login to bmindful Sign up for your FREE bmindful account!

To get the most out of the bmindful forum, please sign up or log in!

★From "Bad"ittude to Graditude

It is amazing to me how just a shift in self-talk can change your whole life in ways that – with limited thinking – you would never imagine happening to you. I love to hear and pass along stories about how with something as simple as a shift in thought, life can quickly become amazing.

At one point in my life, I had been laid off from my job. My husband was a full time student and we went from a fairly lucrative income to unemployment. I had just given birth to my fifth child only weeks earlier. Needless to say, panic had struck in my household.

I am the fifth child of seven. The family I grew up in is a very traditional family. They are set in their ways of thinking and any New Age beliefs that I may hold are in no way in their vocabulary. Immediately I was bombarded with ideas of poverty and fear from an otherwise loving family…frequently and with great conviction. I began to believe them, only WORSE! I started taking their ideas as my own.

No job interviews. No money coming in. Unemployment ran out. Five hungry mouths to feed. What could I do? I joined WIC (Women Infant Children), a government program to distribute milk, cheese, cereal, etc to families with children under five. Now, I’m not saying every office is like the one I went to. I’m sure there are dedicated workers who believe in what they do.

Unfortunately, the messages I was sending out to the universe were very dutifully being answered! The people at the WIC office were extremely condescending! After only a few weeks, I actually began to believe I was inept as I was treated and would no longer be able to provide for my family. I sank into a deep depression. Yikes! What could stop the spiral?

One day I looked in the mirror. I had very dark circles under my eyes. My face was puffy from stress. My hair was stringy and unkempt. Who was this old woman staring back in the mirror at me? Where was “I”? It was at my darkest hour, that I knew I had to make a change. I had to take responsibility and control of my life (for what I could). I wasn’t going to sit around and wait for a miracle.

All my life, I knew I wanted to own my own business. I wanted to treat my customers the way I believed everyone should be treated: respectful, personal, and warm. But, what would I do?

It is amazing how life hands you the answers when you ask the right questions. Another former coworker told me of a government program that pays for your college tuition, books, supplies, everything you need to go back to school – if you get laid off from your job and you can prove that going back to school will make you employable again. It is called WIA (Workforce Investment Act). I quickly went to my local community college and found out they just started a two year degree called Entrepreneurship. I had no idea what business I would start, but I knew it was everything I wanted.

Fast forward several years. I now own my business and it was doing “okay” but not spectacular. The same former co-worker who told me about the WIA program told me about a book she was reading called “The Secret”. This was where I learned about affirmations and how gratitude played a role. While, I was being positive in life, I wasn’t being specific. I changed my affirmations to reflect exactly how much I wanted to earn each month. I started using visualization as well as affirmations. I believe this increased the effect in a powerful way.

Fast forward again a couple of years. My business shows no ill effects from the “recession”. Each month, the numbers are growing in revenue and unique visitors. My life has expanded in ways I never dreamed of. Suddenly, I have excuses to travel the world for business. My income far exceeds the salary I was accustomed to. Work is not work, but instead play. Poverty is not in my vocabulary, except to explain that it is just a form of low energy and is simply a manifestation from a broken belief system.

I am grateful when I wake up each morning to start my day. It isn’t in rush hour traffic. It isn’t answering to a boss that has expectations I could never live up to. I wake up to what I want to accomplish with directions only from my inner guidance.

You know, my goal now is to reach women in poverty. Those who don’t understand they can do better. It isn’t about education. It isn’t about luck. It isn’t about circumstances. These women need to know they carry the power to change their position in life. They already are perfect and have EXACTLY what they need to create the environment for their family.

I sat in the WIC waiting room for months on end watching the people around me. These women had no life in their eyes. They sat dead – waiting for their meager coupons for food. There was no spark. There was no hope. They didn’t know.

One at a time. If I can reach out to one person at a time and encourage them to change their life… to make them understand and believe that they have everything they need already. There is no magic bullet, except their own self. They have the power. It is just waiting to be discovered.

Imagine how wonderful our world would be. Will you help me?

I am living in many dimensions at once; the appearance of being trapped in time and space is only an illusion.

In response to meditatingmama’s post:
What a tremendous story! Thank you so much for sharing it(: [2008]

  • ~
    condensed my thoughts from that time today [in 2015]…to a Wow! & Thank you for sharing your awesome story(: MeditatingMama and I spoke through PM ‘back then’ … She added much to the site! Miss you MM(:

I AM
Peaceful:
Emotions, Sensations ,
& Feelings

In response to meditatingmama’s post:
WOW, than you for sharing that motivational story! You really are inspirational!

How do you plan on reaching these women in need? Have you put a plan together listing your exact goals and detailing the steps you’ll need to get there?

I’d love to hear more about your plans, and any information on how the bmindful community can help!

“How easy it is in our life, to miss what’s being offered.” — Paul Haller

Thank You, Laurie.

Lee, I’m glad you asked. I have a book “inside” of me that I need to write. It may not reach the appropriate target audience that I’m really aiming at, but I’d still like to put it out there.

Also, I have a couple of family members who work with a program in the United States called Head Start. This program provides free preschool and breakfast/lunches to poverty (or near poverty level) families. Part of the program encourages parents to be involved with Head Start parent education classes. It would be nice to be a community member that speaks with these parents. More importantly, it would be nice to be a speaker/educator to the Parent Advocates who are there to help the parents.

My family members have worked so long in the program that they are a bit jaded. They believe that most of these people are lazy and fully expect to continue the generational poverty trend for themselves and their children. I don’t believe all parents are lazy and desire to be generational poverty families. They probably are just stuck and don’t know any better. Believe me, when depression rears its ugly little head, it is easy to just “stop thinking”. However, if the Parent Advocates were a little more excited, maybe the families could get excited. If they knew they had choices… If they were just given that little spark that prods them to move in the right direction…

So, teach the advocates. Motivate the advocates to encourage and educate the parents. The parents will model the moves for the children. The long, heavy freight train of cyclical poverty could begin to turn around…one person at a time.

Yes, I am a Pollyana. It’s ok. Someone has to believe in them.

I am living in many dimensions at once; the appearance of being trapped in time and space is only an illusion.

that,s good idea certainly worth a try

Once you get to know Twain, you’ll never be the same.

In response to meditatingmama's post:

I thought this was a great time of year to highlight MeditatingMama's gratitude story.

It's really an excellent real life story!

much love to you & everyone here!

I AM
Peaceful:
Emotions, Sensations ,
& Feelings

a44729e6b89a043331ed14880131cc42.jpg

I AM
Peaceful:
Emotions, Sensations ,
& Feelings

Jump to Top ^^

To get the most out of the bmindful forum, please sign up or log in!

Related Content