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Monday, October 5th, 2009 by Debra Oakland
“Let us be grateful to people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.” Marcel Proust
Who would want to visit a garden that is full of waist high weeds, colorless and uncultivated? I would not, simply because it is lifeless, neglected and kind of sad. Even if you planted a beautiful seed, it has no water, or care. There is nothing to nourish this beautiful plant to take root.
Now imagine a colorful garden full of beautiful flowers, or food growing in abundance. The area has been prepared, seeded and the little plants raise their courageous heads to the sun, in anticipation of growth and change. You can compare these two scenarios to the mental bodies of the human race. Each person is different, according to what has been planted in the garden of their consciousness. The mental body is a magnetic field, and through the power of your attention, draws into itself whatever it is being fed. What are you feeding yours? Garbage such as anger, judgment, blame, jealousy or even hate? Or, are you feeding it peace, joy, abundance, love, and a sense of knowing that you get to choose? The healthy plant that is loved and cared for carries a pattern of perfection within itself, just as you do. Are you willing to hold that pattern in your mind in a receiving way until it can be externalized? Have the courage to cultivate, feed and water this pattern of perfection that wants to expand and express itself in, through and around you.
When you get an idea, it is the responsibility of the mental body to hold this idea clearly – long enough for your feelings to breathe it into life. How does this happen? By breathing love, enthusiasm and expectation into the idea. It is like a rhythm that accompanies this pattern of perfection you wish to manifest into form. How do we fail or fall short of this? As I mentioned earlier, our mental bodies are meant to be a clear, magnetic field. It is cultivated and ready for planting. When we put accumulated concepts, mass consciousness of fear, doubt, failure, doom and gloom into this beautiful garden of our mental body, there is no space for the good stuff to grow.
The mental body receives through the power of your attention, as well as through the activities of the senses. So imagine your attention connects with something, good, bad or otherwise. Now your mental body forms a picture of it in your mind, and through the senses, whatever you have placed your attention on, enters the mental body and adds to what is already there. In many cases, there is an accumulation of discordant garbage. If we keep storing the same old garbage, there will be no room for the beautiful life we all want to live. Start by pulling some weeds out of the garden of your consciousness. Maybe your garden is beautiful and yields great and wonderful life experiences. Now and then, you may find a few new weeds, or a couple of really big ones that need removing. Go on in, and pull them out. Then move on, without resistance, just knowing that all gardens need weeding, and constant tending to stay beautiful. Just like you.
Here are some very wise rules to live by that will help your garden grow.
Watch your thoughts; they lead to attitudes.
Watch your attitudes; they lead to words.
Watch your words; they lead to actions.
Watch your actions; they lead to habits.
Watch your habits; they form your character.
Watch your character; it determines your destiny.
Tags: Courage, Debra Oakland @ Living in Courage Online, Encouragement, Gardens, Living in Courage, Living in Courage Online, Marcel Proust, Mental Body, Motivation, Spiritual, Wikipedia
Posted in Courage, Debra's Articles, Wisdom To Live By | 3 Comments »
Wednesday, July 15th, 2009 by Debra Oakland
I posted this story here at Living In Courage last year. This is a powerful message by General Douglas MacArthur. Who is not concerned with aging? Most people would prefer to stay young, energetic and healthy. How much is in the body? How much is in the mind? I talk to people all the time in their 60’s, 70’s and 80’s who say they feel very young inside. This is a tribute to true youth, no matter the physical age. Youth is not a time of life, it is a state of mind. It is a temper of the will, a quality of the imagination, a vigor of the emotions, a predominance of courage over timidity, of the appetite for adventure over the love of ease.
Nobody grows old by merely living a number of years. People grow old by deserting their ideals. Years wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul. Worry, doubt, self-distrust, fear and despair, these are the long, long years that bow the head and turn the growing spirit back to dust.
Whether seventy or seventeen there is in every beings heart the love of wonder, the sweet amazement of the stars and the starlight things and thoughts, the undaunted challenge of events and the childlike appetite for what’s next, and the joy and the game of life.
You are as young as your faith, as old as your doubt, as young as your self-confidence, as old as your fear. So long as your heart receives messages of beauty, cheer, courage, grandeur and power from the earth, from man, and from the infinite, so long you are young.
~~~ General Douglas MacArthur
Tags: Brave, Courage, Encouragement, General Douglas Mac Arthur, Hero, Living in Courage, Living in Courage Online, Moral Courage, Stay Young, Wikipedia
Posted in Courage, Heroes | 2 Comments »
Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009 by Debra Oakland
I like to think of Earth Day as a day of “Living in Courage.” Earth Day is celebrated in the US on April 22. This is a day designed to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth’s environment. It was founded by U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson as an environmental teach-in, in 1970 and is celebrated in many countries every year. Even Disney jumped on board and is opening their new film “Earth Day” which is a Documentary about various animal species across the planet.
To learn all about Earth Day’s Founder U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson and the purpose of Earth Day visit All About Earth Day Every Day.
For Wikipedia info on Earth day go to: Wikipedia: Earth Day
President Obama is on board by heading to Newton, Iowa to discuss how energy investments create jobs. There will be a tour at a former Maytag plant, a local branch of Trinity Structural Towers, where towers are manufactured for wind energy production. President Obama will discuss his energy plan to promote clean energy technology. This plan can help end our dependence on foreign oil, create millions of jobs along with the prevention of worsening climate change issues.
Please visit Earth Day Network I quote from their blog:
“Earth Day 2009, April 22, will mark the beginning of The Green Generation CampaignTM which will also be the focus of the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day in 2010. With negotiations for a new global climate agreement coming up in December, Earth Day 2009 must be a day of action and civic participation, to defend The Green GenerationTM’s core principles:
~A carbon-free future based on renewable energy that will end our common dependency on fossil fuels, including coal.
~An individual’s commitment to responsible, sustainable consumption.
~Creation of a new green economy that lifts people out of poverty by creating millions of quality green jobs and transforms the global education system into a green one.
Happy Earth Day to you from Debra Oakland @ Living in Courage Online
Tags: Debra Oakland, Earth Day, Earth Day Network, Economy, Living in Courage, Living in Courage Online, Maytag Plant, President Obama, Trinity Structural Towers, U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson, Wikipedia
Posted in Courage, Debra's Articles, Heroes | No Comments »
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