Beyond Happy

Do you ever days where you just feel outright awesome? I'm talking about emotionally...you get up and you feel so good that your step feels lighter, you find yourself smiling for no particular reason....today was one of those days for me. Around 9:00 this morning I even stopped and asked myself, "Why the heck are you so happy today?" Since I talk to myself a lot, I even answered back saying, "I have no idea!"

I am a very positive and upbeat person and I am happy most days, but there are days that just feel different, and those days seem to be happening more and more often for me.

I feel at peace, clear headed, and so comfortable that it's almost like...wow, do I deserve to feel this good?

I have been trying for a while now to learn to live a calmer and more peaceful life, so maybe it is working in ways I had not expected.

I am a happy person, but I am also "wired" and overly anal as my children say. I never sit still and have to doing something or more than one something all the time.

I mentioned before that I started forcing myself out of my workshop by 9:00 p.m. so I can lay in bed with a book, a Sudoku puzzle or paper and pen. That has been transforming for me, and now I don't have to force myself any more, I look forward to it.

I've pretty much given up on T.V. as well. I got tired of all of the violence that saturates the airwaves. I'm actually down to two shows, American Idol and The Amazing Race along with some Cubs games and occasionally some golf if Tiger is doing well, and that's it.

I really think the changes I've made are allowing me to really be me, and I think that is what's bringing days of unexplained joy.

We are all here inside our bodies...it's just a matter of clearing out what we don't need and allowing ourselves to just "be".

Thank you Eckhart for some lessons learned!

I Finished It!!!!

I finished "The Power of Now" by Eckhart Tolle the other day. Wow! Quite an amazing book. Some of the things he talked about I was already practicing...like not living in the past. He just put things into such a different perspective that he really made me take a look at my life and my entire thought process.

I will say that the book was very difficult to read. Sometimes I wondered if he was speaking a foreign language. I mentioned before that some of his sentences were so long that by the time I got to the end of the sentence I had forgotten what he said at the beginning and had to back and read it all over again.

What I did take from the book is that I need to slow down. Stop looking back, but stop looking forward as well. Having memories of days gone by is nice and planning for the future is okay, but neither is acceptable when it means forgetting about today....because really, today is all we have...in fact, this moment is the only thing we can really control. Take care of this moment and the rest will take care of itself.

I've already started his book, "A New Earth". When I finish it, I am going to get "The Power of Now" on CD and listen to it in my car while I commute. There were a number of areas of the book that went right over my head. I'm thinking that hearing the words might bring a better understanding.

If you are caught up in the rat race and are continually wondering if there is more to life than the constant worry, regrets, fear and stress...I highly recommend "The Power of Now."

I'll let you know how the new book goes. Have a good one!

I am So Into This Book!

I apologize for this post being so long, but I am so intrigued by this book that I wanted to share some things I read last night with you.....

I'm still reading "The Power Of Now" by Eckhart Tolle. I got sidetracked by another book, but I am back to it. While reading last night I came upon a section of the book that really hit home with me.

Eckhart was talking about how the majority of people live in the past and the future rather than in the present. Are you like that? I know I am.

I constantly find myself reliving things from my past...not just things from a few days or a few weeks ago, but things from years and years ago. I even replay past conversations in my head. I am also always thinking about the future and how things will be IF or WHEN....

In the book, the author talks about how doing those things has a tremendously negative impact on the quality of our lives and really serves no purpose. You can't change the past and you really can't predict the future. The only thing you CAN control is this very moment...NOT five minutes ago and NOT five minutes from now....hence the name of the book.

I've told you before that I try very hard not to worry or fear things that I can't control, and I'm really pretty good with that, but that doesn't stop me from obsessing over past mistakes or the future itself.

Here are some awesome excerpts from the book:

"Are you stressed? Are you so busy getting to the future that the present is reduced to a means of getting there? Stress is caused by being here but wanting to be there or being in the present but wanting to be in the future. It's a split that tears you apart inside."

"Are you worried? Do you have what if thoughts....Ask yourself what problem you have right now, not next year, tomorrow, or five minutes from now. What is wrong with this moment? You can always cope with the Now, but you can never cope with the future--nor do you have to"

"One day I'll make it." Is your goal taking up so much of your attention that you reduce the present moment to a means to an end? Is it taking the joy out of your doing? Are you waiting to start living? If you develop such a mind pattern, no matter what you achieve or get, the present will never be good enough; the future will always seem better.

