The good you find in others is in you, too.
The false you find in others are your faults, as well.
After all, to recognize something you must know it.
The possibilities you see in others are possible for you, as well.
The beauty you see around you is your beauty.
The world around you is a reflection, a mirror showing you the person you are.
To change the world you must change yourself.
To blame and complain will only make matters worse.
Whatever you care about is your responsibility.
What you see in others shows you yourself.
See the best in others and you will be your best.
Give to others and you give to yourself.
Appreciate beauty and you will be beautiful.
Admire creativity and you will be creative.
Love and you will be loved.
Seek to understand and you will be understood.
Listen and your voice will be heard.
Teach and you will learn.
Show your best face to the mirror and you’ll be happy with the face looking back at you.
~ Author Unknown
To Truly See the Beauty Inside ofYOU Awakens the Awareness of Beauty All Around!
If a child lives with criticism, he learns to condemn. If a child lives with hostility, he learns to fight. If a child lives with fear, he learns to be apprehensive. If a child lives with pity, he learns to feel sorry for himself. If a child lives with ridicule, he learns to be shy. If a child lives with jealousy, he learns what envy is. If a child lives with shame, he learns to feel guilty. If a child lives with encouragement, he learns to be confident. If a child lives with tolerance, he learns to be patient. If a child lives with praise, he learns to be appreciative. If a child lives with acceptance, he learns to love. If a child lives with approval, he learns to like himself. If a child lives with recognition, he learns that it is good to have a goal. If a child lives with sharing, he learns about generosity. If a child lives with honesty and fairness, he learns what truth and justice are. If a child lives with security, he learns to have faith in himself and in those about him. If a child lives with friendliness, he learns that the world is a nice place in which to live. If you live with serenity, your child will live with peace of mind.
With what is your child living?
[Source: Canfield, J. & Wells, H. C. (1976). 100 ways to enhance self-concept in the classroom: A handbook for teachers and patents. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.]
I felt this was an appropriate reflection for today as I have noticed the patterns in my own life and how they’ve affected my behaviors and beliefs spiraling out into my daily life circumstances and relationships with others. Sometimes we need to reflect within and what our own inner child has endured unnecessarily. At any point in our life, we have the opportunity to recognize and correct years of suffering just by choosing and adjusting how we think, speak, interact, and relate to the world.
Upon reading this poem, what emotions did it evoke in you?
What memories came up? Where did it bring you in your past? Can you relate patterns of behavior and beliefs systems you currently have and live? What does it reveal about you in your present life?
Are there aspects about your life you would like to change? By seeing these areas, are you willing to change? The choice to change has to be a willingness to adopt new patterns to replace the old. When we make the choice to change, it means courage, persistence, and determination to commit no matter how difficult it may seem. Start with small baby steps. This is the best way to approach change. While even the smallest change leads yet to a bigger one and continues to grow, we must continue to move forward!
“The world changes when we change. The world softens when we soften. The world loves us when we choose to love the world.”
~ Marianne Williamson
~♥~ I wish you a day filled with in~Sight~ful Steps
Toward the Life you were meant to Live
Filled with Abundant Love ~♥~ ♥ ♥ ♥ ~ Lana
~ Pink Full Moon over Castel del Uovo in Naples, Italy ~ 6 April 2012
Cat Stevens ~ Moonshadow
Radiating from the Sun’s golden rays and illuminated by silver Moonbeams, the energy we sense is the connection we share with ALL – each other and everything around us. You feel it, I feel it, our pets feel it, the plants, trees, and insects feel it, and yes, the Earth feels it, as do all the planets and the solar systems that make up this vast Universe.
There is no denying that you sense as it is your es-sence, your being, to FEEL!
Rays of Sunlight & Moon Shadows ~ spark distinct contrast between warm and cool impressions we have, revealing the senses we are gifted in this life!
~ Lana A LaBonte
There’s so much more here. You can’t have the light without the dark nor the dark without the light.
Imagine how boring it would be if we lived without the luminosity everything radiates as a result of the light and the dark. They’re not even separate – they’re in constant union like a dance where they may grow distant but yet come back close together; expanding and contracting.
Light is recognized because of the absence of dark as is the Darkness is evident because you can non longer see the light. It’s truly a trick of the eyes.
Tonight I was admiring a splendid expression of luminosity in the sky. The beautiful, billowy clouds outlined with dark shadows signifying shape, contrast, and texture. The sun’s rays gleamed upon softening areas while highlighting a more prominent glow – one may be drawn in by an image revealing an implied heavenly vision peering out from behind the curtain which in this physical existence is not as clear and simple to distinguish or put to words.
