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Embracing Inspiration

Tag Archives: Meditation

Mindful Moments

13 Tuesday Aug 2013

Posted by Lana A. LaBonte in All Posts

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Awaken, Change, Courage, Gift, Heart, Love, Meditation, Mindful, Mindfulness, Moment, One, Oneness, Patience, Peace, Present, Purpose, Self, Soul, Strength, Transformation

SeedToPlantImage

Exalted, nature’s power is to help you! 

Patience to Gift the Heart of the matter 

Peace to bring us all together 

Courage & Strength to forge ahead

…where Change is forever constant! 

~ Lana A. LaBonte, from my meditation 13 Aug 2013

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)?

~ Soulstice Rising, Merging with Soul – 8/13/2013

 

You know you’re on your path when you are living in the moment ~ seeing how everything unfolds in true connectedness, ONEness!

During an Oprah & Deepak 21-Day Meditation Challenge I read this:

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

♥ P.S.♥  For a great article on being mindful, check out:
14 Everyday Ways To Celebrate Being Alive

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Growth From The Seeds ~ Achieving Desired Goals ~ Life Purpose

02 Sunday Jun 2013

Posted by Lana A. LaBonte in All Posts

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Tags

Energy, Goals, Growth, Inspire, Life, Light, Lists, Meditation, Nurture, Permanent, Purpose, Roots, Seeds, Self, Success

MakeBeautifulThingsHappen

A teacher cannot give you the truth. The truth is already in you. You only need to open yourself – body, mind and heart – so that his or her teachings will penetrate your own seeds of understanding and enlightenment. If you let the words enter you, the soil and the seeds will do the rest of the work.”

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

It’s a cleansing rainstorm here complete with the thunder and lightening spectacular.  Just before it began, I finally put the cucumbers in the ground.  I also have mint, romaine lettuce, cilantro, parsley, basil, culantro, a tomato plant, passion fruit, dwarf papaya and macadamia trees.  I’m unsure how well they’ll thrive with the sandy soil we have here.  I though I’d try planting some pepper & date seeds in pots. 

I’ve spent the past 4 years living out a suitcase!  I’ve yet to “grow & establish roots” in any one location that has felt permanent during this time.  Hence why, this is the first time I’ve been able to plant a small garden.  Of course, I do have a home I can return to with family in the sunshine state so, I’m not destitute – though, even this doesn’t feel like it’s where I’ll be for long.  The miracle of a seed sprouting and transforming into Mother Earth’s Bounty ~ a live plant, tree, or herb and that has the power to nourish and sustain another life while regenerating if cared for properly.  Is there any doubt or wonder how we don’t see ourselves in this same way?

As I hear the rain falling, I think of all the amazing insights I’ve had over the past week.  Some people have been fortunate to hear them spew forth in conversation while I scurried to write them down just to keep up with it all.  I’ve recognized how far I’ve evolved over the course of my life through all my experiences and where I am today.  Compared to what many may have viewed as my most successful professional moments, my life was not nearly as vibrant and fulfilling as it is now!

Let me ask you all to ask yourself these questions:

~ How do you view your life? 

~ Are you happy and fulfilled? 

~ Can you map out your life and see a theme or any repeated patterns?

~ Do you recognize yourself from where you were 10, maybe 15, or 20 years ago?

~ Did you set Goals for yourself? And, did you achieve them?

~ Do you see what thoughts/seeds were planted in your life and how they grew? 

~ How were they cared for or tended to? 

Sometimes we need to step back and review our life.

Make a list of all of your accomplishments and, if you were goal-oriented, if you achieved what you’d set out to do.  How did it feel when you achieved each of your GOALS, accomplishments?

Write down your barrier thoughts, and then consider ways to reinterpret the situation.  In the process, ask yourself questions like… What else could this situation or experience mean?  Can anything good come from it? Does it present any opportunities for me?  What lessons can I learn and apply to the future?  Did I develop any strengths as a result?

~ Sonja Lyubomirsky from The How of Happiness

I remember many times over the course of my life making lists of goals and I achieved them all.  It felt amazing at the time and even looking back, I am so grateful for the strategy of setting and accomplishing.  But then, at one point I found myself at a loss ~  I hadn’t made any new goals! 

At that moment I knew I really needed to reevaluate My Life!

GetMotivated

I know I’m not the only person who has gone through this sense of feeling lost in the world and not knowing what to do so I invite you to consider taking the time to reexamine your life. 

