Archive for December, 2006
Working out again this morning. Feeling fit. Feeling good. Go to a weight machine. Do my first set of 12 reps, listening to some great music on my ipod then suddenly there’s this guy standing in front of me saying something, which I can’t hear because I’m listening to music. He wants my machine!
“I’m doing two more sets.” I say. “Okay.” He says with a kind of “Oh blast!” kind of look. So now I am doing my sets talking to myself big time. Should I have let him on the machine? Would I go stand in front of a machine that someone is working out on and ask them if they are still using it? Should I go ask him just what he expected me to do? Do I let it go and let go of the struggle?
I decided to let go and carried on with my weight training. In some ways I wish I had the cahones to just walk up to people and ask for my turn. I asked Jeff about it and he said, “The guy had his routine all worked out and you were in the way. He just wanted that machine.” So what’s the lesson here?
Let people be. It’s okay. There’s nothing going on. People have their own agenda’s and I have mine. I don’t want to be disturbed when I’m working out….well if that’s the case, I should go build a gym in my basement. Thing is…we’re surrounded by people and people are great. We can do and be anything we want. I love that the guy had the cahones to ask for what he wants. I love that I have the cahones to stay my ground.
All is possible. All is doable. Have a fantastic day!
Rock N Roll
Val
December 14th, 2006
Went to the gym this morning and was following a guy who opened the door and didn’t look back to see if anyone was coming along behind. You know the kind of thing people do when they are lost in thought, or just don’t want to be bothered to keep the door open for someone else.
It didn’t exactly slam shut in my face, but it was close to it, and for a moment I had a bad thought about him. So there I am in the gym and I see himi jogging on the treadmill. He looked so upset and despondent–like it was the biggest effort to make his legs move. Everything about him said, “I am having a horrible day.”
Then I realized–we have to give people a break. We have no idea what’s going on in their lives. This guy has obviously got some problems–and he just about managed to drag himself into the gym. Who I am to have a thought about him? So today….lets give everyone a break. We all need it from time to time and we can all make a big difference in someone’s life just by giving them a break!
Rock N Roll
Val
December 11th, 2006
Went to a wake last night of a father of a friend of mine. His time had come and in fact it was a release from pain when he finally decided to go. Everyone was milling around, friends, family, old and young talking in small groups, laughing, being sad. And as I prepared to leave, I was walking away and this young child, not old enough to walk was crawling across the church floor and his mom said, “sorry I just can’t keep him still.”
This child had the most open and loving smile I had seen for a while. It was a full on smile that lit up the room and I thought,’How amazing and how wonderful–here in the midst of death and saying good-bye to a dear one, here’s this child just being open, trusting and full of love.
In the midst of sadness there is joy, in the midst of depression there is happiness. We can’t have one without the other, and in the midst of death is life. It’s Saturday morning and I am about to go and workout at the ‘Y’ and I am going to do it with the same trust and love that I saw in that child last night. I have a choice and I am going to work that treadmill like it’s never been worked before!
Rock N Roll
Val
December 9th, 2006
So this trust thing really does work. There is nothing happening right now and I am where I am. I can trust that feeling or I can go with fear and upset and think that something bad is about to happen. In fact I was talking to a friend just yesterday, and she said, “Everything is going so well, I’m worried that something bad is going to happen!” And we kinda laughed about it, and at the same time I understand exactly where she is coming from
Sometimes it’s like that. I get a bubble of good feeling, of well-being and feel so on top of the world that I get a bit scared that I’m going to fall off! Well trust is like this, I am where I am and I trust that everything will continue to be amazing. If problems come up, I will simply deal with them and trust that I will get back to this amazing state of well being.
Rock N Roll Val
December 8th, 2006
I woke up the other morning and felt so grateful to be alive, that I was saying to myself, “thank you for the person that made this bread so I could have toast.” And “thank you for the people who make it possible for water to come from the tap.” And I felt so good I was telling Jeff about it, and he said, “You could make that your thing to do every morning…being grateful.” So I said, “Yes I will.”
Next day, I am having a conversation with a friend of mine about money; need more, want more, must have more….you know the kind of the conversation that comes around especially at Holiday time! And she said, “Val you’ve been having this same conversation for years…” I’ve known this friend for about 20 years, so she knows me very well! I said, “your’re right.” And she said, “It’s not about money it’s about trust.”
So we looked at trust and had a great conversation about letting go of worries and coming from a place of trust. After all, I’ve always had enough money, all my life money has come in…so I could start trusting the energy of abundance…right?!
Later that day I am on the phone to an old friend whose father in law had just died, and he is talking about how grateful is for having this man in his life all those years. “He’s still with me,” he said. “Still in my head–I can still talk to him.” Then he told me a story about being grateful.
He had visited Las Vegas with $600 and a gratitude rock in his pocket. He’d been given lots of gratitude rocks by people he had coached. This is a rock or small pebble that people carry around with them to remind themselves to be grateful. He said, “Every time I sat down at a table I would hold my gratitude rock in my pocket and just think about being grateful….I came home with $25,000.00!”
Then he told me, “I never figured out about being grateful until I read somewhere, when you are grateful for things in your life, the universe just opens up and gives you more things to be grateful for.” It makes sense to me….so this morning I got this great email from the friend I mentioned earlier, the one I had the discussion with about trust. Here’s what she wrote, ‘I really wanted to tell you that you instigated a really wonderful meditation on trust and of course I realized that I had a huge trust issue because always being afraid of spending money is total lack of trust. Thank you for awakening all of that in me.’
What a great life! What wonderful opportunities when we open up to trust and being grateful for everything in our lives.
Rock N Roll
Val
December 7th, 2006
I just got an email from a lady who has lost her husband, her job and had to relocate — all within one year. And through her grace and dignity she is moving forward with her heart and mind filled with new possibilities, new opportunities for growth, and knowing that she is in charge of her life. And she has decided to handle her situation in a positive way.
It was a great reminder for me. I can get so caught up in the small upsets of life, and no matter how difficult I think my life is, I have to put the past behind me, get rid of my limitations, my worries and concerns and have an amazing life. As I sit in my office in Chicago, there is snow everywhere and I see the beauty in nature. Wherever you are and whatever you are doing, remember to live your life with grace and dignity.
Rock N Roll Jeff
December 2nd, 2006