Rear View Mirrors & Vows of Love
June 24, 2009
by Dr. Arlene Taveroff & Daniel K Foisy

One of the wonderful things about the social media is the incredible people you discover. This week we are so absolutely delighted to introduce you to writer-pilot Christoper Laney, who uses flying as a takeoff point for insights into higher living. In this week's newsletter, he shares his thoughts about rear view mirrors and looking back.

We also feature Tama Kieves, best-selling author of This Time I Dance, who gives us a beautiful Vow of Self-Love, a meditation "for all of us who struggle in the moments of being human and uncomfortable". Read it. It will remind you of how wonderful you really are!

If you would like to contribute news, articles, testimonials, etc, please contact us.

Don’t Look Back
by Christopher Laney
Writer-pilot Christopher Laney is blog author of Lessons from the Cockpit: Everyday Wisdom from the Flying Life. See his bio below.

Someone once asked me if my airplane had a rear view mirror. While it might be useful for keeping an eye on the kids in the back seats, there’s really no need for one. Most planes don’t have rear windows, and the ones that do—only one model that I know of for sure—the windows are so small, there’s not much to see out the back. So, no rear view mirrors in airplanes.

But when the question was asked, a story came to mind that a friend used every time he’d set off on a new exploit. This friend never cared if his last venture went awry; he only cared that his next one had his undivided attention. He’d always relay that the early race car drivers, the ones that raced cross-country, would rip out their rear view mirrors and fling them out the window before the start because they didn’t need to see where they’d been, only where they were going.

I don’t know the legitimacy of this story, but if it’s not true, well…it ought to be. It ought to be because it’s a great reminder that we need to do the same thing in life, to rip out that rear view mirror we have stuck in our heads. How many of us own one, angled to reflect the past so we can analyze it, wonder what would have happened had we chose the right fork instead of the left, ponder how different our lives would be now if we had possessed the guts years ago to chase our dream versus settle for a steady paycheck? We lament how much time has passed and are paralyzed to move toward the dream now because we’re so far behind where we could have been.

Or, even worse, how many of us have that rear view mirror pointed squarely at ourselves so we can judge the person looking back at us? We scold ourselves, question the decisions we’ve made, point out the potential we’ve squandered, feel shame for the times we took the easy way out.

The truth is, our futures are as bright as we want them to be, brighter than we could ever expect. We just can’t see it sometimes because that rear view mirror is blocking most of the sunlight filtering through our windshield, showing dark clouds as if they’re a barometer of the weather ahead of us versus what they really are: a reflection of what’s behind us. When our field of vision contains that dark mirror, it’s easy to decide that turbulent times are all that are in store on our path ahead. But they’re not. The real journey of our lives is still ahead of us, no matter what happened before. And we all have more control than we’d like to believe about the outcome.

I once watched a dark, disturbing film, which is not my typical fare, but there was one line in it, a beacon of truth and hope that, for me, made the whole movie worth watching:

“Every passing moment is another chance to turn it all around.”

Chase your dreams. Your future is bright. Don’t cloud it up by looking backward.

About the Author:
Writer-pilot Christopher Laney is blog author of Lessons from the Cockpit: Everyday Wisdom from the Flying Life. Using flying as a backdrop for higher living, Lessons dispenses insight and inspiration that provide a fresh perspective on life. Christopher is also a freelancer for magazines, a writing coach and mentor, and is currently working full-time on his first novel about learning to fly.

A Vow of Love For Yourself
by Tama J. Kieves
Tama J. Kieves is the best-selling author of THIS TIME I DANCE! Creating the Work You Love/How One Harvard Lawyer Left It All to Have It All! See her bio below.

I wrote this on a day when I didn't feel like writing or being in my own skin. I wanted to be somewhere else or better yet, someone else. I wrote this as a dedication and a commitment to not abandon myself. I believe the greatest love begins with self-love which begins with self-acceptance. So for all of us who struggle in the moments of being human and uncomfortable, I dedicate this to you...

Show up anyway. Sit before the dry desert. This is an act of honor. I arrive for myself in all conditions. I am not a festive attendant-only interested in my own company when I am light and crackling with mental clarity like lightning. My mind is an unclear lake right now, muddy, sandy, rocky, dry and thick. I see nothing else on the horizon in this moment, no matter what the Platitude Girl says on top of the hill.

Yet I will sit down with myself, put a silky arm around my bony shoulders, sit and pray and be. I will not smack this self across the face by wishing for a different moment. I will not cut and paste her reality. I will not push her aside, anxious to move on. I will sit with this self, be with the difficulty, the anxiety, the pressing lack of certainty. I will sit with this self and be her friend. I will be gentle with my presence by her side. I will sit there until the sun goes down and rises and burns itself out. I will never leave. I will never ask for more or better.

I will be so total in my presence and love that she will feel the silky presence of rose petals running through her bloodstream. She will feel full and present, she will breathe deeply. She will be healed and arise of her own accord. She will breathe a sigh of relief as deep as the well of the earth and as deep as her beginning and ending all rolled into one. She will feel a weight lifted, a gravity will leave her belly and her butterfly heart. She will giggle with all of her being. She will glow as freshly as the new moon. She will leave the barren world behind and plant flowers and seeds for trees and vegetables and roses and sunflowers. She will float up like a dandelion and blow away, she will heal of herself. She will know what to do and when to do it. She will feel loved. And she will know how to love.

This month I ask you to notice where you are tempted to abandon yourself in any way. Can you commit to being kind and present with yourself, no matter what the situation is? Love creates the conditions in which clarity, inspiration and movement occur.

Copyright 2009 Tama J. Kieves, All rights reserved.

About the Author:
Tama J. Kieves is the best-selling author of THIS TIME I DANCE! Creating the Work You Love/How One Harvard Lawyer Left It All to Have It All! She is also a sought-after speaker and career coach who has helped thousands world-wide to discover and live their creative dreams. Learn more about Tama's workshops and coaching or sign up to receive FREE monthly inspiration and tools for your creative life journey at http://www.AwakeningArtistry.com. Download her free report on Finding Your Calling Now at http://www.AwakeningArtistry.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tama_J._Kieves http://EzineArticles.com/?A-Vow-of-Love-For-Yourself&id=2022884

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Being YOU!
by Dr. Arlene Taveroff

When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be. (Lao Tzu)

What lies behind us & what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us. (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

Empty pockets never held anyone back. Only empty heads and empty hearts can do that. (Norman Vincent Peale)

Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working. (Pablo Picasso)

Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future. (John F. Kennedy)

The past is history, the future is a mystery, today is a gift, that's why it's called the present. (Eleanor Roosevelt)

Life is not about finding yourself, it's about creating yourself. (Unknown)

Dream as if you'll live forever;live as if you'll die today. (James Dean)

Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending. (Maria Robinson)

Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive. (Howard Thurman)



Treat yourself! Sit back and be inspired!