Sit down with pen and sheets of paper ~ write everything that comes to mind everything you ever wanted to do in your life on one page, or more in many cases.  *** Don’t worry if it sounds silly because “no thing” is impossible!  On another page, write down all the things you have done you never thought you’d do.  Now, this may take some time but be patient with yourself!

When you’re ready, look over both & put stars with the ones that correspond and match each other.  Do you come up with any you didn’t achieve on your first list?  Are there things you have done you never even considered on your second list? 

How does this exercise make you feel?  I suggest keeping a journal to track how you feel so you can determine if it resonates with who you are and if it will aid in serving your passion, your Purpose. 

Many years ago someone said to me, “Marianne, you’re so hard on yourself.  And the reason you’re so had on yourself is because you’re so easy on yourself.”  It was one of the wisest things anyone has ever told me, and it has guided me ever since.

Sometimes we’re too easy on ourselves, lacking self-discipline and giving ourselves slack and in places where we simply shouldn’t. Then we’re loaded with guilt and suffering! The only way to end the torture of self-condemnation is to try to live a life that earns your self-respect.

~ Marianne Williamson


Now, there’s something you can do to reignite your passion.  Set aside time for YOU, make an appointment with yourself ~ this can be daily, weekly, or however you feel will most benefit you but most importantly, it must be honored, respected, and a date and time you will be present for YOU.  Not everyone can meditate, as this is when I find my most inspirational messages come through, but what I suggest is find books, videos, audios of people who inspire you and you would want to glean wisdom from. 

I’ll use an example of one, Jack Canfield is one I admire.  I’d read the Chicken Soup for the Soul books and never realized his story until one day in the library I came across The Success Principles: How to Get from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be.  There is a wealth of information in this book and I highly recommend it, there is also an audio version if you prefer.  If you click the link to his website, you can register for a free mentorship and get access to free Goal-setting tools. 

I also have attended Anthony Robbins‘ Date With Destiny and this really catapulted many of my shifts.  It was exactly what I needed to start to recognize where my life story had originated, how much was mine and how much was emulated from my parents.  For me, as with many others, there was a LOT of Healing I needed to work on ~ and I still am working on this now!  

I know there are plenty of motivational resources available that will resonate with you.  If you are interested in more of what I’m using or have used in the past, don’t hesitate to ask in the comments. 

Everything, a horse, a vine, is created for some duty. For what task, then, were you yourself created? A man’s true delight is to do the things he was made for. 

A man’s true delight is to do the things he was made for. 

~ Marcus Aurelius

I invite you to find what modality works for you because once you start making shifts in your own life, everything will take on a new perspective and the world will feel like a new place filled with opportunity!  It’s all about planting the seeds of change and cultivating them so they can grow.

Your mind will be like its habitual thoughts; for the soul becomes dyed with the color of its thoughts. Soak it then in such trains of thoughts as, for example: Where life is possible at all, a right life is possible.

~ Marcus Aurelius

I hope my writings inspire you to find ways to reignite the spark you may be missing or just excite you with endless possibilites, as I know I’m always looking for ways to maintain my childlike enthusiasm and keep motivated.

GalileoGalileiQuote

As gold or silver first covered with Earth, and then cleaned shines full of light, so the embodied man seeing the Truth of the Atman (soul) as one, attains the Goal and becomes sorrowless. 

~ Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

I wish you much success in actively finding and refining your Life’s Purpose through Planting Positive Seeds of Thought and Action, by Seeking your Soul’s Passion, establishing Goals and setting milestones, Nurturing YourSelf, and Growing from the Process, aka, Your Journey!

GandhiWisdom

~♥~ May the In~Spirit~ation Rise from Within YOU!  ~♥~
♥ ♥ ♥
~ Lana 

For more ideas on how to cultivate your Purpose, check out these 12 Happiness Activities on Brian Johnson’s en*theos site

We think in generalities; we live in detail.

~ Alfred North Whitehead

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Speak Kindly To YourSelf

13 Monday May 2013

Posted by Lana A. LaBonte in All Posts

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Blessing, Divine Goddess, Embracing Inspiration, Energy, Enlightened, fear, forgiveness, Gift, Gratitude, Inspire, journal, Life, Light, Love, Manifest, Meditation, Mothers, Present, Purpose, Self, self-love, Spiritual, surrender

BeautyBeYourSelfLast week at the end of a Meditation session the following was read aloud.

