The Sacred Life Equation - The Affirmation Spot for Tuesday June 17, 2008
Your Fifth Affirmation is Always Free at The Affirmation Spot
Today's affirmation is:
"My world is what I make of it and I choose to make it a happy place to be." (5 times)
Hear an audio mp3 version of this affirmation right now.
Many of us were stunned at the untimely passing last Friday of TV journalist Tim Russert. The broadcasting world lost one of its giants. Americans lost one of the few journalists with the courage to ask the hard questions.It is my fervent hope that young journalists, reflecting on Mr. Russert's passing, will rededicate themselves to their vital and independent role in maintaining freedom and democracy by truly keeping the people informed.Of course, whenever an event like this happens it gives us each pause to reflect on the brief moment we are all here. A colleague of mine reminded me yesterday that, "each day is a gift." We say things like that and we think things like that, but do we really live it every day?Thich Nhat Hanh reminds us in his 1991 book Peace Is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life
."Every morning, when we wake up, we have twenty-four brand new hours to live. What a precious gift! We have the capacity to live in a way that these twenty-four hours will bring peace, joy, and happiness to ourselves and others.Peace is present right here and now, in ourselves and in everything we do and see. The question is whether or not we are in touch with it."Even for someone like me, who experienced the chilly breath of death on the back of my neck at an early age; it's easy to forget how precious each day, each moment is. We get caught up in what we're doing and worrying about what other people think and we lose sight of what is important....why we're here.There is a very simple tool you can use to weigh the importance of things that are stealing your happiness, your joy, your peace today. I'm calling it - this is dramatic - The Sacred Life Equation.On one side of the equation is your joy, happiness, and peace of mind and on the other side are the worries and problems that are dragging you down.
- My joy = the bills
- My happiness = what others say and do or don't say and don't do
- My peace of mind = having so many things
You know the equations for you. Obviously, when you put them in this simple equation these worries are not equal. Your joy is worth more than worries about the bills. Your happiness does not rely on others. Your peace of mind does not come from possessing things.The actual equations we should be living by are:
How is unconsciously living as if your concerns are as important your dreams damaging your experience of that precious gift of this 24 hours?You know what's really important. "The question," as Thich Nhat Hanh poses it, "is whether or not we are in touch with it." Are we living as if our happiness is more important than our worries?What do you think Tim Russert would tell you, if he could speak to you today? Put your worries into the The Sacred Life Equation against the important things and see how they come out. Today is a brand new 24 hours. Make the most of it.Stay inspired!Ray