Planning your future often involves looking back at your past. Today, as I’m thinking of where life may take me next, I looked back at the pages of my journal from 2011. And here is what I found (pretty fascinating, if I may say so myself): August 15 “…it’s been a really great summer. But most importantly, I finally know what to do with my life: I will be starting an awesome life coaching course with The S.W.A.T. Institute. My beloved friend, Cindy, sent me a link one day and the rest is history :) I never felt more passionate about anything else, EVER! I’ve been giving people advise most of my life and now I will learn how to do it effectively and truly help others help themselves. I am so excited and joyful – this feels SO RIGHT! I can’t wait to start the course. It’s going to be great; the learning process and developing my lovely, joyful, compassionate self into a wonderful, dedicated, skilled Life Coach! Who would have thought? My beloved brother knows about it too since Saturday and I’m so happy about that! All will be well!” September 28 “The 12 week transformational telecousre with Crystal starts today and I just know it’s going to be an awesome journey! I’m so happy my dear Cindy sent me the link that introduced me to Crystal Andrus and her Institute and everything else she does so well. Meant to be :) This is the door to the rest of my life!” November 2 “…I always had this feeling [so funny I used the word ALWAYS after only discovering S.W.A.T. that July] that S.W.A.T. was really great for me, that my future was bright if I chose to go forth with it, like there is much more to this relationship than just taking the course. I feel very connected to this Institute and sense a great future for it and me in its ranks. I am full of hope and joy about S.W.A.T. and my very near future as well. So wonderful, cannot wait. All is perfect – always. I accept whatever comes with Gratitude :)” Well, my very near future was not as great as I hoped it would be (though perfect in its purpose) but the rest of what I felt, especially about The S.W.A.T. Institute, far exceeded my greatest expectations! In November of 2013 I went to my fist retreat with Crystal and met her in person for the fist time. This March, I met her for the second time and even shared a stage with her while celebrating International Woman's Day in Toronto, shortly after I graduated the program in February. And in July, I became a Student Advisor for The S.W.A.T. Institute! And I know this journey is going to continue and unfold even farther. I knew I was making an investment in myself. I felt it was the right decision - when you know you know. But as I continued on the journey of transformation, I kept finding more and more gifts. And I realized that the value of what I purchased far exceeded its price. I have laid a solid foundation upon which I am building a solid future. And all is well already! Are you planing your future yet? New Year is just around the corner. Blessings, Marta
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You know that feeling of being pressed to come up with a solution really fast? When things seem out of balance as you need to fulfill a requirement or an obligation and it looks like you might be coming up short? You want to accomplish something important and you’re running out of time, money, or patience. You rack your brain for a solution, a way out, a way to, an answer to the incessant inquiry of your mind: What else can I do? What solution can I come up with? There has to be something MORE I can do! Does this sound at all familiar to you?
Well, just the other day, I was in the midst of all those questions, trying to think up a solution to an issue that has been with me for a while (more on that in the near future). I was sitting on my sunny porch at the time, contemplating the next great thing that was going to lead me to a solution; the next ‘to do’ I was going to do. Feeling frustrated, I asked myself out loud what more can I do? Instantly, in my mind, I heard another question – it seemed as if it was posed to me and its simplicity was astonishing. And the question was: What can you do LESS of? My understanding was immediate and the list grew swiftly. I was wowed at how many things flowed into my mind to answer that simple question. I felt profound relief and a sense of peace all over my body! I was on to something… So often we get lost in striving, working hard, and being so consumed by and busy with trying desperately to figure out the MORE part of the solution. We completely forget to even contemplate another possibility. We omit to consider the prospect and simplicity of doing less in order to find the solution. We make our lives more difficult than they need to be and get in the way of the solution much more often than we are aware of. Have you ever found yourself in a similar scenario? I would like to invite you to bring to mind something you are trying to resolve, improve, or accomplish. Now, think of something you can do less of or something you might even be able to stop doing in support of your venture. I now invite you to consider doing just that! And, of course, do share what you came up with in the comments. For example, what tops your 'do less' list? I'd love to know! Blessings and til next time. Marta Do you know if you have an Angel around you? Do you even believe in Earth Angels? Let me tell you a secret: you don’t have to believe in anything for it be true.... But if you’re like me and believe in Angels then you are really going to like this story. It is a story of love, friendship, and incredible life lessons learned from God's gift to humankind - the dog! Yes – dogs, all animals in fact, just like children, can teach us many important lessons. And as my beloved dog turned three years old this month, I honor him. This beautiful face is the face of my Angel at three months old. His name is Tiko and his mission in life, first and foremost, is to be joyful and loyal and make my heart smile– such is his nature - all the time! I was fostering this little guy for only two week, three years ago this Christmas, and within the first week I knew I was in big trouble. This dog was following me EVERYWHERE. Yes, I know you might be thinking that all puppies do that and I agree, but this had a lot more to it...you had to be there :) Knowing that I was not in the position to adopt him (crazy neighbor next door (now gone), not in the budget, still not able to walk myself properly (remnants of back injury), and about to embark on my coaching certification journey with The S.W.A.T. Institute). I took him back to the humane society and, like a little girl, cried everyday wishing I could keep him. Then, one beautiful day, my really wonderful and loving friend, Brad, who lives in Calgary, called me to see how I was doing. What he heard was my heart aching as I expressed how deeply I missed Tiko. After a short time he helped me see that the only reason truly stopping me from adopting this puppy was the price tag. And here is where the miracles began: Brad, in his loving and generous nature, offered to pay for the adoption. He gifted Tiko to me as a token of his appreciation of my friendship. Brad told me that he was waiting for an opportunity to express his gratitude for when I help him with his puppy, Madilynn, a while back and that this was a perfectly suited opportunity to do just that – and it was! I was so happy to hear his words that, at first, I did not know what was more beautiful: what he was saying to me and the depth of his appreciation or the gift of Tiko. I’ve decided it was a tie. If I were writing about dogs before I met this incredible Being, I would have told you that I would only have/buy/adopt my favorite breed, German shepherd, and no other dog - ever!
