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Welcome... Our InnerSelf welcomes your inner self.
There's an old joke... someone asks "How do you get to Carnegie Hall?" The answer? "Practice, practice, practice." Well, the same answer can be given for many things... even attaining peace of mind, happiness, life balance, health, etc. Practice, practice, practice. And unfortunately, at times, we've been practicing things that do not get us to happiness and inner peace.
The good news in all this is that just as one must practice to get to Carnegie Hall, we also can reach our goal of experiencing happiness and inner peace on a daily basis by practicing many of the tools and suggestions in this week's featured articles (and of course in the other 13,000+ articles on InnerSelf.com).
Whether we take action or not, is our call. The choice is ours. The decision is ours. We can be like the people who wait for retirement to seek happiness, or like others who wait for their deathbed to seek forgiveness and love... or we can practice, practice, practice every day... Practice acceptance, compassion, unconditional love, altruism... practice acting on the loving impulse that resides in each one of us.
We may need to do some house cleaning before we can reach a harmonious state of mind and heart. However, it is attainable because that's who we really are. We are not the petty, judgmental, grudge-holding person we may sometimes act like. We are a spark of light and love and the more we practice lighting the spark of love within ourselves, the more we will find that the happiness we've been pursuing has been a thought and an action away all the time.
Our first featured article this week, written by Ora Nadrich and excerpted from her book "Says Who?", focuses on "The Danger of Believing Your Negative Thoughts". So, if what you've been practicing (or repeating) are negative thoughts, you will get where that gets you... and it usually isn't happiness and peace of mind. However, there is always another way... Debra Landwehr Engle shares from her book "Be The Light That You Are" an article entitled "How To Short-Circuit Judgment and See Only Love"... and that process definitely requires lots of practice.
Then from the book "The Mind is The Map", Christina Reeves recommends "Becoming Authentically Yourself by Seeing and Transforming Your Patterns"... again another opportunity to practice, practice, practice. Carly Pollack, author of "Feed Your Soul" tells us that "Life Is Best When You Manifest". And Alan Cohen inspires us with "Why Hope is Trustworthy".
We round up our featured articles and theme of "practice, practice, practice" with an excerpt from a book that was published just a few days ago, (book entitled: Love on Every Breath: Tonglen Meditation for Transforming Pain into Joy) by Lama Palden Drolma. She writes that "Practicing Altruism, Compassion, and Love Bring Happiness and Stress Relief".
So, the empowerment in all of this is that the result is in our hands, or at least the path to those results is in our hands... in our mind and our thoughts, and in our heart and our actions. Just as when we take lessons for anything, we must practice between lessons to attain mastership, in the same way, we must practice every day to maintain the thoughts and attitudes that will bring us to experience happiness and inner peace. It is possible even when the fire is raging around us... it is possible even if the world seems to be going crazy. We retain our center of peace and equanimity, and then we find that we can take the appropriate actions from a place of calm awareness rather than panicked distress.
Getting to our own center and finding the peace and love that reside within is what we need to practice. Then our path will draw itself clearly from that space of calm awareness. All it takes is.... you got it! practice, practice, practice. Accept your errors. Don't beat yourself up when you make a faux-pas or hit a sour note. And most of all, have fun with the process.
Please scroll down for the featured articles in this new issue of InnerSelf, and also the recap of all the articles that were added to the website during the week.
Wishing you enjoyable insightful reading, and of course a wonder-full, joy-full, and loving week.
Marie T. Russell
editor/publisher,
InnerSelf.com
"New Attitudes...New Possibilities"
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NEW ARTICLES THIS WEEK
The Danger of Believing Your Negative Thoughts
Written by Ora Nadrich
Just because some inner voice in your head tells you that you are unworthy, unlovable, a loser, or whatever mean “sandbox name” it wants to call you, it doesn’t mean that it’s a fact or even based in reality. You have the power to challenge and change a negative thought always, as harsh or brutal as it may be.
