Last time

There’s a time and place for everything. Things begin, run their course and then end. There is therefore a last time for everything.

Life is made of changes. Often we treat things and people in our lives as a constant, we take them for granted. We don’t want to see the end. But sometimes that ending is not in our hands.

Things end. Children grow up, marriages end, health fail, pets die. Suddenly the little things we took for granted are no more. All we are left are memories and regrets. Regrets about not enjoying those little thing while we had the chance.

Enjoy all your life while it lasts. Every day and every moment. Enjoy especially those little moments, because Life will change and one day they will be just a memory. Don’t let them slip by your fingers. Be present and relish them.

This will be my last blog. I wish you have enjoyed this ride together. Hopefully you have also gotten something out of it: perhaps a new thought, an altered insight, or a different perspective.

My last wish for you is, that you enjoy all the things life has to offer you, especially the little ones, because they make up your life, and one day there may come time you will miss them. Enjoy them fully while you have them, and remember them fondly, when they are gone.

Here’s to your journey! Bon voyage!

Thank You

How often do you express gratitude for the little things? The dishes, the laundry, the plumbing? Or the people in your life? So often we just take them for granted, and even moan about them.

Not that long ago all water had to be carried in from outside, miles away even, and sewage had to be carried out. And to get hot water one had to heat it on the stove. Now we take for granted all these modern conveniences, that are available to us.

We take for granted our spouse, children, even friends. Instead of giving them compliments and showing, how much they really mean to us, we treat them as their were just a nuisance in our lives, and nag, and even yell at them.

Gratitude is the basis of all contentment and happiness in life. There simply cannot be true happiness without gratitude. Yet we rarely feel grateful for the lives we lead: the conveniences, that make our lives easier, and the people, who make our lives worth while.

Gratitude transforms what we have into enough and more. Life without gratitude will not give us satisfaction. Life without gratitude will only make us displeased with everything, even the things, that go in our favor, our little victories.

Often we notice, what we have, only when we lose it. We only notice our health, when we don’t have it anymore; we only notice the time with our children, when they have grown up and moved away. There are million little things in live, we don’t notice until it is too late.

It is the little things, that make our lives. The ones we take for granted and don’t notice until they are lost forever. They are the ones we should be grateful to have. They are the ones we should enjoy fully every day.

For awhile set aside all that you are still missing and take a moment to notice all those little things you have at the moment: the clothes, the air, even the body you have. Feel grateful for that you have woken up to this brand new day with all these little things. And say Thank You for them all.

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Happiness

Happiness is an inside job. Our happiness doesn’t depend on anybody else, but our own focus. It is said, that we are as happy or unhappy as we decide to be. And so it is.

There are circumstances in this world, that are similar to a bunch of people, yet some of them are happy and some are miserable. Therefore the circumstances themselves cannot be the source of that happiness, or unhappiness. What is it then? Their attitude, their inward disposition, their focus in life.

I have seen miserable people, who are doing fine in their lives. They have clothes, fairly good jobs, food on their plates, roof over their heads, solid families and yet they are unhappy. I have also seen content and happy people, who are worst struck by life. They have been fired from their jobs, been in car crashes, or given the worst diagnoses ever. Yet they are happy about their lives. The difference between these people is their focus: the first ones focus on what they don’t have and the second on what they do. Focusing on what we have, creates happiness.

Sometimes we are just too far from happiness to even try to achieve it. When I was clinically depressed, there was no way I could be happy about anything. But luckily I somehow understood, that I didn’t have to. All I needed to do was to feel a tiny bit better each day. For me that meant to find out every day and write down at least one thing, that didn’t make me feel bad that day. That could have been just a ray of sun, a squirrel crossing the road, or a rosebush blooming by the sidewalk. They didn’t bring me joy or happiness, but neither did they make me feel worse. The day I listed three such incidents, was the day I knew, I was heading the right direction.

The main point is, we can decide to be happy or at least not to be unhappy anymore. When we decide that, we will find a way. One tiny step at a time. Anyway the most important thing is to decide. If you are physically sick, you are going to do something about it. Feel the same way about your happiness. If you are unhappy, decide to change the situation. Decide it now. Today. Don’t wait a second longer. You are worth it.

Home

Home is a place, where our heart is. It is a place, where we can be ourselves, where we feel comfortable and loved just as we are. Home is a safe haven in the ever changing world. The one place, that ever remains the same. Or so we think.

Life is made of changes. Every little thing in this life is in constant change. Weather changes, seasons come and go. Even our bodies change all the time. Cells reproduce and old ones die. And we change our minds almost as often as our clothes, believing today this and tomorrow something else completely. There is no stopping the change, it is life itself.

Everything and anything can change in an instant. First we have it and the next moment we don’t. Life doesn’t ask for our permission for change to happen. Our children grow up and move away. Friends move and scatter across the world. Pets get old and die. Even our furniture gets old and grubby.

However our true home is not in any physical place. Instead we are souls having a physical experience, souls with a body. We came eagerly to this ever changing life. Not to have one place, that would never change, but knowing, that change was inevitable and we embraced it. We knew it would give us clarity on what we personally preferred. We came for the fun of it.

