Oct 20 2009
Loser! with a capital L
In this video {2:15} I talk about feeling like a failure {yuk!} and how I moved through it.
Now that you’ve watched it, what do you think? I’d love to hear about your insights and struggles.
Tag Archive 'meditation'
Oct 03 2009
Are you pushing your worst fears into reality?
Even though I haven’t continued with the blogging book club, I have continued with my 15 Minutes of Nothing. Well, I guess it’s not really “Nothing” any longer. You see, I’ve turned it into a mediation and I like to take notes when I meditate. In fact, lots of times my meditation notes are a transcription of an inner dialogue like this:
“All that you’ve ever wanted to achieve has come to pass. It’s only a matter of calling it to you and through you. You have that power: to experience it or not. It’s up to you. what do you choose?”
Oh wow! That’s both comforting and disturbing.
“Such is the nature of truth so often.”
Can you give me some advice?
“Always searching, this one. That’s the problem: the search. I know it feels productive, but it’s not. It’s harder to search. It’s easier to get still and allow the answer to come to you.”
But, that’s giving up control!
“Is it? Or is it the most powerful form of choice that far surpasses control?”
Oh! I guess control could be an illusion of choice.
“Control is an illusion of safety. In reality, it is the most dangerous of forces: you push your worst fears into reality.”
Ouch!
“Yes. Ouch.”
Well then how do I let go of control?
“Notice the pattern of searching.”
Yes, I see it. I can’t help it.
“That’s okay. Love yourself through it. You only want what’s best for you.”
True. But, why can’t I stop? Oy! Searching again!
“Excellent! You noticed yourself this time. See how you’ve already grown in just a matter of minutes?”
I guess so.
“You guess? Or you’re willing to recognize that this is challenging work that you are engaging in?”
Well, yeah it is challenging!
“And you’re willing to do it. So many sense it and turn away. They don’t want to be bothered to transform humanity. But, not you. You are showing up and consistently too.”
Thank you.
“You’re welcome.”
–
FYI, my words are the ones not in quotes. Who’s in quotes? I’m not exactly sure. I just transcribe the thoughts that come up. It’s hard to describe. I know the messages are not me, per say, but they arrive within me. When I get quiet. When I open up. When I listen. When I do “Nothing”. I receive. I’m a little weirded out about sharing it with you. But, it seems like useful information. Well, it has been extremely useful to me. I hope it’s useful for you too.
Have you ever engaged in a dialogue like this? I’d love to hear about it. It’d be nice to know that I’m not the only one :~)
Sep 17 2009
Living Life from Center: a whole new you
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
One of the things my clients tell me over and over again how much they love about our work together is the Simple Centering Exercise we do at the beginning of all sessions. It’s such a great way to let go of the busy-ness of life and center yourself in your own wisdom. I’m posting one such Centering Exercise in this blog post and I invite you to check it out and listen to it whenever you sit down at your computer to work. It’s an excellent way to focus your attention, feel better, and ground yourself in your own creativity. Mmmm…I simply love it!
Oh! And it’s also great to use when you’re stressed out!
Sep 04 2009
My 1st Video for all of you who fall asleep while meditating!
Recently I asked, “What is your heart asking you to do?” and Maria posted a reply on the SimplyFearless.com FB Fan Page saying:
My problem is I’ve spent so many years shutting out my heart’s calling that I don’t recognize its voice anymore or maybe it’s just fallen silent lately because it’s been ignored for so long.
Oh so many of us can relate to Maria’s dilemma, which is why my very first VLOG explains two simple ways to connect with your heart inspiration. So for all of you that are ready to connect with your heart – even those of you who hate to journal and fall asleep meditating – this one’s for you!
{note: for all of you reading this as an email update – there is a video in this post and you may need to click through to CassandraRae.com to view it}
Sep 03 2009
Forget About Doing a Good Job
“Capture the darkness to see the light”
c: hi god
g: hi cassandra
c: how are you today?
g: peachy. how are you?
c: hopeful. i really want to do a good job with the book
g: is that a desire that’s going to get in your way?
c: well maybe a little. it does feel super important
g: what’s more important creating the book or wanting to do a good job?
c: creating it of course!
g: then you are free from wanting to do a good job – you don’t need to do a good job. you simply get to do a job. gather blank paper and a folder or a binder and get started. you already have the first few pages written in your head. it doesn’t matter how you organize any of it right now. it’s organic.
c: oh! and I can print out pages with photos on them and use them to write on!
g: that’s an excellent idea if it inspires you. don’t forget you are transcribing.
c: yes, transcribing. directly from my soul.
g: yes, which is my portal to you – it’s how we connect
c: yes, thank you! off I go now…
click here to learn more about a free Coaching Call to release the pressure to do a good job
Apr 03 2009
My Notes after a Love Meditation
I’m taking the Foundations Class at the Center for Spiritual Living and one of our assignments was to do a guided meditation about love for a week. Here are some of my notes from what I learned through the experience:
- Focusing on love is easier with practice!
