The Problem With Our Country Today

I came across a post about a Presidential candidate that disturbed me even though I like this particular candidate. It read, "Why am I so passionate about __________________? Because we may never get another chance like this to save democracy in America." Why am I disturbed by this? I am disturbed because, once again, we are failing to take responsibility for our own lives and save ourselves.

Has any President ever saved us? In the past, many people looked to President John F. Kennedy as a leader. I do believe he was a great leader. He led us through some very troubling times, including the Civil Rights Movement. I also believe he stood up to the bankers (which was a large part of why he was killed). Still, for all that, he was just one man. He was able to inspire thousands of people, which is an important ingredient in change.

A lot of people think Ronald Reagan was a good President. I never liked him, nor did I like his Vice President, George H W Bush. I thought people were stupid to vote for the guy because he had been a movie star. It ticked me off that he got credit for the collapse of the Soviet Union. Yes, the economy seemed to thrive under his watch. Presidents don't make or break economies though. Bankers do. (Sometimes I feel like I'm the only one who understands that!) 

My husband has been busy blaming every bad thing that has happened in this country on Obama. I know a good many people who do. Again, Presidents do not make or break economies. It is those with all the money and power that callously decide whose hands the money goes into. Obama can only do so much. The rest is up to us.

Most of us have no desire to be in charge. While I don't see that as a problem, it goes much deeper than that with many of us. We can't even take responsibility for how we live our own lives. Instead of listening to that voice inside that tells us this is what we should do and this is what we shouldn't do, we have become dependent on a set of external rules that defines how we should live. Rules are not bad in and of themselves, but one size does not fit all. This is where the lines between rules get fuzzy. If you get too specific and regulate everything to the nth degree, freedom suffers. 

When life is pleasant for us for a number of years, we have a tendency to become apathetic and lazy. We sit back and live off the fat of the land and forget that we play a role in creating our world. It isn't until much later, when things have gotten really difficult, that we begin to see the need to change.

While we slept, we allowed those in charge to take advantage of us. Many of us will continue to find a scapegoat to blame, but until we understand the world will not change until we do, all the blame in the world will not make it better. One man or woman running for President will not make the United States a better place to live. It will become a better place when each one of us stands up and takes an active role in creating a better world.

~CSE

 

The Best Advice I Ever Received

The best advice I ever received came to me well over 25 years ago. At the time I was in my early twenties and I was working at a group home with emotionally disturbed children. The advice came from a coworker and friend who was only slightly older than myself. Because of life experience, she had a great deal of common sense and lot of insight. 

The job at the group home was my first real job after college, and I struggled with it. Working with children--especially children with behavioral problems--meant there was a great need to be authoritative while still being kind. I just wasn't getting it, and it left me frustrated and angry. I asked for advice and took it. Nothing seemed to work for me. 

After six months on the job, I had my first ever job review. It didn't go well. I sat in the cottage at the group home in a bit of a daze, wondering what I was going to do to change things. That's when my friend, Laurie, showed up. She was a terrific residence counselor even though she had not been there quite as long as I had. Being one of thirteen children, she had absolutely no problem dealing with kids or kid problems. She had already helped raise a couple of her younger siblings and was used to chaotic groups.

Laurie could sense that something was wrong and asked about it. I told her about the review. I described how I had been asking for advice and taking it, but nothing seemed to be working for me. She looked at me and said, "Your biggest problem is that you are listening too much to other people's advice. What works for someone else may not necessarily work for you. What does your instinct tell you to do? I admitted I had not considered that before. Laurie told me that I needed to do what "felt" right.

I took the advice to heart. I began listening to my inner voice and doing what it said, and things at worked improved quickly. In fact, within one month, my supervisor who had given me the review said, "I can't believe how much you have improved in your job in such a short time! Keep it up!"

As I look back at that experience, I understand the importance of Laurie's advice. You can imitate the best. You can research and review and experiment with different approaches to life. Some things you try may work. At other times these same things may fall flat. It isn't the method you choose. It's a question of where you get your guidance from. Does it come from a book or another person, or does it come from some deep place of knowing in your heart? 

The answer to that question will determine just how successful you become in your own life. Know that you have all the answers within. Trust the guidance of your heart to make the difference.

~CSE

  

 

 

The State Of Us

I have to confess, I was quite shocked that September 2015 came and left without seeing the stock market crash. Between all the wild fluctuations in the markets during the months preceding it and the end of the Jewish Shemitah (which has been a precursor to financial calamity in seasons past), I was convinced those in power were setting us up for another fall they could use to take more of our money. As it did not happen, it seems obvious: the power of those in charge is eroding at a rapid rate.

I see things happening all over the world that indicate change is indeed on the horizon. The fact that Russia's Vladimir Putin has the tenacity to bomb US/ISIS strongholds in Syria speaks volumes about the weakening state of the Bush/Rockefeller faction of the cabal. Also telling is the fact the mainstream media has not been able to suppress stories on how the US bombed a hospital in Afghanistan. There is no doubt the hospital was the target considering it was hit at least five times. At present the best the media can do it try to assign blame to faulty intel.

The question is, what can we expect now? The world financial structure will continue to change. The problem is, it is merely shifting from one set of power crazy people to another. We the People may see some changes that seem to benefit us in the short term (and by short term I mean 10 to 20 years), but they will not continue as long as the same sorts of people are still in charge. These people plan for the long term and are very patient. They are content to retain power by assuring the masses their changes are good. The noose is only tightened when the people are fat and happy (and no longer paying attention).

