Smile .. work .. smile ...

Its friday morning … time to catch up and get things done before I leave for work, the dreaded things I have been putting away all week. I call in, and hear all the automated options that can’t really answer my question.

I ask for the representative, “Thank you god” I tell myself, in my mind of course as I hear a human voice. He is friendly, ready to serve … thanking me for calling in …

He: “And what’s your name today?”

Me: “Oh … it is (so and so) today … and every day”

A brief pause, I can sense his smile, and hear a shy laugh

He: “Sorry it came out that way”

He: “Thank you” … a good laugh that was recorded ofcourse

Sometimes, well most times, we get into the routine, doing the same things, hear the same questions,

“Who am I talking to?”

“What can I do for you today?”

“How can I help you today?”

they all blend together … making us trip a little every now and then. And these imperfections brighten our day and make us smile!

Later that evening, after many emails back and forth, I read my own email on my last response after I hit send (of course), signed “Thanks you” … really? I tell myself, did I really do that? I hear no laugh, but I smile any way. Time for me to head home. The weekend has begun …

De-stress: Kick the 'I' out of d'I'stress

De-stress: Kick the ‘I’ out of distress

Kaivi Kumar – InnerStrong.net

“Similarities bind us, our differences strengthen us” … this has been one of my mantras for years, more so in the last year as we found different ways to de-stress and become Inner Strong.  How and why are people and their minds so different?  Is it in the genes, the environment, the culture, the world we live in … All of these and more?  There is no one answer, and there are enough pundits all over the world that come up with many hypothesis and solutions. 

Feeling down? That’s an ugly feeling that creeps up, and it happens to each of us. One of my friends, a lieutenant, once said ‘Soldier of one country is the enemy of the other’. He/she is a soldier for sure, and he/she is an enemy too, who uses the same skills to protect as they do to combat. Feelings is similar. When you are feeling down is when you need THAT feeling.  The friend who will uncover THAT feeling which will make you stretch and reach beyond the hole or the abyss that you are in and not stop until you do; that same friend who will also hold you and hug you, and say it will all be okay.  It is not that easy, we understand.  And yes, we hear you, even when you think we don’t, may be not in the same exact sense as you do, but still we try to understand. 

That friend, even the imaginary one, is what you need when you are feeling down and curl up into a ball. Calvin had Hobbes, an imaginary friend, the orange tiger that walked upright on two feet. Calvin and Hobbes made sense, helped shrug the blues, and made people smile.  The same skin that covers you as you roll up into a tiny ball, can make you feel the positive connections that surround you.  Reach out and stretch. It is right there within your reach. You with your (imaginary) friend, are stronger and healthier, together.

There is a new mantra now:

“When we kick the ‘I’ out of distress, we de-stress”. Forget the ‘I’. ‘We’ are in this together. This too shall pass. And now, when you Smile … you will see the world smile, it is contagious! Happiness is a treasure within you.  

A Sliver of Light

A Sliver of Light

       One dark day a man had reached a state of hopelessness. Recognizing his distress, his daughter walked over and gently laid her hands on his shoulders, connecting with his energy. Using a Reiki technique, she sensed him shift out of his depression and begin to relax. As she worked, she jotted down a few words, finishing with a statement of surrender and gratitude. She shared the message with her father and encouraged him to say the last line out loud.

          A sliver of light opened up in the darkness and the man began to chuckle saying, “I don’t believe in Reiki.” The daughter asked what he thought Reiki did. He replied, “I suppose it relaxes you.” Smiling, the daughter asked, “Do you feel more relaxed?” He said “Yes”, and together they laughed. Her father examined the words on the page and decided living according the column on the right would feel so much better.

        

         Now, when darkness begins to overcome the man, his wife shows him the words which often still help. If they can help one man then maybe there are others. Each morning when you rise you can decide how to live out your day. Will you choose FEAR, which comes so naturally for many of us, or LOVE, which could require a more conscious effort? No matter what you decide, a simple statement of gratitude can add a little more light to the world.    

                                                                                                                   ~Sharon Reese

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