The Global Conversation

Tag: 2012

  • A “Dear James” letter

    I was born on the last day of the year.  So the annual transition of “out with the old and in with the new” feels especially pivotal to me as I reflect with gratitude upon what once was, I look forward with hope and anticipation for what is yet to come, and I explore more deeply the larger reason for my birth.  And, yes, I do make some “New Year’s Resolutions”; however, they have nothing to do with resolving to fit into last year’s pair of blue jeans.  And while more money flowing into my bank account rather than out of it would bring some much-needed financial relief, I will not be making that my top priority either.  Nor will I be committing to get a better job or setting my sights on traveling around the world sampling exotic foods.

    Part of the reason why I believe New Year’s Resolutions “fail” is because the purpose for which we enter into such agreements with ourselves has very little to do with the purpose of our lives.  I am sharing a letter I wrote to my 18-year-old son, as it captures the essence of how I feel about the arrival of a new year.  The gifts I have been given the opportunity to receive and give within the context of my relationship with my son have been some of the most profound and life-changing.  And I believe deeply that by allowing the gifts to flow through me to you, they become a gift to us all.

    “Dear James,

    As night gently falls on 2012 and the promise of a new dawn in 2013 hangs in the air, billions of people around the world will be resolving and committing to make changes in their life, hoping to stick to long-lasting resolutions that will finally deliver to them the things in life we all desire most — abundance, prosperity, better health, joy, security, happiness, and love — believing that this time, this year, their well-intentioned efforts will resemble more than simply a “to do” list for the first week of January.

    I wonder if you, too, feel that yearning, if you hear a beckoning to a higher calling, if you desire to make new choices with an eye on shaping and defining not just your experience for a particular year, but with an eye on shaping and defining the entire purpose of your life.  Ah, the purpose of life — the question that has perplexed scholars and religious teachers around the world, the question which has led countries into war and tested and stretched the fabric of every relationship we enter into, the question that is most looked at in the final moments of our physical being here on earth:

    What is the purpose of my life?

    My Beloved Son, I am here to share with you the answer.

    I will begin by sharing with you what the purpose of your life is not.  As my good friend, Neale, has shared many, many times, the purpose of life has very little to do, if anything, with “getting the girl, getting the car, getting the job, getting the house, getting the spouse, getting the kids, getting the better job, getting the better house, getting the promotion, getting the grandkids, getting the gray hair, getting the office in the corner, getting the retirement watch, getting the illness, getting the burial plot, and getting the hell out.”

    And so far, in the 46 years that I have been blessed to have on this earth, this has demonstrated itself to be true – life is not about any of those things.  I’ve had most of the things on that list, and some of them more than once.  And I am here to tell you that the purpose for my life was not realized or remembered by “getting” or “having” any one of them.

    So if life really isn’t about any of those things, then what is it about?

    This is what I know to be true:

    The purpose of your life is to create the purpose of your life.

    When you were a very young child, it mattered not to me whether you played baseball or joined Cub Scouts, whether you went swimming or read a book, or whether you ate pizza or spaghetti.  And now, as a young man who is living on his own, it matters not to me which career you choose or what area of the world you reside in, what you have for dinner, how you enjoy your spare time, or what kind of clothes you wear.

    Do not confuse “not mattering” with “not loving.”  My love for you is without conditions.  These choices would only matter to me if somehow the level of my love for you was attached to a particular outcome designed by me or hinged to a misguided idea that somehow you could fail in this Life game.

    I want for you what you want for you.

    And here is where it gets even better, James:

    God wants for us what we want for us.

    Society will tell you that in order to “earn” God’s love, you must be a certain way and do certain things.  Have you questioned this for yourself?  Have you wondered why a God who is “unconditionally loving” would place such conditions upon his love?  Have you dared to imagine a different kind of God?

    And if God wants for us what we want for us, and the purpose of our lives have nothing to do with what we have or what we get, what will the arrival of a new year mean to you?   What will you strive for?  What will you draw upon to ascribe meaning to the experiences in your life?

    Your life is an opportunity.  Within every occurrence, there is an opportunity for you.  And within every relationship, you are an opportunity for someone else.  Will you see those moments and embrace those gifts, both those that are being given to you and those you have to give?  As the world collectively and consciously welcomes the New Year, perhaps the largest number of people purposefully and simultaneously placing positive energy and intention into the world, how could our world not become a better place?  Where will you be in that process?  And WHO will you be in that process?

    What will you decide and what will you declare the purpose of your life to be, my beloved son?”