But as I'm writing this today I have other things to say. And here is what I have learned, thus far, since I was blessed with Tiko's presents: ~ Perfection is in how you feel not what you see ~ Love is how much you want to give not be given ~ Gratitude is the expansion of your heart beyond what you have known and felt before as you appreciate everything ~ We allow ourselves to love deeply to the same degree to which we allow ourselves to be vulnerable ~ Acceptance is when what you wished for didn't transpire and you come to realize you don't wish for it anymore, because what came to you, instead, far exceeds your wish ~ Commitment is the dedication with which you keep your promises, no matter what As time went on, Tiko showed me a lot about me, some good and some...well, let's call it 'that which can be tweaked'... and he is tweaking it alright! See, I noticed that I get frustrated a lot more often than I thought - how? He is not only my Earth Angel, he is also what I call my attitude police. It all started shortly after he figured I was keeping him for good. First, I was not allowed to curse, then I was not allowed to raise my voice or get angry. And now, as he tightens the screw...lol, I can't even get a little ticked at something (usually it's Windows 8), without him immediately coming to me, putting his beautiful face on my lap or poking at me with his paw and looking at me as if to say: this is unnecessary, stop it, look how cute I am...feel that instead! Works like a charm every time! He truly is a special 'breed' and I am incredibly blessed to have him. I know he will teach me more while we walk our journey together. Just like he helped me to remember to be more child-like. Who would have thought that I would be chasing a dog around my back deck or around a tree in the park laughing out loud while at it? (no, I don't mind if people see or hear me, way passed that!) I tell ya, God really knows what He is doing, who to send us and when, and I think He really likes me, 'cuz He sent me a good one!!! Thanks, Brad!!! What is your Earth Angel story? Comment and share if you like. Consider these thoughts for a moment:
-Our freedom to choose is the expression of our creative power. -Our life showcases what we create. -Our experiences are examples of how we create. I love Life! It has answers to anything and everything – always. As I was looking for a topic to write about, invariably, Life provided exactly what I needed, though it wasn’t what I liked! But as it unfolded, I knew that it brought me exactly what I was looking for: a topic and an opportunity… Every situation that comes our way is here to teach us, to show us something. It’s an opportunity to change in some way or to look at something from a different perspective. Most notably, all disempowering situations – the ones that upset us and aren’t what we want – are incredible opportunities that show up and present us with options to see differently, to choose differently, to create differently. Everything we do is a choice! Every reaction to something or someone is a choice. In any instance, all there is is an event; how we perceive it creates our experience of it. First there is the judgement or our perception of the event, then we feel a feeling based on that judgement, which in turn creates the emotions that create the experience. Only then, once we are experiencing the experience, do we become fully aware of whether it’s good or bad. What we are not aware of is that, good or bad, WE have created the flavor of that experience. What has been missing or has been greatly misunderstood, as we experience our lives, is that the power of creation lies in our power of the freedom to choose. You see, between an event and our reaction to it (or judgement of it) is a space where all things are neutral - and that’s where the magic happens. This space is where we chose. This space is where we create. The problem is that it all happens so fast we don’t even realize it and no one ever told us that this space of neutrality is the sweet spot of creation. This is where the creative power of choice is and has always been. It took me a long time before I came to realize this simple yet profound fact – I create my life’s experiences with how and what I choose! I had MANY opportunities to choose differently before I finally did! Even so, the opportunities still come my way because, as I say, there is always room for tweaking! If you have any questions or you’d like to share any experiences with YOUR Creative Power of Choice, please share in the comments below. We truly learn from each other, don’t