How To Short-Circuit Judgment and See Only Love
Written by Debra Landwehr Engle
Once you decide to see only love, you can relinquish judgment and see people for what they are. In the end, everyone benefits, including you. As it says in A Course in Miracles, “You have no idea of the tremendous release and deep peace that comes from meeting yourself and your brothers totally without judgment.”
Becoming Authentically Yourself by Seeing and Transforming Your Patterns
Written by Christina Reeves and Dimitrios Spanos
By the time we are adults, we have so much writing on our walls and we have so many old wounds from unresolved experiences that many of our responses are automatically negative. They perpetuate events that are not the best outcome and instead, they serve only to reinforce our initial learning from a time long ago.
Life Is Best When You Manifest
Written by Carly Pollack
The ability to manifest your vision for ultimate health and happiness is one of the most overlooked tools in creating permanent change. Most of us stopped using our imaginations a long time ago and have become ignorant to the power that lies within us, the power to shape our reality.
Why Hope is Trustworthy
Written by Alan Cohen
You don’t have to create adverse circumstances to find a reason to do what you wish to do or avoid what you do not wish to do. Just be honest. If you have a difficult decision before you, ask yourself, “What am I hoping will happen?” In the answer is your guide to your likely best path.
Practicing Altruism, Compassion, and Love Bring Happiness and Stress Relief
Written by Lama Palden Drolma
Modern neuroscience has now found that altruism brings us happiness in addition to being a stress reliever. This mirrors Buddhist teachings. Through our meditations and practice of loving-kindness and compassion, we gradually come into an experiential sense of our basic goodness.
How Long Can Humans Expect To Live?
by Anthony Medford, et al
Humans are living longer around the world. While there have been obvious ups and downs, life expectancy at birth…
How Germany's Green Party Took On The Far Right To Become A Major Political Force
by Chantal Sullivan-Thomsett
A green wave has flooded Europe in the 2019 European elections. The big winners of the night were the German Greens…
Habitat Loss Doesn't Just Affect Species, It Impacts Networks Of Ecological Relationships
by Miguel Lurgi
Habitat loss is the leading cause of biodiversity loss worldwide. Depending on their size, animals need a given amount…
Most Older Adults Feel At Least 20 Years Younger Than They Are
by L.F. Carver
How old do you feel inside? Not your chronological age (that pesky number on your birthday cake) but how old is the…
6 Ways To Protect Your Mental Health From Social Media's Dangers
by Jelena Kecmanovic
More than one-third of American adults view social media as harmful to their mental health, according to a new survey…
For A Baby's Brain To Benefit, Read The Right Books At The Right Time
by Lisa S. Scott
Parents often receive books at pediatric checkups via programs like Reach Out and Read and hear from a variety of…
Why Only 40% Of U.S. Kids Are Flourishing
by Barbara Benham
Less than half of school-aged children in the United States are flourishing, research finds.
There Are 4 Types Of Drinker – Which One Are You?
by Emmanuel Kuntsche and Sarah Callinan
It’s easy to see alcohol consumption being a result of thousands of years of ritual and a lifetime of habit.
5 Reasons Green Growth Might Not Save The Planet
by Oliver Taherzadeh and Benedict Probst
Green growth has emerged as the dominant narrative for tackling cont
This Joint Pain Supplement May Lower Heart Disease Risk
by Keith Brannon
Regular use of glucosamine supplements may be linked to a lower risk of cardiovascular disease events, according to a…
How The Media-Savvy Far-Right Activists Spread Lies
by Iga Mergler and Neil McLaughlin
Facebook recently banned several far-right extremists, including Canadian Faith Goldy, who made a failed bid for…
The Way We Define Kilograms, Metres and Seconds Changed on May 20, 2019
by David Brynn Hibbert
We measure stuff all the time – how long, how heavy, how hot, and so on – because we need to for things such as trade,…
Mothers Explain How They Navigated Work And Childcare
by Carla Pascoe Leahy
Over the past few decades of Australian life, government policies have gradually offered more support to working…
To Avoid Moral Failure, Don’t See People As Sherlock Does
by Rima Basu
If we’re the kind of people who care both about not being racist, and also about basing our beliefs on the evidence…
How The Dualism Of Descartes Ruined Our Mental Health
by James Barnes
Toward the end of the Renaissance period, a radical epistemological and metaphysical shift overcame the Western psyche.
