The "Rut" Isn't the RUT, Ya Nut!!!

Okay, so you know the days....nothing seems to go right, nothing seems to make sense...you kind of walk around in a mental fog, when you question what you know and what you believe. Life is still going on around you, but you have this feeling of being disconnected from it all..as though everything for everyone ELSE is just fine, but you seem to be thinking, moving and living in slow motion. You know these days, right?

Well, I've had a series of them. About 8 in a row, to be exact.

So, I thought myself to be in a rut. Ruts happen to us all, and this one seemed to be a doozie! Lasted 8 days, and those days were loaded with knowing that my 'give a damn' was busted!

This morning as I sat, well, really SLUMPED on the couch and drank my coffee, it occurred to me, that this rut has GOT TO STOP! So I got myself upstairs to jump in the shower...and WHAM!!! It got me right between the eyes...this 'rut' wasnt my rut...the past several MONTHS have been my rut, and the last 8 days, have been the breaking point. Eight days is a LONG time to spend at a 'breaking point' but some of us really need to 'be' and marinate in the blech, before we are able to get out of it, I suppose. It takes a lot to drag me down, but once I get there, I'm SO there! :-D

Anyway, here's what I learned in my most magnificent shower this morning. When we get into a rut, or a 'slump' or whatever it is that we want to call it, we tend to look at that time as though IT is the problem. "I had a rough couple of days", or "I'm just having a tough time right now, but I'll get over it". What I learned this morning, is that the "rut" isn't the problem...the time BEFORE the rut is wherein the challenge sits. The 'rut' is the first step OUT of that problem! A downward slide started way before it showed up in your life as a 'rut' or 'rough patch', so the answer is NOT going to be in "why am I in a rut"...the answer can be found in the question, "What was going on for me just before I got into the rut?"

My bet is this...whatever the answer is, will show up as something that you're doing, saying, feeling or otherwise experiencing that is NOT genuine to your true self. It is something that you've said, thought or done, or something that someone else has said or done, that is taking you out of the flow that is "your nature", and causing a bit of a detour.

The key to 'rut-removal' is getting to the bottom of what that pesky little issue is, acknowledging it for what it is, and doing what you need to do with it. Sometimes its something that you need to put down. Sometimes its something that you need to hang on to and learn from. Sometimes its a new habit or thought process that you need to adopt, for your own personal evolution. And sometimes its something that you need to look at, and say, "seriously? all this over THAT?!?", then drop it.

Although each of those scenarios are a bit different, and there are a hundred more options for how to handle the 'issue' at hand, the key to getting out of a slump, is to realize that whatever it is that is out of balance, probably happened before your 'slump' began...so you may have to look back a little ways.

So often, we 'get over' a slump, then jump right back into the same old habits, thought patterns, perspectives and vocabulary...only to have to face the exact same issue again a little bit down the road.

Just something to kick around :-D

So if you find yourself 'stuck' on something, or struggling with something, take a minute and go back to just before that particular 'thing' became an issue, and go from there.

As always, I would love to hear your feedback, and would love to hear what happens for you as you practice your rut-removal process! Please feel free to drop me a note, a text or a call...

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

September 11th - I remember it differently...

I was on my way to work that morning, headed in to my job as an Environmental Program Coordinator for the City of Thornton, when I heard on the radio that an airplane had hit a high-rise building in New York. An accidental collision was the speculation at the time, because it had not occurred to anyone, that something like this could possibly be deliberate. Then the second plane hit, reports of at least 2 other planes being hijacked, and an order for the immediate grounding of ALL in-air flights was issued.
Dear God...this was not an accidental collision.
That perspective is probably the one that millions of people shared on that day....but within about an hour and a half, everything shifted for me, and I don't really recall that day as a terrorist attack, or the horrific event that will forever be ingrained in the US History books.
For me, the events of September 11th, (while yes, horrible, frightening, and heartbreaking), remain powerful - not because of the devistation, but because of the beautiful, inspiring and magnificent display of love, heroism, determination and strength that were released in such an 'explosive' way.
In that one moment in time - (which was truly hours long), people were given, and MANY took the opportunity to truly shine as human beings.
Todd Beamer, and the other folks on United Flight 93...there were approximately 20 people on board that flight, who stood up in the face of terror, and used a food cart to break down the door of the cockpit on that plane, overtake the 2 hijackers, and divert that plane from going into a US Government Building, to bring it down into an empty, unpopulated, open field in Pennsylvania.  The list of adjectives to describe the character of those people is endless, profound, and really leaves me speechless. THAT is the kind of thing I remember about September 11th. THAT is the kind of thing that literally brings tear to my eyes. The strength of character, level of commitment, and I don't even know how to describe the strength, integrity, and wherewithall it would have taken to perform such a task....truly blows my mind., touches my heart, and inspires me on a level that does not even HAVE words.
The gentleman who's name I never knew, who was on the janitorial staff in Tower 1...who helped guide an entire FLOOR of people down the stairway from the 12th floor. He took command of that floor, and guided everyone toward the stairway...many of them to safety. I heard his story on one of the shows that aired on the 5 year Anniversary of the event, and at that time, he was still living in New York, no longer working because of his injuries, but he visited the Tower 1 site every day. He said that he prayed every day at that site for those who died in that building, and prayed for peace for those who survived. This man had no emergency training to rely on. He had no 'practice drills' to refer to. He simply had his love of people to motivate him to guide others to safety. And that love of people, outweighed his fear for his own life. THAT'S what I remember about September 11th.
I remember how close this event brought everybody. Not just people in America, but people all over the world. Some people stayed (or went back) home from work when they heard what had happened. Many people went in search of their religious or spiritual beliefs and understanding.  Families hugged more. People prayed and meditated more. People truly reached out to each other from a place of love and compassion, in an attempt to comfort one another.
There were Priests who came in from all over the country, to pray over those people who were being pulled from the destruction. There were people...just plain people...untrained, non-emergency personnel who came in from ALL OVER THE COUNTRY to help in any and every way possible - with search and rescue, bringing in water and food, medical supplies and toiletries...people coming in from everywhere - bringing anything they could, just to help out.
September 11th brough about a world-wide outpouring of love and compassion, strength and courage, selflessness and sacrifice. THAT'S what I remember about September 11th.

It is with those wonderful memories that I sit in rememberance today of that event. The love. The strength. The courage. The bravery, love and compassion that surrounds and lives within us ALL to reach out to others in need. The inspiration to be better, to do better, to think better and to KNOW better. The joy of being alive, and being able to laugh with, love with and LIVE with the people in this world. That's what September 11th means to me.

In love, peace and compassion....I sign off for today.

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