Talking to the Self:

When you talk to yourself in your mind which self do you address?  And how?  Usually people do not talk to their divinity, but to the most superficial aspects of their everyday personality.  And often it’s a stream of fears, complaints and mindless repetition of old things.  If we talked that way to another human being, we would have to apologize.  Learning to talk properly to the elf is a spiritual endeavor.  Thoughts from the past and worries about the future do not create good conversation.  Instead learn to talk to your mind as if it were a child.  Talk to it with Love.  If you just force a child to sit down, he won’t.  A good mother knows how to prompt her child into doing what she wants.  Be a good mother to your mind, teach it good positive thoughts so that when you tell it to sit quietly, it will.  Love your mind.  Stay Happy!

Unsure who the author is and being of sound advice I wanted to share.

KnowBETrustLoveYourselfKindHearts♥ ♥ ♥ Speak, Think, & Cultivate Love withIn YourSelf!  ♥ ♥ ♥

~ Lana

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Happy Mother’s Day To All The Divine Feminine Goddesses!

12 Sunday May 2013

Posted by Lana A. LaBonte in All Posts

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Blessing, Divine, Divine Goddess, Embracing Inspiration, Energy, Enlightened, Feminine, forgiveness, Gift, Goddess, Gratitude, Inspire, journal, Life, Light, Love, Manifest, Meditation, Mothers, Present, Purpose, Self, self-love, Spiritual, surrender

RedFlower

Happy Mother’s Day to all the Divine Feminine Goddesses!  Let this be your day for Self~Love and Care!

As my previous posts have focused, I have felt the theme of this week has been about Surrendering to Self~Love.  Today being Mother’s Day, who better to remind this but the women who care for all of us.  Being a Mother doesn’t necessarily mean having to give birth because the Divine Feminine is nurturing and has an innate sense to care!  Please do understand we all have both male and female energies but the key is to keep them in balance throughout this life.  Of course, there will be the need for one or the other in a situation but everything always settles into a natural equality when it is honored and allowed to just BE.

As Caregivers, we Women also need to know how and when to nurture Our Self! By demonstrating this we are able to inspire, teach, and pass on the True Nature of Compassionate & Unconditional Love!

I can feel major change in the air and it truly is a time for the Divine Feminine to Shine.  Tuning in and reconnecting with this Personal Power in all of us is so vital to all of Life.  We Women feel the energies around us, whether or not we can explain it.  Now is the time for us to calm them, nurture them, and wield them with Love for all of Life to flourish and strive.

If you don’t believe your True Power or Worth, remember you are LIGHT, you are LIFE, you have been created in LOVE, and YOU are more POWERFUL than your mind will ever let you “think!”  Now is the time to let your Heart loudly sing your praises over it’s previously subtle whispers.  Do what excites you!  Dance your heart out like the Divine Goddess you Are and Awaken to this.  Take time to sit in silent prayer, meditation, or reflective gratitude for the amazing gifts you’ve received in this life ~ Focusing on NOW, the PRESENT.  Make yourSelf a priority ~ if you have children, this will establish respect not only for you by them, but also in them for themselves.  You are a Teacher at all times through your actions and your words.  Mothers do it all, so ensure you do it well and know your Heart is always in it with pleasure ~ this is Your Personal Power!  

Please enjoy this amazing music from Peruquois as it has inspired me on this Blessed day!

[player=http://www.mus3.ru/melody/Peruquois+%28%D0%9F%D0%B5%D1%80%D1%83%D0%BA%D1%83%D0%B0%29+%E2%80%93?page=1]

“The clock is running. Make the most of today. Time waits for no man. Yesterday is History. Tomorrow is a Mystery. Today is a Gift. That’s why it is called the PRESENT.”
~
Alice Morse Earle,from the 1902 book, “Sun Dials and Roses of Yesterday: Garden Delights…”

♥ ♥ ♥ Happy Mother’s Day to All the Divine Feminine Goddesses Holding Space For Humanity & Mother Earth, HerSelf!  ♥ ♥ ♥

~ Lana

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Sweet Surrender

08 Wednesday May 2013

Posted by Lana A. LaBonte in All Posts

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Embracing Inspiration, Energy, Enlightened, fear, forgiveness, happiness, Inspire, journal, Life, Light, Love, Manifest, Meditation, Purpose, Self, self-love, selfish, Spiritual, surrender, Vibration

ItsNotSelfishToLoveYourselfThis is too often dismissed as Selfish because we’ve been conditioned to believe we must always think of others first.  You have to ♥ Love ♥ yourself first!  How can anyone else love you if you don’t lead by example by showing others how it’s done?  How can you love others if you’re not already versed in Self~Love!? 