- I learned very young that it was not okay to love
- Today I gave my very young self permission to love her mommy
- She loves her mommy so much.
- She feels safe in her arms and she loves to cuddle
- She loves that her mommy is a big woman with brown hair
- Her mommy is soft and sweet
- Love feels tingly in my hands and arms – sometimes in my feet too
- Today love was not about sex, which was very nice
- Love is an emotion, sex is a physical act
- Love and sex are related and not exclusive
- It feels amazing to love
- It feels incredible to share my love with the world
- I did an exercise where I imagined my love growing from within me all the way through the stretch of the entire plane of existence – even to places I’ve never seen or can even comprehend right now
- And then I practiced shrinking the love back into my body
- It was a fun exercise that I enjoyed
- I also imagined loving all parts of myself from babyhood through childhood
- It gives me chills to imagine hugging my college self
- Oh this loving stuff is getting easier and easier!
- I’m so grateful for this exercise and that I am committed to it for every day this week
- The foundation of my day is love
- The foundation of my life is love
- It’s okay to love openly
- I’m free to love deeply
- Love is not going to kill me
- It’s okay to be vulnerable
- Life is better when you love openly
- I am strong and vulnerable
- It takes great strength to be vulnerable
- Love is our natural state of being
- Humans are loving machines
Wow this is cool!
Feb 24 2009
God, what’s up with the human need to be productive?
Each morning I check in with God through Active Meditation. It begins with my Daily Journaling Practice, walking my dog, stretching out, working out for 35 minutes, and then I sit down and type out my conversation with God. It’s a powerful process and so I thought I would share with you yesterday’s notes:
Me: Good morning, God!
God: Good morning.
Me: I come to you today with an open heart and mind. I don’t have an agenda or anything in particular in mind.
God: Sweet.
Me: So I’m here to check in with you. What would you like me to focus on today?
God: I love how you are already focusing on joy. I saw that you realized how much easier it was to work out {at the gym} when your mind and heart were filled with joy.
Me: yes, I loved it. In fact, there were times when I thought, “This is supposed to be harder!” and then I just let it go and continued on with my easy workout.
God: Good for you. It is important {for you to understand} that life was not designed to be hard and difficult. It was designed to require hard work. And yet, enjoyable work. Work that is challenging and energizing all at the same time.
Me: oh I like that! It takes some of the pressure off. Speaking of pressure, what’s up with the human need to be productive all the time?
God: Ah yes, the need to be productive. It’s more about panic as opposed to productivity isn’t it?
Me: yes! Because I have noticed that it is easier to be productive when I don’t need to be productive.
God: yes! That is the key. Notice the difference between what you say is the driving force and what truly is the driving force. This is where a lot of humans run into trouble in creating their lives. They say one thing with their mouths and something different with their hearts.
Me: oh wow! That’s insightful. Thank you!
God: you’re welcome.
Me: okay, I need to go get ready for me day.
God: I thought that’s what we were doing!
Me: you’re funny, God! I mean that I need to go shower and get ready for my next appointment.
God: well, thank you for making me one of your first appointments of the day!
Me: you’re welcome! Anything else you’d like to say before I sign off?
God: Nope. Be a joyful day!
Me: thank you.
God: you’re so very welcome.
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Oct 17 2008
I Meditated Without Falling Asleep!
“My Daily Practice”
Photo artwork by Me!
I did it! I successfully meditated this morning without falling asleep. Yay! Here’s what I did:
Instead of meditating right out of bed, I waited until after I had…actually my morning routine is kinda cool so I’m just going to share it with you:
- 5:30am out of bed
- Take Gracie out for a potty, make coffee & my lunch, feed Gracie
- Do my morning practice while drinking my coffee (morning practice = journal, write 5 acknowledgments, 1 truth affirmation, a gratitude paragraph, jot down any business development ideas, and create an intention for the day – this usually takes about 30 minutes. It used to take longer, but I’ve been doing it for years now and it usually flows through me in a short half an hour)
- Take Gracie for a walk
- Do my morning stretches
- Go for 30 minute run
- Shower & get ready for the day
- Begin my work day
So my new commitment going forward is to meditate for 20 minutes after I shower & get ready and before I begin the rest of my day. I plan on doing this both during the week and on weekends. I’ll let ya know how it goes (or doesn’t go).
Also, I switched up my meditation style. Instead of repeating a Sanskrit word in my mind or counting my breath, I simply notice my breathing. I say in my mind, “Breathe in. Breathe out.” in alignment with my acutal breathing. And once I feel the connection between my awareness and my body, I begin to explore the inner landscape. I open up to receiving thoughts and ideas from God* and I allow myself to wander. But, it’s not an aimless wander. It’s an intentional connection with my spirit as I connect with God. It’s really neat! And here are some of the messages I received today:
I work with people who feel disconnected, stuck and confused, but who are ready to discover their unique answers, create fulfilling relationships, and connect with their own sense of confidence and clarity.