    What will the arrival of a New Year mean to you, my friends?  A new car?  More money?  Fitting in last year’s blue jeans?  Or perhaps at last the answer to one of life’s biggest questions:  What is the purpose of my life?

     (Lisa McCormack is the Managing Editor & Administrator of The Global Conversation. She is also a member of the Spiritual Helper team atwww.ChangingChange.net, a website offering emotional and spiritual support. To connect with Lisa, please e-mail her at Lisa@TheGlobalConversation.com.)

  • Lovingly Release the Old, Powerfully Invite the New

    Instead of answering a question this week, I thought I’d share a very powerful New Year’s ritual you may want to try to properly say goodbye to this significant year, and embrace the year ahead with open arms.  I often hear the phrases “good riddens” or “I’m so done with this year” at the end of each year, in people’s attempt to leave behind the old and start fresh.  What most people don’t realize, however, is that when you speak in such negative tones, you are actually creating more resistance around what you are trying to let go of and are basically inviting more of it into the next year.  So don’t do that!  Try the following instead 🙂 :

    On New Year’s Eve, set aside some alone time (or do this with someone you can easily share stuff like this with) to be with what has occurred in the last year, and tune into what you want to see in the next year.  Follow these steps:

    1.         Create your space.  Making this a ritualistic experience adds to the energy of what you are doing, and makes it more meaningful.  So light that candle, say a prayer, take deep breaths, burn incense, etc.

    2.         Properly say goodbye to 2012.  Take out a sheet of paper, and begin writing all that you are ready to say goodbye to from the last year and even prior to it, all of those things that you recognize have served their purpose and are no longer needed in your life.  I say “properly”, because in order to truly release something, it needs to be lovingly released.  In other words, rather than saying “I’m so done with that” with an edge of regret or disdain, shift your energy to being grateful for the presence of this thing in your life, and the acceptance that it was there for a reason and there was a gift in it.

    3.         Lovingly release.  In a safe way, burn the piece of paper, or tear it up, bury it whatever works for you, and as you do so give thanks to God, the Universe or whomever it is you appeal to with such things.

    4.         Celebrate!  When you are finished, it is so important to celebrate.  Not only does it lock in the experience, but it is an acknowledgment of this loving, important thing you just did for yourself.  Celebrating can happen in many different ways; maybe pouring a glass of champagne or eating some decadent chocolate, or perhaps taking a luxurious bubble bath or going out to celebrate with a loved one.

    5.         Powerfully invite the new.  On New Year’s Day, or as close to it as you can get, take some time to tune into and get clear on all that you’d like to invite into your life for 2013.  Again, create your space and take out a sheet of paper writing out all of those things you’d like to see show up, both physical and non-physical things within yourself you’d like to see emerge.  This can be done as a list, a letter to yourself, a drawing, etc.  When you’re finished, seal it in an envelope and keep it somewhere safe that you’ll remember to take it out and read it next December (it helps to mark a reminder on your calendar).

    6.         Act as if and walk your talk.  Don’t simply sit back and wait for these things to show up.  In the days, weeks and months that follow, consciously choose to think, speak and act in accordance with the things you wrote down for 2013.  Set some goals and milestones, hire a coach to inspire you and keep you on track, enlist a good friend to help hold you accountable.

    Wishing you happiness, joy, peace, love and fulfillment in the New Year, and in this process of becoming more of Who You Really Are.

    Nova

     

    (Nova Wightman is a CWG Life Coach, as well as the owner and operator of Go Within Life Coaching, www.gowithincoaching.com, specializing in helping individuals blend their spirituality with their humanity in a way that makes life more enjoyable, easy, and fulfilling.  She can be reached at Nova@theglobalconversation.com. )

    (If you would like a question considered for publication, please submit your request to: Advice@TheGlobalConversation.com, where our team is waiting to hear from you.)

  • Happy Birth Day

    If today was your Birth Day, the first day of your life on earth, knowing what you know now, what would you do differently?

    What would you change?

    Today, December 21, 2012, may hold significant meaning to you.  Or perhaps it may just be like any other day, holding no more meaning or significance other than the fact that it is Friday, marking the end of a long workweek, simply the day before the weekend.

    To me, this day represents opportunity.  Whether we embrace this day as one of importance or not, the opportunity is still presenting itself to us to create and recreate our idea of who we are according to and in alignment with our next-highest thought and next-highest vision.   We can choose to step into that opportunity…or not.

    It really is as simple as that.

    Perhaps this day is a symbol of the space between “what once was” and “what is yet to come,” a realm where everything is fluid and free, expanding and contracting, undecided and willing, hopeful and perfect….a pristine representation of the Glorious Moment of Now.