Our time here on Earth is limited. None of us know, when will be our last day. So if you woke up this morning, make the whole wide world feel like home and enjoy this very day, that you right now have, to its fullest!

Manic Manifesting

When we first hear about the Law of Attraction, I think we are all enticed by the prospect of getting and having whatever we should want to. “Cool! Now I’m finally gonna win that Lottery!”

I see a lot of people stay hooked on manifesting. They obsessively keep trying to manifest all sorts of things. However Law of Attraction doesn’t respond to our words, or actions. Law of Attraction only responds to our vibration, to whatever we emit from ourselves. And we are only able to vibrate or emit, what we believe is possible in this life.

By trying to manically manifest things into our lives, we will do ourselves more harm than good. So just stop and ask yourself, why on Earth do I want, whatever it is, that I want. Am I trying to impress others, show them how far I have gone, or do I perhaps just want the feeling of security, freedom, or joyfulness? In the end it is always the feeling we are after, not the stuff itself. That is extra.

First of all our beliefs limit profoundly, how we are able to vibrate. We cannot be or have anything, we think is impossible for us, or in general. Our beliefs are a big stumbling block, and we don’t even notice them at times. EFT or Tapping is an easy way to show us our limiting beliefs and gently remove them. (see my post on 22nd June, 2016 on EFT in http://www.merjasuomela.wordpress.com/2016/06 (second one when scrolling down))

Secondly everything in this Universe is two things: the wanted and the lack of it. It is possible, that we focus on the things we want the wrong way around. If we are more focused on the lack, Law of Attraction will match us up with more lack. To find out which side we are more focused on, we have to pay close attention to how we feel, when we think, visualize and talk about the things we want. Lack makes us always feel bad, or constricted, as allowing on the other hand makes us feel good, eager, happy, or joyful even.

Thirdly we can limit Law of Attraction all by ourselves. By thinking and visualizing, that the only way, we can have for example extra money, is the lottery, we are in fact limiting our options of getting it. We are shutting countless doors, by which our extra money could come to us.

In the end, if we feel that particular feeling we are after, does it really matter, how it came? If it came that specific way we ourselves wanted it to come, or some other possible way?

Negative Feelings

Life consists of ordinary days: some of which are good and some of which are not. There will be things, that will make us happy and over the moon. Then there will be others we could simply do without. We don’t get to choose, which ones we are going to have, we only get to choose, how to react to them. There is ebb and flow in life and also in our days.

We are not always at our best. We are also allowed to be vulnerable, powerless, at loss, or even sad and unhappy at times. There is no shame in that. That is called full human life. There is no shame even in crying, when we feel like it. Because how would we know, when we are happy, if we never were unhappy.

Bottling up these bad feelings and pretending to be happy, when we are not, makes our whole body suffer the consequences. Our bodies never lie to us. They show us exactly, how we feel minute to minute. These bottled up feelings tend to cause resistance, that shows itself as tension and stress in our bodies, and in the end even as aches and pains and disease.

It is much more proactive to admit to ourselves, what our true feelings are. Then try to find a way to release them: cry, if you feel like it, shout in the shower, beat your pillow, or go for a walk or a run. Nature has many healing qualities, so a walk/run in the forest can solve and calm many of our feelings.

When things happen, that are not to your liking, remember, that you are not a bad person, if you have negative feelings about them. Just admit your feelings, find a proactive way to release them, and move on.

There is plenty of good in everything and in every day. So if you can’t find the silver lining in what you are living at the moment, concentrate on the good things, that you can find, that are in your life. Enjoy, whatever you can.

 

New World

Every day we wake up, we get to have an awesome present: a brand new day, that none of us has ever lived before. We are unspeakably lucky to have this. Every new day is a new beginning for us, a chance to start again.

We are so prone to see all the negativity in this world, in every situation, and in every single day, that we don’t recognize the immensity of what we truly have in a new day. This poor habit is blinding us for this precious gift, that we get to have every single morning, when we wake up.

Every new day, that we wake up to, invites us to make the most of that particular day. Every new morning offers us the opportunity to let go of the yesterday, leave it behind, and begin again. Every day we get to choose, how we want that day to go, and what we want to do. We have the choice.

I am ever so grateful for each and every day I get to wake up to, for every new sunrise and sunset. The world is brand new every single morning, so full of possibilities and potential. I am immensely blessed with each new day, that I get to have and live. I humbly accept every morning as a gift, and every morning before getting up I bless the day by making a list of things I am grateful for. Every morning it makes the day seem even more precious.

To make the most of your life see every day for what it is: an invaluable gift for a new beginning. No matter what has happened yesterday, or wherever you are, you get to start again today, right now. Therefore bless your every morning with gratitude and watch you life change for the better.

