(This post was first published as an article in September 2008 Metta Center email newsletter. While my daughter is now 15 years old, and not 11 years old as in this story, the message of this post is still relevant today. I invite you to turn your limiting thoughts around and free yourself into your happiness!)
One of the lessons I have learned is that happiness is an inside job.
Do you notice that things can be going really well, and yet you are still unhappy? Or, things might go all awry yet you are cool as a cucumber?
Something Abraham-Hicks says really struck a cord with me: "Your primary work is to think, speak and do what feels good to you." I really enjoy learning the process of choosing a better feeling thought from Abraham. Similar to changing a diet where you choose a healthier food to nourish your body, learning to think a better feeling thought is choosing to hold healthier thoughts, bringing yourself back into alignment with Source. It is choosing to nourish your mind, emotion and body with thoughts that affirms your connection to the amazing life, the Spirit, within you instead of diminishing it.
I put it in my daily practice that whenever I notice I am feeling unhappy, for whatever reason, I invite myself to explore what feels better for me to think, say or do. It is a simple process, and with practice, I can notice how much easier and quicker it is for me to align myself with feelings of contentment and joy.
For instance, I had this uncomfortable event a couple days ago where I talked to my 11-year old daughter about something that I thought would be of great help to her. But,she was not ready to hear it and brushed me off in a typical adolescence way. ("I am not listening!") Noticing that I felt frustrated, I made a mental note to find out what I would prefer to think, say or do that could feel better to me. After some time of reflection, I realized that I wanted to contribute to her life, and apparently my unconscious belief about how I should relate to my daughter was, "I need to teach and help my daughter in order to be of value to her." That thought didn't feel good at all, and I contemplated that this not-so-good feeling is an indicator that the thought was out of alignment with my Source. My Inner Being is telling me that there is a better way to think about relating to my daughter.
So, I decided to choose a better feeling thoughts: "It's not true that I need to teach and help her to be of value to her. I really appreciate my powerful desire to contribute to her life and, I think I can be of value to her in many other ways that work better for both of us, and now that I am thinking about this, I rather like how it feels to me to remember that I am of value already no matter what." I felt immediate relief and a shift in my energy. My body sighed and I felt significantly more peaceful and free within.
As I focused on choosing more good-feeling thoughts, a single thought, attracted to me by nature of the Law of Attraction, powerfully took me to an even greater level of joy and relief: "I don't have to figure everything out and neither does she!" First, there was a hushed silence within, and then I felt waves of glorious and joyous freedom from within my whole being with that single liberating thought. I felt like whooping and jumping up and down, and I did!
I love the process because it concretely shows me that I absolutely have complete and total freedom to think whatever I want, to either uplift or depress myself and my life. I get to discover what thoughts and life-choices feel good to me. More importantly, I get to be in touch again with my own innate wisdom and to reconnect with what feels so good deep in my soul.
It is such a delicious feeling to feel happy for no reasons other than it feels so great to be alive!
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