Thursday, January 27, 2011

Why I need to wake up early every morning

I always wanted to be an early riser, but almost every morning I always found myself giving excuses to be in bed for another 10 to 20 minutes after the the alarm goes off. I slept late last night, I couldn't sleep well last night, I feel tired, my body is aching and so on....even though deep in my mind I know I can just be on my feet right away and start my morning routine if I'm determined to do so.

I realized that if I want to be an early riser I have to find a good reason to do so. Avoiding a negative behavior is difficult, but cultivating good behavior for improvement is much more inspiring and energizing. So my focus is not on remedy or rectification but on gaining or benefiting.

What do I gain if I am an early riser?

1. Fresh start
To pull yourself together and jump out of bed early in the morning gives you momentum. When you wake up a little late (as I always did) you are slowly pushing yourself and dragging yourself to be alert. Your mind focuses on the down side of your situation (sleepy, tired, need more rest, etc). The activities that follows after you are out of bed will be slow and inactive compare to when you are jumping out of bed (though I don't really mean jump). The momentum makes your blood in your body flows more faster and makes you more alive. Just find the right focus when you greet the start of your day. Be grateful and smile from your soul.

2. Enjoy my morning routine
Early start in the morning means more time for getting ready for the day. More time to groom yourself neatly, enjoy your breakfast, and if you meditate or do your prayers early in the morning you can perform it more peacefully.

3. Get my day ahead of others
Morning is actually the best part of the day to get things done. The quietness, the calmness and the recharged you, gives you the right mood and energy to complete a few tasks efficiently and mindfully.

The most important point here is to be prepared the night before. Make sure you have a short list (1-3 items) of task to be completed in the morning, and go to bed early. Start your day with a smile from your heart and the world will smile back to you the rest of the day.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Be Truly in Acceptance in this Moment

Life is always full of colors. What makes we feel alive is the changes of colors we have in our life. Imagine having the same exact pattern in life every day. Every little thing is exactly the same; the emotion, the smell, the environment, the gesture, the words, the look, the feelings, from yourself to the people around you, all are exactly the same. How do you feel? Yeah!. Its like watching the same movie every day. Imagine doing it every day for a month. How do you feel?

Yesterday is always not the same as today. At least the shades of colors is not the  same. But still there is always dissatisfaction. There are moments when we want to get out of it as quickly as possible. There are days when we rather be somewhere else, doing something else.

When we are in this kind of situation, the most important thing is to be aware of the situation and accept what is happening at that moment. You may be in resistance, so stop the resistance. Accept whatever it is in that moment. Remember that you have only two things. One is your soul and another is that moment that you are in. Search your soul, "what should I do in this moment that would make the best out of this moment?".

If you have hope for the better future, let go the hope. It doesn't exist; not in this moment. Similarly if you have worries of the future, let them go, they doesn't happen yet. What you hope for and what you worries about, may or may not happen. Don't waste your time and energy thinking about it, you'll miss your precious present moment. You'll end up doing nothing beneficial or of value to your life.

So how do you live in the moment that you are not in favor of? Accept it and make the best out of it, appreciate whatever it is. Let your soul guide you. Just be sincere with you intention; to be beneficial in that moment. Accept what is, be sincere with your intention, let go the future and the past, and be with your soul in the present moment!

The Two Most Valuable Gifts in Life

Every human being has a soul. Without a soul there is no life. When you were born into this world, you are like a clean white blanket, so clean and soft.  So cute and adorable. All normal people would fall in love with a baby the moment they lay their eyes on it. Why? Because it is a pure soul.

A new born baby has not yet develop knowledge and memories. They are very clean and pure. That is how our soul is when it was first given to us... very clean and pure. So beautiful. But as we grow up, we ignore our soul. We are so busy thinking, and try to entertain ourself by focusing outwards to the world around us. We always want more and more. We are busy chasing after what we thought we want. We got lost in the sophistication of the life we create. We worries, we judge others, we are envious over the success of others. We do not appreciate what we have, instead we keep on searching for more. No wonder there is too much chaos in the world today!

We are so busy with human creations and external factors that we forgot the one beautiful gift that God has given to us..... our soul. When you are worry, bored or helpless, you can always search your soul for an answer and guidance. When you feel like judging others, look deep into your soul and see who you are, judge yourself. When you are angry with someone or a situation, return to your soul for peace and let go the anger; let God deal with it.

Be with your soul all the time and you will be at peace. Communicate with God through your soul. React in response to others through your soul, and your reaction will touch their soul. Love without condition, sincerity, patient... those are attributes from our soul.

God also give us the time space for our soul to act in; the NOW. The present moment that you have in your life. Action can only be done in the present moment. Past moments are gone and nothing you can do to change it, while future moment in reality it does not exist, it may or may not come into existence.

So stop cluttering your life with worries over the future and with anger, regrets and memories of the past. Live simple life. Savor the two most valuable gifts; your soul and the present moment. Live fully in the present moment through your soul. Life will be simple and peaceful. Thank you God for the two wonderful gifts.

Sunday, January 2, 2011

How to Maintain a Peaceful and Cheerful Life.

Life is not the same every day. There are days when we feel cheerful, happy and energetic. But, there are also days when we feel down, bored and gloomy. It's true that we can't control it 100%. But we can however minimized the down turn and create a good environment to maintain our cheerfulness.
  1. Peaceful and cheerful environment.
    Make sure your home is clean and tidy most of the time. The house should have a nice combination of soft and bright colours. A few bright colours here and there cheer up the house. On the other hand, too much of it will be overwhelming and stimulate aggressiveness.
  2. Make changes once in a while.
    Make little changes in your home once in a while. Change the arrangement of the furnitures. Change your curtains and the table cloth. Decorate your room differently. Changes boost up energy in you. Similarly, change your life routines. Rearrange your daily routines. Or do things differently. Take different steps. Changes in the procedure or the way we usually do things, open our mind to options and encourage improvement. A better way of living inspires you to make more improvements. Improvement cheers up your life.
  3. Mindful and inner peace.
    Depending on the outer forces to maintain a lively and cheerful live is not enough. Actually it all begins from inside. A person can still maintain his sanity and calmness even in a chaotic environment, if he has a peaceful soul in him. Be mindful every moment. Be aware of your thinking and your senses. What are you thinking now? What are you looking at, hearing, feeling, smelling, tasting right now and every moment of you life. Be aware, accept it and enjoy it. Being mindful, give you the sense of self control and make your life more lively.
Use your soul as a doorway to peacefulness. Be sincere. Sincerity cleans your heart. Accept things as it is. Let go the past and the uncontrollable and let God deal with it. Learn to forgive and to forget. Be patient and trust God's help. By having only the good and clean in your heart, you'll have a peaceful and enjoyable life. Push away all the negatives (cheating, resistance, to be always in control of everything, revenge, anger and impatience) out of your life. And your life will be peaceful and clean. Believe me, it is a sweet kind of enjoyment and cheerfulness.