Keep the faith!

I came across a very interesting picture the other day and wanted to share it with my esteemed readers. (credits to facebook!)

It is not my intention to turn this into a scientific or philosophical conversation, yet I do wish to express some of my own thoughts on faith. 

I often talk to people who tell me they have no faith in God (or whatever you want to call it) because He has never been proven. No one really knows  the truth about it and some have even "proved" that there could be no such thing. 

In my opinion, having faith (in something bigger and outside of ourselves) is not about proving if there is or not something out there. 

Having faith is about constantly and blindingly feeding myself with the thought that the creative force that made the infinite space around us, the burning sun, the scented flowers and my toenails, is always available to me. 

It is about indiscriminately believing that this creative energy is within me and you as it is without. 

My faith does not lead me to believe in this or that God, it leads me to believe that everyday of my life I can choose to be this or that person. 

My faith allows me to align my brain in accordance to all the beauty that surrounds me. 

Yes, there are ugly sights to be seen and hardships to be faced, yet my faith helps me believe that even without seeing them at this moment, brighter days will surely arrive. 

My faith allows me to keep positive and positivity is the only road to keeping open for whatever I want to come my way. 

Having faith in God, in the Universe, in the Stars, in my eternal Spirit, allows me to remember that I am at the same time insignificant and colossal. Just like our vast earth is one more spec in the sky, I too can be anything and still everything can come my way! 

Therefore, keep it real and keep the faith, brother!

Own your life, you are not a victim!

Do you often find yourself caught in drama, amidst stories, gossip, judgments, conflicting situations? Are you known to your friends as the “Queen or King of Drama”. I was the queen of drama for a long time! LONG, LONG time! Every job I had, I was caught in some sort of trivial dispute.  Something had to be the matter, everywhere I went.  Some friends called me “El Niño”, I now see why!

Once, I wanted to act as a volunteer in a big NGO and even as a volunteer there was drama. The vice president decided she didn’t want me to volunteer anymore. Not content with that, she called all top team players (including the NGO’s president!) and I was caught in the middle of a finger pointing session, which boiled down to – what she described as – me being too thirsty to reaching for the water pot! Oh how I was caught in the “poor me” frame of mind then! “Poor me, all I wanted to do was volunteer my time and energy to help others and look what happens! This always happens to me”! 

Showing up in the world from a victim’s position is extremely common and at the same time so hard to detect. Therefore, we can remain victims for years and some remain victims their whole lives.

A victim always believes things “happen to him”. A victim blames others for everything that happens. It’s the “It’s not my fault that…” way of thinking.

Here’s the thing, thinking about fault is absolutely useless. Nothing is anybody’s fault, things happen to us because we have to learn. We are here in this world to constantly grow, evolve and change and this is the only certain thing in life. Rather we choose to think about it or not, accept it or not, we are always growing and changing (are you the same as you were 15 years ago?). Those who understand and make the best of this are never caught in a victim position, they are owners of their lives and their circumstances.

A victim will always try to find someone or something to blame for what happens to him. In contrast, an owner will look at the situation and try to find:

1) What was his responsibility in the situation – not to blame himself but to understand what he is doing to be caught in it.

2) What lesson can he learn form what happened? What is the most important thing he can get from this story?

3) What can he DO NEXT – what can he change in himself, in his environment, in his choices -  which will free him from being caught in similar situations.

In my above example with the "NGO witch who was after me" (!!), it took me years to look back on it and be able to understand how I was responsible. I learned that the way I plunge into projects with all my energy and soul, might seem threatening to others. Therefore, I now try to keep my cool, especially with those who haven't worked with me before. This makes relationships less threatening and in turn, much more efficient.

When we start seeing ourselves as agents/owners of our own circumstances we understand that we have choices and that everything that happens to us is an opportunity for growth and learning. One who is always aware of how he can use circumstances in his favor will never be caught in a victim frame of mind, simply because he is too busy powerfully restructuring himself and his circumstances in order to get different results next time.

Instead of blaming others, the economy, the universe, your karma - choose to live your life powerfully! Extract the lessons from everything that comes your way and adapt according to that knowledge!