.. leave e-mail .. (for Monty or Carolyn)The difference between theory and experience generally lies in practice, and this is certainly true of Attitudinal Healing. Try to do one of the following personal practice exercises each day (but not more than once per waking hour). Most are five-minute exercises, but you may extend them to 15 minutes if you are comforatble with them. Try not to judge yourself for failing, or for doing them imperfectly, or for being distracted while doing them. Nevertheless, be willing to make an effort, and give them enough priority in your day to make the practice effective. In fact, it is your own "little willingness" that sparks the changes we come to know as "healing".
Practice Exercises:
"We can always perceive ourselves and others as either extending love,
or giving a call for help.
"
What we find ourselves thinking of others (be it favorable or not) is only based on our own limited perspectives. This is helpful information; having recognized this, we can turn our minds to other ways of seeing those around us. For 5 minutes at the beginning and end of your day, sit quietly and think of someone you know who challenges your peace of mind. Very specifically, call to mind what you think you 'know' about this person, such as "I see ...(name)... as difficult, stubborn, narrow-minded, etc." Then acknowledge silently to yourself: "But this is only what I see; this is not the deepest Truth about ...(name)... .". When you are done, turn your attention to yourself and repeat the exercise: "I see myself as ______(intelligent, stubborn, generous, narrow-minded, etc). But this is only what I see; this is not the deepest Truth about me."
Throughout the day, as you encounter people who seem to threaten your peace of mind, quickly and silently remind yourself, "What I see is not the deepest Truth about you."
If Love is truly unconditional, then It is present in any situation and under all circumstances. Sit quietly at the beginning of your day. Turn your attention within, and say silently to yourself, "I feel...." and list mentally the feelings that you notice. From time to time, repeat the following phrase, slowly and silently, "In this moment, there is no need for correction for peace to visit me; Let all things be exactly as they are." Allow any situations in your life that trouble you to come to mind, and as you observe them, repeat the phrase 2 or 3 times, then release that thought. Finish by repeating the phrase slowly 5 times, letting the words come to rest in your heart.
During the day, when anything disturbs you, say silently, "In this moment, there is no need for correction for peace to visit me; Let all things be exactly as they are."
Consider the following quotation:
"Anyone who perceives they are being attacked in some way will be angry. Anger is a reasonable response to a perceived attack. It is the way the situation is perceived that is the problem. Another perception will call for a different response. Whenever we believe that attack is all that is going on, we have not yet seen the situation with complete honesty. Ask your mind to find a deeper, fairer way to look at what you think has been done to you. If you are sincere in wanting this, and if you will wait and withhold your judgments, it will come to you."Sit quietly and allow some situation to come to mind in which you experience anger. Instead of judging ourselves for feeling anger and trying to get rid of it, we can look directly at the thoughts and perceptions that underlie the feeling. Go back and look at the situation with one purpose in mind: to honestly question the value of yet another conflict. Will it make you happy? Can you find even one thing in this situation that you might have missed before? Is there anything you have overlooked about the person/s involved? What could be going on that you have not been aware of? Ask the Presence of Love to show you at least one thing about this person or persons you have never seen before. Trust that this insight will come to you in time. Can you see how you are 'calling for help' in this situation? Is there fear or grief beneath the feeling of anger? What unfulfilled desires of yours might be fueling the anger? Perhaps there is another way. Each time you encounter or think about this situation, remind yourself, "I have given this to Love. Love will help me see more truly."-- Hugh Prather, There Is a Place Where You Are Not Alone
One way to think of anyone who acts in an unloving or self-defeating way is to think of their behavior as a call for unconditional love. In this way, the call of another becomes a reminder of our own need for Love's presence and help, and our own capacity to discover it anew. When we remember our relationship with Love, we can uncover our deepest wish for peace, both for ourselves and others. For 5 minutes at the beginning and end of your day, sit quietly and review your relationships. Imagine that you offer each one this simple thought: "May you be free of suffering. May you find your way to peace." If you encounter a relationship where it feels dishonest to do this, repeat slowly and thoughtfully to yourself: "Love created us like Itself, but I cannot find it here. I ask Love's help, that I may see things differently." Repeat this slowly 5 times, then bring the relationship to mind again and say, "May you be free of suffering. May you find your way to peace."
Throughout the day, when someone challenges your peace of mind, say quickly and silently, "I ask Love's help, that I may see this differently."
This principle states, "We can always perceive ourselves or others as either extending love or giving a call for help." But a "call for help" given by another is not a request for us to fix something. Rather, it is a reminder to us to look for Love's presence where we (or others) thought it could not be found. For 5 minutes at the beginning of your day, sit quietly, allowing someone to come to mind who seems to bring fearful thoughts to you or others. Imagine that you can see them from a long distance, approaching slowly. As they get closer and closer, you begin to see something different about them, something you have never seen before. In time, imagine that you see yourself sitting with them in a beautiful, peaceful place, where fear cannot enter-- for you or for them. Finally, imagine that the most loving Being you know approaches you together and offers both of you a gentle blessing. Finish the exercise by repeating slowly and silently to yourself, "Here in the Presence of Love, and only here, are we at home."
As you sit quietly at the beginning of your day, allow those things to come to mind which seem most definitely not to be a part of any loving plan you can imagine-- both in your own life and in the world. Then read this quote from A Course in Miracles to yourself:
"What could you not accept if you but knew that everything that happens, all events, past, present, and to come, are gently planned by One Whose only purpose is your good?"
Take 5 minutes to place your hands over your heart and say slowly and silently to yourself, "All things are my teacher. There is no place where Love is not. Let me see this differently. Let me see this with the eyes of Love." Do not try to force yourself to see things differently, nor try to think with your mind how it could be different. Simply rest in your heart with your own willingness to let go of what you think you know, and be open to something more deeply true and loving. Trust that insight will come in its own time.
Throughout the day, once per hour if you can, remind yourself thoughtfully: "There is no place where Love is not."
The difference between manipulating life and trusting it is this: who are you asking for direction? If you ask the ego (that collection of preconceived ideas we call "I"), the results are bound to be "more of the same". But if you look inside for a connection to "Something More", you open your mind to heretofor unimagined possibilities. You open your mind to the Source of true Wisdom, to Universal Inspiration. As you sit quietly at the beginning of your day, allow some situation to come to mind where you feel you have been asked for help or feel you need to help. Imagine that just for today you do nothing outwardly. Instead you ask a Greater Being to bless them, to give them the insight and answers they need. Close your eyes and ask your heart, "What is really needed here? I am willing to be shown. I am willing to be taught." Imagine the person/s involved getting everything they need without your active involvement. See them empowered, discovering new truths, receiving all they need from an Infinite Source. Then ask your heart, "Is there anything I need to do or say?" If no response comes, trust that none is needed, or that it will come in the moment when it is needed. Often insights come during mundane activities like brushing your teeth or sitting in traffic.
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