True Compassionate & Unconditional Love is contagious!

Just imagine a time when you witnessed a sweet child with their mother and/or father sharing a touching moment that created a warm sensation in your body and bringing a smile to your face.  Why does this radiate with us?  Of course, it brings back those same loving feelings you have had in your past via memories ~ you know how YOU felt and that feeling stayed with you.  Don’t you always want to feel that way?

The other day I read something simply profound, “Death makes Life worth living!”  Although it may be true, I must point to the focus and choice of words.  It almost makes one unconsciously strive toward death or evade it (ironically, this is impossible), instead of simply living and removing this consideration.  The antithesis, “Love makes this Life worth living!” is a much more powerful and positive way to focus our attention, isn’t it!?

So, how can we turn our focus around? 

What are you focusing on?  Is it something that radiates a warm loving feeling?  If it isn’t, try to trace back and center in on what is going through your mind.  Write down your thoughts and how they spiral into different directions.  Trace it back to what feeling you have and why.  You’ll probably find all sorts of emotions bubbling up.  Try not to label them!  Instead, honor them, cry if necessary to cleanse, and allow yourself to feel them before deciding if you’re ready to let go ~ because sometimes we’re not. 

To truly release these feelings, you need to make peace with the situation, people, event, pain, and, most importantly, YourSelf ~ find forgiveness in your heart and send love to all!  You can do this in a meditation or prayer but it may be more effective if you write it as a letter, even if it never reaches anyone, and you may release it symbolically by burning it. 

Keep a small notebook or journal with you at all times and you’ll find tracking and reflecting upon your feelings and thoughts quite effective.  Just start and watch how this simple little exercise can move mountains of fear out of your life! 

Do this for YourSelf!  People will notice the changes and you’ll also see them reacting differently toward you.  Focus on the positive and people will see the positive in You!

Let this day be a day of tuning into Self~LOVE ~ call it Sweet Surrender!

♥ ♥ ♥ Until next time, Find the Gratitude and Always know You Are Loved, ~ BE Blessed! ♥ ♥ ♥

~ Lana

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Out of Focus … Comes Clarity!

25 Thursday Apr 2013

Posted by Lana A. LaBonte in All Posts

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Clarity, Divine, Duality, Embracing Inspiration, Energy, Enlightened, Focus, Inspire, Judge, Judgement, Let Go, Light, Manifest, Meditation, Power, Purpose, Self, Spiritual, Vibration, Vision

Everything-EveryoneShowsUpRightTime

So I was driving on my way to Yoga when this idea pop into my mind: 

“Each and every one of us is supporting, contributing, and shaping our path and purpose in this life!”  

I envisioned how, if we accept the evolution into the person we are today, through each and every experience we’ve had leading up to this moment, then, yes, without each other, we would not be where we are, who we are, and with this experience to continue to aid us – no matter how you judge those particular experiences. 

See, the route I take to my studio is filled with lights.  Unfortunately, 2 more were added and just stopping at them adds another 10 minutes on an already half hour drive – as long as there isn’t traffic or an accident.  Years ago I realized how obsessed we are with being on time even if we’re early.  Well, one morning I was running a few minutes late because of a few delays.  As I neared my destination, I saw an accident.  At that moment, it struck me how we’re Divinely Guided in this life and that everything truly does happen for a reason, at the perfect time, and not when we want but when it really needs to.  From that moment on, I have focused on allowing my life to flow naturally.

So, just driving down the road, my simple way to describe how we support one another is in how we move in and around, through the flow of traffic.  Do you get upset at others and take their actions as personal attacks at you as if they know your moves on the open road?  Sounds silly when you think about it, doesn’t it!? 

I’ve heard my Dad get upset and I try to remind him to “just let it go!”

To which, he now jokes with a little dance waving his hands like he’s freeing a bird chirping, “Let it go, let it go, just let it go…”  See there’s really nothing about driving that’s personal.  We just tend to make it personal and about us, as if it matters.  Ultimately, it doesn’t matter and we waste so much time and energy by focusing on it.

