I have often caught myself replaying a catchy tune in my head over and over again. I also noticed that I occasionally catch myself thinking negative thoughts. Both of these are habits. One is not so problematic, but the other can actually cause harm. I’ll leave it to you to decide which is which. So, I decided to make up positive words and thoughts to go along with the catchy tunes in my head. Whenever I catch myself thinking negatively, I work hard at remembering, ‘It’s no big deal, just let it go.’ It’s not always easy, but the tunes help. A friend of mine taught me an equally great method. She suggested that whenever the negative thoughts creep in, picture them being spoken with Donald Duck’s voice. This really weakens their effect. Do you have any techniques for breaking negative routines that you’d like to share?

I’ve been reading Seth Godin’s posts for several months and he always manages to put at least one good idea or thought out for reflection. The best part is that he does it within a very brief paragraph or two (sometimes a little longer). I often wonder whether anybody reads my blog posts, and then I will occasionally get a comment from a friend on Facebook that confirms that they have. I guess my real desire is that my posts affect people in the way that I am affected by Seth’s posts. To be fair, he’s been writing professionally for many years. I am so thankful for any and all of the feedback I get from those who read my stuff. I just keep putting it out there because it matters to me, but if you’re reading this, and you have some ideas you’d like to share, please leave a comment. I would love to know whether this is making any sort of difference in your life. And Seth, if you’re reading this, I hope you’re getting something from it. I’d hate to just be a ‘taker’. And if you aren’t reading this, that’s OK, too.

I witnessed something over the weekend that helped me to understand how much can be accomplished by just a few people if they are focused on a single objective. And I suppose the flip side to that is how little gets accomplished when just one single person is unfocused and attempting a few objectives at once. Figuring out what you want isn’t always easy, but when you are working toward helping others it can definitely help your focus. I watched a group of people that are part of my niece’s church put together a really great surprise party and BBQ for her college graduation. Their dedication and kindness was radiant. The church is part of a community that is often overlooked in Tucson, and English is not the first language for many of its members. I couldn’t help thinking about recent legislation passed here in Arizona about immigration and how fear plays such a huge part of it. You may disagree if you want to, but I am convinced that fear is what drives it, and is at the root of many of our the other challenges we face in America today. When you live with purpose, the removal of fear is a natural by-product. When you are living in Joy, you don’t have time for fear. Whether you believe in God or not, I can’t reasonably understand how anyone could believe that our purpose on this earth is to live in fear. What’s the point of that?

Some days it feels as though I cannot get things to go the way I would like. It is at these times that it is most important to remember to just keep moving forward. The law of averages and the law of attraction will bring me what I am supposed to have if I align myself and my knowing with who I am supposed to be. I believe the Universe, or God, or Source, or Spirit, or Intention, or whatever you want to call it is not evil, and not ‘out to get me’. I am not here to be punished. I only choose to punish myself because I don’t know any better, yet.

I have been reading a lot of Dr. Wayne Dyer’s books lately, as well as similar books by others such as Tolle, Hicks, Chopra, and Allen, and I am beginning to contemplate whether or not I am awake or dreaming. I know that I am perceiving this chosen reality and reacting to it with the thoughts of my ego. In a dream, when I know I am dreaming, I can take full control of the events and actions, yet in my ‘waking state’ I am having difficulty in doing this. Apparently I have a very powerful ego that is unwilling to give up the control. Each day I work toward the awareness of true self, but sometimes it feels as though I make no progress. Perhaps trying too hard is creating a barrier. As the Beastie Boys put it, It’s time to just let it flow.

I was speaking to a friend today who is conflicted about something related to his workplace. He isn’t happy and it is affecting him on the days he is scheduled to go into work. I suggested that it is probably affecting him even on the days he doesn’t have to go in to work because it is always at least in his thoughts or in the back of his mind. He is concerned about leaving the job because he doesn’t want to hurt his friend who he is helping by working there. I offered that his situation is analogous to an out of balance wheel on a car. If the wheel is unbalanced, the whole car shakes. And if you let it stay out of balance long enough, the shaking can get so violent that you wouldn’t be able to control the vehicle well enough to keep it on the road. This is how I feel about my friend’s situation. If he is unhappy, then his life is out of balance with what he wants for himself, and one way or another, this is going to end up with him needing to get off the road. The question is: Is it better to pull off the road under your own control to remedy the problem, or to wait until the point in which the vehicle just goes off the road on its own?