Tell me your thoughts about "The Secret"

[Disneynutbsv]

Disneynutbsv- I like to decorate cakes too! I find it very soothing. However, I havea tendency to eat too much of my creations.

lol

 

[Imzadi]

When I decorate cakes I feel like its my "Therapy", I just enjoy it so! I've had a lot of peace lately, which may sound odd because my kids have had an abundance of friends over, but....I love it when their friends come over. Seeing them so happy and enjoying themselves, I Just love it, now its not "peaceful", but I feel good knowing that they are happy. Right now I have 3 sleeping boys in the living room so it is peaceful .

Decorated cakes might be a perfect reward for weekly positive thinking contests. You can involve all the kid friends too, so your kids are in an environment steeped in positive thinking. Maybe make "milestone cookies" with numbers on them: 5 positive thoughts, 10 positive thoughts.

Here's the two posts that go together for my cake decorating story:

http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=26327837&postcount=264

http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=26344049&postcount=270

 

[Disneynutbsv]

Awesome Great post!

 

[JodyLynC]

Instead, sit me on a mountain top, in silence, at these places I keep being drawn to over & over, where I can SEE the grandeur of the Grand Canyon, Sedona, AZ, or Monument Valley, AZ, and I am as peaceful and as connected to God as any of those people Omming. For me, I see the sun & shadows dancing & moving on God's creation and I am awed. When I hear the quiet wind blowing through the forests and canyons, I hear the whisper of God in the trees. When I see a hawk circling & soaring high above, I am witnessing one of God's miracles.

Instead of an "emptying of the mind meditation," I do Julia Cameron's "Morning pages" exercise. She refers to it as "Brain drain." In the act of busily writing our thoughts, whines and complaints down to get them out of us, (emptying us,) the positive ideas, creative impulses, intuitions & thoughts & feelings spring forward. We didn't even know we were thinking them. They come forth and crystalize into wholeness. After 3 full pages of quick, stream of conciousness writing, there is a freedom & feeling of centeredness & peace.

I agree with the idea of communing with nature. Years ago I was going thru a rough patch. I treated myself to a mini vacation in St. Thomas. My plan was to try to figure out things in my life. I planned on doing all these mind exercizes and asking myself all these questions. Do you know what I thought about? Not one damn thing. Every morning, I walked out of my room and had breakfast outside facing the beach. I thought of nothing. Just watched the water drift into shore. To the west of the beach was a long natural rock wall. I spent hours watching the waves crash against the rocks. There was no thought at all, just absorbing.

After breakfast, I would sit in a lounge chair or a hammock on the beach with a book. I don't think I read more than a few pages the whole time I was there. I kept getting "distracted" by nature. I didn't figure out a single thing, but my mind was calmer and I felt much more at peace. I call it a mind enema.

I think this October I will make weekend reservations at a lodge somewhere in the state. I want to go someplace where I and my family can walk thru beautiful woods and enjoy nature.

Those morning pages sound intriguing. I'll have to look into that.

 

[lisaviolet]

`[/I]

Thought patterns and emotional patterns become habits that people fall into without realizing it. There are about 19 different emotions, but in an average day, most people only experience about 5 of them. That also becomes their comfort zone. Some emotions even become addicting.


:

That is so interesting.

 

[lisaviolet]

I agree with the idea of communing with nature. Years ago I was going thru a rough patch. I treated myself to a mini vacation in St. Thomas. My plan was to try to figure out things in my life. I planned on doing all these mind exercizes and asking myself all these questions. Do you know what I thought about? Not one damn thing. Every morning, I walked out of my room and had breakfast outside facing the beach. I thought of nothing. Just watched the water drift into shore. To the west of the beach was a long natural rock wall. I spent hours watching the waves crash against the rocks. There was no thought at all, just absorbing.

After breakfast, I would sit in a lounge chair or a hammock on the beach with a book. I don't think I read more than a few pages the whole time I was there. I kept getting "distracted" by nature. I didn't figure out a single thing, but my mind was calmer and I felt much more at peace. I call it a mind enema.

I think this October I will make weekend reservations at a lodge somewhere in the state. I want to go someplace where I and my family can walk thru beautiful woods and enjoy nature.

