Tag Archives: experience

The Joy in Life’s Challenges

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Have you ever set a difficult challenge for yourself and celebrated when you accomplished your goal? Perhaps you wanted to run a 10K footrace. Or, you wanted to lose 20 lbs. Or, you want to master a piece of music and perform it for an audience. What if you set a very difficult challenge and you did NOT succeed or meet your goal? Was the effort and attempting to push your limits worthwhile and a “stretch” which made this effort worth your time and energy? Testing yourself and attempting to “stretch” your limitations is often the most important learning you can have. Life, yes your life, is full of challenges which can ask you to “stretch” and can feel difficult, even painful. The most painful challenges are often the most satisfying when you can achieve your goal. Even when you fail, you can learn, and grow, a lot.

Living can have its painful lessons. We can find the lessons useful and these can broaden our confidence or experience, at the very least. The challenge is to find “Joy” in each experience, even the most difficult. Life is about taking risks and “Stretching” ourselves. Safely sitting on the couch doing familiar activities does not create the learning experiences which can move us forward. When we learn and “grow” we have more to share and stories which, when shared, makes our lives more interesting. Sure, the successes may be more fun to retell but the difficult experiences can have great, if not greater, value to our witnesses. (Perhaps of what NOT to do…)

Everyday is a miracle! You can wake up in a mundane life and have the possibility of stretching yourself and having a most unusual experience or learning opportunity. Look for the Joy in each day, each moment, each interaction so you can celebrate at the end of your day and bask in these treasures at the end of this life. No regrets, live each day…

Pain is something that happens in living. Your “suffering” is optional and your creation. You CAN make the best of any, and every, difficult situation. You can find the Joy in each experience and celebrate the learning and growth you can find in life’s experiences, particularly in life’s challenges. One personal example, after 19 years of marriage, my wife, and my life’s partner, was diagnosed with terminal ovarian cancer. Though I would NOT wish this on anyone, our experience for 8.5 years made us closer and taught me so many important lessons that I cherish these days. It had traumatic moments and incredibly loving moments. The experience made us closer. When my wife finally transitioned from our life together, I discovered a void that I could not have ever known before and learned valuable information which I share when the situation presents itself. My ability to serve has increased tremendously.

I challenge YOU to find the Joy in each experience you are lucky enough to experience. Ask each experience and each interaction, what have I come here to learn and how can I be of service to others from the message I have received?

You are a Miracle! You are a Unique Blessing! Thank you for being you and traveling this path to higher consciousness!

If you are READY and looking for a supportive community where you can share your story, your wisdom, and grow spiritually in a non-religious environment, consider Masters of the Journey.
You are a Blessing! You are a Master! Your wisdom from your life experience can have great value to other pilgrims on the path toward awakening and enlightenment.

The Masters of the Journey has events which are updated on our Facebook page which is found at: www.facebook.com/mastersofthejourney Please comment on this blog and share, if appropriate. More of our blogs are based on spiritual consciousness and can be found at www.dstress.com/blog

All Events are Perfectly Neutral!

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Are you ever “Triggered” by the events which you find in the world? Do you react and disagree with the actions taken by other people? Of course you do. You are human and most humans judge the events which you witness. However, there is another way to respond to the events which can “Trigger” you. There is a practice in Mindfulness which comes from Buddhism called observing in “Equanimity.” My understanding of this principle of practiced Mindfulness entails observing each experience in a nonjudgemental state of mind and emotion. Not easy for me or most humans in my culture! To be Neutral may mean not getting caught up in the “Drama” of a viewed life experience. This does not mean you approve of what is happening but perhaps you can be neutral in your reaction.

Wow, that is easier said than done. Perhaps, instead of jumping into judgement and a possible disagreement, you can ask a question, to yourself or possibly out loud, What has happened in your life to lead you (the person or event which triggered you) to this behavior or way of acting in this world? What can you learn to increase your consciousness to better serve in this situation? How can you Love the person who triggers you without agreeing with their behavior? When you are challenged by a person or an event ask, what am I supposed to be learning and can I find gratitude for this difficult learning? Life in this incarnation is not supposed to be a “walk in the park.” It is supposed to be a challenge to strengthen you and to develop your consciousness. (Yuck! I struggle with getting beat up by life just so I can learn a lesson, but that IS why I am here.) There is a reason the Divine Spirit offers you the opportunity to grow through these difficult events and experiences.

Be Mindful! You never know when the perfect person or event will be offered as you next best chance to find equanimity and balance without getting sucked into or triggered by the dramas which constantly flies around the Earthly plane.

AND, if you happen to react in emotion or anger or fear to an event do not beat yourself up. Say, “Wow,” and continue to learn from this reaction. Awareness of your reactivity is half the battle. Changing your response, over time and with practice, is the goal… Thanks! You are amazing. Your struggle is a beauty to behold. Go share it!

So all events are neutral but the filters by which these events are experienced makes people respond as people do. And, you can not control the way other people respond. That is “what makes horse races,” as my father might say.

If you are READY and looking for a supportive community where you can share your story, your wisdom, and grow spiritually in a non-religious environment, consider Masters of the Journey.
You are a Blessing! You are a Master! Your wisdom from your life experience can have great value to other pilgrims on the path toward awakening and enlightenment.

