Articles
Are You Really Successful? 8 “Wise” Ways to Tell
Christine M. Prevete, MhD
Charging into adulthood was all I had dreamed about for 18 years. Daydreams of independence and a successful career were the thoughts in my youth. I pursued education and employment opportunities with such fervor that I was sure I would learn it all to have it all. Knowledge of people, places and things was most important to succeed in life. I set off to one of the best colleges to learn the right things and meet the right people.
Two years of unfulfilling experiences found me transferring home to attend school. It turned out that the very situation I was trying to escape was the setting of my greatest strength. Shortly after the return, my grandmother passed on and my mother was diagnosed with a life threatening illness. My world of achievement was turning upside down.
Thoughts and feelings endlessly raced through my mind. I needed to keep going with my mission of independence and success, but the daughter in me was terrified at losing the leader of this family. As the new reality settled in, she began her journey and as such, changed the destiny of mine.
At the time I saw life as a series of strategic maneuvers to know all the right things for great success. Conquering mom’s disease was no different. We needed to be strong and knowledgeable and so I immersed myself in the education of treatments for this disease. I went straight to the library and brought much of it home with me. I was sure I could find help in these books. I studied and applied many things which were helpful, but mom continued to be ill. The further I dug to save her life, the more difficult life was becoming around me. Still working, still studying and determined to save her life. Sleep was a thing of the past. My heart was growing hard and angry. I still wanted to pursue my dreams and I wanted mom to pursue her dreams. She was too young for this. I was too young for this.
Years of struggling passed us by and in the last months came my awakening. My mother was a brilliant woman filled with love and energy. I watched her love our family and do the “right things” to the point of her own ultimate exhaustion. She spent her life trying to get us to the best schools, have the best of everything and obsessively keep us safe from any harm. She was fierce in her convictions of what was right and wrong and shared her knowledge every day without fail. Her knowledge and enabled me to gain even more from the opportunities she provided for me. What she didn’t know was that these months we were spending together were imparting wisdom to her daughter…and that would be the most valuable and lasting gift of all.
8 authentic elements of Wisdom were not gained through study, achievement or travel, but revealed through experience right where I was in the moment.
- Pure – The best choices I made in those months were those requiring the least amount of force. They were pure and instinctual. The result was some of my greatest memories created by being present and compassionate.
- Peaceful – I found the best decisions were those that created the most peace for all involved.
- Gentle – After years of forcing our opinions in arguments, I experienced a most rewarding piece of wisdom in choosing to be kind rather than needing to be right.
- Yielding – I learned the futility of being quick to speak or quick to anger. Wisdom yields to receptivity and reflection for the highest good of all concerned.
- Merciful – After a lifetime of bickering, we found the ultimate Truth. Each of us had always been right, in our own world, based upon our own thoughts and feelings. It was liberating to forgive and be forgiven.
- Good fruits – Acting from wisdom produces only good works. Of all that I had “achieved” in life, I learned back then the wisdom of knowing when to let go. I stopped the constant doing and sat, rubbed her feet and legs and just talked and laughed. Knowledge applied through an awakened heart allows great works to occur.
- Impartial – There is no prejudice in life or death. Life is enriched by recognizing we are many, yet we are One. What any one of us experiences is possible for us too. The wise shall lay down the arms of judgment in all circumstances.
- Sincerity – Without exception, Truth shall always set you free.
Over fifteen years ago I used all of my gathered knowledge to seek a brand new path to success. There was nothing about her life that I could remember on the day she left, except for the moments that were rich with these “8 elements of Wisdom”. We spent so much time disagreeing, working, trying, achieving and ultimately the greatest checklist for lasting success arrived when we weren’t seeking it at all.
Personal relationships, business decisions, physical fitness, financial investments are always ripe with the potential of success. Making choices from this timeless “Wisdom Checklist” will always lead you along the path of your most authentic and permanent success. You’ll recognize “Wisdom” because life will feel lighter, choices will benefit all, and the legacy you are living right now will be shaped by the wisdom of the ages, creating lasting value for life!
There is a richness to the word “Wisdom”. It cannot be explained in one word. Hearing it connotes an endless spectrum of possibilities. It grounds us in feelings of certainty. It inspires us from the lessons of our ancestors. It expands us to think new ideas. The word itself is so enriching, that we can allow it to soar us to new heights. When we are thinking and acting from the perspective of Wisdom, there’s a spark from within that assures us…we are living our best life right now.
How Can I Help My Loved One?
Christine M. Prevete, MhD
Do not look at their symptoms. Look into their heart. Look into their eyes. Pause for a moment and recognize your own needs. Are you needing to fix something? Is this longing to fulfill something inside of you? It is first by far, the more challenging question. Why must you insist that circumstances be different? All is always as it should be or need be and this is the greatest human awareness that is needed at such a time. Each life is the journey and expression of an individualized soul. It is the right and privilege to expand and experience life as it must in order to evolve into its own wisdom. It is a most challenging task to witness the suffering of a loved one. But their own biography has brought them to this moment. Always remember the eternal lifespan of a soul. We each learn and grow at our own pace.
