Authenticity

Aging…Admission and Sharing.

June 10, 2024 / / Authenticity, Faith and Trust, Life and Living, Living in the NOW, Peace and Understanding, Truth to Self

This aging business only allows for living in the NOW, so if you haven’t started practicing living in the NOW, I highly recommend that you begin.  The words ‘every day is a new day’ have never been more true.

Since I turned 87, I’ve felt a definite shift in how I view myself and my abilities.  I’ve come to realize I have to rely on my past words. i.e.,  I trust myself, I rely on my history, I have great Faith, keep on keeping on,  there’s more than one way to look at something, there’s more than one way to do something…the list goes on.

It’s all too easy to become discouraged and even dumbfounded when it comes to almost every single thing I do these days! I don’t think I’ve ever come to grip with my age, until now.  I still look in the mirror and said, “Gosh you look good for your age, girl!”, and I’ve never felt I was a candidate for a senior center! BUT, there’s no rushing anymore, showering takes twice as long, taking good care I don’t slip and fall.  Making my bed is more work, and when it comes to pep and energy, I don’t have near enough! I have to ration out my ‘duties’.  For instance, if I have to water outside (which takes a good 1/2 hour, and I do a good deal of walking),  I’m not going to vacuum, and if I dust I do a room or two. There’s no such thing as having a cleaning day anymore.  Everything is done piecemeal, all regulated by how much energy I have and how long I’m on my feet. Going to the grocery store is an accomplishment and I take the rest of the day off.

Make it clear, I’m not complaing, but it is what it is, and  living this way just hasn’t been my style until now.  It’s a huge adjustment for me. I’ve always been a hipshooter, took what came when I made my choices, and never looked back nor qustioned myself.  Now, however, it seems I’m a whole new person (except in the brain) that’s learning everything all over again.

I’ve always been a morning person, and this meant I got up early and got everything done before lunchtime.  I’m still a morning person, but I don’t get everything done before lunchtime anymore.  I have to rethink and CHANGE…lots of CHANGE. There’s no blueprint for what I’m trying to describe.  I’ve had to widen my perspective and my patience with myself as I route myself throughout the day. I don’t need a walker or cane, I tire very easily.  I’m totally grateful I have good health.   Living life these days is a conscious  creative effort.  I’ve never been so aware how new everything is.

All this being said,  I am so very grateful for what I have and what I can do and what I enjoy.  Aging allows me to inspect so many aspects of me and what I appreciate and it reinforces my resilience and desire to keep on finding solutions. I pleasantly surprise myself everyday and that’s a good thing. 

The cup is still half-full, there is a silver lining and gold at the end of the rainbow. I’m blessed to live this long and have these experiences. Once the newness of what comes with aging settles down, I’m  guessing I’ll have found my ‘new normal’ and keep on keeping on.

“Whenever you deeply accept this moment

as it is – no matter what form it takes – you

                                                  are still,  you are at peace.”   ~ Eckhart Tolle

Blessed Be. To All Be Blessed.

 

 

There’s No Place to Go From HERE

December 10, 2023 / / Authenticity, Awareness, Energy Connection, Faith and Trust, GAYA, Living in the NOW

The HERE, the NOW, the PRESENT…all one and the same. There’s no escaping WHAT IS!  Some may think they’re stuck with it…I happen to believe I’m Blessed with it.

I know I expound often on what a privilege I think LIFE is to be lived.  It’s such a joy to use my SELF as I participate. Living alone, this is what is available to me:  my personal input, my self-honesty, my authenticity during my days, my observations as I proceed intuitively ofttimes with no thinking, just responding to what has presented to me.  This is, in fact, when I commence a blog.

I find it so interesting when I am introspective and I challenge myself to the truth:  what am I thinking? Why am I thinking this? is this from my ego or from my heart? Do I approve or disapprove and why?  What is my motive, do I have an agenda? What is my purpose of the moment?

It’s not about what others think anymore. What a relief this is! It’s about interrogating myself and answering truthfully.

If I do need validation, thankfully I have someone I can turn to.  We all need someone who has no vested interest in us other than they honestly care and have exhibited this time and again.

I want to feel whole and competent… and so far so good.  There is pure joy in living and doing and being.  There is pure joy in sitting in the silence and listening. There is pure joy in believing I am worth it and honoring that worth. And, whatever I offer to myself, I freely can give to another:  my attention and care and effort to enhance their present moment.

Blessed Be. To All Be Blessed.

All answers come from within. Truths do set you free.  ~ Gaya

 

I’ve Blessed Myself to Heights of Understanding Myself.

