Dec. 2017 and beyond...

Welcome All to the latest happiness Meeting!

This Happiness meeting will in all likelihood be the last one for the year of 2017!

For All of our Bmindful community, I hope that the year of 2017 was one where you met the challenges facing you and you found that the world at large supported you, and that your contribution and your kind spirit matter greatly.  You matter greatly!!

The topic of this meeting is "Metacognition: Cultivating spontaneity, tapping into cosmic contribution."

This is a big topic, one that I hope will be valuable to All who choose to join the conversation. 

How and why is this thread going to be valuable to me?

"The essence of pleasure is spontaneity."  Germanie Greer quote.

"True success is the expansion of happiness.  It is the ability to express spontaneous joy and share it with others."  Deepak Chopra

"Close your eyes.  Fall in love.  Stay there."  Rumi. 

"Put your thoughts to sleep, do not let them cast a shadow over the moon of your heart. Let go of thinking."  Rumi

"One day your heart will take you to your Lover.  One day your soul will carry you to the Beloved.  Don't get lost in the pain.  Know that one day your pain will become the cure."  Rumi.

So, what value am I going to get out of this thread???

Consider how everyday coincidence have contributed to the evolution of humanity! Look at the way the penicillin was discovered, or look at the earliest discoveries of our ancestors, who were crazy enough dream outside of their cultural norm. The possibilities are just an endless for us, today, as it was for our ancestors!  The doors of perception remain available to us all. We experience the will of the universe when we experience coincidence. 

We are invited to grow (beyond our current thoughts,) and become open to all coincidence and spontaneity. Life is the ultimate mystery. If we could live at the level of soul more frequently, we would need less time to look back, and realize that we need not be so fearful.  We could trust more, that all of our milestones were meant for our learning and our growth, and we need not be so hard on ourselves or our loved ones. We could be spending time experiencing and participating in the adventures of our lives! 

I have taken a few definitions off the internet:

Metacognition is "cognition about cognition", "thinking about thinking", "knowing about knowing", becoming "aware of one's awareness" and higher-order thinking skills. The term comes from the root word meta, meaning "beyond".

Examples of metacognitive activities include planning how to approach a learning task, using appropriate skills and strategies to solve a problem, monitoring one's own comprehension of text, self-assessing and self-correcting in response to the self-assessment, evaluating progress toward the completion of a task

Definitions and meaning of spontaneous in English. adjective. said or done without having been planned or written in advance; happening or arising without apparent external cause. 

One more: Without advance preparation; in a spontaneous manner ...  Acting in accordance with or resulting from a natural feeling, impulse, or tendency, without any constraint, effort, or premeditation. Having no apparent external cause or influence; occurring or produced by its own energy, force.

By introducing and defining Metacognition, we are able to use this concept, and create a road map for our growth. There are several valuable things that arise, and one of the most valuable is the glimpse of self awareness.  Becoming aware of one self and of one's biases is invaluable. Valuable information, from which we can begin to tune into higher meaning, personal growth and transformation.

One consideration may be to actually start 2018 off with a learning journal or name it a soul journal, or a journey of awakening.  This is actually a great consideration, because you can reflect upon how much you learned to open up, and you can use this to gauge and map onto your personal journey into the resource tools of metacognition.  

This is a huge tool, and the application of this learning process is exciting, because we are engaging in a creative endeavor where we are cultivating spontaneity, and looking at areas of excitement, innovation, independence. At the same time that we are allowing and feeling what can best be described as "letting our spirit come out", we are also coming out of a shell - and recognizing - that the more we come out, the more we identify important goals. 

More valuable information about Metacognition: Nurturing Self Awareness.

Since the beginning of time, philosophers have been intrigued with how human beings develop self-awareness; the ability to examine and understand who we are relative to the world around us. Today, we know that research not only shows that self-awareness evolves during childhood, but also that its development is linked to metacognitive processes of the brain.

Obviously our growth does not end in our childhood.  Our growth continues, through every stage in our life, we are still growing and still meeting the next level of challenges. We do know that if you have failed to meet earlier growth needs, it does impact success at other levels of successful growth vs stagnation, mostly deeply in terms of one's own level of personal satisfaction. 

Making sense of life experiences:

With greater awareness of how we acquire knowledge, we learn to regulate behavior to optimize learning. We begin to see how our strengths and weaknesses affect how we perform. The ability to think about one's thinking is what neuroscientists call metacognition. As our metacognitive abilities increase, research suggests we also achieve at higher levels.

