Life Sucks

I'm guessing that got your attention, either because you totally agree, or because you think I must be a poor example of a spiritual, mindful personal coach.

I don't really think life sucks, although there are moments where it's hard not to go there. Certain events, for example, like mass shootings, do indeed give me a hopeless, sad, angry feeling about the world. And sometimes circumstances closer to home evoke those same feelings.

But then I'm reminded that I'm ultimately responsible for what I attract into my life experience, and I see the possibilities for making both my inner and outer circumstances better. I have many tools at my disposal to facilitate moving beyond what's 'out there' to my inner knowing that I can attract what I want and need into my experience. I also acknowledge that the external world is but a fraction of what is real and true.

I love the example that Eckhart Tolle used when describing how we experience life's difficulties when we acknowledge our spiritual being-ness, and live in the present moment. He said that our negative experiences are like a lit candle placed in the middle of a room. If the room has all the shades pulled down, and is very dark, the lit candle is very prominent and important. However, if the shades are lifted and light is flooding into the room, the candle light all but disappears, being absorbed by the surrounding light in the room. The candle flame is the same. It has just lost its prominence.

This is what various tools, like EFT and mindfulness practices can do for us. They are the light that puts our troubles into perspective.Today I invite you to throw up the shades and let the light in so that your sorrows, stresses and concerns can fade into the background of a joyful life experience.

Cheryl

cherylenniscoaching.com

What Can I Do?

Often, when we are observing the world around us, we feel overwhelmed by the problems we see that feel big and even insurmountable. Although many of us are good, kind, well-intentioned people we often feel like we as a single individual are powerless to make a difference. There are of course many examples of men and women throughout time who have single-handedly changed the course of history through their discoveries or inventions. But today I'm focused on the small, but impactful actions we can each execute every day, that collectively, make a big difference. Here are some ideas:

• Smile and offer a kind word to your grocery clerk, restaurant server, car washer, dry cleaner, a child, or neighbor. Such kindnesses can ripple out far beyond that one individual, and may indeed be just the boost that person needs at that moment.

• If you are a meat-eater, cut out meat one or two days a week. This is good for the environment and good for your health. Make choices that support meat producers who are committed to humane practices.

• Don't litter.

• Recycle. Even if your efforts are rudimentary, and the recycling processes currently in place aren't perfect, less waste is always good.

• Support food rescue through a local non-profit with your wallet, or by volunteering. This is an excellent way to prevent food waste and is a great way to feed the hungry and reduce land fills.

• Send intentional thoughts of healing and caring to those who are suffering, whether they be a friend going through a tough time, or a country under siege. Never underestimate the value and power of intentional loving thoughts.

• Be a good example to your children and other young people in your life, of kindness, generosity, equality, and acceptance of all people.

Here's to the creation of a better world, one small step at a time.

www.cherylenniscoaching.com

Re-defining 'Fine'

I read a lovely essay the other day, written by a woman whose husband was dying of a terminal illness. At one point during a conversation with her husband, he tried to reassure her, saying "everything will be fine - actually, everything is fine." When she protested, he said, "you just have to change your perception of fine".

Now, that might sound like an invitation to ignore, sugar-coat, or put a happy face on a pretty awful situation. As I thought about that concept, however, I realized that he was absolutely correct. Everything in our experience is fine. We are all experiencing life in a way that is perfect for us. Of course, in our limited understanding, it is hard to agree that what we think of as really terrible life events are fine.

Whether we are personally experiencing some particularly difficult life situation, or witnessing the suffering of others, it can be hard to accept that in the great, infinite, perfect 'All-That-Is', everything is indeed precisely as it should be. Each experience and event is in fact the exact thread required to weave that particular swatch of the cosmic tapestry. We can have faith that our experiences are 'fine' precisely because that is what has unfolded in our experience.

When we look at our lives through the lens of eternity, we realize that each moment of each life experience is a part of a perfect expansion of an infinite universe. In the eternity of our individual soul, we are constantly growing, learning and expanding, and no experience is final. We are all contributing to the eternal perfection of the perfect One, of which we are all a part. From this perspective, we are all fine.

Cheryl

cherylenniscoaching.com