It’s a divine dance we’re living but hidden within heavy layers of media-driven drama and so-called advanced technology pushing us further from really connecting to what is driving us internally and what truly supports life.  This is what we really need to focus on, this internal power source!

After a beautiful Yogic flow, I had come out of a meditation realizing something so simple and already known as clearer to me now and building upon my earlier insights:

As you focus on something, it becomes illuminated!  This is how energy builds, through focus!  Your focus becomes the Light while everything else around it becomes Dark, a blur out of focus. 

Just as putting a lens into focus, this is how we find ourselves creating duality in life – by naming, separating, categorizing, labeling, and grouping everything.  Life isn’t so complicated, we just make it this way with the tools and behavior we’ve picked up along our journey.  Now, we just need to take a better look and pay attention to what we focus on!

EnergyFlowsWhereAttentionGoes
Whatever or wherever you focus becomes illuminated!
"The Trees Have Eyes!"

This is your reality and how your vision becomes highlighted and ultimately manifests in life.  There truly is no dark or light but lack of focus and energy; also known as attention!  Does something exist if you have never seen it, imagined or given it thought, or had a focus on it?  Certainly!  Look at indigenous people who live without technology, as in “The Gods Must Have Been Crazy,” where they have no idea of anything outside of their environment.

Seeing it from a personal perspective, everything is equal when you don’t put your focus on something – this is ENERGY!  On the impersonal level, all energy flows, equally connected and has no time nor focus.  All is equal, it’s just us who shifts the energy of it through our focus.  ALL just IS!  Everything is on the same level but it’s your focus that changes the Energy, or importance you’ve given it! 

Keeping with focus, allows you to become clear in your own life.

We cannot change another person’s focus or ever know what it may be but we can tune in to our own focus to see how it’s shaped our lives and attitudes.  This is the first step to getting to know how we’ve created our own life!

Make peace with where you feel you’ve wasted your time and energy while identifying how this focus is no longer serving you and release it.  We don’t need to remain prisoners of our own thoughts, actions, or behaviors.  Work on YOU because you’re a Blessing deserving of love who is worth all that and more – make YOU the focus of Integrity, Strength and Character!  Lead by example and others will follow.

"Can you see the Baby for the Trees?"

Life isn’t so difficult!  It’s when you see your focus everything becomes clear ~ Out of Focus Comes Clarity! 

Can You Clearly Now?

Sending you Love & Light Blessings of Clarity!

~ Lana

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Each Time You Judge Yourself, You Break Your Own Heart!

24 Wednesday Apr 2013

Posted by Lana A. LaBonte in All Posts

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Embracing Inspiration, Enlightened, Heart, Inspire, Judge, Judgement, Light, Manifest, Meditation, Purpose, Self, Spiritual, Vibration

KindHearts

Monday morning Breathing, Meditation & Gong session had just completed and, as is customary, Michelle closed with the following poem:

“My beloved child, break your heart no longer.
Each time you judge yourself, you break your own heart.
You stop feeding on the love which is the wellspring of your vitality.
The time has come.
Your time.
To celebrate.
And to see the goodness that you are.
You, my child, are divine.
You are pure.
You are sublimely free.
Let no one, no thing, no idea or ideal obstruct you.
If one comes, even in the name of ‘Truth’, forgive it for its unknowing.
Do not fight.
Let go.
You are God in disguise and you are always perfectly safe.
Do not fight the dark. Just turn on the light.
Let go and breathe into the goodness that you are.”

~ Swami Kripalvanandaji (Bapuji)

Wow, “Each time you judge yourself, you break your own heart.”

That line really struck me!  Not only does it mean judging myself is a complete put-down to who I am but a let-down to the whole purpose of living this life in human form.  It’s an insult to life itself and a setup to failure.  Why do we allow ourselves to get caught in this trap?  We certainly didn’t come into this life with this self-degrading behavior.  Our society is so critical it conditions us to be engaged in constant judgement, cluttering our minds with junk that doesn’t really matter.  While our true nature is love, this means we have learned some seriously bad behaviors.

