So it's that time again, guys. Thanksgiving has passed and Christmas is sneaking up on us as each minute passes. Stress may be starting to set in, thoughts of our personal finances become magnified, another year has gone by and you feel like you're getting older. Maybe you feel like you didn't get to do all the things you wanted or achieve all the goals you had in mind this year, and all the while everywhere you look you're getting hit in the face with one singular idea: BUY OUR STUFF
All the sweetest video games and systems come out right before Christmas, Black Friday deals lure us in, spend so much and get x free, free layaway, no interest for 10 months, guaranteed money back, free trial offer, "show that special someone you love them" (by giving them "this"). You know what I'm getting at here.
One thing that personally gets me down is when I see the holiday commercial where a guy surprises his wife or GF with a box of diamonds... or a brand new car... or a two week vacation to Hawaii.... Fuuuuck me - If that just doesn't just put things into perspective for most of us. lol... I know this sounds a bit like Scrooge, but hear me out on this.
It's very easy around the Holidays to get sucked into stress and negative thinking, but I believe that can be avoided by practicing gratitude and finding a way to do something good for someone less fortunate. You gotta give it away to keep it - u feel me?
So during this Holiday season I would like to ask my readers to take a little time, give a little bit of their thought power and energy to their own personal gratitude, and how they can make the world a better place. (it doesn't have to be financial!)
During the midst of all this craziness (which CAN be enjoyable don't get me wrong) as you grow as a person and experience this new Holiday Season in you life, realize that just as important as it is to maintain a balanced budget, it's equally as important to take some time and acknowledge the things you ALREADY HAVE and the things YOU'RE CURRENTLY CAPABLE OF. Because trust me - It could ALWAYS be worse.
Gratitude for the current life you have is something a lot of people overlook... I'm guilty of it too so don't think I'm getting on a soap box here. It is important though to think about how far you've come and what you've accomplished. Acknowledge that. Say to yourself, "Wow - I DO have a roof over my head. I DO have food to eat every day. I DO have access to health care. I DID get that job. I WAS a good Father / Mother this year to my kids. etc..." You'll come to find that you have a pack of blessings you don't normally think about.
This will make you a more humble person and will teach you to appreciate the things that many people aren't fortunate enough to have. Not only does this build character (in my opinion) but on an unseen level Gratitude opens up a path for the Universe to keep giving you things. It's like telling the Universe "YES! I LIKE THAT!" - so the Universe says "ok well here's some more!" - (many of you have probably heard of this kind of thing if you've read any current new age books or seen any of the movies they have out...) but getting back on track ... I can almost guarantee that by keeping a thankful state of mind and doing something nice for someone else it basically creates a secret recipe to eliminate your own stress. Whatever is going on in your own life takes a backseat. You do something nice for someone who truly deserves it. And it will help put things into perspective for you as well -
I can't speak for everyone here, but personally, it breaks my heart to look at my life and at the same time know that there are little kids out there who lost their parents in a tragic shoot out, or a little boy somewhere who isn't getting anything this year because his parents are alcoholics, or a little closer to my field of work - someone maybe going through a serious health problem and they're all alone to face it, or a young girl who has to choose between having an abortion or being disowned by her family... etc... It's all over, and this kind of stuff goes on daily..
There is a lot of suffering and hardship in this world that I have never known. And that IS a big deal to me - and it's something to be truly thankful for.
So in closing - it is my sincerest wish for you to take some time and find a way to get real with yourself this Holiday Season.
If only for a little while, relax, light a candle, pray, or whatever you do - Tell the Universe how thankful you are for all the amazing things you have. Tell the Universe you are happy, healthy, enjoying free will, making it through your circumstances just fine, and glad to be taking part in this awesome experience called life.
And the next time you're out - put some change in the salvation army jug for god sakes. Buy the xmas tree sticker u can put your name on at the grocery store for donating to children's hospital. Sign up to buy a toy for a kid who's never gotten to play with anything cool, buy some food for the animals at the shelter that haven't had quality bones or tuna in god knows how long.