August 4, 2023 / / "Going for It", Authenticity, Awareness, GAYA

Today my houseguest left to move into her own space.  It’s a happy day for her and for me, but not one of ‘relief’; rather, my feelings are of personal satisfaction and happiness that I was able to complete my personal COMMITMENT . I’m a much better person in most every way! It’s sort of like I’ve been on a retreat for these past 7 weeks.

I don’t think I have ever been so consistently and deliberately authentic with another person.   We had determined we had to interact this way in order to keep our open communication on the same page.  Believe me, folks, if you have the opportunity or desire to make a positive difference in your own life, take it from me, there’s a stack of rewards from your effort that comes to you.

My son will be arriving within a couple of weeks and he and a friend will spend the night and then return home. ln mid-December he will return for an extended stay.He has his own rig with living accommodations.  I am looking forward to his visit because I have the same COMMITMENT in mind and already I am swirling with ideas of how I can be, helpful, considerate, understanding, compassionate and fair-minded.  I always have love in my heart, but as I have experienced from time-to-time sometimes  something can go haywire and off track.

I intend to use my entire experience of these past weeks…what a training session, with first-hand knowledge to rely upon.

One thing’s for sure, it is I who must carry the torch to success!

Blessed Be.  To All Be Blessed.

Intention with effort is everything. Always do your part.   ~Gaya

is everything.  Light-heartedness goes a long way too.  ~  Gaya

 

Sometimes PEACE can be deafening!

July 31, 2021 / / Authenticity, Conscious Awareness, Faith and Trust, GAYA, Honoring Intention, Humility, Peace and Understanding, Presence, Responsibility, Truth to Self

These days, I’m going for peace, and serenity and equanimity.  One might think this is easy, but it really isn’t!

I live alone and am left to my own devices.  I can choose not to turn on the TV or radio.  I don’t have to say a word to anyone…I can go about my business and shun the world if I wish.  BUT, this isn’t the kind of peace I’m speaking about.  I want peace within the world in which I live.

Peace of mind requires an overall viewpoint of acceptance.  It requires generous thinking…it is living a life of allowance. Of course, dealing with responsibilities in life creates a certain amount of effort, it requires me to change what is.  It requires me to think about what I can do to pre-empt chaos.  This is as simple as changing the oil in my car to avoid engine trouble, for example.  It’s the same thing when it comes to people.  My demeanor dictates  my surroundings.  I am free to do and say that which maintains the space around me. I try to put the best construction on everything without judgment.  If peace is foremost on my mind, then I don’t want to ruffle the waters. I want smooth sailing… I don’t have to go anywhere near the water.

We say, we are in the world, not of  the world.  I can be a contributor to this world I’m in, beginning at my own doorstep.  Peace and calm is a construct of holding oneself in composure.  It’s a posture. It can’t be achieved in arrogance.  In fact, if it is not authentic, it deflates and causes chaos within my mind!

Peace is not achieved easily…it takes time and practice and knowing myself.  It is almost a skill.  I’ve found everything and everyone around me are my ‘peace testers’.  Funny, isn’t it!?  As long as I am given to ‘triggers’ or any kind of dissatisfaction, I am totally aware I always have work to do.  I love this position.  It keeps me humble at the same time I am in such earnest in achieving my intent.

It’s keeping the thoughts at bay.   I say to myself, “New thought, or No thought!”  This works for me.  It tones down the noise in my head which the Ego wants me to tolerate and keep me confused and in unrest.  Isn’t it wonderful we have the capacity to overrule, or override our minds.  We have great personal power.  When we come from the heart, this power exceeds all.  It’s clean and loving and totally well-intended.  What’s outside does not have to enter inside.  We have the keys to that doorway.

There is a Peace of God.

Blessed Be.  To All Be Blessed.  Stay safe.  Be Well.

Have Faith in your connection to that which created you.  This connection

leads and supports you on your Forever Path.  ~  Gaya

 

Who Do We Think We Are!

May 25, 2021 / / Authenticity, Awareness, GAYA, Humility, Mindfulness, Presence, Saving space for another, Self-Realization, True Freedom

We see what we see…why can’t we leave it at that?!

When we go to the woods, we expect to see trees, lots of them, different varieties perhaps, along with other plantings like ferns and moss and maybe a variety of vines. A forest is a forest. What we watch out for is poison ivy or poison oak!

If we suffer from allergies,  we know exactly what to do to fend off the symptoms of our pollen or food reactions.

