardless of what happens in life, your worth is always safe with me.
• Regardless of what you can or cannot do, you are always worthwhile.
• Regardless of whether you win or lose, you deserve love, pleasure, and freedom from self-criticism.
• Regardless of what happens to you, you deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. I will always respect my life and my body.
• Regardless of who stays or who goes, I am on my side. I will never abandon you. [My tweak: "... I will always stay with you."]
• Regardless of how healthy or ill you become, I appreciate the effort, wisdom, and protection given me by you, my body and my spirit.
• Regardless of how negative or intense your emotions, I acknowledge their validity for you, and I accept them completely. I am strong enough to be with your emotions. [My tweak: "Regardless of how positive, negative, intense or mild..."]
• Regardless of how uncomfortable others are with you, your feelings or your body, I will always accept you and remain at peace with you. [My tweak: "Regardless of how comfortable..."]
• Regardless of what happens in life, and regardless of your problems, I accept you and love you completely.
• Regardless of the health or weakness of my body, I can always heal my spirit.

*Adapted from Awaken Your Strongest Self [McGraw-Hill, 2006] and
Coping with the Emotional Impact of Cancer (BayTree, 2008)

© Neil Fiore, Ph.D., 1998-2007 All rights reserved. Permission is granted to reproduce, copy, or
distribute so long as this copyright notice and the full contact information listed below attached.
Neil Fiore, PhD, 1496 Solano Ave., Albany, CA 94706 voice: 510/ 525-2673
www.neilfiore.com www.yourstrongestself.com E-mail: neil@neilfiore.com

I really don’t like to watch depressing movies, even for a good cause. But Ebert promised that it was uplifting. But here, read his words that convinced even me:

“Moolaade” is the kind of film that can only be made by a director whose heart is in harmony with his mind. It is a film of politics and anger, and also a film of beauty, humor, and a deep affection for human nature. Usually films about controversial issues are tilted too far toward rage or tear-jerking. Ousmane Sembene, who made this film when he was 81, must have lived enough, suffered enough and laughed enough to find the wisdom of age.

It has it’s sad moments, but I liked it. I think you can watch it without fear. Do it for your girls; all the women and girls you love. Do it in affirmation of women’s right to pleasure. Do it in honor of courageous souls and to honor and increase your own soul’s courage.

Here are my edited comments about Research on Female Preferences in Men over at, (yipes!) Feminist Critics:

My experiences:
Whenever I’ve heard a guy say, “Women say they want nice guys, but they don’t really.” or something like that, and the guy saying that is implying that he is nice, but women don’t like him, he never actually is nice. I’ve never heard an actual nice guy say that. I wonder what the men who say that think of as “nice.”

(Maybe they mean superficially polite, begrudgingly following the cultural rules and miffed that she still won’t sleep with him? I don’t know, this is pure conjecture.)

Personally, I do like manly men. (If we are defining “manly” as “probably having a lot of testosterone.”) I once heard a show about the effects of testosterone on mens voices: makes them kind of gruff and deep, and noted that my three favorite boyfriends had voices like that. All of my boyfriends have been athletic, but I don’t think they were all especially “manly.”  Two of my “manly” boyfriends were also popular and confident, which I liked. I don’t know if that has anything to do with testoterone…

So, although I do like manly men, I also like and have dated just regular men. Therefore, the differentiating factor for me is not “manliness.”  I look for niceness, (ie: grounded, at least somewhat emotionally intelligent, kind even to people who won’t benefit him), physical attraction (which I guess must be chemical and has been quite varied for me) and of course, shared humor, interests, values, etc..

What about YOU gentle reader? What do you like?

Pollution Prevalent in U.S. West’s National Parks

“Contaminants are everywhere. You can’t get more remote than these northern parts of Alaska and the high Rockies,” said Michael Kent, a fish researcher with Oregon State University who co-authored the study.

The substances detected ranged from mercury produced by power plants and industrial chemicals such as PCBs to the banned insecticides dieldrin and DDT. Those can cause health problems in humans including nervous system damage, dampened immune system responses, and lowered reproductive success.

Also, mercury levels at the eight parks and DDT levels at Glacier and Sequoia and Kings Canyon exceeded health thresholds for fish-eating wildlife. Kent said he found airborne contaminants are causing male fish to develop female organs in some parks.

Contrary to the conventional wisdom that remoteness means less pollution, Landers said many of the parks—particularly those at higher elevations and in colder climates—actually are at higher risk.

Sheesh, no wonder so many people are having fertility problems.

I guess this means that to live somewhere clean and healthy, we need to make the whole world clean and healthy. Please do your part and buy or grow local organic food. Also, if you are in charge of which power company you use, please switch to a company which uses more solar and wind power for energy.

You can check out how clean your energy provider is and find alternative energy providers in your area at the EPA’s Clean Energy site:

http://oaspub.epa.gov/powpro/ept_pack.utility 

Please leave a comment if you recommend any energy companies.

I’ve just come to a new opinion on Capital Punishment - I am now formally against it.   What did that - well, we saw a Miss Marple mystery on tv…

Read what else she has written about becoming enlightened over at her blog Yak’s Place.

Tags: Valentine’sDay, love, kindness