Sunday, September 24, 2017

Changing the Story

There may be several reasons why we believe a story.

If it is about us, it is the one we are willing to believe about ourselves and the people in our life.

When we create a happy life, we are telling ourselves one kind of story.

When our life is full of problems and challenges, we are telling ourselves another kind of story.

The story can be changed.

We are the person who can change it.

We can tell ourselves a story of hope and fulfillment and success.

We can tell ourselves a story of despair, insurmountable challenges and failure.

There is also a collective story that society tells itself.

Now that so many of us are getting tired of that story, it will be interesting to see how we change it.

We must be convinced that we want another story.

Then we must agree on what we want it to be.

Then we can create it for ourselves.

© 2017 Kathryn Hardage

Monday, September 18, 2017

Place and Purpose

Your place and your purpose are governed by your world view.

How are you contributing to the peace in your heart, in your community, in your nation and in the world?

What are the fundamental issues of peace?

Doing what you love to do in a way which uplifts you and those who come in contact with you helps create peace in your heart and in your community.

Ethical business practices contribute to peace wherever you do business, as a creator or a receiver.

Fairness in policy creates peace on a wider range because all people can contribute to their well-being in the nation and world-wide

We are in a position to see everyone as worthy and valuable and to accept their contributions through much wider channels of policy.

Small good practices benefit people where they are.

Supporting communities enables people to decide what is valuable locally and to implement it themselves.

Examples of micro-preneurism and small scale restoration agriculture have transformed communities into self-sufficiency.

There are always resources for individual improvement which benefit communities.

Our place is to find our purpose and utilize it in practical ways.

© 2017 Kathryn Hardage

Saturday, September 16, 2017

The Permeating Presence of Peace

In your very core, there is a deep sense of peace and identity.

Anything which moves you away from this peace at your core makes you feel agitated or uncomfortable in some way.

You know who you are.

You may catch on to this early in your life, or you may explore many paths until you find the right one.

When you are in alignment with your deep core identity, your life is permeated with peace.

Things feel right.

You live in harmonious surroundings.

You have good friends.

Your work is deeply satisfying, or it moves you in the direction of satisfaction and happiness as you gain your skill.

Regardless of what is going on around you, you can feel this deep peace at your core and you respond to its guidance.

You continually move in the direction of peace and you move peacefully, gently, confidently.

You share your sense of peace in all with whom you have contact.

You attract others who have this deep sense of peace or a yearning for it.

Your peace permeates everything you do.

Your peace radiates out all around you and includes and inspires those who see you.

© 2017 Kathryn Hardage

Wednesday, September 13, 2017

Not Group Think

Attempts to manipulate groups through media harassment are often very successful.

The emotional appeal is crafted very carefully.

But when we are in touch with our own true feelings, we an find our conclusions differ greatly from what is being presented to us.

Own true feelings come to us in quiet moments.

We can identify them by their calm presence.

We recognize when others present true ideas which work for everyone.

There is a difference in how integrity and sincerity feel.

Group think does not actually address problems in order to find solutions.

It uses people for a hidden, or not so hidden, agenda.

Individuals who come up with solutions which benefit everyone are quite different from group think.

Solving problems by creating policies which use our resources for the benefit of everyone is the best way to think.

© 2017 Kathryn Hardage

Monday, September 11, 2017

The Delight of Peace

When we have peace and satisfaction in our hearts, it is a delight to share it.

We naturally see others as precious and valued.

We see everyone in terms of their unique and productive individuality.

We see that what they contribute to society is based on their point of view.

We see that as we value everyone, they bring another way to share harmony in a wider community.

When we settle our basic needs through doing what we love, we have more peace to share.

We want others to have the means to do what they love so that every member of the community feels loved in every way.

We see unlimited opportunities through individual and unique thinking.

We see unlimited opportunities through cooperation.

We see goal-setting in terms of how everyone will be benefitted and how we can each contribute to the well-being of all of us.

We utilize our talents directly and also in bringing out the talents of others.

We contribute our uplifting ideas and let them harmonize with the uplifting ideas of others.

A viewpoint which embraces all members of the community allows more ideas to flow.

With a wider viewpoint, there are unlimited possibilities for solutions which bring productive and peaceful lives for all of us.

© 2017 Kathryn Hardage
www.pebblesofpeace.blogspot.com

Thursday, September 7, 2017

Peace By Appreciation

Appreciation expands our lives.

It increases our ability to be grateful.

It gives us new ways to look at everyday things.

And appreciation sends our peace in many fruitful directions.

As we notice and recognize all the little things which are being done to harmonize our daily lives, we expand our awareness of peace.

As we notice and recognize all the people who are doing all the little things to harmonize our daily lives, we relax in the appreciation that all is well.

After all, we, too, are doing the little things which help take care of others.

It is normal and natural to be aware of the help we receive as well as give.

Appreciation grows in our lives as we take the time to observe all the good going on around us.

The good we express, the uplifting thoughts we share, the consciousness of the effect this has on our surroundings encourages us to continue.

We have a choice in how we perceive our world.

Even the turmoil is bring to light things which we need to take care of.

We can appreciate even that aspect of our new awareness.

© 2017 Kathryn Hardage

Saturday, September 2, 2017

Contrasts in Nature

I appreciate the peace and rhythm in Nature.

Sun and rain, cool and heat, strength and gentleness.

My alone time is balanced with friendly get-togethers over quilting, knitting, weaving, cooking.

The complementary exchanges of food and community, trust and skills is such a delight.

I feel the calm and relief of a cloudy day in summer.

I feel the excitement of winds building up before a storm with the smell of the ozone in the air.

The shear number of leaves on a single tree boggles the mind.

So many shades of green and yellow as the sunlight catches the leaves.

The different textures of bark on different varieties of trees.

How little tiny seeds and plants grow up to be large and edible fruits and vegetables.

How many small pieces of grass create a carpet to walk on barefooted.

The color and contrast of shapes - peppers, tomatoes, squash, pumpkins.

Sharing is always acceptable.

Nature shares by her presence, her variety, her balance.

She accommodates us and ignores us.

The more Nature is present in my life, the more harmonious and balanced I feel.

© 2017 Kathryn Hardage

www.pebblesofpeace.blogspot.com

Peaceful Contrast

I appreciate a balance of contrasts in my life.

Activity and rest.

Intensity and peacefulness.

Get-togethers and alone time.

The ability to be involved with others or to work intensely on a project employs a different kind of concentration than reflection and meditation.

The feeling of quiet observation creates a different kind of radiant energy than even a walk through Nature.

These differing kinds of focus give me a sense of wholeness and completeness.

I enjoy the balance and contrast.

The feeling which comes from these different kinds of activities satisfies different aspects of my life.

Communication with others in an uplifting way makes me feel good all day.

Reading literature which addresses how to meet the needs of others and learning about the people who do this offers another kind of relief and comfort.

Engagement and reflection, always for the purpose of better understanding, creates a richness and a wholeness in my life.

© 2017 Kathryn Hardage