If we’re not a good swimmer, we stay out of the deep waters.

When we’re growing a garden, we know we have to water and fertilize it to realize a good crop, and when we have pets, we know we need to look after their food and shelter and health needs.

We’re born into a world of people, and as infants we don’t differentiate.  People are people. They laugh, and cry, and shout.  They can be tender or rough.  We soon find out some people are easier to be around.  We recognize kindness and compassion, and we know when we are ignored.  We know when we are welcomed into a room and when we are shunned.  Very early on we seem to learn what is expected of us!   We learn there is a demand that we must please someone else…for our own sake!  We learn by our own experience when we make a friend and lose one.  We learn trust and mistrust.  We learn fair-mindedness and ruthlessness.  We think we have to belong, and we learn how to play that game, and at this precise time, we realize we are compromising our integrity, our  beingness, our own authenticity, and the question then comes, WAIT JUST ONE MINUTE! WHAT’S HAPPENING HERE?!!

When does the line get fuzzy when it comes to how we treat other people? When do we figure out that it is up to us  to trust ourselves when it comes to how we treat others? We have such good intuition when it comes to how we feel about others.  The Bible says treat others as we want to be treated.  How difficult is that?  The Bible doesn’t say “treat others who look like you” the same as you want to be treated!  (And just who looks like us anyway?  Some of us are fat, skinny, tall, short, Asian, African, Caucasian, Native American, crippled, blind, and the list goes on.)

Think of the restaurants we frequent.  We are extremely open-minded (because we are pleasing ourselves looking to satiate our appetite) when we choose ethnic foods.  We’re very polite when we order, and when we’re finished most often we are very gracious in thanking someone for the wonderful food.  We find no barriers then! AND THINK:  This is quite an intimate setting, considering we are trusting someone who is not of our own race to prepare our food!

Is this not hypocritical?

I guess what I’m trying to point out is that we have ‘selective bias, or racism’, and we exert it at will and probably it is when we feel threatened (whatever that means).  When we are ‘frequenting the world’, we are rubbing shoulders with other shoppers, tourists, diners, sports enthusiasts, hobbyists, animal lovers, etc., and we don’t give it another thought.  In these venues, we enjoy our commonality.

Well, then, can we finally realize that as human beings we have one commonality in the world, and it is that we are all human beings, trying to make it, get along in both good and difficult times, that we all have the same needs, i.e., food, shelter and clothing,  along with desires for educational opportunities, and personal livelihood pleasures, like owning a home, a bike, a car, if we want one., and we all have the same fears too.  What is it in some people who have  a need to drive someone down and hold them there?  Fear of competition?  Fear of equality?  Fear of loss?   I  happen to think it is a personal fear that they will be found out that they aren’t who they pretend to be!   And, who better to pick on but those who they don’t see as competition!!  This is nothing short of a bully attitude!

It seems human beings have to put everything to their own personal litmus test…which at best, is flawed.  Going back to the Bible, “He who has not sinned, cast out the first stone.” Now that’s a litmus test!

Blessed Be.  To All Be Blessed.  Continue to Stay Safe and Well.

There is only one picture:  The Big Picture…Broad Vista…beautiful to behold.  ~Gaya

 

Deliberate Living

December 5, 2020 / / Authenticity, Conscious Awareness, Don't be held back, Freedom, GAYA, Gratitude, Honoring Intention, Life and Living, Living in the NOW, Manifesting our goals and dreams, Self-fulfillment, Self-Realization, Source Energy, Truth to Self

It’s so important what I think, what I say, what I do. Whatever comes out of my mouth and however I behave tells others exactly who I am for that time. I want to put more conscious awareness upon my actions, words and deeds…not how it relates to what others think about me, but rather,  to what power I have that creates my small world, my happiness and joy, my frustration and dis-ease.

To be more clear:  One can get so swept up in ‘appearances’, when instead, the conscious awareness ought to be on what really is! When I react, as against respond with a deliberate thought about something, I’m not intending to show who I AM at the time.  In fact, the exact opposite occurs:  I show my disorganized mind and emotions,,.my unconscious  unaware  side.

Life happens quickly…moment to moment…and I think it behooves me to slow myself down so I can relish in the delights of the five senses during the precious NOW moments.  What more is there, after all, than enjoying what I’m up to, what I’m experiencing, creating, as I act out my life play?

This is  ‘deliberate’ living ‘ … Authenticity at its best.

