Peace 'n Pieces

We're all searching for it. Peace. Not pieces of peace, we can find that sprinkled throughout our days and our lives. But Peace...lasting, calming, ever-present Peace. Here's what I've recently come to learn, thanks to a magnificent book writen by Joe Dispenza (e-mail or text me if you'd like the book title!):

If we're looking for peace, we aren't going to find it. Here's me:

When I have my own apartment, I'll have peace
When I graduate college, I'll have peace
When I get that GREAT job I want, I'll have peace
When I lose weight, I'll have peace
When I am debt-free, I'll have peace
When my son is happy - TRULY happy, I'll have peace
When I am out of this toxic, abusive marriage, I'll have peace
When I have my Lexus 350, I'll have peace
When I have a ridiculous amount of money, I'll have peace
When I get that raise, I'll have peace
When I lose weight, I'll have peace (didn't work last time, but THIS time...yes, this time, I'll have peace)
When I move to Colorado, I'll have peace
When I am re-united with the love of my life, and we live happily ever after, I'll have peace
When I get the basement cleaned out, I'll have peace
When I own my own business, I'll have peace
(shall I stop now? Do you get my point?, because there are plenty more examples if need be...)
I'll trust that you 'get' my message, and that is okay to move on to my point!
Feel free to substitute the words happiness or joy, (or any other word that feels more accurate to you) in the place of peace. That was just the word that showed up for me.
Anyway, we spend our lives...yes our LIVES in search of that emotion...or feeling of peace, happiness, joy...we spend our LIVES searching for it. Waiting for it to happen, show up, appear - whatever.

It ain't gonna. Peace isn't found. Peace, joy, happiness...all those wonderful qualities are not found anywhere. They are merely the ABSENCE of all the other garbage. Peace is our natural state. The way we are supposed to be...designed to live. But at some point(s) in our lives, we learn struggle, drama, judgement, anger, frustration, 'failure', inadequacy, jealousy, not-okay-ness, etc. When we learn those things, we learn coping mechanisms to help us 'get through' those difficulties. Once we've gotten through them, whatever they may be, we hang on to the fact that we experienced that challenge, so we are suddenly 'armed' for when it happens again. No peace in being armed.

My point is NOT to have you say, "screw it! I'll never find peace, so I may as well just throw in the towel!" - my point IS...get quiet, let go of the stuff you think is 'wrong' with you, or wrong in your life, and let Peace be.  Let Peace BE. If you let it be, it will. Once you truly are and have Peace, all those other 'things' fall into place.  It may feel hard to believe right now, but that's only because the other garbage is clouding your view of that peaceful place, and you have to squint or struggle to see it.  Peace is waiting for YOU...you needn't wait for it. All you need to do is clear away the junk that has accumulated over the years, and let Peace be.

Here's another point...we, particularly Americans, spend so much time, money and energy distracting ourselves, that we don't really allow ourselves to sit quietly long enough to BE Peaceful. There are phones, iPods, iPads, computers, stereos, video games, movies, books, plans, programs, events, activities...new and bigger "things" (homes, cars, TVs, etc), Facebook, Twitter....all these distractions that keep us from being quiet. Often times, I believe, its because it is in that "quiet" time, where we tend to suffer the most - hurt the most, cry the most...whatever the 'negative' emotion or experience is - happens most often and most profoundly when we are what we believe to be as "quiet".  But I suppose that whole self-aviodance concept is probably a 'whole other blog' so to speak. 

So in the space of quiet, REAL, honest quiet...that's where Peace, Joy and Happiness are. Just waiting for you to show up. Make that time for yourself, every day - and for as much of the day as possible, to be in Peace. And in that, Peace be with you.

As always, I would love to hear your feedback, and would love to hear what happens for you in that place of Peace. Please feel free to drop me a note, a text or a call...

Until Next Time,
Jill
www.TheNaturalBodyWorks.com
720-325-9886

Life Changing Experience...

Life Changing Experience....

We've all heard of those, right? "The day _______ happened." Now, we can fill in that blank with a bazillion examples of this statement, but for the sake of time and typing, we'll just go with the ones that pop into my head first.