Be the Light for the other. Be strong and sturdy as a solid beacon of Love. Be truthful and gentle. Do not speak until your heart is overcome with the wise Love of the Mother. She speaks little, supports and guides firmly and Loves unceasingly. Be mindful of the Healing Love of Christ. Offerings must be sought out by the afflicted or else they are improper. Let your Loved One always see the Light in your eyes, feel the softness in your touch and know the unshakeable faith of your devotion. All is not lost when a Loved One is ailing. Take heart and know it is fertile ground for true place healing…and where that may lead is GOD”S TRUE GLORY … Amen…Simply Love them through it all…Hallelujah.
Why Not Begin Again
Christine M. Prevete, MhD
There is a brief moment when you awaken each morning and there is a clean slate. You breathe yourself back to the world from sleep. It’s a quick and fleeting moment before you open your eyes, but it’s there. There is no story yet. You get up, look in the mirror and remember the story of you. This is the defining moment of your day. Will this moment be met with drudgery for the continuation of the stories or will it be fabulous? It is easy to slip into the stories we have lived for so long. Everything in our lives can seem so set and permanent. The truth is that this glorious moment every morning is your gift. You can truly design an entirely new story and walk into your day feeling fabulous! We can only walk through life one step at a time and you could make it a dance. This clean slate moment every morning is when you can truly begin again.
Take inventory! Practice remembering all that is fabulous about you! These are what you lead with into the journey of your day. Begin a new day with the best of yourself taking the lead out the front door. Get into the world and be beautifully bold. You will find opportunities everywhere, just waiting for the best of you to come along. It may begin in small doses so watch closely! Surprise someone with an act of random kindness and see what happens. Spirits are renewed to turn the day around and begin again.
Fill up! At least once a day, put your arms up over your head and face your palms to the sun…feel your body fill up with as much sun energy as possible. You will truly feel your tank filling up with the fuel it needs to stay on the go…pure sun power.
Sing! Start your day with some feel good music (maybe I’m Yours by Jason Mraz!) You will find yourself humming a happy tune in your head all day long. It will give you the beat to make every step a dance. A good bouncing rhythm is just the thing to keep you rocking and rolling well through the day and on into the night.
Lighten your load! The FlyLady.net has a fabulous suggestion of the Fling Boogie. This is a terrific and fun way to lose some real weight. Throw away what is complete and give away what could be revived. You will be amazed at how free you will feel by lifting the weight from your space. Garbage cleared out will clear your mind and the act of charity is always a lift for your spirit.
Get out of your mind and into your heart! It is so easy to fall to the temptation of logic. Living your days obediently may never create a thing! At least once a day, let your mind be the servant of your heart. As you move through what needs to get done, daydream about what you would do if you could do it. What is the whisper from your heart? What you long for is a clue to how you could feel like you’re dancing through your days. Start small and find ten minutes in the day to connect with what you would love to be, do or have. The more you dream of the joy of it, the closer it is drawn to you. Everything you want to experience is already in your world. It’s just a matter of joining with it. Moments a day will set the energy in motion to begin again and start writing a new story of you.
Beauty of Life
Christine M. Prevete, MhD
Look at the beauty of life….take some moments each day to truly gaze into the beauty of this life…each morning a golden sun rises for every living creature….deep, rich, gold, reminding us that we are rich with warmth and support in this life….each evening the purity of a white moon rises for every living creature…a perfect nightlight for us to rest serenely feeling safe at all times. We are Loved. We are Supplied. We are held in the arms of Love in order to experience the beauty of Life.
To Believe
Lisa Joy Walters, MS,Ed.
To believe we are all unique and a beautiful ascended gift from God…
How beautiful we all are in our gifted ways…
An image so majestic and free, we can soar to any heights…
Believing we are all One and so enlightened by our thoughts and passions…
Be free to give and all your desires and dreams are awaiting you in this moment in time. This is where you are and where you are going to be!
It is the time to ring free your hopes, your desires and your gifts of beauty to the Universe.
Go now and LIVE.
It is the right time my loves...it is the right time!!
Forever, with love and smiles, Lisa Joy
A Sunday Morning
Lisa Joy Walters, MS,Ed.
A Sunday morning awakening…
The sun shines, the sky is clear and all is alright…
The goal and the focus are to stay as clear as the majestic sky…
To feel yourself awaken strong and brilliant as the bright beautiful sun…
This is the word of God…
This is our Truth…
To breathe, to believe, to enter freely into the day, believing in yourself…
All is Good in the Universe and with this, we can say, “Amen”.
With “love” and “smiles”, Lisa Joy