Eye of the storm

Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass or waiting for the sunshine. We cannot create sunshine neither can we avoid storms.

So what do we do, when we are in the midst of a storm and see no ray of sunshine ….. ?

A storm could be anything : a health challenge, It could be tough financial situation , family issues, relationship breakups, business downtime, may be all of them at the same time or just a mental chaos of many small situations happening at the one time.

   

At times, our willpower is strong enough to keep our ship sailing. Harder the storm, stronger the will power,or faith. Our will power/ faith can help us sail through many tough times.  

At times we get help from outside sources. It could be a close friend who offers a listening ear, a compassionate family member or a friend, maybe a book or an inspiratioanl audio or video we come across on social media or  guidance from a mentor or spiritual leader who we look up to. Whatever the source may be , it can serve as an anchor that prevents our ship from sinking . Its a support at right time . We all need it from time to time.

We learn to take one day at a time when we go through challenges like loss in business during down time or a seeing loved one in pain, or you suffered huge financial loss, or you experience crack in  relationships. It may be hard to comprehend our future or reconcile our past right away, so we learn to live one day at a time holding on to our anchors, keeping our will power and our faith strong and figuring it out along the way.

Then there are some storms that I wish no one ever gets to experience. They can test your will power or faith beyond anything you can ever imagine. They will put your faith to test , I mean ultimate test. No amount of support or will power seems enough to save your ship from sinking . This is when nothing seems to work  and you see no way out whatsoever. What do we do during these storms …………… ?

Time like this unimaginable storms, taking one day at a time may seem very long, even few hours may seem very hard. You feel like you have been choked…. gasping for air…..anxiety is at its peak, balance is almost lost. No amount of support seems strong enough… …

What do we do …. ?

At times like this, its all about living one breath at a time, not one day or one hour . Yes, its just One Breath At A Time . You take one deep breath and then next …. Ok …. you survived this …. now next breath. You live just one breath at a time.

Each breath gives you little bit of peace and you did not choke . Just few breaths of peace is good enough to give you little strength, little hope . Its like few rays of sunshine peeking through thick dark clouds...scary clouds.

This is enough for you to stay afloat a little bit longer.  Just one breath at a time will take you in the “eye of the storm”, a resting place. Just few peaceful moments will probable remove clouds from our mind and give us little clarity to even begin to think straight . We can then find our flow in the storm.

“ In God I live , breath and have my being “

Storm will pass in its own time, Sun will shine in due time. Neither storms are permanent nor is sunshine.

Change is the only thing we can be sure of . Impermanence is the way of life.

That one breath which is neither touched by the past nor by the future , pure uncontaminated breath has the power to take us through ….and help us find our way.

Each storm makes us little bit stronger and more prepared for next voyage.

How to get your enthusiasm back .....

 "Enthusiasm, Optimism & Contentment springs from faith in the goodness of the self and Life."

It is very simple yet very deep. Just contemplating on it brings a greater awareness.

So next time we need a dose of enthusiasm and optimism , and we all do from time to time, we need to check our Faith-O- Meter and look for goodness in self and in life. We get so consumed with challenges in life and if we are not centered enough, our self talk can create lots of doubts and criticism not only toward life but also toward our self . That is when we lose confidence and lose faith that there still is goodness in our self and in life.

As long as our creator still loves us , there has to be some goodness in us .  If we cannot find anything , just that stamp " made by " on us is enough. That tag is precious .  And all things with the same tag , or we can say same "brand name " has same goodness associated with it. It's just a small shift in mindset . 

Just thinking about it creates good feelings inside .

So if you know someone who needs enthusiasm , you just have to show goodness to them and build there faith . It is not the faith in future or faith in your supporters, or faith in their capabilities, it's faith in the fact that there still is goodness in them and in life . And that is the faith in the creator, who still is in charge and is in process of creating His art . It's when we are in awe of all that is, we create that electrifying energy within that is termed as Optimism and Enthusiasm.

Add serenity to it and we get contentment.

What you resist, persist

What ever you try to run away from, will keep running towards you ...

We think we can outrun by running fast or shove it away by distracting ourselves with addictions.
But the fact is, more we try to run away, closer we get towards whatever we are running from. Running away only gets us more exhausted .

As Eckhart Tolle says “Whatever you fight, you strengthen, and what you resist, persists.”

Faster you try to run away from a dog, faster dog runs towards you .

More we get scared of bullies , more we get bullied.

More we fear, bigger our fear becomes.

More we try to get rid of addictions, harder it becomes.

More we try to win, harder it becomes to win .

More we run away from difficult people , more we seems to attract difficult people in our lives.

More we want to run away from bad relationships, more our relationships turns bad

More we try not to get hurt or upset , more we get upset and hurt.

More we try to run away from depression , more we get depressed.

More you we try to run away from negativity , more negative situations will come towards us.

More we try to forget painful memories, more it will haunt us.

More we try not to think about something, more it will stay in our thoughts.

Only way out is to stop running, take a deep breath and face it, let it come in full throttle, be in it face to face, with an attitude of no turning back. Face our feelings, fears, hurt, pain, anxieties, stress....

Insight and being present face to face is the way out of it . Being present with what we are feeling will open the door to the freedom. We will realize facing what we want to run away from, is so much easier than running away from it . It is not that scary when we face it . Short term pain of facing it, is much better than continuous pain for ever.
Facing it will uncover the mystery hence solve the puzzle.

This is what will build self growth muscles, raising us to the next level.

So lets stop resisting and  face it and end it once for all. There is the freedom on the other side.

 “Whatever you fight, you strengthen, and what you resist, persists.”

Bringing awareness and insight will open doorways.

What is your journey ?

" What is a journey ?

A journey is not a trip.
Its not a vacation .
Its a process. A discovery.
Its a process of self discovery.
A journey brings us face to face with ourselves.
A journey shows us not only the world, but how we fit in it.
Does the person create the journey
or does the journey creates the person?
The journey is life itself.
Where will life take you ? " ... Louis Vuitton

I feel, A person creates a journey and then journey creates a person .
In the end it's who you become in the process and not where you go..
It's not how long it takes, it's how you take it ....
It's the process not the destination ....
It's not the result or the accolades because that will fade away .... and it does not last for ever ...

so what is your journey......... ?