Human Defiance – Day 175 of 365 Days to a Better You

The great American poet, Dylan Thomas, famously wrote these masterful lines of the human battle against time, the inevitable, and the forces of nature.

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

I’ve always thought a little human defiance against the seemingly immutable forces we face is a necessary and empowering ideal. We come here with no explanation. As Buddha pointed out, we age, we get sick, and eventually we die.

I think many of our philosophies play into the fears around our smallness, our temporary nature, and what comes next. I prefer philosophies that view us as unpolished diamonds hiding our greatness and our brilliance beneath a bushel.

Though Prometheus was not human, he put down a template, I believe, worthy of following. He is in the motif of the god who became man and took on human struggles.

He is well-known as the titan who stole fire and gave it to humanity against the will of the gods. As punishment, Zeus hung Prometheus from the side of a mountain with arms wide and hands chained. Each day, and eagle would come and cause agony eating his intestines. Each night, his intestines were replaced so the eagle would come back and repeat the process the next day.

Eventually, a friendly god comes to visit Prometheus. He counsels, “Simply say you’re sorry for stealing the fire and Zeus will release you.”

Prometheus responded with words that ring with a refusal to go gently into that good night. “He (Zeus) is a monster. I care less than nothing for Zeus. Let him do as he likes.”

I think we can all use a little Prometheus. He had a determination to do what was right no matter the cost or the punishment. When faced with injustice, he didn’t cave and cop a plea.

Whatever the forces of nature or the gods may do, I believe it’s empowering for we humans to take our own darn side. We’re asked to endure a great deal without adequate explanation – at least here. I don’t believe in getting stuck in those feelings of unfairness, but a defiance against it can be a source of strength.

Stand your ground. Trust in your validity simply because you are here. You need nothing more than that. No blessing from a god, help from an institution, no peace with the impersonal forces of the universe can give you what you already have the power to give yourself.

Do not go gentle. Do not bend your knee. See your greatness and help those around you to see theirs too. We are humans. Let us claim and own it! A little defiance just might set you free.

Have a fantastic day! Thanks for dropping by and reading the blog. If it lit your fire, please share it.

Ray

 

 

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Daily Video Affirmation #9 – Meet Greed with Generosity

Let us be about meeting low vibration impulses with high vibration impulses. Today’s affirmation encourages you to meet greed – both in the world and within you – with generosity.

Stay inspired, my friends!

Ray

Political Aspirations – Day 174 of 365 Days to a Better You

There’s an old political adage that says, “You get the politics you deserve.” While that seems kind of harsh, given the politics we have, there’s a lot of truth in it.

Our politics, in the western democracies, is a mess. We’re supposed to be beacons of human freedom and peace and justice, but we are less and less so all the time. Those high vibration ideals are often drowned out by lowest vibration politics that panders to fear, division, and avarice.

As the situation progresses, many well-meaning people tune out of politics, considering it wasted energy and not an avenue for addressing their needs or powering their aspirations. This only pours more fuel on the fire as it powers low vibration actors across the spectrum.

At it simplest level, politics is simply the means by which a civilized society shares ideas, shifts paradigms, and makes decisions. In a democracy or a democratic republic, those decisions are supposed to represent the will of the people. The truth is today they reflect powerful special interests that use their domination of the economic, political, and media systems to sell narratives to the populace, again using those lowest vibration arguments. The net of this is the will of the people is subverted by fear and misinformation.

Power Hack: Here’s why I agree with that old adage, though. You and I and our fellow citizens could change this situation in an instant, like a dog shaking off water, if we were able to organize around our common interests, cease our divisions, and turn our attention to those subverting the dialogue.

That can only happen one person at a time and it can only happen to you if you weed out all the lowest vibration energy in you. Those are the energies that react to and resonate with messages aimed at lowest vibration human vulnerabilities.

We must immunize ourselves against those messages by doing the work to weed them out in ourselves. We must demand politicians who speak to highest vibration energies like love, compassion, freedom, and peace. When we don’t have them, we must stop electing them and elect candidates who do speak the the best in humanity.

As for politician feigning their allegiance to such ideals but not in actions, we must hold them accountable and remove them from office as well. I would argue these considerations, if we want a higher vibration world and higher vibration outcomes, is more important than party, more important than race, more important than gender, more important than political ideology.

Widespread support for leaders who speak for and act on higher vibration ideals, can and will transform our system into something that not only ends our immediate negative outcomes, but builds a foundation on which to build a different future for us all.

Don’t give up! Real political change is possible when we make it possible in ourselves.

Ray

 

 

Self-Confidence and Understanding – Day 173 of 365 Days to a Better You

Today’s Affirmation

I look everyone I encounter squarely in the eye with sincere respect for them and complete confidence in myself. I am firm in my conviction that I am up to any reasonable challenge. I have the courage and understanding to meet the world on an equal footing; looking down on no one nor standing in awe of anyone.