To go even further into what this line means to me, it also means I need to consider any judgement I may make of another as an immediate judgement upon myself – once again, breaking my own heart.  Nobody is better or worse than the other.  It takes a lot to see how we really are all connected in this life but we are.  More importantly, how we each contribute to each other’s experience.  Clearly, how we judge our experiences is based on our previous experiences, which doesn’t ultimately determine the outcome – although, the attitude does.  The good or bad is only the perceived necessity to categorize everything in our life.  We’re taught by family, in schools, and through socializing/group settings how to fit in and conform to what has assumably been laid out as our life.  Who came up with this idea that we must belong to a group or measure up to some predefined ideal?

Each one of us is special so when we look at someone else and make a comparison, the same as a judgement, consider if you would appreciate the same in return and how you would feel because this is where we fall short.  Whether your comparison is intended to lift you up by putting down another or is in jealousy of another by denigrating yourself with thoughts of not being good enough, you’re doing yourself a disservice.  The Ego denies the Heart what is True!

Life is meant to be embraced with Love, lived fully, authentically, and with Integrity.  The next time you catch yourself in a moment of judgement, reflect and ask yourself “who does this serve?”  

This life is too short to be short-sighted and judgmental upon others or your Self!  Be patient and kind ~ Start, most importantly, with that kindness extended to YOU!  In the end, everything starts with Self and the more you work on You, others benefit.

EmbraceTheDay

Until next time, allow this day carry you through the Divine Flow of this Blessed Human experience!

~ Lana

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Just Breathe!

09 Tuesday Apr 2013

Posted by Lana A. LaBonte in All Posts

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Addiction, Aha, Attachment, Attention, Behavior, Change, Control, Defend, Distractions, Ego, Emotion, Energy, fear, Growth, inattention, Instinct, Judge, Meditation, obstacle, Primitive, Responsibility, Rhythm, Unknown

JustBreatheHaveFaithEverythingWillWorkOut

Pranayama ~ The science of breath which leads to the creation, distribution, and maintenance of vital energy.”  ~ BKS Iyengar

Over the course of my life I’ve noticed I have moments when I can’t get a complete breath, or cycle of a yawn.  The sensation of a heaviness sitting on my chest, it happens in times when I seem stressed and unable to keep focused.  Ironic!  This recently came up as I’ve been doing some Energy Work and working on my past by delving into areas to heal.

So, I realize many of us don’t take time to tune into our breath as we move throughout our daily life but it is what keeps us alive ~ it is the LIFE FORCE! 

If you’re one who actively meditates, does yoga, runs, or does any sort of exercise activity, you’ve probably noticed how important it is to pace your breath in order to continue with your activity.  Well, it’s just as important in all of our daily activities.  As an avid yogini, student and teacher, my focus during a practice is to move with the breath.  Just as when I meditate, it’s about tuning-in, connecting with the breath and going within.  But, this doesn’t always seem to continue outside of the studio.

I see how far I’ve evolved to being more patient and kinder to myself and I also recognize this is a constant awareness we need to tap into.  I no longer choose to allow things that once upset me to steal my breath, energy, or focus.  I do admit it took a lot of attention to the breath, personal curiosity, a desire to change my life, research and reading, speaking with others, and becoming more aware of old thought and behavioral patterns.  All of this required taking personal responsibility and acknowledging what I was manifesting in my life!

It is a lot of work but more importantly, I believe if you can start by becoming more aware of your breath, you will eventually start to recognize your thought patterns, which distract from slow, steady breathing.  If the breath flows smoothly, so does everything else in life!

Here are some questions you can ask yourself:

  • Do you have trouble breathing or breathing problems?
  • Do you pay attention to when you are holding your breath? Do you see the root cause of this? 
  • Do you have trust in your own judgement?
  • When you’re in a moment of crisis or stress, do you have a fight or flight reaction?  Do you allow yourself to step back and take a deep breath before you evaluate the situation or do you pounce on it with impervious fervor?
  • What really gets under your skin and why do you let it steal your breath, energy, attention?
  • When do you find yourself the most calm breathing in and out long, steady, and controlled breaths?
  • Do you see how you may be able to be more focused?
  • Do you have faith that everything will work out in the end?

BreatheInPeaceBreatheOutLove

“In the middle of difficulty, lies opportunity.”
~
Albert Einstein

When it all comes down to it, the breath is your life force and without it, you cannot live.  How your breath moves in and through your body is a directly reflected in your life.  How does your life flow – like mud, a rambling brook, or a smooth flowing river?  Look at how your life is and then key into if you’re actually breathing through it!  Are you engaged or are you going through habitual motions?  Tune-in, become aware of your inner world and how it’s reflected in the breath.

