Thought for the Day

“To master a relationship is all about you. The first step is to become aware, to know that everyone dreams his own dream. Once you know this, you can be responsible for your half of the relationship, which is you. If you know that you are only responsible for half of the relationship, you can easily control your half. It is not up to us to control the other half. If we respect, we know that our partner, or friend, or son, or mother, is completely responsible for his or her own half. If we respect the other half, there is always going to be peace in that relationship. There is no war.

Next, if you know what is love and what is fear, you become aware of the way you communicate your dream to others. The quality of your communication depends upon the choices you make in each moment, whether you tune your emotional body to love or to fear. If you catch yourself in the track of fear, just by having that awareness, you can shift your attention into the track of love. Just by seeing where you are, just by changing your attention, everything around you will change.

Finally, if you are aware that no one else can make you happy, and that happiness is the result of love coming out of you, this becomes the greatest mastery …the Mastery of Love…

The only way to master love is to practice love. You don’t need to justify your love, you don’t need to explain your love; you just need to practice your love. Practice creates the master.”

– From The Mastery of Love by Don Miguel Ruiz

Thoughtful is as Thoughtful Does

We have experienced a remarkable month in Australia. We started the year with relentless reports of economic doom and gloom, worries life was becoming harder and concerns of losing everything. And feeling helpless as the “disaster” known as recession was waiting for us.

Then we watched as disaster redefined itself:  first as the people in Far North Queensland lost their livelihoods to flood and water damage. Then with the news of the bushfires in Victoria – lives lost, others changed irrevocably our true values surfaced: we opened our hearts, wallets and ACTED. Townships sent truckloads of donations, sportsman showed the spirit of sportsmanship and more than $53 million was raised by donations in a matter of days. All this by a country talking itself into recession the previous week.

By putting ourselves in the place of those overwhelmed by the shock and helplessness of loss of life, family, friends, homes and livelihoods,  Australia has mourned this week and supported each other.

Just as with the Tsunami, Hurricane Katrina and the London Tube Bombings, Life gave us an awareness and we took up the learnings. We took the challenge to step into our best selves, to selflessly assist others in need – reminding us of what community is all about.

I suggest that over the coming weeks and months that you continue to do so. Experiences like these bring up unresolved moments of grief, guilt and helplessness often totally unrelated to current events. They resurface when we are away from imminent danger and out of survival mode – at a time when we are comfortable and in a space where we can process and release it.

For many people- away from the fire zones – these feelings of grief, guilt and helplessness can arise unexpectedly and for no apparent reason. It’s the brain allowing itself to release and finish unfinished business: mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually.

Keeping this in mind, be kind and patient with those around you. We can never really know how another is experiencing life.

To be thoughtful is to act and behave thoughtfully. Be gentle, be kind and think with an open heart.

And always remember to B-R-E-A-T-H-E.