For everyone, beyond his or her position and burdens, is simply another human being doing the best possible given his or her current circumstances. Remembering this creates understanding within me and contributes to my peace of mind and success.

This affirmation speaks of courage, conviction, and the confidence to meet the world head on. When we allow our problems and challenges to take center stage in our lives it’s easy to fall into a cycle of diminishing self-confidence. We forget who we truly are and why we’re truly here. We forget our uniqueness and ignore our greatness.

Worse, those feelings and that forgetfulness have ripple effects in the world. We don’t give ourselves the benefit of the doubt and we are even less likely to grant it to the next person. Our thoughts become narrow and judgmental and we don’t take into account the circumstances under which the next person is operating.

The world can be a better place starting today, if only you will live with greater confidence. When you are confident your vision broadens and more possibilities open up. You see yourself and the world with balanced eyes that recognize your strengths as well as your opportunities for improvement.

ralph_waldo_emerson.jpgRalph Waldo Emerson is quoted as saying, “If I have lost confidence in myself, I have the universe against me.” Let’s keep the universe with us today.  Pledge to believe in yourself at least a little more than yesterday. Meet the world as an equal and it is forced to treat you as one.

You are amazing! Never doubt that for a moment! Thank you so much for reading the blog.

Ray

7 Tips for Writing Powerful Affirmations – Day 172 of 365 Days to a Better You

Many affirmation gurus suggest that all affirmations be written in the first person. First person affirmations are the most effective when reading, writing, or saying affirmations. Most people do not feel comfortable looking into a mirror and using “you” affirmations. However, audio affirmations open up a whole new realm. Listening is more passive than speaking or reading and you are used to hearing people speak to you in the second person.

My 30 years of experience with audio affirmations demonstrates that second-person affirmations are highly effective as audio affirmations. They offer “outside” confirmation of the first-person version of the affirmation.

  1. Commitment – keep in mind that the key to using affirmations – audio, written, or spoken – is commitment to your goal. Without a commitment to making the change or reaching your goal, affirmations are just words.
  2. Repetition – repetition is the engine of affirmation success. For an affirmation to do its job in transforming your thoughts, it has to get at least equal time with the negative thoughts you want to replace.
  3. How much/how often – speak, write, or listen to the first person affirmation 5-10 times and then repeat the second person affirmation the same number of times. Do this at least twice each day. Stay with the affirmation(s) for at least 30 days. Use them again if the old thoughts return.
  4. How to use first person affirmations – “Own” the first-person version. Speak or listen as if you are speaking passionately to yourself.
  5. How to use second person affirmations – ”Actively accept” the second person version. Speak or listen as if someone you respect is confirming your affirmation back to you. This is the way you received most of your negative affirmations from the outside world over time. That makes second-person affirmations a way to get one-for-one replacement of those old thoughts.
  6. How to use third person affirmations – listen to third-person affirmations in much the same way you do second-person affirmations. The difference is the power of your name. Your name is the most magical word in the world. We’ve been taught from an early age to instantly pay attention when someone says our name. Attention gives the affirmation more power.
  7. How to know you’re getting results – there are several criteria for recognizing an affirmation’s success.
    1. The old thought, behavior, or performance disappears or lessens.
    2. Your mood, thinking, behavior, or performance change in a positive direction.
    3. The old thought, behavior, or performance appears and your thinking immediately answers with the affirmation. This is really exciting. Your old thought is “I am stupid.” You think this thought and immediately it is answered by your affirmation, “I am highly intelligent.”

For example, following “I am beautiful” with “You are beautiful” provides subconscious external confirmation of the first-person claim.

Follow your bliss. Experience your bliss. Become your bliss.

Ray

Daily Video Affirmation #8 – Overcoming Challenges Affirmations

Thoughts are the rocket of your dreams, but emotions, feelings are the fuel. Today’s video affirmations are meant to evoke emotions to help fuel you in facing challenges along your path.

Stay inspired, my friends!

Ray

Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway – Day 171 of 365 Days to a Better You

Back in 1987, Dr. Susan Jeffers released one of the most popular self-help books of the past 50 years – Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway.

I was feeling a lot of fear and pain and doubt in my life when I first came across this book about four years later. I had allowed those feelings to paralyze me in my life. I didn’t have the career, relationship, or life experiences I wanted and knew I was capable of having. I had allowed one particular fear and the drama that grew up around it in my life to deny what I deserved.

If you’re feeling that way right now. If you’re not seeing the miracle you are because you’re allowing your fears to cloud your sky, I highly recommend this book and its timeless message for dealing with the fear that has you stuck.

I came across this outstanding review of the book explaining its key messages. If you can

May your dreams always be bigger than your fears.

Ray