Metacognition plays an important role in all learning and in life experiences. The concept of metacognition is being used in early childhood and it goes all the way up the PhD studies. Research has shown that the greatest effect is when it is taught in early childhood, and it teaches people early in their life to ask important questions:

• How do I feel good about myself?
• How do I become respected?
• How do I find happiness?

For the purposes of our learning, our beliefs that we adopt about our learning and our brains will affect our performance. When we develop a growth mindset vs a fixed mind set, we are more likely to engage in reflective thinking about how to learn and grow. Learning about the concepts of metacognition can be an empowering tool. 

*8 paths that nurture success in learning:

Empathy, curiosity, sociability, resilience, self awareness, culture of integrity, resourcefulness and creativity.  

*Empathy: Our society has an interest in having citizens who are capable of recognizing, feeling and responding to the needs and suffering of others. That is what empathy is. Without empathy, we are left with self centered people who have little to no basic connection to feeling or understanding the joy of giving. Empathy is our "true north" and it is related to all of the 7 other abilities on the list of 8.  The more that one is aware of them self, the more they can understand others. How do we increase of ability to be empathic? Cultivate curiosity about strangers, challenge prejudices and discover commonalities, gain direct experience of other people's lives, listen and open themselves to others, inspire mass action and social change and develop an ambitious imagination. There is so much that has been written about empathy, and its very valuable, and it leads to the very finest of quality in our humanity.

Look at the amazing person of Malala Yousafzai, the young school girl who was shot in the face and left for dead by the Taliban, as she was in the back of a truck, riding home from school. She is the youngest person in the world to become a candidate for a Nobel Peace Prize recipient. She was candidated in 2013, and then she won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014. There are so many amazing quotes by her that tip the scale of the power of empathy and its impact on both society and the world at large. Please look her up, spend a few minutes, and you will be impacted by her inspirational contribution that she courageously gifted to our world, and to our consciousness. Such bravery! She said: "I don't want revenge on the Taliban.  I want education for the sons and daughters of the Taliban." 

*Curiosity: Curiosity supercharges learning!! People who are curious about a topic tend to retain what they learned for longer periods of time. Curiosity and hard work both lead to success, but with curiosity - there is a wide range of adaptive behaviors: tolerance to anxiety and uncertainty, positive emotions, humor, playfulness, out of the box thinking, and a non-critical attitude all associated with  healthy social outcomes. Curiosity is at the heart of LIFE LONG LEARNING!!! 

*Sociability: At its core, is social learning and emotional well being, and it has very primary connection in the building of resilience, self awareness, and in integrity. Sociability is the highway that we all travel in this life.  Regardless of your career or calling, being social has a dominant link to life time learning and happiness. We learn the most about ourself by interacting with our peers. We learn that we either fit in, or we don't, we are popular, or we are not. We gain esteem through our peers, and likewise, we loose esteem. This is a huge domain of our experience of our self and our ability to be understood. 

*Resilience:  The process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats or significant sources of stress — such as family and relationship problems, serious health problems or workplace and financial stressors.

Resilience is not a genetic trait! Resilience is necessary for human thriving, an ability necessary for a healthy, adaptable mind. Resilience is what emerges when we face challenging situations with a positive sense of ourselves and our future.

It is best to learn this in childhood. Children who face disappointment learn from failure, cope with loss and adapt to change. We recognize resilience when we observe determination, grit and perserverance to tackle problems and cope with emotional challenges of life. One of the cornerstones to instilling resilience is our mind set; a way of thinking where we connect a paradigm of lifes' success, rather than just looking at grades, monetary success or the accumulation of wealth, but rather to believe in one self.  Its one of the greatest gift that someone could instill in us, is that we never give up, never stop believing in your dreams!

There are many ways that we can cultivate resilience: promote self reflection, learn from failure and set backs. Remember, if you never did anything, then you've never made a mistake!! So, for people who are up to really big things in the world, they are going to make big mistakes! We honor this as part of learning.

For adults, suggestions on fostering resilience: Practice optimism, surround yourself with optimistic people. Rewrite your story. Don't personalize it.  Focus on the opportunity this setback presented.  Reframing the personal narrative helps shape our view of the world and of ourselves. Remind yourself of the challenges you have personally overcome. Support others.  Any way that we can help others is a way of moving outside of ourself.  Go outside of your comfort zone. Part of resilience is taking responsibility, and creating a life that you find meaningful and purposeful. Also, take stress breaks. 

Kathi quote: "Failure is not failure, it is a smorgashbord for learning." (Reframing and claiming technique.)

Nelson Mandela said "Do not judge me by my success, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again." (Excellent example of resilience.)

Tony Robbins said "Most people fail in life because they major in the minor things." (Example of Metacognition).

