Healing Destinations with Suzie Daggett

 What is the purpose of your life?  Dan Millman, known to many as the Peaceful Warrior (remember the movie with Nick Nolte?) will answer this in an upcoming lecture and workshop in Grass Valley (Feb 3 & 4).  Dan, a best selling author and teacher, has a gentle, grounded manner in which he explains universal laws which can make your life more peaceful and perhaps help you discover your purpose.

How did you begin the process of becoming a Peaceful Warrior?

I wrote my first book to describe this Way, based upon my youth as an athlete and student of the martial arts — then applying what I learned, expanding it, into the arena of daily life. This same process of becoming operates in each and all of our lives, in the School of Daily Life, here on planet Earth.  I’ve described this “process of becoming,” and each of its facets, in 15 different books. I’m one of many voices — there’s one Light, but many lamps.  Each of us is a student and a teacher (by example) to those around us.  We are in this together.  I am here to help people trust themselves, and to trust the process of their own life, their own becoming.

How do you help people find more ease in this life?

In the classroom of everyday life, we learn by solving problems and facing challenges.  Human life, and all that entails, is a form of spiritual weight-lifting, to strengthen our spirits.  As we finally learn to get out of our own way, and discover our innate human worth, we stop sabotaging our efforts. By understanding universal laws, and aligning our actions with these laws of reality, we stop resisting what is, and learn to swim with the current.  By living a kinder, more constructive life, we experience more moments of fulfillment. 

What every day advice can you give us?

We only have this day — or more accurately, we only have this moment. The quality of (attention, energy, heart) we bring to each moment becomes the quality of our life.  Reality eventually teaches us that we have more control over our behavior — our actions — than we do over arising thoughts or passing emotions. So rather than focusing only on feelings, or continually asking, ”How am I feeling right now?” we can instead ask,  ”What needs doing right now?”  Then do it!  It’s fine to dream big, but important to start small, and then connect the dots — step by step.  Little actions, over time, can make a big difference — actions like sharing kind words with a clerk; like picking up a piece of litter on the street. In this way, we discover the secret of service as a path to fulfillment; we become our own spiritual movement; we become part of the solution — we burn brighter, bringing a little more light into the world. For more, visit www.peacefulwarrior.com.

Suzie Daggett, constantly curious about life’s mysteries, produces Insight Lectures.  530-913-9592  www.insightlecture.com

Ah! I love change and what change brings to me. Getting beyond the old year into the new year brings me new ideas, new energy and new respect for all human potential. There are so many ways to change, or to be renewed. Recently, I have been pursuing a few of Dan Millman’s books (he has 15 including his newest, The Four Purposes of Life) and find some excellent gems including this one from Way of the Peaceful Warrior where Socrates (the mechanic/warrior) says to Dan: “Feelings change, Dan. Sometimes sorrow, sometimes joy. But beneath it all remember the innate perfection of your life unfolding. That is the secret of unreasonable happiness.” The innate perfection of your life unfolding – that seems to me to be what accepting any change is about. I believe that everything that happens, happens for a purpose – the good and the awful. However, you do have the ability in the earth school to watch and see where you are with your changes. Many say we are in the midst of big changes this year. Are changes uncomfortable for you? Do you find yourself in a void where your feelings are not felt? Can you neutrally watch your feelings change from misery to joy? Can you stand aside and watch the movie of your life and see growth and transformation, large or tiny. I think that is what Socrates means by unreasonable happiness….being present to any changes while understanding that transformation happens. One of the Purposes of Life!

Step Up Rather Than Step Back

Wise words indeed – and what is so impressive is that my 18-year old daughter is the inspired speaker.  She was interviewed on a radio show talking about the sophomore year at her University ….she spoke those delicious words when asked about how she is creating her experience.  Step up – now, how many times do we shrink back rather than standing tall and moving forward in our daily lives?  I know for me, if I am faced with something I am not fond of doing or not wanting to face, I tend to shrink back. And, that alone leads to a big life rut!  It takes courage, strength, focus, consciousness and the ability to be wrong or right in the face of difficulties to step up.  I honor my daughter for her words and I encourage all of you to find ways in which you step up – give yourself a generous pat on the back.  And, when you step back, take the time to discover why, because that is where the real change begins.  If you have a step up or step back story, write it down and send it to me – we can all learn together.  Thank you Anna for your meaningful words of wisdom!

Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor is a remarkable scientist and kind human with a big spirit.  She introduced the 90 Second Rule in her best seller, My Stroke of Insight.  This book gives the details of her debilitating left-brain stroke and full recovery.  As far as I know, she is one of the very few scientist who has had a chance to do intimate research on a subject she is very familiar with – the brain’s neuroanatomy.  She had many insights into her mind and brain while she lived in her right brain – the creative side of life while she rebuilt her left brain – the more linear side of life.  The 90 Second Rule is one way to either keep a circuit like anger or joy looping in your mind.  However, understand that you do have a choice over that circuitry.  She intentionally rebuilt much of her left brain, but she was astute enough to realize that she did not have to rebuild anger, distrust and other personality elements she did not like in her life.  Ah!  We have a choice!  We can also choose to stay angry after the initial 90 seconds of chemical/physiological response or we can shut off the anger after 90 seconds and be at peace.  It is our choice as Dr. Jill says to “either consciously or unconsciously to rethink the thoughts that re-stimulate the circuit.”  I vote for conscious knowing that I do not need to remain angry or that I can remain in joy while life is doing it’s thing around me.  How about you?

