Monday, February 12, 2018

Tension is Who You Think You Should Be~Relaxation is Who You Are


What's Up? 

What's Bothering You?

💚What's happening in your life at this moment? 
💚What's making you feel tense?
💚What do you feel you should be doing you're not?
💚How are you failing to live up to someone else's expectations or your own?


 'All this stuff is getting to me' is just one of many seemingly benign statements we might make to others that allows us to remain seemingly in-control as we voice our tension. 

But to truly be in-control, and act decisively and with purpose we need to move beyond the diffuse terms keeping us stuck and mired in a cesspool of fear and anxiety.

To let go of the things 'putting you over the edge'  you need to identify what it is, and then deal with it.

When you ignore or deny the existence of your stress you leave those things eating away at you to boil and fester until they spew out and splatter everyone around you.


What's Lurking in the Underbrush of Your Life? 

The Last Three Days 

Looking over the last three days, what's stressing you out? Pick one situation to describe in uncensored detail in your head--and let it rip!

As you focus on the recent tension-inducing incident notice any changes in your body as you merely think about it:

💚What happens to your heart rate and breathing? 
💚Do you notice any discomfort in your head or stomach? 
💚Are you aware of clenching your teeth or tightening your jaw; tension in your neck, back or other muscles? 
💚Do you feel tearful or angry?

Our stress-inducing experience has the ability to cause tension as we merely think about it. We don't even need to experience it to bring the stress-response on. That's why it's important to name it so you can stop stuffing it.


Relaxation is Who You Are

Get Back to Who You Are
'Tension is who you think you should be; Relaxation is who you are'.  Chinese Proverb

What does 
'tension is who you think you should be; relaxation is who you aremean? It means living your life from a place of 'shoulds' is what causes problems. 

Living in the 'world of should'  creates the tension and discomfort that throws us into a mental fog and leaves us feeling overwhelmed and tense. 

If you care about being your healthiest, most robust self, choose to consciously identify what's causing you tension and bringing out the full stress-response in your body. Don't ignore it. Choose to name your stressor, and choose to engage in actions that puts you back living in a state of 
relaxation and who you really are.

Trust you hold the key to being your best, truly in-charge self. Act on what you know to be right for you. Take the steps that will help you feel fully alive, fully productive, and fully engaged. Be brave.


Be Your Healthiest, Most Robust Self

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For more than 35 years, Susan Meyerott has been helping people lighten up and step over invisible barriers to change one step at a time. She speaks to your heart, puts you at ease, and makes letting go and moving forward with life easier than ever before.

Do you know someone who could benefit from uplifting messages? Please share Lightarted Living with them. If you or someone you love is interested in learning more about closing the gap between where you are now and where you want to be, join the FREE Lightarted Living mailing list. 


Thursday, February 8, 2018

Lightarted Living: Plant Kindness, Harvest Love

Lightarted Living: Plant Kindness, Harvest Love: Plant Kindness, Harvest Love  A bit of fragrance clings to the hand that gives flowers.  Chinese Proverb Plant Kin...

Plant Kindness, Harvest Love


Plant Kindness, Harvest Love 

A bit of fragrance clings to the hand that gives flowers. 

Chinese Proverb


Plant Kindness, Harvest Love 

But listen to me
For one moment quit being sad
Hear blessings dropping their blossoms
around you.


Rumi 



Plant Kindness, Harvest Love 

A bird does not sing because it has an answer. 
A bird sings because it has a song. 

Chinese Proverb


Plant Kindness, Harvest Love 

Be like the sun for grace and mercy.
Be like the night to cover others’ faults.
Be like running water for generosity.
Be like death for rage and anger.
Be like the Earth for modesty.
Appear as you are.
Be as you appear.

Rumi



Plant Kindness, Harvest Love 

You can't prevent the birds of sorrow from flying over your head, 
but you can prevent them from building nests in your hair. 

Chinese Proverb


Plant Kindness, Harvest Love 

People want you to be happy.
Don’t keep serving them your pain!
If you could untie your wings
and free your soul of jealousy,
You and everyone around you
would fly up like doves. 