A few more by Tony: " We can change our lives.  We can do, have and be exactly as we wish."

"Identify your problems. But give your power and energy to your solutions." (Resourcefulness)

"Quality questions create a quality life. Successful people ask better questions, and as a result they get better answers." (Excellent example of Metacognition).

For the purposes of learning, its important to take time to identify things that are confusing, and recognize what you don't understand. It's an important part of self awareness. Acknowledging confusion is an integral part of learning. By asking what is confusing, you open up to reflection. 

This is huge topic!!! 

Obviously, we want to distinguish what behaviors that we can do that would cause us to cultivate any and all conditions that are ideal for spontaneity.  We will need to consider all of the conditions that are barrier to spontaneity, such as fixed or frozen ways of being. 

We want to explore more deeply the paths that open us to being open.  This is valuable because, we can quickly find and identify ideal conditions to explore and to communicate our findings.  We can also identify proper conditions, then we can more quickly gain familiarity and expertise of the conditions that cause us move beyond ourselves, to connect to experience of spontaneity. And, how about the fruits of those experiences?  The inspiration!  The encountering of the oneness --- of our cosmos. Being one with All... These are brave in the quest for expansion. Totally pushing the limits of possibility... 

I am going open this meeting, and you are All invited to be spontaneous, and express yourself at the level of soul.

Whatever that means, and how ever that occurs to you is perfectly in tune with what and where you are.  

There will likely be further adjustments to the foundation for this thread as it develops!

Recommendations/ Requests:

1.  Expand and grow your awareness of and with spontaneity:  How does this influence you spiritually?  How does this influence your private life?  Does it make you more patient, more compassionate of others?  Does it make you more tolerant?  Does it make you want to look and listen within?  Appreciating solitude? Has it ushered in a bit of a protective cycle, or heightened a newer or greater awareness that you are not living life to the fullest--- my job, or whatever is too demanding, and I do not have the freedom to engage with soul or with spontaneity?
2. Notice areas of excitement, innovation and independence. These areas many be in the domain of romance, creativity, recreation, work, health, adventure or travel. When you notice the presence of excitement, you're there, this is spontaneity, stick with it, allow this to continue! Let those gifts arise! How about being touched by poetry?  How are we so moved by music?  What is it that is so moving about music, that it transcends and elevates us so?? We are responding to something very powerful, and it causes us to experience something in our self that is truly unique. And, what about dancing? Such absolute JOY, pure joy. 
3. Notice areas of change, purging and transformation.  This could be showing up in the domain of finances, values and communication.  This could be in the domain of learning, or dilating your world view. Notice, that this domain is the beginning of causing you to reach out and connect beyond yourself. Really letting go and making room for something new or more valuable. 
4. One more.  The cosmos are asking me/you/us to surrender some of our attachments and surrender to the unknown.  Releasing control is necessary.  The work I'm doing: building my faith, having boundaries when it comes to energy and time. 

Please feel free to use any and all of the above at your discretion.  And, as always, disregard all and use your inner compass!  Love all feed back!! Love connection to Bmindful!!! Appreciate input from All participants!!

Wishing All Blessing and a Joyous New Year!!

I know I’m jumping the gun so to speak, but I didn’t want to lose my thoughts after reading your post. 

Treasure Hunt

Ever searching

Nourishing yourself
Finding unexpected treasures
As you travel

Hunting near and far
The prize is within
It is you!

Never stop
Redefining, learning
Who you are
Being yourself.

In response to Poppy's post: Very beautiful Poppy!!  I love how your poetry always gives me the experience of LOVE!!

In response to SelfCare/AppreciationView˚'s post: Beautiful!! My new view of you, Self care, is that you are two things!!! The hummingbird/ Meteor!  This hummingbird, thrilling and touching all the flowers!!! And the Meteor, who is miles and miles above us, swooshing above, shining brightly, generously giving off a fountain of meteoric light!!! Providing light on our path!!!

˚ allowing all good 💗  

Posted on 21/12/2017. Last edited on 22/12/2017.

I can feel the spontaneity after just recently allowing this shift.

Wow, one of the biggest take backs from these Happiness meetings --- is the immediate access to spontaneity!

For example, I may not have had an opportunity to share the positive impact, and how my perceptions have shifted!

For those who know me, I have written numerous times about forgiveness.  Its not hard to connect there are reasons for that!! LOL! 

What immediately shifted for me has to do with looking at two particular sentences: one was understanding that life events are milestones designed for my learning... Secondly, a few of those Rumi quotes, especially the one about "Don't get lost in the pain, and one day the pain will be the cure..."  