DUI. Win the lottery. Hit rock bottom. Read an inspiring book. Met an inspiring person. Read a powerful, inspiring, empowering blog (tee hee). Fell in love. Fell out of love. Narrowly avoided a horrific incident/accident. Ran head-first into a horrific incident/accident. See, the list can go on and on, and I'm SURE that you have a million examples in your life, if you had time to sit down and list them. How many times have you heard someone say, "That experience changed my life!"? Too many, as far as I'm concerned. Here's why...
There is NO SUCH THING as a life changing experience! No such thing. Not to invalidate the impact of any of those possibilities (both listed and un-listed) above, but an experience cannot change ones life.
If one experience could change someone's life, then it would have to happen to everyone who experienced that experience, right? If winning the lottery was a "life changing experience", then everyone who won the lottery would have a "changed life", right? I don't know about you, but I hear WAY more stories about people who win all that money, then throw it all away, and end up just as 'broke' or sometimes even worse off than they were before they won!
I also know people who have gotten a DUI, for example. Scared them to pieces, so they never got behind the wheel intoxicated again! EVER! Also know people who have taken a different path, post DUI. I know 2 separate, unrelated people who had a CLOSE brush with lung cancer. One quit smoking on the spot, the other is still going strong at a pack and a half a day. The one who quit, said, "that was a life changing experience for me!"  Can't be. If the experience was 'life changing' then everyone who had that experience would have a 'changed life' right?
Therefore, it was not the experience itself that changed anyone's life. (OH...here she comes with the punchline...)
There is no such thing as a 'life changing experience"...there is only the experience of changing YOUR MIND, thereby changing your life. Your MIND changes your life..not an experience.
I had a very dear friend of mine make a similar comment to me, when we were talking about a trip I was getting ready to take, to Italy. He said, "A trip to Italy!? What a life changing experience!"  Now, I have had a fear of flying since I was a teenager, so for most of my life, flying to Europe has been simply out of the question. It took a "Mind Changing" experience, in order for me to get to Italy...it wasn't going to Italy that changed my life.  Do you see where I'm going with this? I had to change my MIND about flying, before I was going to be able to do it for 9 hours, in order to get to Europe.
Here's the good news - you can change your MIND about any THING, at any TIME, for any REASON. You don't need to wait for an experience: bad thing to happen, good thing to happen, meet the right person, meet the wrong person, the 1st of the month, or even the ever popular, "Monday"....you can change your mind, and change your life right this very minute! Right NOW!
Give yourself a minute to think of one thing. One thing in your life that you'd like to have different. You might only have ONE thing, or you might have 95 things...doesn't matter. Just pick one. 
Now take a minute and get to the bottom of what you believe about that one thing.
Change that...change what you believe about that one thing, and you will change that experience in your life. You have got to change your mind, before you can change your life. That is the absolute truth.
Go ahead...write to me all your examples of 'otherwise'. Tell me the list of examples that you have, that PROVE that there is such a thing as a 'life changing experience'. Bring it on. Know why? Because the idea for this blog hit me over 2 months ago, and I've been kicking it around, chewing on it, trying to dis-prove it to myself, searching for the 'holes' in this theory. Every time and every thing I tried, failed the test.
That's because the fact is, if you want to change your life...all you have to do is change your mind. Don't sit around waiting for that 'life changing experience', cuz it ain't coming!...make it happen for yourself.
The funny thing is, that since I've been trying so hard to disprove this idea, I have seen amazing things happen in MY OWN life, as I changed my mind, in order to try to punch a hole in this theory!

Its the truth. It just is. Something (the thought process) had to change as a result of that 'life changing experience' in order for there to actually BE a change. No need for you to wait for an experience...because you have the knowledge, that you can change your mind, and that will lead to a change in your life. You can do it, and you can do it right now. Right this minute.

As always, please drop me a note, or a text, or an e-mail...I'd love to answer any questions you have, or even help you form that mind-change! You can absolutely do it.

Until next time,
Jill

www.thenaturalbodyworks.com
720-938-5455

Magic Carpet Ride.....

