Release Worry And Fear

There are many things I am worried about in life. From my finances, to friendships and my professional life, there are nonstop flights to worry land every day.

I feel as if I do not have the strength to continue. My body feels tired and weary to continue the fight. Self confidence is at an all time low in my mind. Yesterday was one of the lowest moments I can remember.

In addition, I feel so all alone. The little things in life get magnified a thousand times. It seems there is little hope to find my way through what I am experiencing. The darkness of the difficult moments haunt my life.

My body feels worn down and bruised to the bone. It feels like I have nowhere to turn or anyone to turn to that may help me. I feel as if I have to walk alone through this part of my journey. There is no road map. There are no directions. The manual for my life cannot be found.

Once again though, I keep getting reminded that I need to release my resistance to what I am experiencing. Oh, how that sounds like something I need in my life. It sounds almost like music to my ears. With doubt and trepidation, I fully want to embrace this with a hug. Yet, all I see is a porcupine with long needles sticking out.

For me to release worry, I wonder how someone actually makes this happen. What are the secrets? What does one actually do to release worry? If only I had the answers. If only I knew what I needed to do.

I cling to all that I do not want in my life out of an overabundance of fear. Fear is all I seem to know. Fear is my currency and my wealth in life. Fear is my abundance.

Even as badly as I want to release worry in my life, I feel as if I would be cutting off the flow of sustenance to my life. It is frightening and difficult to think that a world without worry could exist. It seems like a fantasy! It does not seem real!

So the question I ask of myself today, is how do I release worry? What steps do I take? Where is the book describing this process?

All I know to do in this moment is to continue my search to understand how to release fear (opps, I mean worry. Did I just write fear?). Maybe the key is in my mistake of words. Maybe it isn't worry that I need to release but the fears I need to let go in my life.

Would that not be a shocker if fear was the root cause of my worry? Have I not heard this lesson before in my life? Have I not cursed these difficult steps in previous days? Of course, I know the answers to these questions I ask.

Maybe I just need to stop and acknowledge my fears. Maybe I need to realize my fears are very alive right now and are trying to take over my life. In fact, they are doing a very good job of it at this moment.

Then, if I can see and describe my fears, maybe I will fully recognize them when they appear. If I can recognize them, then I can begin to close the door on them, not giving them access to my life. If I stop giving them access to my life, then maybe I will begin to release the fears. As I release the fears, I will be removing the energy of worry that is paralyzing my life.

It all seems easy to accomplish. However, I know how difficult it is to identify and let go of the fears. Until I allow myself to have the courage to do this, my fears and my worry will control my life.

I know this is what I need to do, and I feel my feet shaking and my body trembling. May I find the courage to face my fears. May I find the strength within myself to stand on my shaking feet. May I have the wisdom to find my way through these difficult moments.

(Above Picture taken - (c) 10/09/10)

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Highlights Of Our Life

Have you ever sat down and listed the highlights of your life? If you have not done this, it may be an exercise that you wish to do. In many ways, doing this helps you really see things that you might easily forget or minimize. Especially if you are going through a difficult time in your life, this can help even up the balance scale.

You don't have to make the exercise elaborate. Just find a quiet place and begin listing on a piece of paper, the highlights of your life. While there may be some very negative moments, try to focus on the positive outcome of those times. Give yourself something to show that you really gained and learned from the experience.

When you get done, look back over your list and notice what you have recorded? Does it show much more than you thought it would? Is it different than what you often see your current life? Was this exercise difficult or were there very few things you could write down? Be honest with yourself in answering these questions and allow this exercise to help expand the awareness of your life.

If you want to see what I wrote, I'll share my life on here. I did this on the day of my birthday to mark that day in my life. Please note that I have included some links to various resources that help to mark each of these moments. The highlighted link on each specific word should be visible in the list.