What a lovely story.

I'm a person that loves a road trip. And feel that way when I'm driving through WV/VA and into the Carolinas on my way to WDW. I enjoy the drive as much as WDW. I've often said that it's therapeutic. Thanks for reminding me JodyLyn.

Lisa

 

[moon]

I'm glad Becky was able to define what Tolle really meant. I also wanted to point out, that just like with this thread, cut & piece different techniques that work for you, and discard the parts of the "advice" that don't. Everyone's on a separate journey.

When I used to go take classes at the holistic learning center here, I took one class on meditation & chanting. They had us sit with our legs crossed, close our eyes, empty our minds and hum or intone the word/sound Om or Aum. It is a mystical or sacred syllable in the Hindu, Jain and Buddhist religions. It is THE most important sound in Hinduism. It is believed to be the basic sound of the world and to contain all other sounds. It is a mantra or prayer in itself. If repeated with the correct intonation, it can resonate throughout the body so that the sound penetrates to the centre of one's being.

I didn't know at the time how much of a visual person I am. In fact, I am hyper-visual, I'm talking Steven Spielberg hyper-visual. Now if you give me a Speilberg film, with super special effects, teaching me I am connected to other beings & powers in the Universe, I'm there! Oh, wait... he already made films like that: E.T. & Close Encounters.

But I sat in the room full of people Omming and after 20 minutes, I was like -->

. Meanwhile, people sitting next to me would feel so peaceful, calm, centered, open & connected to the Universe & God. This technique may work for millions of people and various religions, it just doesn't resonate with me. And no, doing it longer didn't help.

Instead, sit me on a mountain top, in silence, at these places I keep being drawn to over & over, where I can SEE the grandeur of the Grand Canyon, Sedona, AZ, or Monument Valley, AZ, and I am as peaceful and as connected to God as any of those people Omming. For me, I see the sun & shadows dancing & moving on God's creation and I am awed. When I hear the quiet wind blowing through the forests and canyons, I hear the whisper of God in the trees. When I see a hawk circling & soaring high above, I am witnessing one of God's miracles.

Instead of an "emptying of the mind meditation," I do Julia Cameron's "Morning pages" exercise. She refers to it as "Brain drain." In the act of busily writing our thoughts, whines and complaints down to get them out of us, (emptying us,) the positive ideas, creative impulses, intuitions & thoughts & feelings spring forward. We didn't even know we were thinking them. They come forth and crystalize into wholeness. After 3 full pages of quick, stream of conciousness writing, there is a freedom & feeling of centeredness & peace.

Piece together what works for YOU.

Thank you for this Imzadi! Yes, I've been thinking that we can learn something from here and there, and pick out what works for us.

I've wanted so much to be able to meditate, but it's so hard for me. I just can't quiet my mind. I've read about others experiences as they meditate and I want to experience that -plus I've heard that it's a great manifesting tool. I swear, if I had the money I'd take a transendental Meditation course, but my, it's like 2k for the course!

I also wanted to thank you for the you tube link of "What the bleep do we know". I sat on Saturday around midnight to watch it after everyone had gone to sleep ( I wanted to give it my full attention without being interrupted). I was so enthralled, viewing again some clips, and when it ended I thought about an hour and and a half had passed. Imagine my shock when I saw it was 4:A.M. The movie is really entertaining, and surprisingly funny. The scene with the cells doing Robert Palmer in the "Addicted To Love" video was hilarious! I hated, HATED that video when it came out, but the scene is really funny. There are also some great songs.

When I saw how late it was I went to bed, but I could not stop thinking about the content of the movie, so I didn't sleep that night. I need to see it again a few times for sure to get it all in.

It's a great movie

 

[JodyLynC]

From whitebison.org:
If we sat in a circle and put an object in the center of the circle and we all described what we saw, everyone would see different points of views from each other. Some would even see opposites because they would be sitting on opposite sides of the circle. In other words, you don't have to see what I see for you to be right. In fact, everyone in the circle is right based on their own point of view. If we are willing to listen to everyone's point of view, then we can get a more accurate description of the object in the center. This is one way to put our minds together. When we get the clarity from each other, we should give thanks and be grateful to each other.

