Painting on the Canvas of Your Life

Art by Ali Spagnola

I’ve been reading Panache Desai’s Discovering Your Soul Signature and wanted to share one of the meditations from the book:

Imagine that your life can be portrayed on a canvas….When you look at this canvas, you’ll see see everything that’s been placed there. And most of it doesn’t originate from you…. As you’ve moved on through life, external labels have been superimposed on the canvas…. People have told us who we are, and this fills the canvas too.

Now start pulling off those labels…. Peel away those limitations. Remove all of those different words that are getting in the way of being a blank canvas…. As you do this, experience the freedom (or perhaps the terror) of the blank canvas.

When an artist approaches a blank canvas, all that is possible is a single brushstroke at a time….
What splashes, splatters, or messes did you erase?

Now what will YOU choose to paint?

(excerpt taken from p. 179-180, 182)

Peace on Earth

Let your light shine, bringing peace to the world. Click on individual links:

  India

  Indonesia

  Taiwan

  South Africa

  Germany

  Virginia

  Maryland

Puerto Rico

How to Create the Future You Want

If you’re struggling to reach your dreams, here’s some inspiration to motivate you toward success:

Too Much to Do

Do you overcommit, thinking you can get everything done, then always feel as if you’re trapped under an avalanche of unfinished projects? Are you always racing toward deadlines, never finding time to enjoy life?

Maybe it’s time to slow down and ask yourself some challenging questions. Why are you doing what you’re doing? What do you hope to gain? And more importantly, what do you hope to give? Is what you’re doing really that important in the scheme of things?

Once when I was extremely stressed out, a friend asked me to describe how I felt. I told her it was as if I were at the center of a cogwheel. I had to keep spinning and spinning and spinning, or the universe would screech to a halt.

“Are you really that important?” she asked.

Of course, I had to laugh, but I did feel as if I didn’t stay in motion, I’d be responsible for the rest of the world’s ills. I did have a lot of responsibility on my shoulders, but if something happened to me, others would step in and fill the gap. Yes, I’d be missed, but the world could function quite well without me.

Sometimes I think we place way too much importance on our role at work or in the family or even in the community. We think we’re the only ones who can do what we’re doing. Or we’re the only ones who can do it well. That’s a heavy burden to carry because we’re always aiming for perfection. And that means we can’t relax because–heaven forbid–something might turn out less than ideal.

Does it matter? You might think so at the moment. But place it in perspective: Who will remember you did this (or didn’t do it) five years from now? If the answer is no one, then maybe it isn’t as important as you think. What will be remembered five years from now? That you were too busy to have fun? To spend time with people you love? To laugh? To cherish the present moment?

I chose the blog picture for two reasons. One: The raindrops on the leaf are fleeting, but they’re vital to the plant’s survival. Water your life with fleeting moments that will nurture you deeply.

Two: How much time do you spend marveling at the little things in life? If you’re too busy to notice the way raindrops bead up on leaves following a spring rain, maybe it’s time to rethink your priorities. When was the last time you took a leisurely walk to enjoy nature? Not a power walk to lose weight or a run on a treadmill, but a meander through the woods? A gambol through the park? When was the last time you did something just for fun?

No excuses. No putting it off until you meet a deadline. No shirking your duty to the child inside calling you to come out and play. Just do it. It will feel as refreshing as that rain on the leaf. And you’ll go back to your to-do list with renewed vigor. Guaranteed.

There I Go Again, Being Rude…

As we’re hustling and bustling to get the last of the holiday shopping done, it’s so easy to get annoyed with slowpokes who block our speed-walking through  a store on our lunch hours or with rude people who push ahead of us in line. But recently I heard a suggestion that totally revolutionized how I feel when that happens.

Whatever label you’ve just given that person who’s upsetting you–irritating, pushy, nasty, inconsiderate–put it into this sentence: There I go again, being…

There I go again, being pushy.

There I go again, being rude.

Wait a minute, you might say. I wasn’t the one who was doing that. Ah, but if you believe, like I do, that we’re all interconnected and that what you see is a reflection of what’s in your heart, then it’s easy to see that you made the choice to see rudeness or unkindness. And I find when I say that, it reminds me that I’ve done the same thing at times.

Perhaps that’s what’s meant by: There, but for the grace of God, go I…

Although some people use that to make themselves feel superior, if you think about it for a moment, you’ll realize you’re saying that any differences between you and the other person are because of grace. You are the same, but someone is looking at your actions through forgiving eyes. Now it’s your turn to do the same.

But the wonderful thing about this sentence is that you can use it when you see acts of kindness, generosity, and love.

There I go again, being generous and thoughtful.

There I go again, being helpful and considerate.

So while you’re shopping, which “you” will you see. I hope you have the special joy and privilege of seeing “you” through the eyes of a child, with all the magic and wonder that entails.

Hope in the Face of Darkness

Has life slapped you in the face? Are you struggling to survive an emotional or financial hit? Are you facing major roadblocks on your life journey?

If everything looks bleak and you aren’t sure you’ll ever recover, here’s a message of hope  from the wonderful inspirational speaker Corrie ten Boom, who survived living in a concentration camp and watching her sister die. The tragedies of my life pale when compared to hers, but as I’m going through them, my own trials loom large. If I let them, they can overwhelm me and block out everything but the pain. This wise lady helped me look at the larger picture.

She compared life to a tapestry. We see the underside with its tangle of threads and knots, and have no idea why so many threads are dangling or why our lives have so many dark patches, but God, the master weaver, looking down from above sees the beautiful picture that is our lives. Each thread–dark or light–has its perfect place in the finished work of art.

So when dark times come, I try to remember that God sees what I cannot, and I know on the other side lies a work of great beauty.

Life Is But a Weaving
by Corrie ten Boom

My life is but a weaving between my God and me,
I do not choose the colors; He works so steadily.
Oft times He weaves in sorrow, and I in foolish pride,
Forget He sees the upper, and me the underside.
Not till the loom is silent, and the shuttles cease to fly,
Will God unroll the canvas, and explain the reason why.
The dark threads are as needful in the weavers skillful hand
As the threads of gold and silver in the pattern He has planned.