I recall many a church or historical building adorned with master artists’ depictions of the heavenly bodies painted upon a sky scene. The bright light symbolizing purity and enlightenment to which we all innately aspire. Subtle impressions yet profoundly collected in our subconscious and filed under the area of awe. If you studied anything religious, these may evoke a stronger sensation within you. The idea we’re of this earth and these beings depicted amongst such beautiful backdrops placed us in a mode of separation – we are not there and they are not here; therefore, one is better than the other, typically referring to heaven being free of all we despise of this plane.
Here is the thought that came to mind as I stared in wonder of these magnificent puffs of light drawing shadows,
Can you imagine what life would be like if there were no reflections? If what we saw was the blandness of color upon a surface – no interaction, no dancing energies, or symbiotic play between matter?
I personally find it unimaginable because of all the beauty revealed around us in constant harmonic motion. Consider how the moonlight dances upon bodies of water, the ocean, a lake, a stream…even how you can feel the warm sun’s rays on your face. THIS IS ENERGY! This is how you can actually use your senses to recognize the connection between all matter, beings, objects, earth, air, water, fire… We don’t need to be scientists to feel, to see, to hear, to smell, or to touch! Everything around us is in a constant interaction – the molecules are moving to create byproducts of their energy. This is why you feel the wind against your skin as air brushes you. How do you understand the warmth coming from the sun?
The coolness of the moon?
It’s the same with darkness and light because again, nothing is separate!
If we did not have the attentiveness of all these energetic sensations, what would we experience?
Would we even have emotion?
We can even bring this into our personal interactions with others. If we did not have the light or dark to create this reflection, would we still embody the same senses that allow us to be aware as we are now?
Because this is important to consider → We are constantly working with the energies that surround us!
Without this symbiotic dance, how would we move? How would we flow? Remove the connectedness of our beings and what do we become?
Again, I cannot even fathom this and it is this enchantment which inspires me and imbues my faith in the rejoining of heart and soul.
Even if I were to try to imagine anything less, I feel the colorless, dull, boring, depressing even, emotionless, void, abyss shrouding over my me.
It’s this knowledge and reflection which graciously humbles me. I find myself in complete AWE of what IS and Grateful for all we are, contribute, and interact with in every moment.
Just sitting in my chair, I can feel the heat from my body as it functions. Then, as the air conditioning blows, a gentle breeze caresses my arm. I take a sip of water feeling cool liquid whet upon my lips, in my mouth, and on my tongue gliding down my throat between my ribs through the center of my torso arriving at my belly. This chilled sensation radiates outward cooling not just where the sensation of the water was felt but like a subtle force able to pass through solid structures, like walls – something we ourselves have yet to accept possible of our own physical beings. I sense it all when I allow myself to be fully present in the moment and gratefully aware!
Are you tuning in to your daily life and appreciating each moment for the splendor it brings you?
Are you acknowledging your own unique and Divine BEing illuminated in the presence of others and the reciprocal effect you mutually share with one another?
We truly are mirrors reflecting what we see in this life. It is in what we see in those around us and our surroundings which influences and persuades us to finding our Soul Purpose to Gift the world.
“Within our core self is an indelible blueprint of unrivaled individuality—the singular being that each of us exists to express. In this three-dimensional movie called “Life” there are no stand- ins, body doubles, or understudies—no one can fill in for us by proxy! Realization of this truth alone eliminates the need to imitate, conform, limit, or betray our loyalty of the originality of Self. Imagine the relief of removing your carefully crafted masks fashioned by societal forms of conditioning and instead responding to what comes into your experience directly from your Authentic Self. One of the first principles to honor in your relationship with yourself is to respect and trust your own inner voice. This form of trust is the way of the heart, the epitome of well- being. The brilliant transcendentalist Ralph Waldo Emerson wisely observed that ‘Every man has this call of the power to do somewhat unique, and no man has any other call.’ His words confirm the fact that each of us is a unique, individualized emanation of Source, here to discover and release our inner splendor.”
When union happens between a human and God, and that understanding comes, and you invoke your own spirit, then the entire Universe will come through you.”
~ Yogi Bhajan
This was read at the end of our morning mediation and perfectly expressed my theme. I love this quote because when I think of union, I immediately think of yoke (yolk humor, as well) or uniting. Then, to read the word invoke [rhyming with yoke] just solidifies the merging of our our Soul with the Divine, our ONEness! The Soul is our direct connection to Source, to God, Omnipresent ~ what you choose to call it.