The Masters of the Journey has events which are updated on our Facebook page which is found at: www.facebook.com/mastersofthejourney Please comment on this blog and share, if appropriate. More of our blogs are based on spiritual consciousness and can be found at www.dstress.com/blog

BTW (By the Way), this lesson described above is MY constant challenge… I get triggered and then I laugh at myself for getting caught up in the drama… I am far from having this mastered… ALL Events are Neutral!

A Clear Path

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There comes a time when the obvious direction appears and the path is clear to be considered and taken…
Sometimes the pain in life motivates this change in path…

This is what our life’s lessons are all about. Learning from life experience and this often comes from learnings which are difficult if not painful. Such is the nature of change. We did not come here for a vacation of fun and joy which lasts a lifetime. It is a blessing to be challenged and to stretch beyond our normal lives, and comfort zones, into the experiences which catch our attention. Sometimes we are “triggered” by an interaction with another person/soul to know what we need to forgive, accept, and bless from the difficult judgements we make. You must ask yourself, what is not resolved within you that created this triggered response. When you judge another person, it often speaks about a judgement of yourself or an unresolved challenge within.

As we search for our path in life, we sometimes come to the difficult realization that we must accept and change ourselves… You have experienced (or are now experiencing) when it was time to leave home or end a relationship or find a new job/career. It may not have been “rational” but you do not have a choice, like you have to drop out of UCLA during the Vietnam War and go traveling though you do not know where this will lead you! This was a moment for me, born out of anger, frustration, and despair AND it was the best difficult decision I ever made. Of course, guidance played a role and this experience lead me into an environment where I could experience the foundation of a career of service which I have loved and never doubted…

With myself as the example, I have found that my “attachment disorder” has led me to the difficulty in relationship break ups which have caused me to suffer. My insecurities wanted me to hold on to a known relationship rather stepping into the unknown “loneliness.” Yet, this process of letting go has also led me to important life learnings such as when my path moved me to Bellingham in the Pacific Northwest to invest my energy into starting the Masters of the Journey. (Relationship changes were at the core of this movement.) Again, my pain created the motivation to leave my old life and then guidance directed me into the position of honoring spirit and creating a supportive community.

Hell, I bet you are reading this blog right now because you have a pain and you were guided to read these words. Yes, you may even take responsibility for your life and make the change in direction which you need to make, now or soon. Your only future regret should be that you did not follow your heart and jump into the experience which you knew you had to take… So do not let your fear of change get in your way. You are a blessing with much to share and you need to find your way to serve by sharing your wisdom gained from your experiences. AND, by the way, you are “Perfect” and a Master though your self image and judgement get in the way of “Remembering Your Divinity.”

As a reminder, YOU are loved! You are an important part of the fabric of all life and consciousness… Sure, these words may ring hollow if you are insecure or judging yourself harshly, BUT this does not change the truth you will remember when you are not so limited by your ego and the 3 dimensional world we have chosen to live this life within…

If you are READY and looking for a supportive community where you can share your story, your wisdom, and grow spiritually in a non-religious environment, consider Masters of the Journey.
You are a Blessing! You are a Master! Your wisdom from your life experience can have great value to other pilgrims on the path toward awakening and enlightenment.

The Masters of the Journey has events which are updated on our Facebook page which is found at: www.facebook.com/mastersofthejourney Please comment on this blog and share, if appropriate. More of our blogs are based on spiritual consciousness and can be found at www.dstress.com/blog

Wisdom of the Elders

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Who are our Elders and why is our culture at war with them? Why are many of our elders separated from the people who need them the most, our youth? In an impatient society which changes so quickly, why do we not make time for our most experienced and wisest members?

In many cultures, people who have lived longer and survived the many challenges which life throws at us, are venerated and respected. Sure they do not always act with grace, maturity, or even patience but these members of our society can have much to offer. Their stories can teach lessons which less experienced people might benefit from learning. Their perspective, honed over the time in life experiences, carries insight that is lacking from youthful lives.

It is not just elders who are separated by the behaviors of our culture. All of us seem to have “circled the wagons” so we can better control our media fed anxiety regarding different age groups, or races, or genders, or political beliefs. It seems to be an accepted practice that we only hang out with immediate family, or people at work, or people whose religion or politics seem identical to our own. This strikes me as an inbred way of controlling populations by keeping us apart and in fear filled isolation. (Opinion and judgement, so sorry…)

Who qualifies as our elders? Do they have to be old, even ancient? Are all older people wise or even filled with useful experiences? From a spiritual perspective, aren’t we all “old souls” with the potential for great wisdom even when we seem to be young in this moment, in this incarnation? If this is true, then we must respect all people we stumble into and offer the gift of witnessing their story, allowing it to unfold. Maybe it is not the words or thoughts but the feelings and emotions which can become great tools for our learning.

Be careful who YOU listen to, you may be listening to a MASTER!

Wisdom comes from deeper insight and a “Knowing.” Everyone of us has this, we just need to tap into this and be willing listen to share… Wisdom is Ageless and Old is irrelevant. Chase wisdom and let it find you and no matter how old you are, remember to live young at heart.

If you are READY and looking for a supportive community where you can share your story, your wisdom, and grow spiritually in a non-religious environment, consider Masters of the Journey.
You are a Blessing! You are a Master! Your wisdom from your life experience can have great value to other pilgrims on the path toward awakening and enlightenment.

The Masters of the Journey has events which are updated on our Facebook page which is found at: www.facebook.com/mastersofthejourney Please comment on this blog and share, if appropriate. More of our blogs are based on spiritual consciousness and can be found at www.dstress.com/blog