Surrender

This has been a recurring theme for me lately. I have come across articles, blogs and videos about these subjects: release, detach, surrender. A blog by Gabby Bernstein made a huge impact. She has a powerful story and 5 steps to give in this subject. And I thought, that I was well on my way on this! I had only been taking baby steps into this direction. Upon pondering those words they now have a new meaning to me. Let me explain, what these tree words mean to me:

Releasing means to me letting go of that, which doesn’t serve me anymore, whether it be a person, a thing, a habit or something else. There is a time for everything: a beginning and an end. It is sometimes very hard for us human beings to let go, to release. We cling to people and stuff and most of all old habits like our lives depended on them. It is healthy to understand, that everything runs its course: first we need the lessons these things/persons can give us and then we don’t anymore. The right thing then is to release them, to let them go to the next person, who can use them. We ourselves are better off without.

Detaching means to me, that I separate myself and my happiness from the outcome of any event in my life. It means, that whatever the outcome is, I can still be happy. It doesn’t mean inactivity by any means. It just means, that the activity is not made for a certain result to happen, but for my own highest good and happiness. We humans tend to have many things going on in our lives. We have wishes, hopes and desires. We can only be free, if we detach ourselves and our happiness from the end result of our actions. We can be truly happy, if any action we make is only made for our own highest good.

Surrender means to me giving up on my own timetables, letting everything take its own course. Surrendering is a beautiful thing. It is like saying to the Universe/God/All-That-Is, or whatever we call it, “I trust you and your timing.” We can only see a very limited portion of time and space, while Universe/God/All-That-Is can see everything. Wanting for something to happen doesn’t make this the right time or place for it. Surrendering means to trust Life. It means to trust, that everything and anything in our lives is only happening to our highest good and benefit.

You, too, if you want to live in total freedom and happiness, will have to release that, which no longer serves you, detach your happiness from the outcome of you actions, and surrender. It is the only way. And as Gabby Bernstein says it: When you think you’ve surrendered, surrender more.

For further reading Gabby’s blog and video to go with it: https://gabbybernstein.com/new-blog-super-soul-sessions-talk-5-steps-spiritual-surrender/

 

Weight of The World

I have always prided myself for being tough, having the strength to carry the weight of the world on my shoulders, if need be. Now that I would really need that strength, it seems to have gone though, lost in time and space. Like I am an empty shell, that is supposed to contain something, but it doesn’t. I am soft and mellow, no strength at all to be found.

When we came to this Earth, we intended to have a full human experience, to feel every emotion there is, not deeming something bad or inappropriate. We intended to have them all, not just one range of the spectrum. The world would look pretty sad place, if, say, blue was considered bad, and we did all we could to avoid it.

We have to give ourselves permission to feel all of our emotions, and not deeming any them appropriate or inappropriate. It is OK to feel ALL of them, to be vulnerable, or angry, or soft, or strong. There is no shame in any of them. No matter what has passed, and what we have been through, it is no indication of how we should feel right now. There is no should. We have all the right in the world to our own emotions. In the end of the day they are just messengers delivering a precious message to us, giving us invaluable information on ourselves, and where we stand.

I will allow myself to be as soft as this time requires. I will be patient and tolerant with myself. I will give myself understanding and all the time I might need. And if need be, I will cry on it and take no shame of it. I believe, that, what I feel right now, will bring me a deeper level of understanding and compassion for myself. I believe, that it will be a great learning experience.

Allow yourself the benefit to feel whatever comes up. All the emotions are there for a reason. They will bring you closer to who you really are. None of them is bad or inappropriate. They will just deliver you a message. So at this moment be as soft or as tough as it feels right for you!

Plant a Tree

Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree. I really like this quote by Martin Luther. It seems to sum up everything, that I believe. That happiness is found in enjoying the moment. Even if I knew I was not here tomorrow, I would still do today something I believed in and liked.

Our attitude has everything to do, how we experience life. We can see life as a hard journey from one misery to another, or we can concentrate on the positive side of things. Everything, and I mean everything, has a positive side. Even the most terrible things, that could ever happen to us, have something positive in them, if we just choose to notice it.

The most terrible things tend to let us see, how good our lives have been before. And how little we valued those good times. They tend to give a halo of extraordinary to little every day things. We don’t so very often see these things as blessings. For example do you appreciate doing the dishes? Laundry? Vacuuming? We don’t let these things make us happy. Only when these things are taken away from us, we begin to appreciate them in a very different way.

We also tend to postpone our happiness until some condition is fulfilled. I will be happy, when I lose weight, or when I get enough money, or when something else happens. When we postpone happiness, we are in fact saying, that this very moment, Right Now, is not enough. That this very moment is somehow flawed. This precise moment is all we have. This, Right Now, is when Life happens. Your life and mine. It is perfect as it is.

We cannot decide over or control everything, that happens in this life. Things will happen to us, that we don’t like about or wouldn’t want to happen. We can only decide, how we react to them. We can only enjoy this very moment we have right now and be happy about it. No-one knows about the future. There are no guarantees of the next moment. This very moment is all there ever is. So if everything is good Right Now Right Here, enjoy it fully. And if not, make sure you make most of this very moment. It is all, that you have.