I am grateful to you all!

 

[lisaviolet]

From whitebison.org:
If we sat in a circle and put an object in the center of the circle and we all described what we saw, everyone would see different points of views from each other. Some would even see opposites because they would be sitting on opposite sides of the circle. In other words, you don't have to see what I see for you to be right. In fact, everyone in the circle is right based on their own point of view. If we are willing to listen to everyone's point of view, then we can get a more accurate description of the object in the center. This is one way to put our minds together. When we get the clarity from each other, we should give thanks and be grateful to each other.

I am grateful to you all!

That's lovely Jody.

 

[KikiFan]

I am so, so incredibly happy that I found my church!!

Yay! I'm so happy for you Jody!

Our PBS station is showing those two shows as well this weekend. I've seen both before, and have them on tape. I love that joke!!

I just signed up to see Wayne Dyer in October. He is going to be in Michigan. Our spiritual center has a group going up together on a bus. I'm so excited!!

Heh. Dyer is so funny. I saw him live once and he talked about all his kids. I think he's got 6? Anyway he rubs his balding head and says, "And you thought this was just a balding head, but it's the solar panel for my love machine!"
He had us in stitches.

I saw Dyer, Louise Hey, and Marianne Williamson at this event years ago when I first discovered the new thought movement. It was such a powerful experience, but in retrospect I don't think I fully appreciated how incredibly lucky I was to see all these people under one roof. This was like 18 years ago - so they were just starting out too.

Imzadi I totally understand how you feel about the meditation. I have a very difficult time with it myself. About the only way I can do it is if it's a a really good guided meditation.

I do most of my meditation on the move. I love to walk and thats my meditation time. I have this whole little ritual that I follow that makes me really feel clear and connected.

 

[Planogirl]

The idea of communing with Nature interests me.

I once visited the Ouchita Mountains in Arkansas by myself and at dusk took a drive. I pulled over and got out at an overlook and just watched the shadows getting longer and longer over the hills. There was no one around and no houses or other businesses in the area. It was completely silent except for a grasshopper that for some reason decided to sit on my knee. It was a strange yet refreshing moment. I felt completely at peace which is very rare for me.

I need to do that again.

 

[Imzadi]

oops! I missed Goofyzgurl in my backtracking. The copy buttom must not have depressed.

Wow, I love how this thread is going. I wanted to share my experience of The Secret with you guys. I bought the dvd about a year ago.......and never watched it until maybe 4 months ago. I've always tried to live positively but until I watched the movie, I didn't really have a direction. Sounds weird I know. It's been interesting how everyone sees me b/c I am seeing myself differently. Even dh has been asking, why I'm so happy when he gets on the phone with me. Dh has been deployed for the past 11 months, but we like to find something that we can do together and discuss it on the phone, like read a book or watch a movie. I had been telling him about the Secret, and he bought it and watched it. He started telling me about it and I finally sat down and watched it. For over a year since I've had the movie, I had always told myself I didn't have time. Well, after I talked to dh after I he watched the movie, I told myself that I had time and I was going to watch it that following weekend. That weekend, my parents asked to take dd's for the weekend. I sat down, watched it, took notes and started a gratitude journal.

It's amazing what has happened since then. In terms of career wise, I finally the job that I've been wanting since I graduated college. I had been applying with this employer off and on (more on) for the past 7 years. At one point I was even sent a letter that said that I wasn't qualified for an entry level admin position with this employer. Well, I start on monday!!! Dh got his promotion last month. He's also coming home a couple of days earlier than he expected from his deployment. That's the day that I was counting down to so it wasn't a surprise to me

Now I'd like to read a New Earth and some Wayne Dyer books.

I loaned it to two coworkers, one has really into it and we discuss it a lot. The other told me that she "researched" it through wikipedia and didn't believe it in and that it was too simplistic. I started to email her about her "research" but my other coworker was talking about it and we didn't want to deal with the other ones negativity.

Thanks for sharing your story! I love hearing how the principles work for others & what combination of stuff you use. I love how you & DH are doing this together.