Here's what I know to be true. WHO we are is not determined by what we have in our lives. Whether that be a Mercedes or a diagnosis of depression, neither good things/circumstances/conditions nor bad, determine 'who' we are. NOR do those things/circumstances/conditions determine what is POSSIBLE for us.

Again, this is not just something that I "believe to be true", it is something I KNOW to be true, and have seen in my own life, and the lives of others time and time again,
That being said, I invite you to join me on a magic carpet ride of sorts...come with me, even if just for a couple of moments, on a journey of magic and wonder. Not limited by 'if only I could..." or "If only I was....", "If only I had..." - no, this journey is completely void of any limitations AT ALL! Nothing can possibly hold you back!
On this journey, you get to wander into the farthest reaches of your imagination...and even beyond!! I'll fly the carpet, so you don't even have to worry about THAT! Just jump on with me, and see where we'll go!
Remember to let go of all your ideas of limitation and your yeahbuts ('yeah, but...'), just leave them behind, because there's no room for them where we're going!  Let's GO!!
So....wadda you say? You up for an adventure today??
Take as much time as you can spare...take a deep breath, close your eyes and hop on that magic carpet, and lets see where it takes us!
There's NOWHERE we can't go, NOTHING we can't do, and NOT A SINGLE THING we cannot accomplish! Absolutely NO limitations!
In taking this ride, we are allowing your dreams to become a reality, and your wildest imagination to actually come to life. On this ride, please take note of how you feel, what you see, smell and experience- and how everything around you feels - but most important is how YOU feel. What does it feel like to live limit-free, and where do you go??
Only in that free-thinking, free-living and free-being state, can we truly experience and BE WHO we are - and ONLY in that space can we truly see what is possible!!!
If you're up for it, try to write down what happens on this journey. Where did we go? What did we talk about? Who, if anyone, did we see, meet, find or speak with?
Please feel free to send me a copy of what you write. I always LOVE it when I get notes, emails and messages from you all!
Tell me all about what you experienced on our magic carpet ride! And...let me know any time you'd like to take another ride...I'll keep my schedule open :-D
Until Next Time,
Jill

www.naturalbodyworks.org

One step, One move, One Day....at a time

Short, simple...What is ONE thing that you can do today, that will contribute to the 'greater good' of the world. Just ONE thing, however large or small, is all it takes if each of us participates just a couple days a week!
There is an ENDLESS list of things we can do - each and every one of us, that will collectively improve the 'current status' of the world. ONE thing...we can ALL do, spare, afford, make time or space for ONE thing, can't we?!?
Just pick one thing, and get it done! You'll feel WONDERFUL knowing that you have made a difference.
Have fun with it and be creative!!!
Until next time,
Jill

http://www.thenaturalbodyworks.com/

'Chlorinate' Your Mind!

NOT your brain, as that would be toxic and horrible...but you CAN 'chlorinate' your MIND!

Clean it up...get rid of the mung and funk that lingers in there, like the crud on the bottom of a fish tank!

 

Walk with me on this for a minute, and you'll see what I mean. Much like a fish tank...your mind can be an "escape proof" environment. For example, you can't "unthink" a thought. You can have a negative thought, and re-direct your thinking away from that thought - but you cannot unthink it. Like trying to put toothpaste BACK in the tube...you can never get it ALL back in, right? SOMETHING gets left behind.

Same idea. You have a negative thought...and like fish poop that sinks to the bottom of the tank, that thought stays in your mind, on some level, in some secret little hiding place...only to be "re-introduced" to your conscious mind at an inopportune moment. Even if you tried to stuff the 'poop' back into the fish, some would get left behind. (please do NOT try this at home) Point being....you can't UNTHINK a thought, you just have to figure out how to remove its 'power'.

Which is where this 'mental chlorine' comes in.

It is said that one cannot become more than 'you think you can become'. (Bloggers Note: I, about 98% believe this...here's the other 2% - Following the 2012 Master's Cup Golf Tournament, winner, Bubba Watson was asked, "Did you rehearse this moment? The moment that you'd be sitting here, getting your green jacket?" To which he responded, "No. I never got this far in my dreams." - so while yes, I believe the above statement to be true most of the time...I do think that there are exceptions, which get filed under "this is beyond my wildest dreams") Anyway...onward!

