Author: valeriecameronmerritt

“The highest form of love is to be the protector of another person’s solitude.” -Rainer Maria Rilke

We may associate being alone with loneliness but this doesn’t have to be the case.  Creativity is often born in aloneness.  There’s plenty to be said about group dynamics and the energy found there for creative interplay, but it can be important to honor solitude as the positive space that bridges the unmainfest with the manifest.  What is and what will be need a meeting place as do the earth and sky.

It could be that what comes from solitude is a form of artwork, as was the case for Rilke, or it could be a quiet reflection, or a time of  rejuvenation that produces result in the quality of interactions to follow.  When you offer the gift of solitude you open a door from which many other gifts can flow.

“Silence is a source of great strength.” – Lao Tzu

 

This weekend you could wheel up the shopping cart for the person parked next to you at the store, you could buy the person behind you a coffee,  or leave a fresh bouquet in a public spot with a tag that says, “FREE! …to brighten your home”.  Try anything that suits your heart’s desire to become part of the cycle of sharing. Random acts of kindness are contagious!

TRUST.   LOVE.   GIVE.

Happy Sharing!!  ✨💛Valerie✨

“The most precious gift we can offer others is our presence. When mindfulness embraces those we love, they will bloom like flowers” – Thich Nhat Hanh

On our morning walk my daughter handed me this flower that was along the path of a wooded trail we frequent. There were many like it upturned there by our feet but only this one with little treasures inside.  I was so happy in the moment she shared it for the usefulness found in hosting others even after the blooming of this beauty has passed.  Your presence can be a gentle, quiet retreat or an uplifting joy for someone else!  You simply have to be there.

“Whatever the present moment contains, accept it as if you had chosen it.  Always work with it, not against it… This will miraculously transform your whole life.”  – Eckhart Tolle

 

With the practice of finding the positive parts of your life, year, month, week, day, hour, and moment, there is a gift living just beyond this that comes with absolute acceptance of circumstances.  The habit of practicing gratitude for what you appreciate makes finding positives easier which can in turn lead to accepting what is without resistance.  If you can become aware of your resistance you can welcome it with acceptance.  This releases the body and mind from struggle that hinders your ability to find solutions and to welcome change or the new.

Affirmation:  I accept what is

It’s really that simple.  The more you think and say this, the more apparent it will become as an integrated part of your reality.

Eckhart Tolle’s addition of ‘accept it as if you had chosen it’ removes any feeling of helplessness or victimization that could keep you stuck. This wording has changed my understanding of the degree to which we can embrace acceptance and I hope it will be helpful to you too.

Sat Nam

 

 

Advice can be useful to share with others when placed appropriately in the dialogue between people but it can also be a wasted moment when your listening would have better served the purpose of someone else’s path.  When we’ve been through something similar or our life has brought us to an understanding, we want to assist by sharing what we know.  The thing is, a person comes to know something when they are ready and it truly doesn’t matter what you say unless you are both in line with the words.  Receptivity comes with readiness.

Please don’t hold back from offering something you feel inclined to share with another but I want to ask you to try listening for a longer period of time than you think feels natural or normal before you offer anything.  See what happens…  I think you’ll find that others have the answers they seek inside of themselves.  Holding space for longer periods of listening helps to form a habit of self reflection that is far more useful to the process of the person in conversation with you.

“Be happy for this moment. This moment is your life.” – Omar Khayyam

We hope you find ways to slow down, feel connected, and appreciate your senses this weekend!  Each moment is yours to enjoy!

In my youth, I didn’t know what a boundary was outside of classroom expectation and even those were a challenge for me.  Excuse me, can someone explain what it means to be quiet again?  But there’s a person so close to me and I want to talk to them!! Hello person! What do you mean I can’t talk to the person next to me?  What if I just whisper one little something… 

At that point in time, I found little need to define boundaries and only exerted them when aiming to please or experiencing unkindness.

I began to understand boundaries differently once interacting on a deeper level in my teenage years within friendships and soon after, coupling. There are unspoken rules for interacting that when not observed, could push the envelope of comfort or lead to creating layers of complication for many people.  We may come to defining these things with time and interaction, if we don’t understand them to be necessary at first.  We find out based on our emotions and the emotions of our loved ones what will work in any given circumstance.

These days, I am coming to the topic after a time period of having a gigantic wall around myself.  I was only letting boundaries down when interacting with a long standing  friend or easily approachable female.  Luckily, I have arrived at a place of perceiving boundaries as flexible and not necessarily gender specific.

People can have set boundaries in place for differing reasons and it is important to respect these. Understanding and respecting boundaries is a mark of empathic socialization.  If you feel a boundary, it doesn’t have to be taken personally but should be observed for the need of another human expressed.

 

“If you must look back, do so forgivingly.  If you must look forward, do so prayerfully.  However, the wisest thing you can do is be present in the present gratefully.”  – Maya Angelou 

 

It is so easy to find yourself wrapped up in thoughts of the past and just as easy to fall into the trap of constantly projecting into the future.  Our challenge is often staying in the present moment.  Taking time to be grateful and focusing on the things that fill your body with gratitude can help with this task.

Get into your sensory system and find gratitude through your body.  Notice how you feel; notice the energy of you and how you interact with the objects around you.  Take note of everything you can observe and the energy outside of you.  Practice a visualization of merging the inner and outer energy with a constant conversation between the two.  If the word “energy” feels obscure to you, perhaps a visualization of light instead will be beneficial.  Getting into the habit of recognizing your inner energy or light and practicing this as unified with your surroundings can be uplifting, as it removes the feeling of isolation we often identify with in this physical form.

Gratitude and recognition of the interconnectedness of our reality can assist in making the importance of the present moment crystal clear.

 

 

In the coming weeks try to approach each day with curiosity, greeting every moment with a joyful expectancy for the good things you may find and experience.  At the end of the day make sure to release and make peace with what is, regardless of what has passed in the day.  Become the joyful greeting and the peaceful release.

AM:  I greet today with curiosity and joyful expectancy.

PM: I release the happenings of today with gratitude and love.  Thank you for this day.