When I’m ‘on top of my game’, my inside artist is hard at work, designing in detail what I am thinking about, what kind of attention I’m giving to it, what outcome I am  expecting. In this very process I’m adding the color to my life and when I provide the details, the excitement that begins to happen is essentially me creating my small world for my own pure enjoyment and gratification.  It’s in these moments I am so grateful for all that I have.  I have so many gifts to use which stir from within.  We all do.  It’s a matter of  letting those ‘cats out of the bag’!

Perfect Timing!  I’m intentionally setting a deliberate action plan for me to more consciously initiate. I’m creating more ‘Go’ in my Flow.  I’m bringing more privilege of living my life with the deliberate intention of enjoying the whole journey.

There’s no question about it:  I have no endgame in sight!  I guess that’s what life is all about…we deliberately keep enjoying our ‘lifestyle’.

Blessed Be.  Be Safe and Well, All.

“You’ve Got This!”         ~Gaya

Real Friendship Has No Agenda.

September 12, 2020 / / Authenticity, Conscious Awareness, GAYA, Life's Impressions, Love, Truth to Self

When I’m in a crowded place, like a grocery store, I have no attachment to any of the people milling around.  We’re all there for the same purpose, and we’re directing ourselves to the various aisles where we pick up what we need and move along until we check out.  If I can’t find something, I might ask a fellow shopper. That contact is short and purposeful.  In any case, I haven’t relied upon anyone. There are services offered like carryout, and I use them if needed.

I find it interesting, however, when I think upon ‘friendship’…how and why it begins; how it maintains and flourishes; how the connection can form into an attachment, and then, without notice the friend(s) create an agenda.   And the friendship silently shifts from one of enjoying each other’s company and mutual interests, to one of expectation favoring personal gain. Unknowingly and, perhaps, unwittingly, a person generously begins to present themselves in a ‘helpful’ manner…this could be monetarily, doing favors, just plain helpfulness, but in so doing, that person is also deepening reliance between the two of them.The recipient perceives nothing unusual other than the friendship strengthening.

Then, something happens:  The recipient does something unexpected – nothing mean or devious – but the generous friend takes it very personally, and an eruption occurs.  Apparently, the generous friend had become reliant upon the other friend for something that hadn’t been openly stated.  This is a scenario which occurred with me.

There are business relationships and friend relationships and acquaintances.  I happen to think when someone becomes ‘disappointed’ in someone else, they’ve perhaps relied too heavily upon that person.  My friendships are in my inner circle.  They are few and treasured.  Everything that is exchanged between us is from the heart, with no expectation whatsoever.   There is an open exchange of ideas, dreams and everyday drama.  There is a continuous give-and-take between us, and no one feels they owe another anything in light of the friendship.

We are responsible for our feelings and our own actions.  We are not responsible for the feelings of others. One can be easily manipulated if one does not understand and believe this.  I think true friendships are formed between hearts, and much is willing to be overlooked in the name of that friendship.

Each time we examine ourselves we deliberately expand our conscious awareness. 

This is a fearless and selfless act toward greater authenticity.   ~  Gaya

Blessed Be.  To All Be Blessed.  Stay Safe.

 

 

 

I Hold The Magic Wand.

August 27, 2020 / / Authenticity, Conscious Awareness, Don't be held back, Freedom, GAYA, Living in the NOW, Manifesting our goals and dreams, Presence, Responsibility, Self-fulfillment, Self-Realization

I feel the urge, I feel the surge, and I emerge!  … Again and Again and Again!  I think this is the process of how I continue living and doing whatever I set out to do in my life each moment, each hour, and so it goes, on and on.

I’ve learned that living Life isn’t just cut and dried!   It can’t be just a series of habits and repeat performances.  There is always the mundane,  so it’s up to me to hit my ‘refresh’ button!

REFRESH...I love this word!

I don’t ever want to be a ‘stick-in-the-mud’.  I don’t ever want anyone to say to me, “Awe, you’re no fun”, or “Live a Little!” But, I’ve never liked anyone yanking me out of ‘my way’ based on what they think about how I’m doing what I’m doing! I like the feeling of ‘get up and go’, and it’s up to me to do it, not wait for someone else to nudge me or tug on me or even judge me for not appreciating all of the opportunities that are available to me that enhance and expand my Beingness.

A new book I ordered, Welcoming the Unwelcome:  Wholehearted Living in a Brokenhearted World, by Pema Chodron, is being delivered  today.  I’m really excited…like for some long-awaited company!

