Yesterday during church Rev. Nikki talked about New Years Eve and how it's a time to let go of the past; a time for change. She gave us 4 questions to ask ourselves today (and I hope I wrote them down correctly because I was writing pretty quickly. Jenn, if I got some wrong feel free to correct them!!!). :)
1. Look at this past year. Did you achieve the goals that you wanted to? And if not why?
2. Did you improve your position in life materially?
3. Did you apply yourself to spiritual truths that you know to be true? Did you add any new ideas?
4. What are your plans for the new year? What things would you like to complete or start in 2008?
I'm going to think about these questions in the next few days and then I'll be back to write my answers. I'd like to welcome anyone that reads this to answer on here as well. (And this goes for any of our posts).
I am almost done with my visualization board and I have my gratitude rock. The gratitude rock is a rock that I found a long time ago with my children. It's a white rock that we all found one day. I can't remember where we found it or the circumstances surrounding it but I had kept it in my jean jacket pocket because it was something to help kill time if we ever needed it (it's almost like chalk and writes on concrete). I hadn't worn this jacket in probably about a year and when I wore it a few weeks back and put my hand in the pocket, out came that rock. I thought it was very fitting to use as my gratitude object. (Now to just get it out of that jacket and into my pocket book - something I carry with me everyday).
I thought this week being it's the beginning of a new year we could try something to help us start out the new year in a positive way. It's a quote from Ernest Holmes on page 21 of his Creative Mind and Success book: "Refuse to see the negative in anyone. Refuse to let yourself misunderstand or be misunderstood. Know that everyone wants you to have the best. Then you will find things just as you wish them to be."
It's sometimes hard to always find the positive in things. It's sometimes hard to start a new habit, especially a good one. So don't go into it thinking it will happen over night because you will only be setting yourself up for failure. But, if you try and make that conscious effort to do what is said in the above quote, I guarantee it will eventually become something natural to you and you will find your days more fulfilled.
I found the following quote online this morning and because of the sermon yesterday in church and because it is New Years Eve, I found it very fitting. I hope you do as well:
"Never fade
Whatever you fully experience, you never need to leave behind. Whatever you worry about losing, you never did have to begin with.
Without change, life would not exist. With every change is the opportunity to become more fully alive.
The days and weeks and years come to an end. And yet it is always now.
The artifacts and remnants that you associate with the good times will fade and rust and decay, eventually to disappear. Yet the goodness and joy of the authentic experiences will grow ever stronger.
There is no reason to be sad about the fact that time has passed. There is every reason to find joy in the real treasures that you will always retain from that time.
Learn to quickly let go of the meaningless, superficial things that will soon be gone anyway. Invest your spirit and your experience in the timeless values that you know will never fade."
-- Ralph Marston
And so it is.....
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