If you wouldn't invite someone into your safe place then why are they in your life?

     I've been thinking about the scene in Avatar where the Na'vi were gathered around their sacred Tree. If we apply that scene to our own lives you could replace the Tree with who or what you worship. And you could substitute your "peeps" and those of like mind as those who gather round it.
     As I've said to some of my clients before, if you wouldn't invite someone into your "safe place" that you create in meditation, then why are they in your life? What are the stories you tell yourself about these people? And what are the stories they tell you about yourself?

     Interesting questions to ponder and a great visual.

I can't help but wonder if James Cameron is aware of all these thought provoking messages in his movie? I think a true artist lets his work speak to him. I'd love to talk with him about this.

Avatar Offers A Thread of Hope

     Someone was asking me about my work this week and it occurred to me to ask her if she had seen Avatar. Fortunately she had, so I told her that I help people to see their lives as Pandora. What a great visual. That just says it all. We have a choice. We can interpret life like the Na'vi or like the military. I love this movie more and more every day!
     Remember the part where Neytiri, in a fit of frustration, calls Jake a baby? He didn't know how to engage with nature in Pandora. He reminded me of a child touching a hot stove. Even when told it was hot, sometimes we can't wrap our mind around the concept until we have gotten burned. In tending to our wounds we learn to respect whatever has burned us. But does our respect come from seeking to understand the nature of a stove or from fear of another burning?
     Neytiri acknowledges her frustration toward Jake's naivety and uses it to bust his ego, but then she teaches him. The military, on the other hand, sends spies to find the Na'vi's naivety so they can use it as a weapon to ultimately destroy them with. The Na'vi see naivety as an opportunity to empower and the military see it as an opportunity to dis-empower. As Gandhi said, "Be the change you want to see in the world." If we want to be surrounded by people who empower us then we must live in an empowering kind of way.

Politics and Avatar

     So today I get a bunch of political campaign mail. It was all for Scott Brown. Two were for him, two were completely bashing him, and one of the bashers was anonymous. Am I the only one who's tired of this divide and conquer attitude? I know that it would make the military in Avatar proud, but they saw hell as a vacation destination compared to Pandora, and everyone who I know fell in love with Pandora.
     As I sat with my frustration toward this cowardly-candidate-basher it occurred to me that we all have our moments when we feel threatened--that someone's holding us back--and all we know how to do is turn them into the enemy so we can conquer them. I know that I've done that and when I do, it keeps me up at night until I figure it out. I never really applied "divide and conquer" to my personal life or to the lives of my clients but between Avatar and the political campaign in MA, this tactic is so blatantly clear AND unattractive. So I'd like to thank this anonymous basher for volunteering to model this unattractive role so that humanity could see its darkness outside itself.
     As for voting I am setting an intention for the candidate who will lead us out of divide and conquer and into Pandora and I hope you will do the same. Even those not voting have impact when they hold the intention for the highest and best for our country so lets all do it.
     And at least we got some unexpected healing from this dog eat dog campaign. With the information gained from the bashing, we can address our own conundrums like the Na'vi and sleep easily. As for the politicians, not sure how they are sleeping, but I bet Kennedy is chuckling in the heavens over this ridiculousness.

Avatar, Depression, and Living in Pandora

     I loved Avatar. and I was surprised to read an article about people becoming depressed to suicidal after seeing it. They wanted to live on Pandora and saw life as it is as hopeless. They left the theater disheartened with humanity and feeling powerless to change their circumstances. They saw Pandora as an intangible dream.
     I do get that and I can even see how people could feel that way, but I saw it as inspiring. I thought it taught us about how to live on Pandora, not that Pandora was intangible. Everyone was talking about the scenery. I thought it was amazing too, but I didn't see it as that sharp a contrast to our existence. I think that Avatar opened our eyes to how we are choosing to live. Do we have a divide and conquer approach to life like the military? Or do we seek to know and be known like the Na'vi? Isn't this what made hell look like a vacation resort compared to Pandora to the military, while being paradise to the Na'vi and to those who were assigned to get to know them? They were talking about the same place. I loved the line... “When people are sitting on shit you want, you make them your enemy so your justified in taking it.” There's the divide and conquer line.
     Thoughts? I think it would be fun to challenge ourselves to look for a little bit of Pandora in our lives every day and to post your results. I'll be back to write more later. Stay tuned!

New Year's Resolution Tip

 New Year’s Resolution Tip
     The first of January is traditionally the time to set resolutions. We enter a new year with gusto, hope and conviction. Some of our resolutions come to fruition effortlessly, but enthusiasm towards others fizzles over time, while the remainder often fall into the category of wishful thinking.

    Desires are important, but if follow through has been your challenge, it could be time to reevaluate your approach toward fulfillment. Don’t resign yourself to “it wasn’t meant to be,” because the truth could simply be that your energy would be better spent toward building a foundation that can support your desire and so much more. Putting yourself last can’t support a desire to be a priority in someone’s life. Hating your current weight doesn't support permanent weight loss. Making excuses for your debt doesn't support alleviating it.

     Your desires and so much more are within your grasp.