“From every human being there arises a light that reaches straight to heaven. And when two souls destined to be together find each other, their streams of light flow together and a single, brighter light goes forth from their united being.”
=The Baal Shem Tov

“A human being is part of the whole called by us “universe,” a part limited in time and space. We experience ourselves, our thoughts and feelings as something separate from the rest—a kind of optical delusion of consciousness. This delusion isa kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.”
=Albert Einstein

“Knowing others is intelligence. Knowing yourself is true wisdom. Mastering others is strength. Mastering yourself is true power.”
=Tao Te Ching

“There is in all visible things…..a hidden wholeness.”
=Thomas Merton

“With each true friendship, we build more firmly the foundation on which the peace of the whole world rests.”
=Mahatma Gandhi

“When you make the two one, and when you make the inner as the outer and the outer as the inner, and the above as the below, and when you make the male and female into a single one—then shall you enter the Kingdom.”
=Jesus

“Embody the three harmonies: within; with others: and with nature.”
=Robert Gilman

“My own working assumption is that we are here as local Universe information gatherers. We are given access to the divine design principles so that from them we can invent the tools that qualify us as problem solvers in support of the integrity of an eternally regenerative Universe.”
=Buckminster Fuller

“The only ones among you who will be truly happy are those who have sought and found how to serve.”
=Albert Schweitzer

“Human capacity is equal to human cruelty, and it’s up to each of us to tip the balance.”
=Alice Walker

“We must have a pure, honet, and warm-hearted motivation, and on top of that, determination, optimism, hope, and the ability not to be discouraged. The whole of humanity depends on this motivation.”
=The Dalai Lama

“In human relationships, as mutual love deepens, there comes a time when two friends convey their exchanges without words. They can sit in silence sharing an experience or simply enjoying each other’s presence without saying anything. Holding hands or a single word from time to time can develop this communication. This kind of relationship points to the level of interior silence…”
=Father Thomas Keating

“We cannot do great things in life; we can only do small things with great love.”
=Mother Teresa

“Spiritual practice is really about weaving a network of good relationships.”
=Dhyani Ywahoo

“Security is mostly a superstition, it does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all!”
=Helen Keller

“You and I and everything in the universe exist as a part of the endless flow of God’s love. Realizing this, we recognize that all creation is bound together by the same benelovence. To harmonize with life is to come into accord with that part of God which flows through all things. To foster and protect all life is both our mission and our prayer.”
=Morihei Ueshiba, I’Sensei

“I am not bound to win but I am bound to be true. I am not bound to succeed but I am bound to live up to what light I have.”
=Abraham Lincoln

“The conclusion is always the same: love is the most powerful and still the most unknown energy of the world.”
=Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

“Do not pursue the past. Do not lose yourself in the future. The past no longer is, and the future has not yet come. Look deeply at life, just as it is arising in the very here and now. Recognize it—invincible, unshakable. Care for it with your heart and mind.”
=The Buddha

“We are perceivers. The world that we perceive though is an illusion. It was created by a description that was told to us since the moment we were born.”
=Don Juan

“Our truest life is when we are in our dreams awake!”
=Henry David Thoreau

“All real living is meeting.”
=Martin Buber

“When you meet anyone, remember it is a holy encounter.”
=A Course in Miracles

Daphne Cochran-Shapiro is an Author & Poet, Designer & Crafter, and Entrepreneur who specializes in working with folks needing design assistance. My goal is to empower you to be the best you can be in ALL your endeavors. I invite you to browse my sites and share your comments on my works!

I’m on the list for updates from Neale Donald Walsch the author of the well-known Conversations With God series of books. I ordered his most recent book: When Everything Changes, Change Everything (devouring it as I write!) and, as a gift from Neale, I was scheduled to attend two teleclasses with him. Last night was the first one, and let me tell you it was terrific!

There were over a 1,000 people on the call and the energy levels were exciting. Neale talked about his new book, reviewing the Mechanics of the Mind and the System of the Soul. He then ended with a question and answer session. {The next teleclass will take place in a couple of weeks.}

My reason for this post is to shout out about Neale’s new website: ChangingChange.net. The site should be up really soon; he mentioned sometime this weekend. There will be message boards, articles, and lots more.

Since my Life Coaching services are partly based on the CWG series I was wow’ed when Neale mentioned that his website will be a hub for people interested in forming Changing Change Chapters (their structure will be similar to that of Alcoholics Anonymous with members holding meetings and having sponsors).

I definitely recommend getting his new book! As always, there are great insights and tools to change your life from struggle and drudgery into celebration and joy. If you’d like to discuss his new book, feel free to join us at the MLM Realms W.I.S.E. Community Forum.

With joy,

Daphne Cochran-Shapiro is an Author & Poet, Designer & Crafter, and Entrepreneur who specializes in working with folks needing design assistance. My goal is to empower you to be the best you can be in ALL your endeavors. I invite you to browse my sites and share your comments on my works!

You’re having one of those days — your boss got mad at you, you forgot to schedule that dental appointment for you child, dinner burned on the stove, you got a ticket for having a taillight out, and to top it all off, you feel like you’re getting a cold. Definitely one of THOSE days!