    Maybe today reflects that moment we experience at the end of our exhale, just before our body begins to inhale another breath, a brief glimpse of nothing needed, nothing wanted…the stillness in our beingness, the peacefulness in our completeness.

    Perhaps today will mark the end of life as we know it, but not in the way we have been coerced into believing.  Within the space of our next choice, we could put an end to many of the conditions in our world which interfere with each and every person’s ability to experience joy and freedom and love and companionship and prosperity and comfort.

    Some people think the opposite of love is hate.  However, the opposite of love is not hate.  The opposite of love is indifference.   For me, December 21, 2012, symbolizes a return to love, a return to the essence of who we really are.

    Am I standing in the light of my own truth?

    How am I showing up in my relationships?

    Why am I right here…right now?

    How may I serve?

    This particular date has received a lot of attention, but we don’t have to wait for a particular day or month or year to create change.  We can do so within the infinite number of Birth Moments in our lives.   As Conversations with God offered to us, “The deepest secret is that life is not a process of discovery, but a process of creation.  You are not discovering yourself, but creating yourself anew.”   

    Birthdays are days to celebrate.  And birthdays are often a time to give and receive gifts.  So today I celebrate our collective birth and offer my presence as my gift so that each and every person I encounter shall have an opportunity to return to love and to know and experience God.

    Happy Birth Day.

    (Lisa McCormack is the Managing Editor & Administrator of The Global Conversation.  She is also a member of the Spiritual Helper team atwww.ChangingChange.net, a website offering emotional and spiritual support. To connect with Lisa, please e-mail her at Lisa@TheGlobalConversation.com.

  • 2012 – what is the hype about?

    As I sought guidance to write my first article for Global Conversation, the answer came:  Write about 2012.

    Yes, 2012! Movies have been made, Prophecies written, YouTube videos recorded, and Facebook statuses consistently updated for 2012, a year that seems to have baffled, engaged, and intrigued most of the world in one way or the other.

    Beside those who are on a conscious spiritual journey and are somehow sensitive to the energetic shifts that seem to be occurring almost in every part of the world in a subtle or not such a subtle manner, 2012 has grabbed attention of even those who are not on a spiritual journey per se, as if there was ever such a thing.  And we know there isn’t, whether our egos allow us to admit this or not.  We are all on a spiritual journey, living this dream, wanting to believe it is real, or make-believing it to be real, so that we are able to experience it as fully as possible and engage in it with all our resources and faculties.

    2012, however, for most of us has been a sudden waking up from that dream and almost rising above it a little to observe and witness the dream as one would a valley from a cliff top.

    So what is this hype about?

    What is happening here, right now?

    What are we experiencing?

    Why are we all feeling this strange-weird feeling that we are not in our bodies, as if we are walking a few inches above the ground?

    Why is it that some people have managed to attain remarkable breakthroughs with their new ventures, and some other equally spiritually minded people (or more) with great intentions have stumbled upon roadblocks?

    Why are we feeling fearful or angry as we have never felt before?

    Why are we feeling this disdain for putting up with old systems and old mindsets?

    Why do we, more than any other time, want people to hear us out, really hear us out?

    Why do we really feel like expressing ourselves in ways we have never done before, and as truthfully as ever?

    Why do some of us feel like leaving — for those who haven’t already done so — our old jobs and do something we never thought we could?  For example, setting up a rainwater harvesting plant?

    Why have some of us released old relationships, partnerships, or even switched friends to a whole new set?

    Why are some of us suddenly being drawn towards spiritual texts and mentors?

    Why are we suddenly feeling as if we know more than we would like to admit to others or ourselves?

    Why have some of us begun having visions of spiritual figures or feel spiritual presence around us, even if we have never meditated before?

    Why do some of us suddenly feel our life work has not even begun, even though we haven’t quite figured out what it is?

    Why have some of us suddenly become conscious of human rights, animal rights, and even rights of nature as if it was a living, breathing entity — which it is — something we previously paid little attention to?

    Why do some of us feel drawn towards contributing more and more towards betterment of environment and children?

    Why are we becoming more aware of the futility of the goods money can buy?

    Why are we suddenly moving away from traditional religious concepts as if it is not enough and there is more to it, as if some information has been withheld and as if we are the holders of the very information that has been withheld from us?

    Why do some people have dreams of flying?

    Why are we finding ourselves unable to put up with other people’s deceit or why are we able to see clearly through other people’s intentions and their thought process?

    Why are some of us more sensitized to crowds or certain kinds of media or even a lifestyle that we previously enjoyed?

