Great Life Gifts

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My spiritual director/psychotherapist always thought it was a moment for celebration when someone appeared at his doorway in their lowest moment. “When you hit bottom,” he would say, “then you can break open.” As difficult and harrowing the journey to the bottom can be, hitting an emotional bottom is a moment of celebration. When a series of unhealthy choices finally shove your ego off the cliff of a fantasy life, then you have a chance to break free and fully assess where you might go next. And at your most emotionally and mentally battered, you are more open to the belief that choices you can finally make on your own behalf will lead you to a pathway of peace and security. And once you hit the valley and the shell of a fantasy existence has cracked open, you will be able to soak in the oxygen of a world who wants you as you are.

One of the most gratifying aspects of serving as a counselor is the breakthrough moment clients experience in finding the source of dissonance within their lives. Whether it’s the honest acknowledgement of a feeling towards another or the awareness of their own behavior, the breakthrough moment is an earth shaking moment which is felt by both of us.  How does the process unfold to arrive at a particular apex in time? Like a person who is frantically swimming to the water’s surface, a counseling client is sifting through a tidal wave of emotions and thoughts which is drowning her authenticity. A word at a time, a client wrings out the excesses of her relationships to get to the simplicity of one relationship—the relationship with herself. When the breakthrough occurs, it’s like the near drowning swimmer who has reached through the water’s surface. He is freed to let out the carbon dioxide suffocating him and inhale the oxygen of a life that has been missing. It’s a release ...

What are you looking forward to this week? Anticipation of happy experiences is a good stress buster–especially if you are in a work setting that isn't to your preference. While you are waiting for change to occur, what can you enjoy right now, right here? Here are some things I will enjoy this week: The smiles of my children, husband, and mother. Taking our dog for long walks. The humor of my co-workers. The beautiful New Mexico sky. The fascination of the wind in April. What are the experiences you will enjoy this week?

Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. (Genesis 2:7 NIV) Remember to breathe. Biblically, the first burst of energy Human Kind experienced from God was the breath.  Focus on your breath today and know it is in tune with the Breath of God. As you walk on your path today every breath in and every breath out is God’s infinite, soothing peace. Remember to breathe.

Blood dripped from "Dracula's" nose just as the Jehovah’s Witness handed him a Bible. It wasn't planned; it was a spontaneous reaction to dry air, but the timing couldn't have had more meaning. A crew-cut clean shaven Ambassador for God knocked randomly on the door of a brick ranch-style house. Standing at the open door was a black eye-lined, black dyed haired 15-year-old boy wearing a silk screened Slip Knot t-shirt. By appearances, it would seem obvious who came to teach whom on the proper way to be. But underneath the façade of EMO (the teenaged boy) and wholesomeness (the J ehovah’s Witness ) lies the common desire to connect with others in meaningful ways. The tool each of them uses differs only in superficialities. The message each of them is trying to convey is the same. Many misconceptions have arisen among proper adults about the psychopathy behind teens who flock to EMO choices like black birds on an electric wire. As a subcult...

With early intervention, children diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder have an opportunity to receive interventions such as speech and occupational therapy, allowing them to participate in activities most kids enjoy. Autism is not a curable condition but it is treatable. And with new numbers released just last week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicating one in 68 people are affected by the disorder, it's more important than ever that we advocate for research to help us discover the cause and the best approaches to treat it. If your community is hosting an Autism Awareness Event, I encourage you to participate.

For the month of April try a new activity in developing your mindfulness skills and turn your cell phone off when you are driving--especially if you find yourself automatically reaching for it every time it beeps or rings. We love you here at Great Life Gifts and we think it's better to be alive and popular rather than a popular memory.  How many of you will take the pledge with me? Provided by The National Safety Council

Of the millions of tweets this weeks, this one is the most compelling: Here are 10 things you didn't know about loading the dishwasher http://t.co/GWpFiaCuQ9 — Martha Stewart (@MarthaStewart) March 17, 2014

Nearly everyday I sit with people who cry. Some crying comes in the form of shaking-hug-yourself sobs and other comes in the form of watering eyes with Adam's apples the size of tennis balls to hold in the wails. And sometimes the cry brings itself out through clenched fists and a knee bouncing up and down from the impatience felt towards an emotion which reveals an individual's vulnerability to being a part of the human race. All the tears I've seen shed, so far, could fill a small ocean. And the tears come from all shapes and sizes of people--from petite, pink lipped school teachers to burly brown tattooed thieves and drug addicts. And every single tear is considered as valuable to me as the small droplets of diamonds that they look like.  So we catch these translucent diamonds with a feather delicate tissue paper and we keep catching them until the tissue is so full that the tears drip from it.  And then the tears stop.  Just like that.  No magic is co...

Shrove Tuesday is Here! In traditional Protestant and Catholic traditions, Shrove Tuesday is the celebration before the beginning of the Lenten season when people repent for bad habits and attitudes in preparation for Easter.  Many local churches will be hosting pancake suppers in honor of this tradition. If you love pancakes and do not have a church mindset, you can still celebrate and make a contribution to a worthy cause at your local IHOP this morning. 

I work two jobs, but my husband makes more than me. He has always made more than me.  One of the reasons I married him (in addition to the grand love I have for him) is I knew he would provide for our family. Does that sound traditional? Maybe it is. Before I married him, I dated an attorney. But he wasn't a litigation attorney; he was one of those work-for-legal-aid-type attorneys. That was admirable. But that was the type of non-profit work I do and I knew it wouldn't provide for a family. And for me it's important that I am in a family that provides for the family. While I didn't marry the work for legal aid- attorney I've wanted to be the kind of family he came from. His family sent their children to boarding school, France, and prestigious private colleges. And in doing so he had the choice to become a  work-for-legal-aid-type attorney . My family wasn't like that. My family sent me to my grandparents in the summer and public school in the winter. On ...