"Large scale waiting" is waiting for the next vacation, for a better job, for the children to grow up, for a truly meaningful relationship, for success, to make money, to be important, to become enlightened. It is not uncommon for people to spend their whole life waiting to start living....you don't want what you've got, and you want what you haven't got. With every kind of waiting, you unconsciously create inner conflict between your here and now, where you don't want to be, and the projected future, where you want to be. This greatly reduces the quality of your life by making you lose the present."

"When you honor, acknowledge, and fully accept your present reality--where you are, who you are, what you are doing right now--when you fully accept what you have got, you are grateful for what you have got, grateful for what is, grateful for being."

I have always been grateful for the things he mentions, I think most of us are...yet I spend a lot of my precious time longing to have success, more money, to live somewhere else, to be retired....by doing that, I am forcing myself to think of nothing but the future and how much better it will be, when in reality, things are pretty awesome right now. What if none of those other things ever transpire? What if my life IS what it IS right at this very moment, and that's all it ever IS? Would that be terrible? NO not at all.

So, starting today...I am trying very hard to think of just today. To be so grateful for what I do have that I don't desire anything else and I stop wishing my life away.

I will let you now how I am doing and what other interesting chapters I come upon in Eckhart's book. It is definitely a great read!

Let's Read a Book, or Two or Three

I am currently reading "The Power of Now" by Eckhart Tolle, and Kala of Kala Pohl Studio was right...it is a difficult read. I usually read before bed and I find it relaxing, but with this book, I need to really focus. The author sometimes writes using very L-O-N-G sentences....what he writes if very "deep", and then he uses words in contexts I've never seen before. He usually explains HIS use of the word, but by the time I get to the end of the sentence, I have no idea how the sentence started. I also haven't the slightest clue what the point was that the was trying to make in the first place. So, it's back to the beginning of the sentence to read it again and try to decipher his "code". I do like what he has to say, once I figure it out and I am actually enjoying the book.

I am also reading a book that is being shared among the blogging community by Angela of Pickles on Pizza. It's called "Lost & Found" by Jacqueline Sheehan. I just started it, but so far so good. I am the third reader and when I am done, I will post about it. Then anyone that would like to read it next can post a comment and I'll mail it to the winner. So far the book has been in Mississippi, Washington and Illinois. Where will it go to next?????

When I posted yesterday about trying to pay down our debt, the same Angela commented that she was going to send me a book by Dave Ramsey. She and her husband Aubrey used this book to help them get out of debt a few years ago.

Holy crapola....I've gone from reading no books right now to having three to read at the same time. My brain will be fried! Maybe I'll see if Irv will read the Ramsey book first while I finish the other two. Then I will read it and we can plot our strategy!

I forgot how wonderful reading is. I don't really have a favorite author or genre. I just enjoy reading. I usually am attracted to books that will teach me something rather than ones that entertain. Do you have a favorite author or type of book you like to read? I was reading John Grisham for a while and those were actually pretty good....I've also enjoyed a book on Meditation, one by the Dalai Lama, and one on nutrition. Interesting mix!

Well my wonderful blogging friends, time for me to go. I have so much to do this weekend that I want to dig right in. Chat with you soon!

Finding Inner Peace

Like I said last night, I usually try to get out of my workshop by about 9:30 each evening. I sit in bed and work on a Sudoku puzzle, make a to do list for the next day and usually have the news on. I watch WGN if it's before 10:00, or I put on our local ABC station if it's already 10:00. After the 10:00 news is Nightline on ABC, and try very hard to stay awake to watch it. It usually touches on something of importance from that day and then a couple of other stories of interest.

Last night they had a segment on Eckhart Tolle. Now, I had never heard of Eckhart Tolle before, but in 10 minutes of hearing about him and listening to him, I am ready to go out and buy a couple of his books.

Eckhart was born in Germany and attended the Universities of London and Cambridge. He is an author and a much sought after public speaker. His book, "The Power of Now" was a #1 NewYork Times Best Seller and was followed up by, "A New Earth". The books are considered two of the most influential spiritual books of our time.

So, why I have never heard of this man or his books? Have you?

The idea behind his teachings are that we can find inner peace and greater fulfillment in our lives by ridding ourselves of our ego-based state of consciousness. I am all for inner peace. Right now I could just use some peace. In fact, the second book, "A New Earth" is about how we can end conflict and suffering throughout the world.

Seriously, this man really grabbed my attention and I loved what he had to say. His writing is not without controversy because it does talk religion and any time you talk any kind of religion, you are going to tick off someone.

I think I am going to go online tonight and order both books. He has really peaked my interest and I have been looking for something to read.

Let me know if you have ever head of Eckhart Tolle, or read any of his books. I am curious what you think.