It would be easy to get angry, scream, diss on yourself or everyone else, reach for the nearest cookie, down a beer or a pill, or pull your hair out. That side of you, your ego, would like to give up, hide under the blankets and sleep till all was forgotten. You want the hurt to stop; you want the seeming blessed relief of emotional numbness. You turn away from mirrors so as not to see the misery looking back out of your own bewildered eyes. Fear and doubt are like lead weights dragging at your heart and mind.

Let’s stop for a moment here and give yourself permission to have some quiet time. Where you can just BE and look a bit more deeply into what exactly is actually happening. Breathe slow and steady and let all the tension flow away. Feel a gentle river of soft light passing through your body. Relax.

Now you can take a look at the day, at these events, without distraction and with objectivity. You see that these events happened and then you reacted to them in the same way you always have. You called the events “bad” or “wrong” or something negative. But was it really the event? Or was it more HOW you reacted to them?

I want you to know that you can choose in each moment how to perceive days such as this, the days that seem so much harder to cope with. You can find a new and more peaceful way to interact with these events by Trusting the Process. This means knowing that nothing happens by coincidence, that you truly aren’t a victim of the world, that you can change the events by consciously choosing how you want to be in each moment. Choosing who you want to be. Simply choosing a new way, a new thought, a new outlook, a new perception.

What do I mean by the “process”? I mean that creation occurs by thoughts, then words, then deeds (think about that for a few minutes). The process involves the entire universe, those people you interact with (the collective), and your Self. And though the details may change (i.e., the actual events) the process itself is always the same and it is never broken or out of whack.

So know that within you is the ability to choose how you’ll react to difficult events. Know it with deep faith, and trust that you can make anew the choices which will enable you to deal with anything and everything. With this stabilizing and foundational faith and trust at your core, you’ll find yourself more at peace, more full of joy, more capable, more loving and more compassionate. Yes, even compassionate to yourself! {Imagine how good it will feel when you don’t bully yourself anymore!}

To reiterate: before you choose to react to anything, search inside, recall the Thoughts>Words>Deeds Process, and then consciously choose how you want to act. Trust the process and your personal role in it. As you practice this new way of being, you’ll be amazed at how the number of “bad” days will decrease. That’s because you now have a new tool, a new method, of interacting with the events of your life. You may not master this tool overnight, but in time you will be a “Master of Those Days” in your own right. (You can even partner up with someone close to you to practice with!)

Then the next time one of those days rolls around you’ll be the calm center of the storm and even find yourself smiling softly and serenely while moving through the day with strong enduring confidence.

In Trust,

Daphne Cochran-Shapiro is an Author & Poet, Designer & Crafter, and Entrepreneur who specializes in working with folks needing design assistance. My goal is to empower you to be the best you can be in ALL your endeavors. I invite you to browse my sites and share your comments on my works!

Generally, depression isn’t considered to be a “preventable” condition. Yet its important to understand that you can have some control in its prevention by the lifestyle you maintain and the actions you take. You can make changes now that will positively affect your long-term mental health. Some helpful tips that may help in keeping depression at bay are listed below.

• Take care of your physical health: Feeling bad physically only makes feeling bad emotionally worse. Get regular exams from your physician, get enough sleep, and eat a healthy diet.
• Exercise: Being a “couch potato” definitely doesn’t help ward off a bout of depression. So, get off that couch, turn off the t.v., switch off your computer, and get some exercise! You don’t have to attempt a triathlon, just get 30 minutes or so of a good workout in 3 to 5 times a week.
• Don’t drink alcohol: Alcohol is a depressant, so why take a risk of getting depressed by drinking? If you’re prone to depression its best to stay away from it for the most part, not to mention that those who suffer from depression tend to risk abusing alcohol and developing alcoholism.
• [...]

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Daphne Cochran-Shapiro is an Author & Poet, Designer & Crafter, and Entrepreneur who specializes in working with folks needing design assistance. My goal is to empower you to be the best you can be in ALL your endeavors. I invite you to browse my sites and share your comments on my works!

“Tucked away in our subconscious is an idyllic vision. We see ourselves on a long trip that spans the continent. We are traveling by train. Out the windows we drink in the passing scene of cars on nearby highways, of children waving at a crossing, of cattle grazing on a distant hillside, of smoke pouring from a power plant, of row upon row of corn and wheat, of flatlands and valleys, of mountains and rolling hillsides, of city skylines and village halls.

But uppermost in our minds is the final destination. On a certain day at a certain hour we will pull into the station. Bands will be playing and flags waving. Once we get there so many wonderful dreams will come true and the pieces of our lives will fit together like a completed jigsaw puzzle. How restlessly we pace the aisles, damning the minutes for loitering–waiting, waiting, waiting for the station.”[...]

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Daphne Cochran-Shapiro is an Author & Poet, Designer & Crafter, and Entrepreneur who specializes in working with folks needing design assistance. My goal is to empower you to be the best you can be in ALL your endeavors. I invite you to browse my sites and share your comments on my works!