It was from yoke the word yoga was derived. How perfect! The practice of yoga was never intended to be a trend or fitness craze but through discipline to commune us with ourselves and others, reuniting. It’s through the physical practice we learn to relate to our bodies and the meditative practice we return to our intuition. There is no competition or comparison – only what appears in the mind and can be witnessed through our struggles. It teaches you patience, tolerance, humility, compassion, wisdom, boundaries, and how to listen to and connect to your body. It’s important to tap into the wisdom of your pain body because this form of communication is meant to get your attention. Ignoring it manifests “what you resist persists;” what you don’t attend to now only becomes worse later on. I can attest to this!
For years I engaged in high-impact activities like aerobics, running, spinning, biking, climbing, hiking, and taking a major toll on my body. I had even done yoga off and on at home and sparsely in gyms where it was offered. I admit when I started taking hot yoga it was specifically for the intense physical exertion. Yes, I pushed my limits, as I had in the past, ignoring the pain because “no pain, no gain…to see results you need to feel the burn!” Oh, and I did! But over the course of nearly 2 years, my intense hot yoga practice did soften and I realized my body craved change. It was during that time, I started to sense an inward reflection, a desire to delve deeper into mySelf. I needed to try other practices as I consciously decided to heal my body. I had resisted pain in my physical body, as well as my emotional body, and I no longer desired this to persist! Besides, I’d already experienced how if I didn’t make the choice to change an unhealthy situation, change would arrive in a most unwelcome way. Read A Personal Account of How My Thoughts Created My Reality
It has been through my practice over the past 4 1/2 years I’ve truly grown and healed. I’ve learned to listen more to my body and my inner wisdom. Sure, there are days I witness myself stepping out of alignment but it’s in those moments I’m more attuned and able to correct and adjust where I need to, both in physical and mental practice throughout my daily life! I’ve evolved from the old obsessively critical persona into cultivating the kinder, gentler, more humble approach to loving and supporting mySelf.
So, how did I arrive to this blog? Isn’t everything connected!?
A while back, June 19th to be exact, I asked a question during meditation, “how can I connect to my spirit, my higher self?”
A strong response came through insisting:
feel your body to know you are not your body…all the sensations of energy pulsating through you are your spirit body…ethereal body.
Today in yoga, I reflected upon this message and tuned in. I felt the heightened senses of energy pulsating all over my body, a strong vibration of all the molecules moving – even beyond the skin of my physical body. It wasn’t something new to me but it was a much deeper awareness.
Over the past few days I continued to receive a message telling me to connect with my Heart and Soul. I notice some people refer to their heart as just an organ pumping and circulating blood throughout the body but I believe it is so much more our inner wisdom, the seat of our Soul!
Life only becomes chaotic when we let the Ego-based mind rule. It thinks it’s in control but I believe the Heart always knows everything is going to be alright; even while the mind steers us off course, we always return to the Heart of the matter! If we can learn to achieve balance in life between the two and learn trust, we’ll find the heart will always guide us safely.
It is in my awareness, I arrived to this conclusion:
It’s in our Hearts we Heal!
Because, this is where we ultimately always return ~ to the HEART! If we avoid our need to heal emotional pains, we’re shutting down our heart and this is what causes our suffering. We need to have an open heart to be connected and live a joyous, loving life. Haven’t you ever felt that sharp pain in your heart simultaneously while you have been emotionally hurt? Denying the heart it’s healing weighs it down and causes weakened immunity in the body ultimately leading to disease or heart conditions. Why wouldn’t you want to heal? “What you resist persists!”
What’s this life all about? To me, it’s about celebrating who we are and not what we do or relate to in this human form. It’s a return to your true Self, the one born with bright eyes, a loving heart, a trusting soul, and seeing everything as new. I believe we need to trace back through all the layers of the mind, body, soul to our connection to God Source ~ where our Heart originates!
Remember to take time to celebrate you life! We certainly weren’t born to be as serious as we’ve become.
Take time to reflect the Divine Light of Who You ARE ~ Feel it!
~♥~ May the In~Spirit~ation Rise from Within YOU~♥~ ♥ ♥ ♥ ~ Lana
Seek Silence!
Silent contains the same letters as LISTEN for good reason.
To be silent is to allow your Soul to be felt, your Heart to radiate, and your Body to vibrate its physical BEing. This is the return to your Self!”
~ Lana A. LaBonte
Listen to your Soul‘s inner wisdom and follow your Heart!
All of us need Healing on some level which requires Patience, Courage, and Love for One’s Self to Persevere even at the most difficult Moments!