How cool is that?! I’ve been trying to articulate what I do for years! Here’s another one:
I work with teens and adults with all sorts of different problems and goals, but they all want the same thing: a clear sense of self, purpose, and meaning.
Whoa! Really? Awesome.
I am answering God’s calling for my life and in turn providing a valuable resource for others.
Oh…it’s win-win!
The calling is a divine calling that when answered unlocks an abundance of inspiration, opportunities, and synchronicity.
Yes, I am ready for this! Bring it on.
I fully surrender to my divine purpose. I trust in the power of the universe to lead me where I need to go and I take bold steps towards God.
Woohoo! I’m rocking it out today in my meditative space! I also drew a picture that ended up looking like God’s flashlight. He shines a light for me to follow and when I do I also lead others toward finding their own way. I’m so glad I switched up my practice because now I’m looking forward to meditating. Before I was like, “Oh. It’s time to meditate now. Great.” But, now that I’m staying awake and doing it my way I’m loving it!
What about you? Do you meditate? Or do you want to meditate? Do tell.
*a note about God: please understand that when I use the term God I am not referring to any particular religion. In fact, I am referring to the God in all religions.
Oct 14 2008
Crap…I fell asleep during meditation!
I didn’t want to get up this morning at 5:25 to meditate. But, I did. Well, okay, I got up at 5:28!
I’ve never gotten up this early to meditate before and to be honest with you I’m falling asleep. I mean, I do this before I take Gracie out for a pee and my morning coffee. Certainly, caffeine can’t be the best thing for meditation, but neither is sleeping!
I’m doing a new form of meditation I learned at the workshop over the weekend. It’s very different from what I’m accustomed to and I’m thinking it might not be the best form for me. Basically, I’m supposed to sit comfortable in a chair with my eyes closed and repeat a Sanskrit word in my mind for 20 minutes. In the past, I’ve followed Cheri Huber’s recommendation of sitting comfortable with eyes open but not focused counting my breath with my hands folding inside of one another creating a circle in my lap. When I follow this method, I keep a clipboard with a piece of paper and a pen on it so that I can jot down notes as the thoughts simply flow out of me. In the new way, I am supposed to finish the meditation first and journal afterwards. Quite frankly, I haven’t had much to journal because I’m so focused on repeating the word in my head and not falling asleep.
Overall, I’m proud of myself for giving this new method a try and I’m going to give it some more time to see how it grows – or not!
On another note, I’m so glad that Hubs is home! I realized that I have way more confidence when he is around. I just feel grounded and safe. It was fun being young with no responsibilities, but it’s better being married! Love ya, Hon :~)
One last thing to share, I start the Know Your Purpose Teleseminar today and I’m so excited!!!! Can’t wait to share more about what I’m learning.
Now I’ve gotta run to Women’s Inspiration Group!
Oct 12 2008
Weekly Winners and Wrapup
I went to a meditation workshop and am beginning a new meditation practice this week:
Feel the texture of your life:
I enjoyed some solo time this week and had a photo shoot with Gracie:
I went on a photo expedition and this one is my favorite of the bunch:
Yesterday I went to a meditation workshop and part of the Stop, Balance…Go! program is picking one modification or addition to your life that you would like to practice for 28 days. When I began journaling about a modification that I feel would have the greatest impact, I realized that I tend to think in intangibles. Here’s what I wrote down:
- ~ Whole-heartedly believe in myself
- ~ Stop getting in my own way
- ~ Shine my light
- ~ Embrace it all
- ~ Quit running circles around myself
Okay. These are all fabulous things to do and be, but exactly how would I do and be them? Good question. I realize now that focusing on the intangibles could actually be a good excuse to keep myself from moving forward. It’s not that they aren’t important; however, I need to focus and commit to tangible steps to ensure that I am actually moving forward – as opposed to waiting for them to happen to me. So the modification I’ve chosen to practice in the next 28 days is to play with a meditation practice. Here’s my plan:
- ~ Get up 1/2 hour earlier to invest 20 minutes in silent meditation and 10 minutes in mala chanting.
- ~ Create a meditation corner in the Creativity Room – I will be clearing a lot of physical stuff to make this happen and I’m so looking forward to it.
The program also recommends meditating again at the end of the workday before transitioning into evening family time. But, I have not made this a part of my first 28 day commitment. I’m just not feeling the motivation right now and I don’t want to overwhelm myself. I’ve also got some new additions to my life that I need to be considerate of. They are:
- ~ Posting to my blog every day
- ~ On Tuesday I’m beginning a Know Your Purpose teleseminar series, which I am super excited about and can’t wait to share more with you as that process unfolds and I become even more clear about my purpose and how I fulfill it
If you are also participating in Weekly Winners, then feel free to add a link directly to your post (not your site) to share with us so that we can check out your fabulous photos too!
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