    Why are we feeling this urge to change our diet or for some people to go fully vegetarian or vegan?

    Why are some of us feeling as if we have some special powers, something indefinable that we can’t yet place a finger upon?

    Why do some of us feel as if we want our rightful place under the sun?

    Why do some of us have this urge to enter politics or be a social activist?

    Why have some of us initiated our spiritual meeting groups without much formal training?

    Why have some of us begun to see some colors at times, colors that are mostly invisible to the physical eye, but we are still able to see them?

    Why do some of us have heightened extrasensory perceptions?

    Why do some of us feel a sense of despair, a feeling of fatigue, back pain, fever, as if our whole emotional, energetic, and physical system is undergoing a long overdue renewal?

    Why are some of us getting more emotional or are able to feel other people’s emotions?

    Why are some of us going through relationship challenges, professional and personal challenges, and are being forced to make life changes we never imagined we would have to prior to this?

    Why are some of us feeling an urge to reconnect with estranged family members or rekindle old forgotten friendships?

    So many things seem to be happening all at once.  For some it is releasing old wounds of pain and fear. For some it’s a walk of courage and realizing the power of love. But changes seem to be occurring. Almost everywhere we look, there appears to be a swift or a subtle change underway. This change is of the consciousness, of subtle knowingness inside of us, something deep within us is shifting right now, or already has, and it is reformulating our world at cellular and global structural level. Nature is making her voice heard, too.

    And where this change is being resisted, there is a breakdown that will eventually forcefully usher in the change nevertheless, sooner or later. Despondency is in the air right now, but there is also a sense of excitement, exuberance, rejuvenation, warding off old and nihilism, even if it underscored by a sense of fear, chaos, and confusion.

    Fear and struggle often precedes big change and BIG LOVE.  Fear is always present when we are moving forward and upward.  It is scary, far too scary, when we are trying to move and rise against the gravitational forces and inertia that is constantly striving to pull us down and backward, with our ego often whispering to us, we do not need to take the plunge as there is lot of hard work involved.

    It is even scarier when the inertia is caused by old systems and prevalent ways of thinking – the comfort zone.  And there comes a time when comfort zone is comfortable no more, and this is when we are forced to embrace the impending change.

    However, the heart always knows.  It knows that it is in the embracing of what it is fearful of will it ever only truly live. And this is what 2012 is all about:  Big Change and Big Love.

    2012 marks the beginning of a new era in the history of the world. It marks the beginning of a new consciousness to emerge on the planet.  Old systems will slowly begin to give way to new systems. And old ideologies will be replaced with new and refreshing thought leadership, be it in politics, economics, society or philosophy.  An age of ascension it is being called.  And this would be an ascension of consciousness, of spiritual awareness, intentions, of actions, of ideas, of ways of living, and eventually creating a New World, a world that would be inclusive, kind, compassionate, loving and finally peaceful. But this would not occur overnight or in a blink of an eye. It will take some work. And most of this work is being done right now. A lot of spiritual energy is pouring into Earth right now.

    Transformation is underway. Churning has begun at individual and, more importantly, at a collective level. Some of it might be difficult and some of it will flow naturally and seamlessly. It will involve fear and chaos, and finally, it will require courage to mitigate that fear.

    Chaos will eventually give way to clarity. It will take love, a LOT OF LOVE, and finally, it will take the POWER OF LOVE to conquer and pervade all.

    And most importantly, it will take a tacit realization on part of humanity that at end of that day we are all but a miniscule part of the same divinity. The essence of the experience is the same, while its expression might be different.  No one is more privileged than the other.  Karma (of intention, action or inaction) is the only thing that matters. Destiny is a variable. Love is everything. Nothingness is the only truth.

    2012 is the beginning of this new world.

    Hold on to your seats and grab a seat belt. We might be passing through some areas of turbulence. 

    (Mani Goel is an author, healer, artist, teacher and filmmaker who resides in India and Hong Kong. Her first book is titled “Angel’s Wisdom For Your Life- Part 1.”  A former flight attendant, Mani embarked on a conscious spiritual journey after a severe back injury and a chance and serendipitous encounter with a revered Buddhist Rinpoche. She went to set up two companies- Mani Healing and Maaya Productions, and published her first book, with many more works in progress, including the autobiography of her Buddhist Guru through his several reincarnations – to be published in Hindi.  Mani Healing is a spiritual enterprise that aims to bring and present spiritual and healing wisdom to people in a non-dogmatic and non-ritualistic manner.  She regularly teaches and holds workshops and talks. As a natural healer she specializes in intuitive readings and spiritual healings for serious ailments.)