It reminds me of how I was talking to my ex-BF on the phone late one nite. He said how he wanted to get off to read some more of a book before going to sleep. I casually asked him which book, thinking it was going to be some snoozer spy novel that guys like to read. He said, "The Celestine Prophecy."

I said, "That's a funny coincidence. My sister, who never sends me anything, out of the blue, sent that same book to me!"

He said, "Interesting! Start reading it and keep in mind about coincidences, because it will come up in the book."

We ended up reading it together and sharing a lot of the same spiritual thoughts & learnings.

As for your negative co-worker, heck, if she wants complicated, send her to me! I can give her complicated, they don't necessarily work any better or faster.

Yes, leave her alone for now. Twelve step programs like Alcoholics Anonymous work on the principle of, "Attraction, not promotion." We are working with the Laws of Attraction here, so I would say the same holds true for us.

Notice how your DH noticed a positive difference in you & asked about it. If and when the co-worker is ready, she will ask. She may be actually snarky the first few times, blowing it off as coincidence, or you being too simplistic thinking the events are tied. She's still not ready, but at least is curious. Just smile and say, "Thank you for asking!" and walk away.

 

[Imzadi]

I agree with the idea of communing with nature. Years ago I was going thru a rough patch. I treated myself to a mini vacation in St. Thomas. . .Just watched the water drift into shore. To the west of the beach was a long natural rock wall. I spent hours watching the waves crash against the rocks. There was no thought at all, just absorbing.

I kept getting "distracted" by nature. I didn't figure out a single thing, but my mind was calmer and I felt much more at peace. I call it a mind enema.

Those morning pages sound intriguing. I'll have to look into that.

Jody, you remind me, I have to head down to the ocean a few more times before summer's over. It's August already!


Here is an excerpt from the beginning of Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way, in which she explains about the Morning Pages and the Artist's Date.

http://www.theartistsway.com/pdfs/basictools.pdf

Everyone, don't get hung up on thinking these tools are just for "artists." Remember cut & piece the tools that work for you. For Julia, we are all artists in the sense we are creating & expressing our lives. She calls God/the Universe: The Creator instead. That The Creator is naturally creative. He created us, and naturally we carry the essence & need to create in our souls too. It is self expression. Whether it is a beautifully decorated cake, a great dinner, an itinerary for a vacation that fits together, an business report or an outfit that expresses our mood. Even problem solving is an act of creation.

The Morning pages are a tool for contacting your self, clarifying issues, putting down nagging doubts, coming up with ideas, venting, writing out dreams...

I've been doing morning pages since 1996. Sometimes I vent, sometimes I make lists, lots of lists, sometimes I write stories, doodle, once I wrote a fairy tale, a few poems, I come up with my ideas for making art. Other times, it's therapy for me, as I come up with my own solutions. I've found I am my biggest cheerleader in my morning pages. That sometimes I always knew the way, but didn't trust myself - yet it showed up on the pages, when I read them much later. I am my biggest nurturer and defender, when I vent an injustice. My heart knows the way to heal itself.

The Artist's Date, can be called a Date with Self. It's about recharging, or as Julia calls it, "Restocking the pond" after it gets fished out. We need time alone, simply to replenish, find our own rhythm again, and hear our selves.

It doesn't have to be long. Forty minutes is fine. It doesn't have to be expensive But it always has to be alone. Sitting alone, in a coffee shop, watching people, you can come up with anything to recharge yourself. Scribble a story for fun at each visit, on napkins, about a boy who goes to a magical school and learns he's a wizard...

You go window shopping and you realize the living room depresses you because the color needs changing. You just saw lovely blue curtains on clearance that remind you of the ones at the Disney resort, and they would make you & the family feel cheerful every time everyone walked into the living room and saw them.

From whitebison.org:
If we sat in a circle and put an object in the center of the circle and we all described what we saw, everyone would see different points of views from each other. Some would even see opposites because they would be sitting on opposite sides of the circle. In other words, you don't have to see what I see for you to be right. In fact, everyone in the circle is right based on their own point of view. If we are willing to listen to everyone's point of view, then we can get a more accurate description of the object in the center. This is one way to put our minds together. When we get the clarity from each other, we should give thanks and be grateful to each other.