I wish you happy days filled with joy, laughter, & deep belly breathing!

Choose wisely where you place your attention/focus because your energy is precious and shouldn’t be wasted!

Love and Light Blessings,

~ Lana

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What is your Fear?

04 Friday Jan 2013

Posted by Lana A. LaBonte in All Posts

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Attachment, Attention, Change, Defend, Disappointment, Emotion, Energy, Expectation, Failure, fear, God, Growth, Heart, Illusion, Instinct, Judge, Love, Meditation, Perfectionism

I had intended to write up a New Year’s entry but upon reflection, well, it didn’t happen.  I must admit, this year I didn’t feel the need, nor obligation, to write any resolutions.  I’ve done it before and, honestly, I find it more important to live this year with less expectation and more detachment, from a place of Love and with Integrity, allowing my life to flow freely wherever the winds take me as I’m in a serious stage of transition and I don’t know yet where I will arrive!  Actually, that’s pretty exciting…


Throughout the past few days the recurring theme has been about “expectations creating disappointment.” 

IllusionToServeYou

Today in meditation I was faced with my own fears!  I have always known one of my downfalls was my perfectionism and, in the past this held me back from trying new things for fear of not getting them exactly right.  Even as a child in school, I would write down my notes word-for-word to ensure I knew the exact answer the teacher wanted.  I was even so meticulous that if I wrote with pen and made a mistake, I would start over writing them neatly because I didn’t like a mess.  I was the child who was always cleaning and organizing her room!

See, here we are, [I am], again ~ at those illusions and expectations we conceive an outcome of which, an action hasn’t even been set in motion nor has it occurred!

Ok, so, as I understand that I have a fear of failure, underlying with that pesky Perfectionism, I know I need to hold myself accountable for expectations that do NOT exist.  If I don’t even try, how can I be so sure I’ll fail!?  Even if I do fail, I may find myself heading down a new path or I may learn something new!  Why is this so difficult?

Well, this goes back to where we/I learned the underlying source.  It stems from a number of things – some from school and some from home.  Heck, I even remember how I colored (maybe I still do), tracing the lines with my crayon before coloring in the pictures.  Mom taught me this, I believe.  The idea that if you traced it out first, you had a better chance of “not going outside the lines!”
It did seem to work.

TruthInsideYourSelf

Here is where I resolve to hold myself accountable and what came through in my meditation:

What is my Weakness here?  Lack of Trust in Self!

So, I choose Happiness!  I choose Love Over ALL!

“Love Encompasses patience ~ it’s passion, it’s compassion, it doesn’t need to be perfect and it occurs always in its perfect time!

Love Embraces ~ it accepts ALL pains, hurts, and sufferings!

Love is in ALL ~ it illuminates, it shines, and it uplifts!

I AM LOVE!

YOU ARE LOVE!

If God is Love, we’re all of God~Love connected eternally by this internal flame!

I am Grateful for Love because it’s what takes me out of my head and into my Heart!”

LoveIsNotSingular

So what evokes Fear in YOU?  Will you resolve to choose love over it?

LoveYourSelfLeoBuscaglia

Love and Light Blessings,

~ Lana

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Nice, This Applies To My Post Last Night…What IF?

29 Saturday Dec 2012

Posted by Lana A. LaBonte in All Posts

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Akashic Records, Bliss, Embracing Inspiration, Energy, Enlightened, Frequency, Full Moon, Inspire, Light, Manifest, Meditation, Purpose, Self, Spiritual, Vibration

So, after writing about my curiosity following yesterday’s long meditation, this evening I happened to come across this blog, OBEs: The Benefits of Astral Travel, and I wanted to share it.  Basically, William Buhlman’s research has led him to conclude what I proposed, that

“one purpose of sleep may be to recharge the body by accessing the etheric plane.”

 

It’s definitely worth a listen and just be open to the information.  I never say I have all the answers but I am willing to research what sparks my curiosity in order to learn more.  Question everything you think you know and what people tell you!  We all have different experiences and our truth is not going to be the truth of another.  We must be willing to look at everything with fresh eyes, like those of a child first seeing or experiencing.  Be open to receiving new information and perspective.  This is what makes this life so AWE~some!

Absence of Light 

Until next time, BE Blessed!

~ Lana

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