So, lets go with the idea that you can only 'become' that which you truly believe is possible for yourself.  (feel free to substitute the word 'become' for such words as: achieve, acquire, give, receive, do, accomplish, etc.)  Your success, then, is limited only by that which you believe is possible, yes? Take a moment, and look at what you believe. How "far" does your current mind allow you to go? If your answer isn't clear, and to the reaches of 'your wildest dreams', then your mind needs a'cleanin'! There's too much 'poo" in your mental waters, and we must get to 'chlorinating' it! All the doubts, fears, insecurities, etc are little poops, floating around your mind clouding your vision of what is possible.

You are a vibrant, brilliant, wonderful and glorious being. Every SINGLE time you know and believe that, you are eliminating one little poop at a time (pun intended!). As with the toothpaste example, those negative/limiting thoughts and beliefs may not go away entirely, but you can 'blast' them out of your 'mental tank' to such a degree that they no longer exist in your belief of what is possible, and they just become a totally inactive, powerless poops - buried in the rocks at the bottom of the tank.

With your mind clear and your dreams in front of you - there is NOTHING...no, really NOTHING that you cannot do, see, accomplish, experience, achieve. NOTHING.

It is with knowing that to be the absolute truth, that I sign off for now.

Have a glorious and spectacular day, just as it was created to be -

Until next time,

Jill

www.thenaturalbodyworks.com

You Can't Start The Next Chapter...

At first glance, this is an amazing  

and incredibly accurate quote, yes? Very powerful the first time you read it. And really, quite easy to look at, repeat to yourself, say "Wow, that's cool"...then move on to the next 'thing' to look at.

But not me :-P no, no...I couldn't just take a glance, appreciate what the statement said, then move on. I've spent lots of time over the past few weeks, kicking this particular saying around in my head...intending to sit down and blog about it SEVERAL times, but not being able to find the 'bottom' of it! Every time I sat with it, I kept finding more and more times in my life, more and more examples of re-reading the last chapter, right in the middle of this one! So since I first read this statement, I've gone all the way into the deep end and back...many times...and I've come back to the place where I can actually look at it, and say "Wow, that's cool!" - so let's talk about it! :-D

Ya'll know that I am VERY into living in the now, staying present to what IS, and creating what I want to BE in the future. I don't tend to spend much time in the past, in terms of carrying baggage around and certainly not living with regrets. But after reading, then sitting with this quote, I realized how often we do refer back to previous responses to current conditions/circumstances.

Default thoughts, if you will.

"You can't start the next chapter of your life, if you keep re-reading the last one".

Imagine that you're actually reading your life. You're in, lets say Chapter 8. This happens, that happens, this shows up, that shows up...you deal with this, you deal with that.

Then time takes you to Chapter 9. A new job, lets say.

So, you're getting ready to start this new job...you get up, get yourself all prettied up for the day at the office...you get in the car, coffe and all...and head to work. Would you take the same route that lead you to your previous job? Probably not, because you're excited about the newness of THIS job. You'll be in a different office, a different desk/cubicle, different co-workers, different job benefits, perhaps different hours...maybe even a different career path! The similarity, is that they're both your job. Maybe you even have the same coffee cup and plant on your desk that you had at your previous job. But there is SO much that is different....making this a new chapter, rather than the continuation of the last one.

New chapters bring new circumstances, surroundings, people, opportunities, benefits and challenges. Whether that new chapter is a relationship, occupation, financial situation, geographic location, or any

number of other things, it is a NEW chapter, and should be tended to with a NEW outlook.

You don't go to your ex-significant other's house looking for your new one, right?

You don't go to your previous address, walk in the door, get in the shower and climb into bed, right?

You don't wear the same clothes you wore as a child, right?

These are all kind of extreme examples, but intended to give you the image of doing 'old' things in a new phase of your life. So often we drag the 'old' thoughts, actions, expectations, etc into new chapters of our lives.