1. Played the piano
2. Raised animals with love
3. Tried to be honest in everything I do
4. Been there for others
5. Created relaxing music from the heart
6. Painted mindful paintings
7. Faced the odds in life
8. Learned so much
9. Evolved in awareness
10. Came back from paralysis
11. Enjoyed the sunsets
12. Taken chances & risks
13. Came back from nothing
14. Writing for a blog
15. Writing for a newsletter
16. Learned to cook creatively
17. Changed and adapted
18. Learned new computer skills
19. Learned massage & became licensed
20. Awakened to my true calling
21. Appreciated nature
22. Learned to love someone
23. Learned to accept myself
24. Dealing with anger
25. Rid the daily headaches, migraines
26. No more nervous stomachs
27. Found my memory again
28. Went through anxiety
29. Went through depression
30. Survived suicide
31. I am a highly sensitive person
32. Connecting with angels
33. Church no longer rules me
34. Conquered many fears
35. Loved some cats
36. Held my life out as a light for others
37. Came back from losing it all
38. Sponsored two children (Children Intl)
39. Made some wonderful friends
40. See more possibility than despair
41. Recognize my short comings
42. Allow myself to make mistakes
43. Recognizing my strengths
44. Faced my courage inside
45. Trusted my instincts
46. Lived in a big city
47. Allowed myself to love who I want
48. Learned I can do more than I realize
49. Changed so much in life
50. I can make it without family
51. I’m compassionate
52. I see through the lies
53. I’ve learned to love life
54. Learned to enjoy life
55. Writing a book
56. Pulse rate dropped from 99
57. Healed from itching

As you can see from my list, there are many different aspects of my life. Many of these things were difficult to go through when they took place, but looking back now, I get to see an entirely different perspective. Sometimes we do need to focus on the negative in our lives because that is where we are at. Sometimes we need to kick and scream and yell because that is the power that moves us forward. It is in these times, that we truly find ourselves. With these allowing ourselves to kick and scream, we would miss an important part of our healing.

May you discover something new about yourself as you list the highlights of your own life. If this exercise gives you one glimpse of something you have not seen, than it was worth the time and effort. Let it be a window into your soul and a door to your future!

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It's Ok If They Struggle

It's OK to sit with pain! It's OK to be in a space that seems dark, gloomy and full of despair. It's OK to be in a place of struggle, not quite knowing where the road leads. It is OK to be in that place where life seems to be smacking you around with no end in sight.

Unfortunately, for people watching someone experience these things, it is not OK. Others so badly want to deliver us from the pain and suffering. They feel it is necessary and their responsibility to do this. They struggle with difficulty to see when a person is in these moments. To them, it is not OK to see people suffer, be in pain and observe someone fighting to find their way.

Yet, just as good times are a part of life, so are the difficult times. Struggle and success are the same things, just opposites on a spectrum. Making it in life denotes that one came through the struggle. Without the struggle, they would most likely not have reached the moment they are at. It is almost like you cannot experience one without the other. Both are expected in order to fully grasp that which is good.

So often, people who care for and love others, struggle to watch another person experience what appears to be the low, difficult moments in life. These may be painful moments or times when life's problems and difficulties appear to be winning. Yet, if the individual did not experience the full range of their own life's experiences, would they truly grow in the way the needed to? Would the lesson that life was trying to offer them be taken away if they missed these true moments of stumbling? I would suggest that we need these moments because they are critical to our life. They may very likely be laying the foundation for future lessons. Without these experiences, we may not be prepared for what lies ahead.

In my own life, I was paralyzed and suffered through deep despair, depression and anxiety. I struggled to not only hold on in life but to even determine there was a path ahead for me. Yet, these moments of struggle prepared me for the road ahead. They gave me courage and strength to go into my own life's horrors. Without them, the healing that needed to happen would have been too difficult and great for me to experience.

Just like all of life is a dance, if we miss the pain, we would miss the dance. We cannot have one without the other. To wish that a person would not experience these things is to deprive them of all of their life's experiences. It is as much a part of who someone is and if we in any way hold a person back in feeling or experiencing these moments, then are we truly helping that person?

Yes, I know how hard it is to watch others deal with rough times. To see someone in pain, or dying or just struggling makes us want to ease their life through our compassionate eyes. We that love others, desire to see others in their true potential. We want them to experience the fullness of life as we see it.

Often though, our own fears, insecurities and lessons we must learn in life get in the way. Looking through our own filters, we see just one aspect of how someone's life should be. However, we may be unable to see more than that. Our fears should not dictate our interactions with others. Our fears, although well intentioned, may be holding someone back from experiencing and learning major truths for their lives.

Holding the space open means to be there with the person just as they are and having no expectations, judgments or desires. It is being there in that moment, offering yourself in a way that lets them know they can experience and travel these difficult moments to completion. It is being there for them in that moment, not concerned with how long or how difficult their struggle may be. It is clearing our own fears and insecurities in order to be fully present with them at that moment. Truly, it is a connection that goes beyond our own human understanding.

May we realize just how critical it is to be there with the person in these moments. May we realize that we may be standing at the edge of possibility and hope with them. For us to do anything less would be making ourselves and others, less than human. It is our connections that offer the greatest of love and the hope of possibility.