we? There is much sadness in my heart and around the world today. ‘When will this craziness end?’ echoes throughout the social media. But of whom do we really ask this question, and what will the answer be? What if we are the answer? How can a person, or a group of people, think it’s okay to aim and shoot at a passenger plane full of innocent people who have not a thing to do with whatever their cause is, HOW?! What did they say to each other, and themselves individually, as they collectively agreed to kill? Does it even matter what it was? My answer is NO. What does matter is the fact that they represent the part of us which knows no Love. Instead, their hearts are filled with the absence of Love. That is the reason that plane was downed and all those people lost their lives and their families and friends lost them. There are many opinions, anger and outrage, calls to end and heal this pain we all keep having to endure, over and over again, as ‘those terrorists’ keep inflicting it upon us. Coincidentally, the day this happened, I was reading an excellent book by Gary Zukav “The Seat of the Soul” and resonated very deeply with his words. Here are some highlights from pages 69 – 72: “What we call evil is the absence of Light, or love. In all cases. …A personality with limitations of consciousness will find what we call evil more attractive than will one with a more expended awareness. …How we understand evil, therefore, is very significant. Evil needs to be understood for what it is: the dynamic of the absence of Light. It is not something that one should prepare to battle, to run from or to outlaw. …The remedy for an absence is presence. Evil is an absence and, therefore, cannot be healed with an absence. By hating evil, or one who is engaged in evil, you contribute to the absence of Light and not to its presence. …Can an absence be defeated? An evil person can be arrested, but can evil be arrested? …A compassionate heart is more effective against evil than an army. A compassionate heart can engage evil directly – it can bring Light where there was no Light.” I firmly believe that the ONLY way to end the violence in this world is to show true compassion to those how perpetrate it. We have been asking, pleading, imprisoning, waging wars against IT for far too long and, as far as I can tell, not much has changed – actually a lot has changed but not in the desired way. There is only more violence, happening more frequently, and the perpetrators are getting younger attacking the young and defenceless. What we are doing in not working! We need a change! Consider this: What if this is yet another opportunity for us to contemplate this change? What if this is another chance to look within for a different answer, for another way? Not another way to handle the perpetrator but for us to handle our grief, pain, judgement, and condemnation. When we point a finger at another we take away Love and we dim or even extinguish our Light. We add to the lack of light and, in that moment, we, too, become perpetrators. What if this is an opportunity to Love; to express authentic love, to love that which we deem unlovable? An opportunity to bring Light where there is absence of Light. We, who know Love, need not give it only to some and not others. We, who know Love, need to fill the spaces and hearts which are devoid of it, regardless of where or who they belong to. This, I believe, is the ONLY WAY to eradicate the evil and restore that which we ALL long for – Peace of Earth. Though, first, we must find it in our hearts and be willing to give it away…to anyone and everyone… I now challenge you to consider if you could find it in Your Heart to send Love to where, instead, you want to condemn. I know it might seem hard, but I also know it’s quite simple to do – just open your heart fully, to everything. True Love and Compassion is just that… *** My sincerest condolences to the families and friends of those who were on flight MH17. You are Loved and prayed for by millions around the globe, including me. May you find comfort in knowing that, and please know that no life is ever lost in vain. *** You can tell me how you did with my challenge in the comments below… either way, I love you... and change is coming...
Today, Friday the 13, 2014, a day of magical Full Moon, I am blessed as I have always been. Today, I am grateful for all that I am, all that I have experienced and learned; I treasure the re-directions I withstood along the way which led me back onto my Path. Today, I wish to unlearn that which does not serve me any longer; that which I misunderstood...