As with a novel of any sort, you may need to reference actions or occurances from the previous chapter, in order to help 'lead' you to THIS chapter...but that's all it is - a point of reference. Not the recipe by which you must address THIS action or occurance.

Here's the BEAUTIFUL thing...the BEAUTIFUL gift of this life...EVERY DAY CAN BE A NEW CHAPTER!!!!!!!!!!! Every day!

I watched a great video last week (which I will post on this blog at some point!) - and one line from this video was "Do you think that this is just another day in your life?" I love the quote, because the rest of the video is a beautiful journey through the things you can do every single day, to make a difference in the world.

So I offer you this....every morning, when you wake up - say to yourself, "This is NOT just another day in my life! This is page one of a new chapter" - and invite yourself to be brand new today. That doesn't mean you have to forget your past, or pretend something didn't happen - nothing like that. It just means that you're ready to turn the page, and have a fresh new chapter in your life begin right now.

Because you cannot read 2 chapters at once, and really GET the message from both, you will need to pick ONE and go with it. If you choose to re-read the last chapter, then do it. If that's where you want to be. If you're ready to move on and move forward and move AHEAD....then close that chapter, and start the new one - with all of your heart!

Here's to THIS chapter. TODAY'S chapter.

Make it amazing!! Please feel free to e-mail me and let me know what you're up to! Let me know what this next chapter holds for you - and if need be - constantly REMIND YOURSELF that you've started a NEW chapter <3

Until next time,

Jill

http://www.thenaturalbodyworks.com/

Live...Like Someone Left The Gate Open

A friend of mine posted this photo on her fp page, and I was totally overcome. It made me laugh out loud, and I just stared at the picture of this dog, and the expression on his/her face. Just look at the eyes...the tongue hanging out of his/her mouth - and how at least 3 of its legs are off the ground! This dog has places to go, people to see, and adventures to be had! Look behind it. Nothing but open space. Just imagine this joyful little dog running around the area - TOP SPEED just looking for whats next! Not cowering, or walking cautiously round, worrying or even fearing what may be around the next corner, or over the next hill. Just as happy as you please, investigating, experiencing, smelling, tasting, looking around - just thrilled to be alive!
This little pooch isn't worried about how he/she looks, or if other dogs think he/she is 'good enough', or playing the right way. It is just happy to be alive - happy to be exploring the world!

What if, just for a moment...someone had left YOUR gate open? What would you be 'free' to do, explore or investigate? Whatever your 'gate' may be, that which you believe is holding you back or restricting you - what if that was left open, and you had, right in front of you, a whole wide open world to explore?

What would you do? What would you explore? Where would you go? How would you feel? What would you see?

Spend some time with that today. Dig into your heart, your mind, or wherever it is that you 'store' your wildest imagination - and play in THAT open space for a while. The more time you spend there, and the more positive emotion you experience in that space, the happier you will become - AND (bonus!) the closer you bring that experience into your life.

You see, your vibration/energy literally changes (you'll feel it in your own body, if you're willing to pay attention), when you think about living your life without restriction. You'll feel it in your energy level, your happiness, your mood, your attitude, and your idea of what is possible for yourself.

Want proof? Right now, think about something freeing. Something that you would do with your day, your time whatever, if you had NO limitations. Time and money are not an issue. Physical strength and outside expectation are of no concern.  What would you be doing right now?
Then stop...think about bills that are following you around. Or physical limitations, arguments with family or friends. Debt. Sickness.
Feel the difference in your body? THINKING good just feels better, right? Thinking good ideas, dreams, plans, situations, opportunities, occurrences - that just FEELS better! If you want to feel better, think about good stuff! That'll change your mood, change your day, and possibly change your life!

So you see, thinking about negative, burdensome or 'bad' things, is what creates the illusion of your gate being closed. Yes, bills have to be paid, obligations need to be met, etc...but that doesn't mean that you can't live your life in joy, freedom, gratitude, excitement and curiosity.

Live TODAY as though someone left YOUR gate open. If it feels good - do it again tomorrow. And again the next day, and the next and the next!

Have FUN with this idea - and please let me know what comes up for you!
Until next time,
Jill
www.parkerschiropractorcolorado.com/