Rumi


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For more than 35 years, Susan Meyerott has been helping people lighten up and step over invisible barriers to change one step at a time. She speaks to your heart, puts you at ease, and makes letting go and moving forward with life easier than ever before.


Do you know someone who could benefit from uplifting messages? Please share Lightarted Living with them. If you or someone you love is interested in learning more about closing the gap between where you are now and where you want to be, join the FREE Lightarted Living mailing list. 

Tuesday, February 6, 2018

Lightarted Living: The Dawn of HOPE

Lightarted Living: The Dawn of HOPE: Hope Arrives with the Dawn There was never a night or a problem  that could defeat sunrise or hope. Bernard Willia...

The Dawn of HOPE


Hope Arrives with the Dawn


There was never a night or a problem 
that could defeat sunrise or hope.

Bernard Williams


Hope is on the Horizon

Hope is like the sun, which, as we journey toward it, 
casts the shadow of our burden behind us.


Samuel Smiles


Day-Keepers Shoo Away the Ache

Day-Keepers arrive before you wake 
to make preparations for the dawn of each new day. 
They sweep away the cobwebs of darkness~
letting in light, love and comfort~
while shooing away the burden and ache.

Lightarted Sue

Hope is being able to see 
there is light despite all of the darkness.

Desmond Tutu

Hope lies in dreams,
in imagination, 
and in the courage of those 
who dare to make dreams into reality.

Jonas Salk


The breezes at dawn have secrets to tell you
Don’t go back to sleep!
You must ask for what you really want.
Don’t go back to sleep!
People are going back and forth
across the doorsill where the two worlds touch,
The door is round and open

Don’t go back to sleep! 

Rumi




Listen to the Exhortation of the Dawn! 

Listen to the Exhortation of the Dawn! 
Look to this Day! 
For it is Life, the very Life of Life. 
In its brief course lie all the 
Verities and Realities of your Existence. 
The Bliss of Growth, 
The Glory of Action, 
The Splendor of Beauty; 
For Yesterday is but a Dream, 
And Tomorrow is only a Vision;
But Today well lived makes 
Every Yesterday a Dream of Happiness, 
And every Tomorrow a Vision of Hope.
Look well therefore to this Day!
Such is the Salutation of the Dawn! 

Kalidasa, 5th century Sanskrit poet


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For more than 35 years, Susan Meyerott has been helping people lighten up and step over invisible barriers to change one step at a time. She speaks to your heart, puts you at ease, and makes letting go and moving forward with life easier than ever before.

Do you know someone who could benefit from uplifting messages? Please share Lightarted Living with them. If you or someone you love is interested in learning more about closing the gap between where you are now and where you want to be, join the FREE Lightarted Living mailing list. 

Sunday, February 4, 2018

Lightarted Living: Music's Magical Effects on Parkinson's Disease

Lightarted Living: Music's Magical Effects on Parkinson's Disease: Would You Like to Swing on a Star? Seeing is believing, and believing provides hope for us all. Who among us wouldn't like to &#3...

Music's Magical Effects on Parkinson's Disease




Would You Like to Swing on a Star?

Seeing is believing, and believing provides hope for us all. Who among us wouldn't like to 'swing on a star' to the end of life--effortlessly and gracefully gliding and dancing?

Recently my attention was caught by a video posted by JungleVT on Facebook showing the immediate improvement in the gait of a man with Parkinson's Disease when he listened to music while walking. (Link below)

I saw magic happen.


Music IS Magic

I'm incredibly touched and inspired by stories such as these that illustrate the healing effects of one of life's simple pleasures--music. 

Time and again music has been shown to work magic on the brains of people afflicted with various diseases, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. Music sparks something in the brain so people with Alzheimer's 'reconnect' and people with Parkinson's 'step lightly'. 

See for Yourself: Click the link below to see for yourself how amazing the effects of the music are. 

It IS magic!

Using music to help Parkinson's Disease

Many thanks to the people who posted this video to allow us to witness magic happening before our eyes--letting us realize that 'every day we're re-born into the world'. 

Life is an interpretive dance--one that we want to keep high stepping all the way to the end. Hear the music and keep on dancing. 

Never stop believing in magic and music.