One last thought - Isn't it interesting, that Love - the best feeling in the world, is infinite, and totally within our power to give freely - yet we have such a shortage of it on this planet. The possibilities are endless - Find a way to take what you're thankful for, take what makes you feel love, and spread it everywhere you go.
ooook phew! - made it through the sentimental stuff
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Psychic Self Defense - This is an interesting concept and one that deserves some attention. Let me first just say that in most cases Psychic Self Defense is not exactly necessary for people unless they are highly sensitive to other people's emotions or the atmosphere they happen to be in. - Or unless they meditate on a regular basis and have developed a sensitivity to other people's emotions or the atmosphere they happen to be in.
Think of yourself as a multi dimensional being - you are controlling a physical vessel... this is the densest aspect of who you are. You are also carrying a gauge of emotional detection that will either make u feel good or make u feel bad (it can make you feel other ways but for these purposes it breaks down into either GOOD or BAD) - You are also in control of an internal amount of "intelligence" - you can think and ration and understand within your mind. There is "you" and there is "the rest of existence".
In any interaction you have, whatever happens or anything that occurs all boils down to "You"- and that can be a little confusing or misleading... but it's true. Simply because "you" are in control of "you"- you can't control "the rest of existence" - Anything can be dealt with in terms of "you" - you're basically living in your own world. You could think of it that way - and you're the controller.
There is a real amount of communication that occurs between people and things - much of it non verbal... most of it actually. Also, it's all completely guided and set up as part of a system higher than we can currently understand. but I digress....
Sooooooo - you can do all this - thinking internally, being in control, effecting communication, etc - but so can everyone else on this planet for the most part. This is where it gets a little icky. If you meditate for a length of time, or just happen to be a sensitive type of person - your reception and "openness" to others becomes highly developed.
On a higher frequency (which you're personally becoming familiar with now) everything blends together - we're all sharing the same "thought space" so it can make for some uncomfortable situations if you remain energetically open all the time.... (or it can make for some amazingly amazing situations at times too) - You gotta get a handle on your shit though.
You can't just go around "open" all the time - you'll go crazy. You'll get so bogged down with emotion and trying to figure it all out, and why did he or she react this way to me, and wow my son must have learned that from one of the shitty kids at school and I know this person is feeling bad so i'll give them a pass on that rude remark, and wow that girl was checkin me out I can feel it, and I wonder if people can tell im really hungry right now, and blah blah blah.... it can be a friggin nightmare... SO what do we do?
We learn about boundries, we learn about defense, and we learn about energy...
One thing that really helps and something to always remember is when you meditate - you should always close down afterwards. Energetically speaking - as you breathe in and out, delve into yourself and the universe, you are in essence working with your chakras (I'll explain chakras soon) - but for now just know that when you feel love (probably in your heart area), or feel fear ("weak in the knees"), or get emotional (get a "lump" in your throat), or whatever else - it's all related to a system of energy centers that are a bit like our organs - on an unseen plane.
Meditation can access, clean and heal all of these centers (trickling down to physical life making it nice and comfortable), but if you don't close down afterwards it's a bit like opening all the windows and doors in the house for a good cleaning and just not shutting them after. You become at risk for anything to just come in.
So - Close down - Ground yourself - at the end of each meditation tell yourself (and feel yourself) closing things down, shutting your windows, locking the doors. I like to say something like "I'm becoming physical again, 80% physical, 20% mental"... imagine a firm force field of steel covered with white light around your entire body - (or something like that).... close down anyway u like really. Just make sure you do it.
When you're out in public or going somewhere a lot of other people will be - make sure you surround yourself with white light, or a bubble, or something u like and can relate to. Tell yourself you're not going to allow any negative energy into your field of being. Call on your spirit guides or if you like a certain angel - ask for protection as you go about your day.
Eventually if you get into crystals and stones there are some specific ones that will help you in this protection process. Carrying around a piece of "X" kind of stone or crystal will help you achieve "X" - depending on the situation you're going to be in, and the desired outcome.