There are simple messages in life we often interpret through the filter of fear, changing their meaning significantly, even entirely. We create a story by weaving together the misinterpreted messages and believing them to be the fabric of our existence. Today, I only ask to lessen my tendency for misinterpretation born out of fear. Today, I believe it is all I need to do to create what I came here to create – I already have the rest – my will & desire to serve and fulfill my Purpose. I also embrace and let go of my need to release ALL OF IT so as to not create another story of incapability. All is superbly perfect as is. I let go and get into the Flow of my experience of life as it is meant to be. Taking each step as intended long ago, advancing gently and enjoying the journey as it unfolds – gradually… What do you wish to release this magical Full Moon on Friday the 13th? Do you make plans that never pan out? Do you break your own promises and then dislike yourself for it? I know how this feels… There have been countless times when I promised myself I would do something – something I really, really wanted to do; something that was very important and, quite often, really good for me. There were even times when I would jot down plans of action, list goals, and print out statements declaring “by this date I shall start doing so & so” or “on this day I shall stop doing so & so.” Only to find myself, months past that date, wondering what the heck happened! Sounds familiar? Do you list ‘valid’ reasons as to why none of your great intentions came to be? I have too! But then, eventually, I began to ponder the big ‘whys’; why all those reasons were even there, why the list? And I kept on asking myself these questions: A. What is this about? What am I doing? Why am I resisting and sabotaging that which I want, wish for, and desire? B. Why am I doing this? What’s wrong with me? Why do I resist what I want? What’s the reason – the real reason? Let’s consider some facts… Before I could understand the mechanism and ‘complexity’ of resistance, I had to first become aware of its presents; and I did. Awareness is everything. What followed was quite interesting. I wanted to understand why I did resist all the good I wanted and what this resistance was really about. First let's define it. What is resistance? · It can be described as the refusal to accept or comply with something · The attempt to prevent something by action or argument · And anything that slows or stops movement or keeps something from happening Yes, I tried them all! But I most closely relate to the “stopping or slowing of movement” part. I wanted to move on, away, or toward something and it just wasn’t happening. Why? The issue may appear to be complex, but the answer is a lot simpler than you may think. Though there are three factors to consider, essentially, there is only one reason – FEAR. Let me explain: 1. Fear of failure ‘What if I fail, what if it doesn't work out?’ says the mind. Most of us know this phrase very well, even though, at times, its presents is not that obvious as the mind whispers it ever so quietly. We then worry about what others will think if we don’t get to our goal, if we come up short. So, to avoid the expected criticism and embarrassment, we either stop or slow the movement toward getting to our goal. If we don’t start, we won’t fail; if we don’t fail, we won’t get criticized and feel embarrassed; we’re safe this way! 2. Fear of success This flavor of fear can be even less detectable. ‘How can I be afraid of succeeding?’ you might object. Well, here is how: things will change! No matter what your goal (new job, relationship, body, etc.), once you achieve it, your life will be different in some way. And, whether we admit it or not, we all resist change; usually because we are afraid of what unknowns will accompany it. Ah yes…the good old comfort zone. We stay put and things stay the same. We’re safe, again! 3. Doubt & Disbelief This, I think, is the most disguised and unexpected reason for resistance, and it took me a while to realize – and yes, I had help. But once I got it, it really made a lot of sense and explained much of what was happening in my life. The fact that we don’t believe ‘IT’- whatever IT may be - is a very powerful reason we experience resistance. The truth is, that somewhere deep inside of ourselves, we do not believe in the possibility or attainability of that which we want. Subconsciously, we simply don’t believe in it. We doubt we can have a different body, different career, or a better relationship. Meanwhile, on the surface, we tell ourselves that this time we can do IT! This time is going to be different! We perpetuate our own illusion. Ready to dive in a little bit deeper? On the surface, with excitement, we start yet another diet or exercise regime or job search because, by golly, this time we’ll finally get results. My favorite proclamation is: “Okay! Staring Monday…I will...blah, blah, blah...” I know most of you know this way of planning for success, right? How has it worked for you? It has not worked for me – why? I did not believe it would, or that I could actually do it, or that I was good enough or deserving enough of the results! Though important in the process of full exploration of the resistance issue, the reason is not that relevant here. What is relevant is that, deep down inside myself, I simply did not believe IT!
You see, your friend Resistance is keeping you from getting to a point at which all your doubts and disbeliefs have a chance to become evident in your conscious experience. You don't believe in what's on the other side. You don't believe in the possibility of what you want and that is why you resist it! In other words, you’d rather indulge or even suffer Resistance than find out, for sure, that you really can’t do IT; that you aren’t good enough; and that you don’t deserve the results. So you keep yourself from trying to get them because you're afraid to find out you can't. Sad, isn’t it? Who are you on the other side of the Resistance? What will you feel like once there? How will your life change? If you’re ready to challenge your resistance then asking the above questions is a perfect place to start. I believe that solutions to any problems lie in the quality of the questions you are willing to ask yourself and the depth of the answers you provide. This usually starts with a simple ‘why?’ and is followed by some understanding, a bit of curiosity, and a lot of courage. I know you have all those things and more. I also know that the more resistance you feel the more ready you are for that which awaits you on the other side. Consider the following quote (one of my all-time favorites) and tell me what you think in the comment section below. “Most of us have two lives, the life we live and the unlived life within us. Between the two stands Resistance” – Steven Pressfield If you’d like more information, guidance and support conquering Resistance, you can get in touch with me here. Blessings, Marta © 2015 Marta Stanczyk. All rights reserved. |
About the AuthorIn early Spring of 2011, as I sat with my journal at a family cabin, I felt the seed of my creative writing come through from beneath the surface. As I picked up my pen to begin my first journal entry, I felt a feeling of profound peace and indescribable comfort. All was well. I felt I was Home - finally! Archives
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