I am grateful to you all!

Jody, that's excellent!

 

[beckmrk04]

You know, you guys are really reminding me how much I have wanted to be outside lately. I have been longing to go see something- the Grand Canyon, the Smoky Mountains, Yellowstone- something not man-made. I'm really feeling a pull to spend some time in nature- no cell phones, computers, tvs, game systems.

I can't really take a trip right now, but I think I'm going to head to some hiking trails maybe this weekend. There are some near the Mississippi river, and it would be good for my body and mind.

 

[JodyLynC]

Do you have a mission statement? According to Stephen Covey,

Benefits of a Personal Mission Statement:
-Encourages you to think deeply about your life
-Helps you examine your innermost thoughts and feelings
-Clarifies what is really important to you
-Expands your perspective
-Imprints self-determined values and purposes firmly in your mind
-Provides direction and commitment to values
-Enables you to make daily progress toward long-term goals
-Provides the first or mental creation of your desired results for your life

Writing a mission statement involves answering a series questions:
- What things do I want to have that I feel are important?
- What am I about?
- What are the qualities of character I would like to emulate?
- What legacy to I want to leave?

I have put together some written exercises that were used by Covey in coming up with a mission statement. You should have a good half hour of quiet time so that you can look deeply within yourself and answer the questions in the exercises accurately.

I try to do this every few years and encourage others who are on a personal journey to do so as well as I believe it helps define one's path.

If you are interested in these exercises, PM me with your email address and I will send them to you in an email attachment so you can either print them up or answer them in word. (Personally, I prefer paper and pen for these exercises.)

 

[JodyLynC]

From Deepak Chopra's monthly newsletter Namaste:
http://www.chopra.com/namaste/aug08/deepak

 

[tinkerdorabelle]

Wow guys, I just popped back in after being away for a couple weeks. I'm so happy to know that What the Bleep has helped so many, I watched it a few years ago and now I'm so happy to see parts on You Tube. Bc of that, this site and info from here, and watching Wayne Dyer again, this past week or two for me has been friggin AMAZING! OMG. I really have been seriously putting forth these exercises and so many wonderful things have happened. One thing in particular is my relationship with my DH has gone from 15 years of being somewhat distant emotionally to each other to him saying he loves me every single day, hugging me, buying me flowers, this is a miracle guys. I swear to you. Something happened that he said "made him realize he was taking me for granted". That is a direct quote, he has NEVER said that to me in all those years! I put out there I wanted more closeness to him, thought about it, imagined it, and prayed. I also needed healing from things in my past from over 20 years back that I have been carrying around, which also took place! I saw friends I had not seen in over 25 years, they live across the country and came into town and there was such a healing and energy that took place from that, which lead to other things, its hard to explain, that lead to this healing. I had also been praying that I wanted to have more substantial relationships (some of the people in my life are not always the best positive energy). ALSO, I've been waking up and FEELING GOD's presence, this love and peace and connectiveness. BUT MAIN THING I REALIZED from all this, is you have to really CONTINUALLY fill your mind with this positive message. Even the Bible says "Faith comes from hearing" I wasn't doing that as much as I needed. Its VERY very important. I'm also going to get the Secret from what I've read here. I've learned this here also from many of you all, but it was important to me. I come from a Christian childhood although I went on a spiritual search since I was a teen, and have always learned from other faiths myself, I still felt a kind of "guilt". Jesus and Christianity do say these same type things for anyone interested as others have mentioned here also. So I'm so happy to see this post is still going and I'm going to continue to learn more from you all! Thanks again I also feel better when connected to nature and doing some meditation. Thats something else I've been doing A LOT and I think that helps me also.
"I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."
Matthew 17:20
"If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it will obey you.
Luke 17:6
"Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be taken up and cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it will be granted him.
Mark 11:23
And Jesus said to him, "'If You can?' All things are possible to him who believes.