Another thing that works - when talking to people and dealing with conversation - I like to use a "passcode" - much like the passcode you have on your iphone or whatever... I lock up the "real me" and only I know the pass code - by that rationale - anything that anyone says or does can not have any effect on the real me cause I locked that mofo up. I save my most vulnerable self for the people I feel are truly interested and have something to truly offer.
Work and other day to day interaction... This is tough because you meet people over the years and you want to show them parts of yourself, but you want to remain workplace friendly and appropriate as well. For me - I like to show about 35% of my personality at work - and do my best to surround it with an energy of "service to others" / "the world is a good place" - ... I'd say that's a fair estimation of what I try to put out there anyway. You can figure out your own percentage and put forth, or back off as much as you like. You'll find that some people are a little easier to share things with than others.
Once you start working with these ideas they can become a lot of fun and there aren't really any limits.
I WOULD certainly go as far as to say that this kind of thing can be extremely important, and in the world we live in currently, could very likely be lifesaving.
If you ever find yourself in a serious situation - i.e. you get a bad vibe from someone who's been eyeballing your kid at the playground, you get a sudden feeling not to get in the car with that person who's had a few glasses of beer, you feel the urge to call that friend who you've noticed has been feeling depressed and acting odd lately - It could honestly be a lifesaving measure.
I'm not saying bad things are out to get us - but I am saying it's good to practice mental borders / psychic defense techniques - it will always give you a leg up.
Best of luck you weirdos... lol - keep meditating, and stay safe out there! xoxoxo
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Life on the Turn Up - haha... Life IS good believe it or not, but what's even better is actively taking the bull by the horns and pointing things in the direction you want to go. Engaging the physical self is a great way to do that. It's good to experiment with how far you can push yourself. It's extremely rewarding too. Some of the things I've come to realize on this journey so far are as follows:
I feel like if there is such thing as a hump or period of time it takes to figure out if you're serious about going to the gym or not - I am approaching it. I got through the initial phase of actually going there, meeting new people and looking weird as a beginner. I had my first realization that I would need to keep this up financially. I figured out how RAW would fit into my schedule more or less, and became aware of the physical/mental needs this kind of thing takes. So far I'm happy to say, I think I want to keep it going.
I have to say that I feel like this existence def. creates change, and change is like the fuel for living life. To be always on the cusp of new experience, to be ready at all times - presenting my best foot forward. I mean that's just awesome, it's the best way to live. I don't want to sound all broey but I get it, I mean I get why people can become totally obsessed with this kind of stuff and make it a lifestyle. You take something, then transmute it to something better, and then something better, and then something better - all the while on every level it permeates and creates positive change in your life.
I have felt some things I need to work on... I'd like to get more involved with the idea of diet and eating properly. I'd like to stock up on plenty of work outs to do on my own time too so I can keep a good flow going. Maybe even try out some supplements and experiment with that. Consistency is something else too... 2 or 3 times a week whenever I can make it probably isn't as good as 3-5 times a week, making sure it happens. Things like that... finding balance, keeping it going. All in all I can't complain though.
The affect on my mental / emotional state has been quite positive... Things come more clearly to me. Meditation has been a lot more meaningful lately. I feel sharper and more focused. I'm not as upset about some things as I used to be.
One thing blends into the next a little easier as well... This is hard to explain... but before I started RAW I remember I'd get so bummed out about going to work sometimes. My day would last forever it seemed... but now more recently I find that work breaks down into different segments. I'll do an hour here, an hour there... and before I know it I'm done. I feel like this is the concept of pacing myself - emanating in different aspect of my life. I don't know for sure though - this is just some observational stuff I've been noticing lately. AAAAnnnyway -
So far so good - It's been a sweet journey and I believe 100% that I'm that much better for it. I advise anyone to make working out, stackin' gains, exercise, whatever u wanna call it - a habitual part of life. The risk vs. reward is the best there is, the return on your investment is 100% - and it will take you on a personal journey that only you will understand.
BOOSH!
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Happy Holidays to all my friends/readers - You guys are awesome. Pleaaaaase stay safe out there and remember - "The real beauty is not in the words themselves, but in the listener that has the power to understand them.”
....Happy new year too!