Why Limiting Screen Use Is Not The Way To Tackle Teenage Sleep Problems
by Heather Cleland Woods and Holly Scott
Both in Europe and the US, more than 90% of adolescents have their faces buried in screens before bed.
Is CBD The Next Weapon In The War Against Opioid Addiction?
by Jenny Wilkerson and Lance McMahon
CBD, or cannabidiol, is everywhere, with word on the street saying that it can cure everything from a bad mood to…
Money, Capitalism and the Slow Death of Social Democracy
by John Keane
A decade ago, most people interested in politics associated the words social democracy with business-friendly…
How To Teach and Parent Better In The Age of Big Data
by Katie Headrick Taylor
At the parent-teacher conference, I sat across the table from my first grader’s teacher in a chair made for a…
The Paradox Of Happiness: The More You Chase It The More Elusive It Becomes
by Lorenzo Buscicchi and Dan Weijers
New Zealand will release its first well-being budget this week, based on a suite of measures that track how New…
Trust Isn’t Simple When It Comes To The Government
by Caroline Brooks
New research reveals three criteria we use to determine whether to trust the government.
How Combining Childcare and Aged Care Has Social and Economic Benefits
by Anneke Fitzgerald, et al
What happens when you bring a group of older residents to mix with young children in childcare?
Flash Glucose Monitoring: The Little Patches That Can Make Managing Diabetes A Whole Lot Easier
by Maria Craig
Diabetes is the fastest growing chronic condition in Australia. At least 1.2 million Australians live with diabetes,…
3 Plants From U.S. Civil War Medical Guide That Fight Infection
by Carol Clark
Three plants from a guide to traditional plant remedies of the South that the Confederate Surgeon General commissioned…
Marijuana Increases Odds Of Couples Feeling Intimate
by Bert Gambini
For couples who frequently use the drug, episodes of marijuana use increase the likelihood couples will experience…
Why Quality Preschool Benefits Multiple Generations
by U. Chicago
Early childhood education programs can benefit life outcomes in ways that span generations, new research shows.
How The Role Of Nuns Highlights A Low View Of Women's Work
by Flora Derounian
So runs the story of one of the Italian nuns I interviewed earlier this year, as part of a wider investigation into the…
How Dogs Help Keep Multiracial Neighborhoods Socially Segregated
by Sarah Mayorga-Gallo
Cities in the United States are getting less segregated and, according to a recent national survey, most Americans…
How Passion For Your Job Can Backfire
by Duke University
If someone is passionate about what they do, we see it as more legitimate to exploit them, according to new research.
Camel Milk Reduces Cell Inflammation Associated With Type 2 Diabetes
by Keith Morris
The current trend for certain foods and dietary components to be called “superfoods” is frequently associated with…
Breastfeeding Struggles Are Linked To Postpartum Depression In Mothers
by Stephanie Liu
As a doctor, I encourage mothers to breastfeed. Breastfeeding is affordable, helps with bonding and has health benefits…
How We've Created A Civilization Hell Bent On Destroying Itself
by James Dyke
Odours are powerfully connected to memories. And so it’s the smell of that bad coffee which has become entwined with…
These Medicinal Plants Put Brakes On Cancer Growth
by National University of Singapore
The leaves of a variety of medicinal plants can stop the growth of breast, cervical, colon, leukemia, liver, ovarian…
Astrological Journal for the Week
Written by Pam Younghans
This weekly column (updated every Sunday afternoon) is based on planetary influences, and offers perspectives and insights to assist you in making the best use of current energies... Read this week's journal here
It is also highly beneficial to reread the past week's astrological journal as it gives a hindsight view of the events that took place and may provide many "ah-ha" insights.
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