What’s So Magnificent About You?

I recently read Anita Moorjani’s book, Dying to Be Me: My Journey from Cancer, to Near Death, to True Healing. It’s a remarkable story that both confirmed and challenged many of my long-held beliefs. One of my beliefs that she confirmed is the importance of detaching from preconceived outcomes. A belief that is challenging for me is the importance of remembering my own magnificence.

Although I consider myself a pretty terrific person (as I hope most of you do about yourselves), the idea of being magnificent feels far-fetched and out of reach. Nevertheless, I’m open to going there, and I’d love it if you’d join me.

CalmUp® photo of magnificent dogNewborn puppies, kitties, and ponies are pretty magnificent, right? And wouldn’t you agree that babies are magnificent? Logic suggests that the magnificence of children doesn’t just disappear at the end of childhood. What about couples who continue to see the magnificence of their lovers long after the honeymoon phase?

Ms. Moorjani ascertains that if we each open to our own magnificent nature, “It follows that the problems we see in the world aren’t from the judgment or hatred we have for others but for ourselves.” This idea makes logical sense. If this challenges you, then opening to your own magnificence is going to take some conscious effort.

Crisis Times

How do you do a CalmUp® Journey when you’re in crisis?

Start at the beginning with a “How can I…” question from Level I:

  • How can I rise above my pain?
  • How can I accept where I’m at even though I hate it?
  • How can I surrender the need to have my life different from the way it is now?

What if you think you’ve tried everything and can’t seem to let go of the same negative patterns?

  • How can I let go of the same negative patterns?
  • How can I open to a new way of being?
  • How can I do even one thing differently today in order to create a shift?

If you’re afraid that your personality traits are permanent and it’s difficult for you to be hopeful that your life can change…

  • How can I love myself the way I am?
  • How can I be grateful for the things that I dislike?
  • How can I resolve to make a positive difference in someone else’s day today?

IT’S ABOUT YOU:

  1. What’s your typical way of coping during a time of crisis?

Trust Yourself

One of my CalmUp® customers shared with me that she has no problem working through the left “dark” side of the CalmUp® Journey. However, she often gets stuck on the right “light” side. It’s easy for her to list her dark, negative patterns of thoughts, feelings, and images. Exploring more useful, alternative ways of thinking, feeling, and seeing the world becomes more of a challenge.

I know that my customer speaks for the majority of us, so let’s explore some ways to move from stuck to adaptable:

A.    First, consider how you’d prefer to be. What’s your ideal self? How do you imagine expressing your essential self? Write these ideas down as you complete your CalmUp® Journey. Have trust that how you prefer to be someday is acceptable for today.

B.    A second way to explore the light side of the CalmUp® Journey is to close your eyes and be still. If you remain stuck on a particular level, just move on to another level and come back to that section later. Have trust that there is a solution for every problem, including yours.

Anger Management On Your Own

I can’t remember the last time that I was enraged… prior to this week. Strangely, I now feel fortunate to have recently experienced fury once again. Fortunate? Yes, fortunate and blessed, because I was able to see how using the CalmUp® Journey works when it comes to anger management.

I wrote about stress management tips in my last blog, and I never anticipated raising the ante to anger management in my writing. However, as stated on my home page, “CalmUp® helps transform you into the person you aspire to be—for yourself, for others, for the world.” I believe that if the situations I experience help you grow as I grow, I must be doing what I need to be doing.

The first thing I discovered during my period of fury was that taking a CalmUp® Journey was the last thing I wanted to do. In fact, I avoided any introspection for a good 24 hours. I didn’t want to look at myself; I wanted to blame. Come to think of it, in some sick kind of way, I enjoyed the feeling of anger and wasn’t ready to let it go.