What can we do to change things? First of all, we need to understand that we all have power that we have chosen to allow those in charge to use. Those in power amuse us with bread and circuses so that we intentionally stop asking questions that change our reality.

It is time for us to ask the questions that will lead us to a world that is good for everyone! For example, how can we re-evaluate money so that our energy expended (our work efforts) and energy received (money earned) are exchanged fairly? There are a lot of people out there who work their fingers to the bone to just survive while a very few at the top work some and have more money than they can use in 100 lifetimes. To me, this particular problem has occurred because those at the top have been allowed to assign unfair values for various sorts of work. The energy they personally expend is considered valuable, while the slave classes energy expenditure is much less worthy.

Envision a world where everyone has what they need. At those times your heart guides you into action (you know this because there is something you can do that will bring you joy), follow up on that. Each time we follow up on guidance from the heart, the whole world gets closer to that vision of an abundant planet.

Changing the planet involves each and every one of us being willing to follow the heart's wisdom. The heart is what will guide us all home!

~CSE

    

The Myth Of Self-Sacrifice

From the time we are small children, we are molded and shaped by society in an attempt get us to live in certain prescribed patterns. Over the past few weeks, one of these patterns has drawn my attention as it is something I have allowed myself to be trapped by for a very long time. I call it the myth of self-sacrifice.

The vast majority of us are convinced it is noble and good to sacrifice our own desires for the greater good--that it is more important to do for others instead of ourselves. We look up to figures like Jesus and Mother Teresa as examples and believe it is important to emulate them. I believe this is a lie. It is not a choice between being selfless and being selfish. The real choice is to connect to and follow the guidance and wisdom in your own heart.

The difference between choosing selfish/selfless or choosing to follow your heart is judgment. If you make decisions based on selfishness or selflessness, you are coming from a place of judgment. When you choose to follow your heart, your decisions are not based on thoughts of what is right or what is wrong. Your choices are based on what the Universe considers best for the whole. Understand the difference sounds subtle, but is extremely profound!

When you follow the guidance of your heart, there are times when people will judge your actions to be selfish. At other times your actions will be seen as selfless or self sacrificing. The actions being judged are short term consequences that may actually have long term results that are not anticipated. Actions taken upon advice from the heart typically result in circumstances working out beautifully in a cohesive whole. The beauty is often only seen in hindsight.

At this point in my life, I understand how much damage I have done to myself because I allowed my own personal judgments (aka guilt) to guide me in my decision making process. At times when I believed it was best to sacrifice myself in service to others, I missed opportunities that were presented to me. I could have had more and done more. I could have shined as myself instead of allowing my relationships with others to define me.

Before you begin to jump into judgment, understand I am not talking about doing things for myself first. I am talking about consulting my heart for guidance when making decisions. It is not about me wanting to be selfish or selfless. It is about me wanting to make decisions based on what the Universe believes is for the greater good. Sometimes the decisions will benefit me. Sometimes they will be more blessing to others. It's really all about the bigger picture and not the little individual pieces.

On the negative side of the self-sacrifice myth, when you believe life is all about giving you may give until  you have nothing left inside you. This is not a productive place to be. However, the bigger problem with sacrifice is that you not only deny yourself but you also deny your own power. You are not the master and creator of your own life. You are a slave to judgment and to those who want to use your power for their own personal gain.

If you want to live in authenticity and in power, it is important to lay aside judgment and consult your heart. It is your heart that connects you to Oneness. It is your heart that overcomes the separations of duality. It is your heart that knows what choice is best for the greater good. Learn to consult it. Your life will flow in a much easier and less troubled way.

~CSE

A Call For Peace

Chaos swirls in the air around me. ISIS and terrorism. Wars and fighting. Devaluing currencies and falling stocks. Arguments over who are the rightful "citizens" of countries. These things are all noise--distractions designed to keep us separate and alone and afraid. Now, more than ever, it is time for us to get grounded and connect inside our hearts. A call for peace has gone out, but it is impossible to hear unless you focus with intention.

Today is the day to find a quiet space to sit. Close your eyes. Breathe in. Breathe out. As you breathe in, focus on bringing in healing, and love, and peace. As you breathe out, allow the stress and tensions of your daily life be expelled. Allow this process to deplete you of negativity while filling you with abundance and opportunity. Sit in silence until you have released all blocks and feelings of helplessness.

Next, focus on your beating heart. Feel your spirit body residing in that physical place where your heart beats. Picture your spirit inside your heart. Once you get a firm sense of how that feels, increase the size of your spirit body until it completely fills your physical body. Once those boundaries are established, allow your spirit body to expand in even greater ways. Picture it the size of the room you are in. The town you are in. The state or country. The continent. The hemisphere. Picture your spirit body the size of the whole planet, allowing it to fill the entire core of the earth. Continue to expand your spirit body out beyond infinity, to the place where everything exists in a limitless way.

As you sit in this expanded state, explore your personal energy. What does it feel like? Ask the Universe, the Oneness, what you are called to do...and wait for the answer.

Once you have a firm sense of self, explore the energies around you. Feel the elements of nature. Become aware of art and music and architecture. Sense the energies of the people you experience your present reality with. Feel the give and take of the flow that connects all of it. Understand that you are not separate from anything in reality. Allow that sense of Oneness to fill you with peace.

Peace is within you when you take the time to go inside and search for it. Practice it daily. This is what will save you from the chaos that follows. As always, the choice for peace is up to you. Listen to its call. Take time to connect.

~CSE