 

[tinkerdorabelle]

Another thing I want to add that is so important and I learned also is that its not JUST BELIEVING and seeing things happening and manifesting in your life, you have to LIVE in the Light. You have to be the person that God and the Universe want you to be. A loving being. Its all about LOVE. Its very simple, God is LOVE. The Universe is LOVE. I love when Wayne Dyer quotes the St. Francis prayer "Lord, make me an instrument of your peace, that where there is hatred, I may bring love; that where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness; that where there is *******, I may bring harmony; that where there is error, I may bring truth; that where there is dought, I may bring faith; that where there is despair, I may bring hope; that where there are shadows, I may bring light; that where there is sadness, I may bring joy. . . "

 

[Imzadi]

Good going tinkerdorabelle!!! Again, I love hearing people's personal journeys with this stuff.


A couple of more tips on doing the Morning Pages for anyone interested:

• Write in a beat-up old spiral notebook. This way you are afraid of messing up the pages of a pretty journal. You won't feel you can only write down "important" or profound thoughts. Remember, part of this is a "Brain Drain."

• It should be done in the morning. This is before your brain is fully turned on, and all your usual defenses & patterns are in place. It allows you to clear the fog in your brain. You'll notice affects more readily. Your subconscious has been working on things while you were sleeping. It's time to find out what they are.

• Try getting up just a half hour or 20 minutes earlier. This gives you 20-30 minutes of quiet time before the house comes alive.

• You may have a few minutes after the children get on the bus.

• You may find 15 minutes in a coffee shop on your way to work gives you the time you need to write, and, will add to the pleasure. Or taking 15 minutes before you start your work or home routine may be the time for you.

 

[Imzadi]

I do most of my meditation on the move. I love to walk and thats my meditation time. I have this whole little ritual that I follow that makes me really feel clear and connected.

Yes, there are many types of meditation depending on what kind of person you are and which "modality" you tend to prefer. Some people are audio people, so a sound meditation like the chanting or humming is great for them.

I already explained how I'm visual. :magnify

Disneynutbsv may be an olfactory person, since she loves to bake, smell & taste cakes. She even said it's her "therapy" & feels peaceful. She is probably also a visual person too, as she likes to decorate.

There's kinesthetic people who prefer movement, and are more in tune with their bodies: athletes, dancers, etc. An interesting "coincidence is that Julia Cameron's sequel to The Artist's Way, is called, Walking in this World. where she advised to schedule (at least) one 20 minute walk a week, to get in tune with your body and slow down the rhythm we tend to get into rushing around. Break the pattern, which is a concept I already explained about.

Here's an excerpt from an interview Julia Cameron gave:

"Walking in This World" makes the case that beyond the heart and the soul, the body is also intimately involved in the creative process. How?

When we walk things tend to become clear to us. You know a lot of us intuitively know this, like if we have a relationship that's not working very well we'll go out for a long walk on it. And we'll think oh we're being so moody but we may come back saying I should stay in it or I have to break up. We automatically access our bodies just from instinct. This is also why if somebody has a trauma, bodywork is often used to release grief.

What I'm hoping to do is to get people to integrate their body into their spiritual practice and into their art. And many times in creative situations your stomach will start to go crazy and it'll be, "Don't trust this producer," "This agent isn't right for you." Your body is the first line of defense signaling danger. And so creative people really need to learn to listen to their bodies, because often their heads are slower to catch on to something suddenly wrong. We tend to want to lead with our heads. We tend to say, "That's not rational." And actually our intuition -- which we access often through walking -- our intuition is our early warning system.


As far as doing something physical -- can it be anything, or is there something about walking that particularly refreshes your soul?

I think walking is a spiritual practice, an ancient spiritual practice for a good reason. There is something about walking that really integrates the body and heart and psyche. I experience sort of a physical shift when I walk. I can literally feel it in sort of the back of my brain at the top of my head. It's as though I go out on a walk worried and somewhere, maybe 20 minutes into it I suddenly am in the moment. And I'm not saying that skating or roller-skating or running don't work but I think that aborigines and Native Americans go on walk-abouts and vision quests for a reason. And also walking is easy, you don't need any special stuff. Anybody can do it you can do it anyplace, you could do it in the center of Manhattan you can do it in Los Angeles -- although people stare at you when you don't drive your car. You can do it in New Mexico you can do it Chicago, you can do it in Des Moines.​