By The Green Divas /
Tips for Transformation & Inspiration / July 4, 2015
I personally stopped watching the news on a regular basis many years ago, with the exception of CBS Sunday Morning, which is the NPR-of-TV to me (and even that I only catch once every few weeks).
You would think I was blissfully ignorant about the world’s issues, but oddly enough I’m not. I manage to keep up thanks to the overwhelming array of options now available all day long from millions of sources (a few that are quite credible) other than network news channels.
[Read: 5 Ways to Turn Pessimism Into Positivity]
For a variety of reasons, my natural state-of-being earlier in my life (teen and early adulthood) was not bliss or happiness or anything like that. It was darkness, drama and depression with a dose of alcoholism and addiction to secure that state of being.
I ditched the drugs and alcohol over a quarter century ago, but it took years to move my thinking to a higher level—less doom, more aha! That darkness always looms nearby and attempts to drag me back to the mental gates of hell. I rarely go there these days, but won’t lie and say I never do; the visits are shorter and far less intense.
One recent morning, I became acutely aware that I had a sense of impending good.
[Read: Do You Know How to Produce Positivity?]
I actually argued with myself about it—really? not a sense of impending doom?—because between the new tick borne disease that can kill you, Antarctica melting and unprecedented species extinctions one could easily feel doomed. Nope. I felt like something awesome was about to blossom.
I realized part of my perspective was a choice. Like that old Native American story about the 2 wolves that live within us— one is dark and vicious and the other gentle and loving. The one that rules us is the one we feed… much like my busy and quirky mind, which I’ve been retraining for many years to quit ruminating on the negative crap and focus as much as possible on the good stuff.
[Read: How to Navigate Change and Transition in Healthy Ways]
When I’m conscious, this practice can pull me out of any funk, but it isn’t always so easy to be conscious! Hence a daily practice of prayer and meditation and always, always, always working on being more mindful.
Most days I look around me or in the new world community of Facebook and social media, and while there are a few legitimate sad and tragic stories, I’m lifted by the many inspiring stories of triumph over that impending doom. Man I love seeing people loving each other and respecting animals and the earth so creatively, so brilliantly.
Here are 4 things I do to help me see good in almost anything…
[Read: Make Positive Affirmation Part of Your Daily Ritual With This New App]
1. Meditate
If you want to observe your thoughts and bring your awareness to exactly how your mind operates, meditation is the answer. I know, meditation is supposed to be the antidote to thinking, but the reality is that most of us spend the first few minutes of any meditation session stumbling around in our head bumping into thoughts. Brilliant stuff like, “I’ve got to weed that garden,” “Why is my dog so crazy?” “I hate that perfume Sherry is wearing. It makes me nauseous.”
With practice, you can use that type of observational method to begin to see your thoughts and pay special attention to how often the thoughts are negative, fear-based, judgmental, shaming, self-abusive, etc. At first, it will seem like most of it is bad. DON’T JUDGE YOURSELF, just observe. Then you can work on changing it!
[Read: 5 Ways to Make Meditation Less Intimidating]
2. Just Say No to Negativity
I implemented a quirky, but effective practice years ago that works. When I note a nasty thought or image float through my head, I say (in my head and sometimes out loud), “cancel, cancel, cancel,” which literally wakes me up from whatever dark daydream I was in and then I move into affirmative mode, stating clearly some affirmation that helps to re-direct that original thought pathway.
For instance, if I’m driving and I worry about getting tangled up with a big truck that’s up ahead (and my mind can be extremely creative and graphic and scary), and I start to imagine what that might look like, I generally catch myself and yell (in my head or out loud) “cancel, cancel, cancel,” and quickly replace the thought with an affirmation like, “thank you god/universe/goddess/spirit/whatever for guiding me safely on the highway.”
[Read: Feeling Miserable? A 5-Minute Cure to Conquer Negative Feelings]
3. Gratitude
There’s nothing that works better on shifting my attitude from gloom to bloom than gratitude. I’ve developed a practice of mentally listing things I’m grateful for during especially stressful moments or sometimes just for fun. I did this once in a lengthy MRI using the alphabet, A – I’m grateful for organic apples, and my friend Annie . . . B – Betty, beauty, bees, etc. Sometimes I write it down, which is also quite helpful. Focusing my attention on gratitude brings about a nearly immediate energy shift, and whatever seemed so awful, tends to become a more manageable beast.
4. Look for the Good
I set my intention in my morning prayer and meditation to find the good and see it around me. And guess what? I do see it!
I’m thoroughly convinced there’s good in everyone and every situation no matter how awful and bleak it may appear. Not that the silver-lining reveals itself right away all the time, but for the most part, I’ve trained my mind to hunt down something good in everything like a blood hound on a scent. It’s almost like a game.
[Read Maria Shriver’s latest “I’ve Been Thinking” essay]
Yes, I’ve become one of those annoying people that almost always finds a unique way to see something and find the good in it, which most of my friends and family appreciate, but a rare few just find it irritating. I’m not saying I don’t have a process that involves whining, bitching, crying and other challenging expressions to find that good side. Be gentle on yourself. It’s always a process.
The Green Divas Good Positivity