With that I was able to tap into some very old, very untransformed wounds. I took an INSTANT healing step forward into acceptance (AND BEYOND!!!), and a flood of peace and joy came rushing! My words, my descriptions, my ability to share this, are so totally limited, because my heart is shouting, singing and laughing!!! My spirit has been ROARING with laughter. 

I'm thrilled to report that, this is now 3 days ago, and these past 3 days, the freedom --- just in my mind, and in my perceptions has opened up to possibility in multiple areas.  Freedom ---  all over, unlimited peace. And I feel like I've been reunited with my true spirit!  Its like a big and important part of me is now back, in full effect! 

Talk about an education! I've learned so much more than I can account for! I have priceless wisdom about human nature and I have some unforgettable glimpses of our greatest purpose: LOVE.

Understanding this has been empowering. 

I have so many different thoughts! It's like the flood is still flooding me - and my Spirit has been powerfully let out of a prison of perception!

The impact is still in effect!  And, it has less and less to do with words.  It's like being catapulted from thoughts (that actually imprisoned my Being) --- to having freedom that definitely makes up for the (I'm doing the math, since I was 24 or 25 years old, and I just turned 54 years old a few days ago!), 30 years!!

Although I have not responded to the list of questions, I have been totally exploring and doing what you could call a personal inventory.

My, my, my...

I have so much to say! I have gained much in the way of personal awareness, newly. All new. 

And, every minute, new access and unlimited opening to spontaneity. Its like another curtain opened, and in time, my compassion for others is so clear, so real, so generous, kind and truthful. 

Having had a shift in perception has given me access my Spirit.  For me, that is not an emotional element. Spirit for me is silent and knowing. And, I'm learning so much, and my experience of my self, All the parts of me, I'm new, I'm not the same! I've changed. And, I am finding out that I am not who I believed I was. And, I'm not afraid to connect with my truth. Or to speak it! 

So - this is what fearlessness feels like!  

I feel SO much more alive when I am not living a life induced by fear!

What a truly wonderful inspiring thread truly a banquet for nurturing the spirit!!!!

As in this magical moment of discovery and awareness intensifying my joy I am filled with sheer delight coupled with amazing gratitude.

In response to Nancee1953's post: Hi Nancee!!! Thanks for your Beautiful words!  I'm grateful that you joined the Happiness meeting!! 

HUGS!!!!!!

˚ allowing all good 💗  

Posted on 24/12/2017. Last edited on 19/11/2020.

absolutely beautiful....

the sharing...

the experiences...

....bookmarking our heart template to  add to where we are, appreciating uncertainty  to look forward to more of each now-moment

˚ allowing all good 💗  

Posted on 25/12/2017. Last edited on 18/01/2018.

note to self-Happiness Meetings rock!

note to self-return

In the mean time 

Merry Christmas to this meeting's chair -Kathi!

Happy Birthday!!!

Happy New Year!!!

• ~

1-18 -2018

will return to questions today(:

1. Notice areas of excitement, innovation and independence. These areas many be in the domain of romance, creativity, recreation, work, health, adventure or travel. When you notice the presence of excitement, you're there, this is spontaneity, stick with it, allow this to continue! Let those gifts arise! How about being touched by poetry?  How are we so moved by music?  What is it that is so moving about music, that it transcends and elevates us so?? We are responding to something very powerful, and it causes us to experience something in our self that is truly unique. And, what about dancing? Such absolute JOY, pure joy. 

In response to SelfCare/AppreciationView˚'s post: Thank you for the Birthday and Christmas wish!!!

Sending you and All in our Bmindful community a Joyous Season's Greeting, and blessings for a prosperous and healthful New Year!!

There is so much that I would like to say and share.

I grew a lot from this thread.

I believe in the transformative growth of these happiness meetings!  I am awed, and filled with wonder...

I can only share with you-- that my life has taken on new meaning, and, I have gained new focus. New goals, that are wilder than I could have imagined.

I am seeing all of the little steps, and how these have brought me to this new view of my life, and my ability to manifest and join and-- touch our shared world, and make a difference...

I can and I do say-- ASK and PLAY BIG.

Aks for things that seem IMPOSSIBLE.

We are never too old to learn, never too old to grow, or to be enriched.

We are never too poor-- to give, to believe, to speak our truth, to be heard, to believe or to dare.

We are perfectly equipped to care, to be authentic, to be truthful, to be powerful, to be spontaneous, to be bold, -- to make a difference.

My liberation- my freedom, is not the goal for me. My goal is growth and to nurture connections, network.  What I desire is to be innovative, and basically, to be a subject matter expert committed to ushering in Health care reform. I am thinking about going back to school for an EMBA. If that is the case, I am in for a totally new domain of learning.