Willingness

Willingness – this is the card I drew today as I contemplated this question: What  energy do I needed to know about today to facilitate the sale of my business?  Willingness – wow!  A powerful card that means if I am not willing to give up what I perceive as my business, my idenity, something I have worked very hard at for 11 years, I will not sell it.  You see, to me everything is energy – the thought in my chosen card carries energy that can give me clues to release, unblock, open and allow what is needed.  For the past few months, I have been working on many levels to facilitate the sale: using my left brain abilities by getting all the financials together, being in the right brain to open the energy flow for the right person or persons with high integrity and purpose to buy my business, using my prayers very, very frequently, paying attention to my dreams, watching for odd signs to show me the way.  The result?  I am not pushing for anything or anyone, I am not striving for perfection or a date for it all to occur, I am not attached to who the buyer is, I am open to what the Universe has to offer me.  Sound fanciful?  Maybe, or maybe it is the new way, the way that the stars are aligning right now, this very moment to create change and growth not just for my physical self, but, most importantly for my overall spiritual essence.  I am very willing to be in that mode!

What are you feeling right now?

Astrologers have been emailing about the Three Eclipses in a row this June – it is a perfect time apparently for setting your intentions, tuning in, watching for signs of change and how they affect you.  Some of you may be feeling a bit wobbly, or kinda electrified or spacey or exceptionally grounded.  How are you?  Can you tune in to the magic around you to feel your inner guidance?  Does the idea that change may be perpetual (which of course it is) frighten you into extreme quietness?  Does the thought that the world as we once knew it is now a bit catawampus?  For many decades, the oracle readers have been calling for big changes – now may be the time.  2012 is around the corner and those in the know say the changes we are going through right now prepares us for the precious light that will shine on our world.  The real upshot is that no one really knows any compete answers – remember in May when the world was coming to an end?  That was one man’s idea and you know the line….if you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans!  Ha on all of those awaiting the quick transfer to heaven.  Let’s take a chance and make heaven right here, right now – smile, be in peace, make dinner with abandon, vacuum like you love it, be nice to your computer, be even nicer to those in the stall next to you.  It is all good – trust your feelings of light and thus you will be light.

“Time and time again, the theme that kept showing itself in our early years on this show was people making bad choices. I look back at those tapes, I can’t believe I did it. People were making bad choices and then blaming everybody but themselves for the state of their lives. We started to learn by watching others how self-destructive that really was.

“Here’s what I learned from all of that, besides not to do that anymore: Nobody but you is responsible for your life. It doesn’t matter what your mama did; it doesn’t matter what your daddy didn’t do. You are responsible for your life. … You are responsible for the energy that you create for yourself, and you’re responsible for the energy that you bring to others. One of the best examples of this was Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor who was on the show talking about the book My Stroke of Insight. She was a 37-year-old, Harvard-educated brain scientist who suffered a massive stroke in the left part of her brain. She couldn???t speak or remember her own mother, but when doctors and nurses walked into her room, she knew from the right brain who was on her side. She could feel their energy.

“Dr. Taylor sent me a sign that I have hanging in my makeup room. It says, ‘Please take responsibility for the energy you bring into this space.’ And I ask the same thing in my home and at my companies. Thank you, Dr. Taylor, for that simple but powerful lesson. All life is energy and we are transmitting it at every moment. We are all little beaming signals like radio frequencies, and the world is responding in kind.

http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/The-Oprah-Winfrey-Show-Finale_1/4

Having essentially lost the left hemisphere of her brain to a severe hemorrhage, she found herself faced with a difficult decision: did she want to recover use of her “left brain”?

The left brain is responsible for analyzing, language, and applying linear sequence. It’s what propels you in the world, gets stuff done, and pushes you to strive for improvement.

Why wouldn’t she want to regain that? She had a career and a busy life. She’d need that part of her noggin to advance her career—or to have any career at all, really.

Now, the right brain takes in all of your sensory input. It has no sense of time, it just enjoys the present moment. It’s about oneness and beauty.

In this life threatening experience, Dr. Jill had the opportunity to have a pure, unadulterated right brain experience—the word she used to describe it was euphoric.

So you can perhaps get a glimpse as to why the question of leaving that exquisite state of being was a dilemma.

What seems to have tipped the scale toward recovery was that she somehow realized that she could share this experience with others to help them understand that they have much more power in their life than they’ve been wielding: the power of choice. We choose countless times a day which circuits, or patterns, will provide the basis for our experience.

To understand this better, I highly recommend that you read her book, My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist’s Personal Journey.

Listening to her talk drove home the importance of integrating our lives. In the extremes, your right brain can get you lost for hours aimlessly taking in the colors, aromas and textures of a garden while your left brain gets lost obsessing over the pH of the soil.

Our culture has been quick to downplay the importance of the right brain and it’s lack of focus on detail and logic. The result has been chronic busy-ness. It’s time for us to stand up and say, “no more!” No more letting day-to-day details tromp on and disregard the juiciness of a delicious life.

Consciously, we can bring the right and left brains into the right relationship. Give the right brain space to envision a gorgeous, vibrant garden of delectable vegetables, aromatic herbs and beautiful flowers. Then, and only then, invite the left brain to participate by making plans and doing the coordination to make it happen.

We can be effective and productive while enjoying a rich and meaningful life. It’s our choice.

Shawn Tuttle is author of Simplify. Goto www.ProjectSimplify.com or call her at 530.205.5775 to find out about upcoming workshop, Master the 21C Workflow starting May 12.