I am not only offered each new day, I am given the power to observe my own behavior, assess my level of contentment, happiness, joy and calm,  and I have the cognizance to assert myself  for myself  to  fill up my body-mind-soul vessel.  I believe this is my absolute duty, my responsibility, toward myself and my well-being. I am my own instrument effecting the continuous progress of the privilege of living my life as long as I am being.

When you feel your inner peace and joy, you are coming to more understanding of who you are and what you are capable of doing for yourself.  We infinitely support you to your greatest good.    ~Gaya

Blessed Be.  To All Be Safe and Well.

 

 

 

 

Time Is Always At Hand.

April 7, 2020 / / Authenticity, Conscious Awareness, GAYA, Gratitude, Honoring Intention, Life's Impressions, Living in the NOW, Mindfulness, Responsibility

‘Now is the time for all good men [women] to come to the aid of their country.’  Does this look familiar to some of you?  It is the sentence we used in typing class.  Why I thought of it this morning, I don’t know…but isn’t it appropriate?

If I’m going to come to the aid of my country, I have to come to my own aid first.  This means back to basics when I think this way.

I turned 83 this past week and I must say, it feels good.  I’ve been on this earth quite a long while.  So much has happened. And, these days, we are experiencing something very new…IT’S A FIRST FOR ME IN ALL MY YEARS.  In all my time, I guess it’s the right time for me to experience this pandemic virus, Covid 19.

Every time is the right time for each one of us.  We all have our own perception of things, we have our own reality, we think peculiarly to ourselves.

TIME. I have as much as I need to do what has to be done.  There is always just enough of it to complete each moment I am alive.   It’s always available to me…like an never-emptying vessel. I have it when I’m sleeping and when I am awake.  I can use it however I wish, to do with as I choose.   I can choose to repeat, or change, or waste it.  I can spend time, I can never save it.  Yet, it’s always at my fingertips.

Time is like a magic wand.  Wherever I place my attention and intention, I make choices and take actions and create my world…all in the time I have.  At the end of the day it’s about ME and how I’ve utilized MY time.  At the end of the day, it’s about what I’VE been up to!

As of this moment, I have a new respect and concept of TIME.  I value it more. It is truly an overlooked treasure. As long as I am breathing, I am ‘in the Grace of Time’.  I am the magician in my life.  I can take time to do anything.

Blessed Be. To All Be Blessed.  All Be Well.

Closer she comes to more clarity and understanding of what is important to her.  ~Gaya

 

 

STAY ON MY TOES!

March 9, 2020 / / Authenticity, Conscious Awareness, Energy Connection, Faith and Trust, Freedom, GAYA, Grace, Honoring Intention, Humility, I AM WHO I AM

Life is so fluid, and I keep moving along with it, whether I like it or not.  One thing’s for sure though – my thoughts have to stay current with my days!  This is a mouthful, folks!

When I decide something, it becomes a moot point.  My thoughts bring me to my choices and actions right away. Then, off I go to the races to other thoughts that are determining my Forever Unending Pathway.  Concurrently, I am experiencing contrast – some by my own doing, and some through Life’s presentations.  I try to thoughtfully respond, but all too often I react instead.

I think I keep way too much in my head after I have made a decision about something.    It may be because it’s familiar territory, and it’s easier to chew over the same cud rather than begin again and again, but the fact is, life is a continuous stream of  new experiences.

It is my responsibility to keep up with the fast-paced stream, and I also have to keep myself current with what my attention and intention is.  It’s as simple as that!   I want to know where I want to be in all of the activity.  I pretty much stay out of the fray anyway.  I go where I am interested in going.  I won’t be dragged along by others anywhere.

I guess what I’m pointing out to myself is that this NOW I’m trying to live never has a past or a future, only NOW, and this is just enough for me to handle.

As I’ve gotten older, I can look back to ‘simpler’ times, but why?  Those who came after me never knew of them, they’re living what they know NOW.  And to look back and lament is a warped way of complaining as I see it.

Come to think of it, as I grew up and lived my life, things were moving fast too, and I was learning new things all the time.  I never sat with my experiences and asked Life to slow down.  I mostly thought of the ways to resolve and solve what needed attention.

So, I guess the long and the short of this message is an affirmation that I always have been at the helm of my ship, directing my course, whether I was aware of it or not.  Fast pace or slow, I’m always responsible for my actions and words, and what I create

I am a powerful spiritual being, aligned with God, Source, Universe, Creator.

No one is alone…lest in their thoughts.  Breathe in the healing energy,

and breathe out that which no longer serves you.    It is good to  honor

your inextricable connection to God.   ~Gaya

 

 

 

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