I confess, often in my own life I have been distracted. Though, I find peace when I look for the calm amongst the chaos ~ those distractions in my life were and are only meant to steer me off course.
Even in my darkest hours, clinging to the illusion that my life had been done to me versus utilizing it to guide me, I had to learn I am not my past. I see this now.
I have received many lessons learned and experiences taught, leading me to the realization of how the map of my Destiny was charted. It’s taken me years of personal persistence and perseverance to find the healing in my suffering. I learned I cannot heal fully unless I confront the source of my pain and release the emotional attachment to it; because this all originates in the mind!
Honoring my emotions and allowing them to surface has been a huge part of the process in creating a new me. When my emotions have been at their strongest and bubbled up to the point of an explosive release, that’s when I’ve experienced the most crucial breakthroughs! It hasn’t always been pretty but it has been necessary to find the alchemy of love in my life!
Love truly heals all and the connection to our Soul comes through the acceptance of who we truly are inside, not what we are physically or the environment in which we find ourselves – these are external to us.
Roshan’s Love & Light shares an enlightening perspective on how to consider life’s details:
When you look at each of your relationships as though they contain a Soul Agreement, you get a whole new perspective about the purpose and meaning of what’s happening between you and your life.When you look at it from a Soul’s perspective, even when you haven’t figured out the details of a particular Agreement, suddenly things become less personal, the drama that accompanies personality conflicts dissipates magically, and you are freed to learn the things that your Soul had in mind when it created the Agreement before you were ever born.”
Find Stillness and be amazed at what you will find inside of YOU: soothing silence, inner peace, heightened senses, illuminated vision, increasing awareness, acceptance, synchronicity, serendipity, blessings abound, manifested thoughts, True LOVE, and so many more gifts to be grateful for in your present waking life.
Take the time today to Meditate in your Heart ~ Enjoy the Silence& Stillness ofLove!
~♥~ May the In~Spirit~ation Rise from Within YOU
& Beam upon all you Encounter! ~♥~ ♥ ♥ ♥ ~ Lana
We all deserve a loving life! I can share with you that I came from a history of abuse and neglect. I know the power of healing the past to live fully in the Present. It takes time, patience, and the strength and courage to stand up and take back your life. I wanted to create a safe, loving space for myself in order to contribute and better my life and the lives of others; because growing and contributing builds self-esteem and self-worth!
Most of the shadows of this life are caused by standing in one’s own sunshine.”
~ Ralph Waldo Emerso
The best way to be yourself is to weave the lessons you’ve learned or the miracles you’ve experienced into your daily life through gratitude and being in the Present moment! Bits of wisdom appear during these most humble moments and will be shared with those who witness you and the daily transformations you make!
What inspires you & brings you joy? What is it that you can do to be the more illuminated YOU?
The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are. ”
~ Joseph Campbell
Oh, it has certainly been a day of synchronicity packed with serendipitous events and themes. Everywhere I turn seems to be the confirmation of the previous and the immediate blessings of the Present in my life! It was quite literally when I read the following, I felt compelled to type up this blog entry. My meditation’s theme continued, as well as, supporting transformations I’ve witnessed and felt flashing in my life like lightening bolts – often too quick for me to even keep up with!
If you stay in your center of Peace, stay in the Moment, you can choose Love (often that is Silence) or old reactions when faced with a challenge. You can also create the New by choosing Soul Essences to integrate and Be, which create New Life. (Joy, Love, Peace, Respect, Timelessness, Abundance, etc.) So it’s your choice; do you react (separate ego) or respond (Soul) to life’s challenges (opportunities for growth)?
There is a beautiful saying in India’s ancient Vedic tradition: “If you want to recreate the world, look at it with fresh eyes.” Today have the intention to see one thing as if for the first time. Look without the camouflage of your memories. Sometimes the hardest thing is to truly see someone we have known for a long time, such as our partner, child, or friend. We assume we know who they are, and so we stop seeing. It is also important to look at yourself as though doing so for the first time. We may assume that we know ourselves, but as we are discovering, who we are is much more than our limited ego-mind can envision. Through the eyes of your true self, take a few moments to consider how truly magnificent you really are.
It’s this looking through new eyes which can awaken your Soul and enliven your Sense of Purpose in this life!
Take this day to Kiss the Sky and mindfully reflect the Divine Light of Who You ARE!!!
~♥~ May the In~Spirit~ation Rise from Within YOU
& Shine upon all those you Encounter! ~♥~ ♥ ♥ ♥ ~ Lana
