If you ever needed a place to clear your mind and focus on your thoughts, the beach is the place to do it. It is almost like you have slowed down the hands of time and there are no agendas, schedules or dates to worry about. I don't have a real busy life right now, but still many times my thoughts are BUSY too BUSY and I don't really stop to realize what I am thinking about. I like the quote that says...
"WHAT WE STEADILY, CONSCIOUSLY, HABITUALLY THINK WE ARE, THAT WE TEND TO BECOME." __Ann Landers
I often try to check my thoughts and where they lead me and how they make me feel. I am always wondering if I am controlling my thoughts or they controlling me. I am grateful for this chance to come here, take a break and really look at my life and my thoughts and see how I am doing.
I know of a lady who lives in a situation that isn't good. As I come to know this lady better, I realize that she honestly thinks that she is locked in to this life and that things probably won't and can't change. It saddens me to see her unhappiness and yet realize until she takes her power back and changes her thoughts that her life WON'T change. I want so bad to help and tell her to change something, make a stand, don't take certain things and by all means realize you do not have to stay in that situation. But isn't that what we all do at different times in our lives? We stay in certain patterns and habits and life does seem HOPELESS. How can you help that person, what can I say or do make things better? Then I realize that is one of the reasons that I have counseling. My counselor said to me once, "Lynn, you can't save the world" "You're not suppose to". I remember thinking..."I paid you a $10.00 co-pay to tell me that" "I want to save the world, I want to help everyone" I guess he was right, because you don't see all those people that I worry about... in counseling, just me! :)
I have to work on daily ...understanding not to take on the heartache and sorrows of the world, not even those that I am closest to. Everyone has their free agency to make the choices and life that they choose. It is very hard to me to see people (especially innocent children) hurt or suffer. For many years I thought I could be SUPER WOMAN, of course I would warn you that obviously that isn't the way to do it, look at this SUPER WOMAN now... she has ulcers, bad back, bad neck, mono and has had cancer twice....yes I would say that is why there isn't a real SUPER WOMAN in the world. She probably died from a nervous breakdown, especially when she realized that no matter how hard she tried, she can't change people or their circumstances...only they can.
I have struggled my whole life with my thoughts and fears, coming from my back ground ,that was a lot. I didn't actually address them until Amy was born and then for some reason, I realized as a mom ....I needed to protect her at all cost. I knew in order to protect her and not pass on the emotional baggage that I was carrying meant that I would have to seek counseling and someone to help me understand my thoughts and fears. I soon realized that you don't just go to a counselor once and they can magically help you over come all the garbage from the past in just one painless session, many times it can take years ( not of counseling ) but of working things out in your head and that it is ok, to go back to counseling when you get stuck and aren't moving in the right direction.
So since I have been here in this beautiful place, I have realized that I can't change some things or people's lives...even if they are bad. I am not suppose to. All I can do however is stay on top of my life, my thoughts and my actions. I can only control myself! I love these people and I guess the greatest gift I can give them is ...the gift of believing in them. Letting them know that I believe with all my heart that they have it within themselves to have what it takes to change their thoughts, their habits and their life. I can keep them in my prayers and hope that they feel the strength that comes from that (which is powerful). That is all I can do.
Wow, I could stay here for quite awhile, think how healthy I would be if I stop and truly worked on my thoughts and feelings like this? That's it, Jeff and I are just going to have to buy a beach house that we can run away to every now and then! Wonder what Jeff will think about that?
Good night dear friends.
"WATCH YOUR THOUGHTS, FOR THEY BECOME WORDS.
WATCH YOUR WORDS, FOR THEY BECOME ACTIONS.
WATCH YOUR ACTIONS, FOR THEY BECOME HABITS.
WATCH YOUR HABITS, FOR THEY BECOME CHARACTER.
WATCH YOUR CHARACTER, FOR IT BECOMES YOUR DESTINY."