To All Bmindful community, I invite you All to JUMP IN, and write the next happiness meeting.

If you want something new, something powerful, and you want grow your technique of manifestation, producing and/or participating in these Bmindful Happiness meetings can be pivotal.

Our community is interested in your thoughts, and in your process!

I dare you to take on your impossible dreams-- ALL of them!!! I dare you-- to dare yourself!!

If you are interested in hosting a happiness meeting, please connect with myself or 

AllowingBetter...Best  -profile page  WONDERFUL POSSIBILITIES' profile page  

Or send a PM to her. If not a premium member, let us know of your interest on this thread!

˚ allowing all good 💗  

Posted on 17/01/2018. Last edited on 22/11/2020.

Yes Yes, Kath, loving the invitation to Happiness Meetings.

At this time, Happiness Meetings are one of the few threads created in current times... with this kind of forum style of sharing. 

I love the threads we have today... I would be silly to say otherwise with the good the other threads have contributed to my daily experience....

Though as you've shared -this is truly different, and we will soon be posting the 3 or 4 guidelines for hosting a Happiness Meeting. It is easy in the sense you are sharing what is meaningful for you first (like any thread)... and branching out to include all members who 'enter'. (:

Editing is allowed, though we will share how we do this in a meeting. Bottom line if someone has responded to your thoughts already... simply make reference to where you were... in a simple statement and continue on with your present moment.

I always look forward to these meetings.

While beyond ourselves, only a couple of others have hosted meetings.

It doesn't matter how many times a person hosts, just love the opportunity, have fun, and enjoy the growth... because all 3 things will occur and add something significant to your positive energy field that words cannot adequately describe.

We welcome all, and look forward to the diversity you bring... by being your unique self(:

So whether you are hosting or being a member participant joining in:

It is such a gift to look back to what I wrote, and where I was just a few years ago...

I look back, and wish I could wipe out most of the emotional comments! They are so loud and so fleeting and mostly superficial... However, I do not equate the superficial emotions to joy... I believe joy is not superficial nor fleeting; and my experience is that there is inner connectedness related to joy.

Anyway, I look back at this thread, and there is so much that this thread just didn't mention.  This is a huge, valuable and complex topic.  I wonder about how powerful this topic is to alignment, or is it even related at all...

In my life experience, I sustained the greatest inner peace and had access to truly great liberation when I aligned more with core values.  While my values have not changed, I have benefited from balancing all learning with patience.

I understand now, that its part of the lesson - to be patient and kind.  I have learned that I cannot rush understanding!! Its a huge part of inner growth, is to have context and to see that there are very important attributes that require time.  

I am continuing to build a greater sensitivity to listening, however, listening is not the same thing as understanding. And this thread is an invitation for developing a greater awareness of our capacity to  see and to understand who, what and where we and where mankind stands at this time. 

Uncertainty

Today in the darkness 

of my room 

I lay grasping for air

Celebrating its labored flow

Into the night

A new day 

Is uncertain

Afraid to close my eyes

Passing thoughts 

Flood glassy orbs

Staring absently 

Dawn arising

Sleep t’morrow

Breathe

Life’s uncertain

Here today

Sucking air

Bright tomorrows

Almost there always!

In response to Poppy's post:

Thank you Poppy.  Blessings. Thinking of you and your family.

Hold on to all of the love; its everywhere. 

Your friend, 

Kathi

♡ ˚Allowing Beautiful Thoughts  

Posted on 21/11/2020. Last edited on 22/11/2020.

In response to Poppy's post: agreeing with Kathi - You are so surrounded by love.

 you and your family always in our hearts and prayers .

Thank you for conveying your thoughts/ feelings. With hope, faith and love,

‘selfcare’

˚ allowing all good 💗  

Posted on 06/03/2024.

In response to Life is about making excellent choices!!'s post:

in understand looking back & wanting to wipe out what it took to get us this moment .

Though like-you  , I am completely grateful 

like what you said:

In my life experience, I sustained the greatest inner peace and had access to truly great liberation when I aligned more with core values.  While my values have not changed, I have benefited from balancing all learning with patience.

I understand now, that its part of the lesson - to be patient and kind.  I have learned that I cannot rush understanding!! Its a huge part of inner growth, is to have context and to see that there are very important attributes that require time.  

I am continuing to build a greater sensitivity to listening, however, listening is not the same thing as understanding. And this thread is an invitation for developing a greater awareness of our capacity to  see and to understand who, what and where we and where mankind stands at this time