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For more than 35 years, Susan Meyerott has been helping people lighten up and step over invisible barriers to change one step at a time. She speaks to your heart, puts you at ease, and makes letting go and moving forward with life easier than ever before.

Do you know someone who could benefit from uplifting messages? Please share Lightarted Living with them. If you or someone you love is interested in learning more about closing the gap between where you are now and where you want to be, join the FREE Lightarted Living mailing list. 

Saturday, February 3, 2018

Lightarted Living: Live for Heart-Opening Moments

Lightarted Living: Live for Heart-Opening Moments: Sign Up for Free E-mail updates                            For more than 35 years, Susan Meyerott has been helping pe...

Live for Heart-Opening Moments








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For more than 35 years, Susan Meyerott has been helping people lighten up and step over invisible barriers to change one step at a time. She speaks to your heart, puts you at ease, and makes letting go and moving forward with life easier than ever before.


Do you know someone who could benefit from uplifting messages? Please share Lightarted Living with them. If you or someone you love is interested in learning more about closing the gap between where you are now and where you want to be, join the FREE Lightarted Living mailing list. 

Friday, February 2, 2018

Lightarted Living: Man's Best Friend~A Poem for Dog Lovers

Lightarted Living: Man's Best Friend~A Poem for Dog Lovers: Earth Dog By William Jeffery Corbett Earth Dog a bounding hound her home is hill and dale. Eyes so keen, fangs so sharp her ears...

Man's Best Friend~A Poem for Dog Lovers


Earth Dog

By William Jeffery Corbett

Earth Dog
a bounding hound
her home is hill and dale.
Eyes so keen, fangs so sharp
her ears are set like sails.

At night she howls
with the brazen pack
under a silver shining moon.
By day she wanders
Rests in shade
and drinks from the dark lagoon.

Paws, tongue, tail and den
Tomorrow, for sure
she'll do it all over again.

Have you seen yonder man's best friend
a soulmate for your Heart?
If not, it's time to have a look
it’s never too late to start!


Jeffrey Corbett is a physicist with two 'bounding hounds'--a pair of German Short-hair Pointers, Honey and Emma. He takes them for romps on the bluffs of Half Moon Bay, California--often at night under a 'silver shining moon'.


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For more than 35 years, Susan Meyerott has been helping people lighten up and step over invisible barriers to change one step at a time. She speaks to your heart, puts you at ease, and makes letting go and moving forward with life easier than ever before.

Do you know someone who could benefit from uplifting messages? Please share Lightarted Living with them. If you or someone you love is interested in learning more about closing the gap between where you are now and where you want to be, join the FREE Lightarted Living mailing list. 

Wednesday, January 31, 2018

Lightarted Living: The Importance of Being Kind

Lightarted Living: The Importance of Being Kind: Kindness can Accomplish what Force cannot Throughout the ages all great sages have spoken on the importance of being kind.  As we...

Lightarted Living: The Importance of Being Kind

Lightarted Living: The Importance of Being Kind: Kindness can Accomplish what Force cannot Throughout the ages all great sages have spoken on the importance of being kind.  As we...

Lightarted Living: The Importance of Being Kind

Lightarted Living: The Importance of Being Kind: Kindness can Accomplish what Force cannot Throughout the ages all great sages have spoken on the importance of being kind.  As we...

The Importance of Being Kind



Kindness can Accomplish what Force cannot

Throughout the ages all great sages have spoken on the importance of being kind. 

As we step into the Valentine season I offer to you, dear reader, a few words on kindness from the likes of Aesop, Lao Tzu, Benjamin Franklin and William Wordsworth to ponder and perchance to lead your actions. 
We can all make a difference in the lives of others. Choose to reach out in kindness even in the face of adversity. Each day choose to lay the groundwork for love and happiness. Your small daily decisions over a lifetime add up.


