https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5pgrnstX6w

Today was a rainy and lazy day.  The kind that draws you to your Iphone far too much.  I have a love-hate relationship with this electronic device.  The love part is sometimes I find very good things on it and today was one of those days.  A fellow yoga friend posted this video on Facebook. While I have seen the link before, I didn’t take the time to watch it but am glad I did today. Jim Carrey Is another love-hate relationship at times.  I find his humor both hysterical at times and irritating at others.  But humor aside, this video shows totally a different side to the man behind the mask.  This commencement speech made me think our recent chat Our Biggest Fear in which we discussed the process of embracing success and happiness.  My favorite line in this speech is “You have two choices…love or fear.  Ask the Universe for what you want and have faith that it will show up.”  He states that having hope doesn’t cut it because hope is like a begger..  True that, right?  Saying you hope something will happen is like putting out there that you know most likely it won’t but are holding out for a miracle.  Well that is for the birds ya’ll (practicing my southern accent in case I ever decide to move down there which will most likely never happen but you never know.)   Back to the two roads that diverge in a wood….love and fear…

I have lived seeing out of fear based lenses for the longest time. My eyes projected life’s limitations. Despite my efforts to flex the sides and top/bottom, I always felt like I was imprisoned by decisions I made when I was much younger.   Never did I even consider that I was the owner of the key to my early release.  This finally began to happen last year when I began to change the trajectory of my life.  Last year I began to take risks that Carrey states are the risks of being seen.  I started my chats with you all and began to build a path towards creating something unique and particular to me and what I wanted.  While at the same time continuing on with the same old pattern of staying stuck and rebelling against my own stuckness.  I was allowing myself to be more seen than I had in the past, not playing quite as small as before, but still there was an unsure nature to my step out.  More of a step of hope than of faith for sure.  It wasn’t until most recently where I  have begun to step out of my house on sure footing and carve a clear path from the heart. Today in a meditation group I shared with folks that I have realized that this heartfelt path is taking me into a place of true happiness which is a far cry from my rebellious frustrated history.  Hmmm ain’t that going to be something?  No one to rage against….woo!

Taking the steps I have most recently has taught me two things 1)  a lot of the battle we go through is self imposed suffering and is mostly because we have no idea what we really want and 2) once you figure out what you want, be ready because the path to it will become as clear as driving in Boston on a holiday weekend….easy breezy.  I am being shown more and more that what I would have originally thought to be not possible, is more than possible, it’s coming into fruition.  It is fascinating to witness things beginning to fall into place and after today’s reflection I have to say that it is happening because I am daring to live life through faith rather than hope.  Hope never got me anywhere except angry that things were not happening in the way I thought I wanted them to.  Faith is far more inspiring because it allows for the possibilities to come together no matter what limitations others choose to believe it.  Having hope is kind of like saying you will “try” to do something.  Whenever the word try is applied to what is perceived to be an action step, it leaves for the large possibility that the action will never happen.  Today, action is happening in more ways than one.  Living a faith based life is based in happiness.  Today my fears are still there but I don’t focus on them that much.  When I find myself entertaining them I notice them and then move on to the faith based action steps that will eradicate the fears.  It seems to be working for the moment. What do you do when the limitations of hope are blinding the possibilities of faith?  How do you dare to yourself to be seen?

In the words of my favorite song from one of my favorite films that I got a chance to watch today….”TAKE YOUR PASSION AND MAKE IT HAPPEN!”

Cheers!