When God wanted to take a break from the stress of creating the universe, He took out his paintbrush and doodled in the sand, the stars, and the flowers. http://www.pinterest.com/pin/35606653277915835/ At the end of the work day, you could take a clue from your Creator and get out your marking pens and sit in silence while you color a Mandala. In its literal Sanskrit translation, a mandala symbolizes the container of sacred essence we all are. You can see this mandala theme reflected in the human physiology in the design of your eyes or the uniqueness of your fingerprint. Over the course of civilization, nearly every culture has revealed a reverence for a symbol of sacredness through religious or spiritual structures such as the grand cathedrals of Christianity to the mosques and synagogues of Muslim and Jewish traditions. In less ostentatious ways but no less meaningful are the medicine wheel and dream catchers of Native Americans or the Celtic Cross. As a tool of meditation,...

Editor's note: this is an essay I wrote about an incident I experienced when I worked in Adult Basic Education a few years ago. People need loving the most when they deserve it the least.  John Harrigan Paul and Rick fought on the Tuesday before winter break and again on the Wednesday that classes resumed. The first argument was over the cigarette butts. Paul flicked the last of his cigarette on the ground even though a black metal canister was right beside him. Rick, the building’s maintenance man, walked by just as the butt landed on the ground. In a polite way for Rick, but a rude way to Paul, Rick barked that Paul should use the ashtray. Paul shouted where Rick could put the ash tray. The second argument continued the first over the disposal method of cigarettes but was also fueled by Paul’s inattentiveness to clean spaces. Rick had just mopped the floor and Paul walked through it, rather than around. As the full-time maintenance man, Rick walks a tight rope of sel...

Whatever role you play in life, you have the opportunity to be the reason others keep coming back. Keep coming back to: School; Work; Church; Home; or Hobbies. How can I do this?  It's not as complicated as you might think, even with the most difficult: Student, Colleague; Child; Parent; Client; Patient, or Boss. You decide and believe their presence makes a valuable difference, no matter how difficult or different they might be. Then you express it to them by telling them "thank you for coming." And mean it. And they will know you mean it but they may not smile at you the first time you say it because they might not believe it (because you might not believe it either the first time you say it). But if you say it every time with a sincere desire to want to believe it, they and you will eventually smile And their behavior won't seem so difficult to you.

Any effort you make to quiet your mind and allow a Higher Plane of Consciousness to emerge will develop personal characteristics which will be abundantly obvious to you and those around you. These qualities will grow Prosperity in every segment of your life--including economically.  So how can you cultivate this connection? 1. Acknowledge you have the ability to access this part of consciousness. Some people believe God is Out There and others believe it's Within. Wherever you believe God to Exist, give yourself the gift of Access. 2. Choose a Time each day to Spend in Quiet. The ideal setting is one in which you aren't Multi-Tasking. But if your schedule is so busy that the only time you have to reach out or in for your God Consciousness is when you're in the shower or on your commute, then by all means take that time. 3. Pick a phrase or visualize a location which helps reduce your feelings of pressure. Imagine there are no deadlines for you to ...

Is the hour of sleep you lost this last weekend kicking you in the rear? Have you  counted all the sheep, feathers, and fence posts you can stand for the night and still struggling with getting to sleep. Don't stress about catching your Zs; there's help. Melatonin , a hormone produced in the pineal gland in the brain, is produced in smaller quantities as we get older and other aspects of our life, such as shift work, travel, or springing our clocks ahead, can interfere with our body's circadian rhythm .  You can increase your levels of melatonin by taking over the counter supplements, which are easily found at pharmacies, health food stores and the Internet. Doses range from .2 to 20 milligram. Start at the smallest dose first and gradually increase it if it doesn't work. Because its purpose is to help you sleep, make sure you take it from two to four hours ahead of your bedtime so you have a full night's sleep. Otherwise, you may wake up groggy. To he...

If all your friends decided to jump off a cliff would you go with them is a common refrain directed toward impulsive teenagers by their parents. It's a valid question which is applicable far beyond the teenage years. While it may be desirable to avoid a negative interaction it may not always be possible. So what can you do if you start to feel overwhelmed by the negative energy circling around the table like a vulture waiting to pick at the remains of any positive mental attitude? Make a decision to find the participant who you perceive to be as the most positive of the bunch and focus on them. While it is polite to share your eye contact with everyone in the room, if you're on the receiving end of a negative discussion, then do what's in your best interest both mentally and emotionally: focus on the positive. Every group has a ring leader and it may be the head honcho is the most negative of the assemblage. If this is the case, make a decision to not engage w...

I s that scratchy feeling starting to take hold in your throat? Gargle with mouthwash or salt water after brushing your teeth to ease the pain.  During the day, carry mouth wash strips. Mouthwashes  can kill the germs that cause sore throats due to colds. 

You may have made a commitment to get into better shape this year, but there's nothing that says you can't get it done efficiently, i.e., the least amount of time and sweat required. Is there such an exercise, especially for a beginner? YES On the most recent podcast of Freakonomics , exercise experts unveil the holy grail of fitness improvement: the squat. This stand-in-place-need-no-special-equipment movement is the one exercise that will pack the most health improvement for the time spent. Some of the benefits are: Image from www.sweatlikeapig.com Maintain mobility. Being able to get in and out of a chair without help is a top determinant as to whether people will be able to live independently or have to move to assisted living or a nursing home. Increase functional strength. While you are building your leg muscles you are simultaneously increasing your body's nerve networks to work your muscles more efficiently all over. Tone your butt. Try it and see if y...