Wisdom of Mother Teresa

mother teresa picQuotes of Mother Teresa

Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.

Being unwanted, unloved, uncared for, forgotten by everybody, I think that is a much greater hunger, a much greater poverty than the person who has nothing to eat.

Do not think that love, in order to be genuine, has to be extraordinary. What we need is to love without getting tired.

Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person.

Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.

Good works are links that form a chain of love.

I want you to be concerned about your next door neighbor. Do you know your next door neighbor?

If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.

If we want a love message to be heard, it has got to be sent out. To keep a lamp burning, we have to keep putting oil in it.

If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one.

If you judge people, you have no time to love them.

In this life we cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love.

The Eagle and the Mouse

eagle and mouseI have studied a great deal of Native American culture in my energy medicine work, and one of my favorite stories is about two animals and how they relate to life: the eagle and the mouse.

The teaching is to balance the eagle and the mouse within us. At times we are the mouse, scurrying about the floor, picking up every crumb, scrutinizing everything in our small world.

At other times we need to become like the eagle—to fly over the situation and to assess the bigger picture. From a higher or greater witness viewpoint, we can look down onto the stage of our story and see the bigger picture of what’s going on. While seeing our lives from this witness viewpoint, we are less likely to get caught in the little minutia of the moment.

If we can learn to balance the energy of both animals within us, we can bring greater balance into our lives and into the world.

The Power of Being Positive!

umbrella sunThoughts and beliefs are the basic elements of our life creation,
and without knowing it, we can allow our individual beliefs to hold us back.

On a daily basis, we make all kinds of assumptions and attachments to things and people that may not be good for us. Some of this is based on old beliefs. So it makes sense then, that by changing our old, unhelpful beliefs, we can attract new and better experiences and circumstances into our lives.

We have both empowering as well as limiting beliefs. Some beliefs support us and some undermine us.

So be sure to ask yourself, what thoughts do I accept as true about myself? Because those thoughts will shape your life.

You see, your strongest beliefs will always play out in your life experiences. And what are your strongest beliefs?…

They are those thoughts that begin with “I am,” such as “I am kind”; “I am smart”; but also—-negative statements, such as “I am lazy.”

All “I am” thoughts are your strongest and also your most limiting or empowering thoughts because they relate directly to your sense of self.

If I believe “I am worthy” or “I am smart,” I will have a different experience than if I believe “I am worthless” or “I am powerless.”

Think about your thoughts as you would radio waves. If you tune your radio dial into a specific station, you will pick up that station. If you tune your life into “I am powerless,” you will pick up signals for that station.

We all engage in self-talk throughout the day (those words we say to ourselves in our heads). They’ve been referred to as the “Inner Critic” or “the Judge Within.”

If you are saying to yourself “I am powerless,” these words will want to validate themselves. Now in turn, imagine that these thoughts are magnetic so what do you think they are likely to attract? Yes, they’ll attract experiences to prove them right.

So the most important benefit of being positive is that this attracts positive experiences to you.

Remember: “I am worthy.  I create for myself a wonderful life.  I am happy and at peace.”

After a While

I have always loved this poem and am happy to share it.

May it move your heart, too.

heart in darkness

After a While

by Veronica Shoffstall

After a while you learn the subtle difference

between holding a hand and chaining a soul

And you learn that love doesn’t mean leaning

and company doesn’t always mean security.

And you begin to learn that kisses aren’t contracts

and presents aren’t promises

And you begin to accept your defeats

with your head up and your eyes ahead

with the grace of a woman, not the grief of a child

And you learn to build all your roads on today

because tomorrow’s ground is too uncertain for plans

and futures have a way of falling down in mid-flight.

After a while you learn that even sunshine burns

if you get too much.

So you plant your own garden and decorate your own soul

instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers.

And you learn that you really can endure

that you really are strong

and you really do have worth

And you learn and you learn

with every goodbye you learn. . . .

Opening Your Heart

heart ladyYour growth in life requires what I call “an archeological dig into yourself” to gain understanding.  In other words, it’s helpful to go back and look at old beliefs, how you got them, and whether or not they are helping you now.

I believe that often we suffer because we have roamed so far from our true core that we don’t know who we are. We haven’t looked into our own vulnerable hearts in so long, we wouldn’t recognize ourselves if we did.

We may run from this inner awareness because we feel that if we actually gave attention to it, we would be overwhelmed.  Our perceptions of what is and isn’t are what make our life feel either good or bad, either sacred or monstrous.  These perceptions create our point of view about who we are, about who other people are, and about life itself.

We engage in our life dramas every day. Each of us is starring in our own play called “Life” and we are partnered with other cast members to share life’s lessons.  We’re all on each other’s stages together.

Our issues, our fears, and our vulnerabilities cause us to protect our real needs and I believe even to negotiate away our power.   Yet at our deepest level, we want to be ourselves, say what we feel, be who we are (not with intent to harm another but simply to be true to ourselves), yet we sometimes respond by denying our feelings because we are afraid our partner will leave us.  Or we may do work that we don’t like or that doesn’t inspire us because it keeps us feeling safe and secure.  We decide how we think the world is and we create a list of judgments about ourselves and others.

And the truth is that we are really all looking for the same thing—which is to be loved and valued.

If you want to change and improve your life, you have to apply a gentle curiosity to what is going on in your own vulnerable heart.  A wonderful exercise is to ponder the following questions:

  •  Who lives there in your heart?
  • What does your heart wish to tell you about your life right now?
  • What do you need and desire?
  • What are you willing to let go of or bring into your life?

Opening your heart and listening to it improves the balance and health of your body, mind, and spirit.  On this Valentine’s Day and heart month, take a moment to listen to and love your own heart.