He Who Plants Kindness Gathers Love


💓'A tree is known by its fruit; a man by his deeds. A good deed is never lost; he who sows courtesy reaps friendship, and he who plants kindness gathers love.' Saint Basil

💙'No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.' Aesop 

💚'Kindness is in our power, even when fondness is not.' Samuel Johnson

💛'Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love.' Lao Tzu

💜'A laugh, to be joyous, must flow from a joyous heart, for without kindness there can be no true joy.' Thomas Carlyle

💓'That best portion of a man's life, his little, nameless, unremembered acts of kindness and love.' William Wordsworth

💙'If you would be loved, love and be lovable.' Benjamin Franklin



💓'There is overwhelming evidence that the higher the level of self-esteem, the more likely one will be to treat others with respect, kindness, and generosity.' Nathaniel Branden


💙'Constant kindness can accomplish much. As the sun makes ice melt, kindness causes misunderstanding, mistrust, and hostility to evaporate.' Albert Schweitzer


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For more than 35 years, Susan Meyerott has been helping people lighten up and step over invisible barriers to change one step at a time. She speaks to your heart, puts you at ease, and makes letting go and moving forward with life easier than ever before.

Do you know someone who could benefit from uplifting messages? Please share Lightarted Living with them. If you or someone you love is interested in learning more about closing the gap between where you are now and where you want to be, join the FREE Lightarted Living mailing list. 

Saturday, January 27, 2018

Lightarted Living: Dealing with Anger and Burnout

Lightarted Living: Dealing with Anger and Burnout: Pondering the Future (Reply hazy try again...) “There are more things to alarm us than to harm us, and we suffer more often in a...

Dealing with Anger and Burnout


Pondering the Future
(Reply hazy try again...)

“There are more things to alarm us than to harm us, and we suffer more often in apprehension than reality.”
Seneca

If Things are so Good, why am I so Angry?

We've all been there. 

There's nothing wrong. In fact things have been going pretty good. But home and work are stressful and you've been working too many hours to get to the end of those great life-enhancing projects. 

You pride yourself on doing outstanding work and achieving what you put your mind to, so you put your all into each new project that comes your way. 
At work this focus on excellence brings you praise from your boss and lands you great projects where you can really showcase your skills. Everyone loves your work and sings your praises. You're smart, responsive, creative and productive. 
At home, you're on-track with multiple plans for family, home and building for your future.

So why are you feeling anti-social and mad at the world--wanting to zone out instead of socialize--and snapping other people's heads off?


Burnout and Anger
Like so many who desire to make their mark on the world you've probably given your all without sufficiently replenishing your energy along the way. 
When we fail to adequately engage in non-productive play to re-balance our spirits, our fear and anger over self-imposed expectations build up and our fire and drive quickly extinguish. This is simply a case of burnout caused by our failure to insert fun, play and nothingness into our daily line up.

So if your emotions suddenly burst into fiery anger after you've been pushing yourself too hard,  you know it's time to re-balance yourself and stop obsessing on growth and success.

“Don’t underestimate the value of Doing Nothing, of just going along, listening to all the things you can’t hear, and not bothering.”
Winnie the Pooh

How to Regain the Fire in Your Belly and Lose the Anger in Your Head

You already know you want to excel and be the best you can be. So why is it so difficult for you to do what you already know you need to do to maintain that fire in your belly and rid yourself of the anger in your head? 
Times of drive must be balanced with times of idling.

Give yourself equal time living as your private free-flowing, unjudged self as you give yourself living as your 'face-showing' public persona. Staying on 24/7 is crazy-making behavior that leads to burnout, self-doubts and anger.

The antidote to burnout is to practice doing nothing--regularly

Consciously plan fun or relaxing downtime into your week to rid yourself of that subtle ever-pervasive infiltration of expectations to always be producing and achieving. 


Idling

How to Succeed at Idling

💓Stop.
💙Do nothing.
💚Unplug.
💛Give in to that nap.
💜Unplan.
💓Have a dream-free day.
💙Lose the expectations.
💚Accomplish nothing.
💛Play.

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For more than 35 years, Susan Meyerott has been helping people lighten up and step over invisible barriers to change one step at a time. She speaks to your heart, puts you at ease, and makes letting go and moving forward with life easier than ever before.

Do you know someone who could benefit from uplifting messages? Please share Lightarted Living with them. If you or someone you love is interested in learning more about closing the gap between where you are now and where you want to be, join the FREE Lightarted Living mailing list.