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Puzzle Pieces Of Life

Sometimes it is hard to see in the moment, exactly why the pieces of life appear as they do. It is so easy to want to play Monday morning quarterback and claim we know what is best for us. We feel it is makes life much easier.

However, the more we go in and try to manipulate the puzzle pieces of life, the more we delay getting the image to appear. We often worry and fret about how things are going and what pieces of the puzzle we should play. When, in all reality it does not matter.

The pieces of the puzzle of our life fit together in an exact way. They are not interchangeable. There are none that are missing. All are properly cut and shaped to fit into the puzzle as they are meant to. So as much as we may try to force a piece into a spot for which it does not belong, we have to realize there is one spot for each piece.

Allowing the puzzle of our life to unfold and come together will give us the opportunity to see the bigger picture. We do not need to fight it. It will show up as we place the pieces together. If it looks like a piece does not fit at that particular moment, all is fine. The piece will have an opportunity to fit into the puzzle when the timing is right.

All we need to do in our lives is show up and be present. Follow our hearts as we become more consciously aware of who we are as current puzzle pieces and how we fit together. Allowing our life to unfold in the manner it needs to, will give us the complete picture. It will happen in the moment that is meant to be.

All is well, All is well
Don't worry about your life
It is unfolding as planned.
Follow you heart and life will unfold
Each moment is but a step forward
All is well, All is well
Don't worry about your life
It is unfolding as planned.



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Note From The Universe - The Finish Line

The trick is learning to maintain an unwavering focus upon your desired end result, your completed dream, the "finish line," without insisting upon, or even contemplating, its means of attainment, no matter how logical, obvious, or tempting it may seem. - - The Universe

Source: Daily Emails - A Note From The Universe


My comments:
I love this daily email quote, especially this particular one. Sometimes, when I look ahead at my life and see the things that I dream to accomplish, I try to fill in all the details. It is as if I want to know everything and anything that will take place as I move to my dreams. However, I realize that I'm robbing myself of the experience if my only focus on the means of attainment rather than the dream itself. Why should I have to worry about the details? They will unfold as they will.

Grandmother Tree

A very good friend of mine, Juanita Mazzarella, wrote this poem and with the help of some of her friends put this to beautiful music and images. It is a very deep poem with such a deep message.

Fragments Of Awarness

This is my second painting called "Fragments Of Awareness". Please click on the picture to enlarge it to full size. (c) 10/04/2009 by Don Shetterly (all rights reserved).

When I started to paint this, I had a different image in my mind, but of course staying with the moment, I allowed the painting to go where it needed to go. It turned into something much different than I expected, but it still has the intricate layers interwoven within the brush strokes on the cavass.

The background color actually turned out to be a different shade of red than I initially had chosen, but I love it and I almost didn’t want to add anything to it. However, the background is full of dimensions itself and many layers. There is so much depth and texture that it could very likely write its own story.

Of course the central part of this painting is the face in the center. It is the generic face of a person with one eye that is partially open to one dimension, and the other eye that is partially opened to another dimension. They are not balanced and that was done on purpose because we never see things fully as they are. All things that come into our view are filtered by our experiences, what we have been taught, and what we have learned as well as where we are currently at in our lives. The face was meant to resemble a person’s face, but yet stay mysterious as to all that was going on. Each person, who sees this painting will come away with a different view, and I’m not going to impose my view upon anyone. I want everyone to see what they see in it, not what I see in it.

This painting was done over a period of several days, and images were added at different times by color, as to how I felt at that given moment. There are some images that resemble birds and animals, while others are just marks and shapes without much thought as to what they were supposed to be. There are angels in the painting as there are in everything that I paint. You may need to look closely to find them. Again, I’m sure each person looking at this will see different things in each of the shapes, based upon their life and what those shapes or objects represent to them. I did try to strike a balance between color and placement, but leaving the pattern of the shapes and objects on the canvass to be random and in a placed format. I wanted them to have a life all to their own, but to be separate while being part of the entire painting.

Fragments of Awareness is the name I got as the painting came to completion. In our lives, what we know and see today or are aware of, will most likely be different tomorrow. We may not even see the objects fully until they are very close to us and even if we think we see them, what we see compared to what we truly see, may be two different concepts. Often our awareness brings with it familiar objects as thoughts, words, and music, among other things. It also brings with it little pieces that begin at first by being mysterious, and then growing to full recognition within ourselves. We are more than what we see, and what we see is a part of us, as we are a part of it. The possibilities are endless and the experiences many, but with each new moment of each new day, what we are aware of is much more than the day before. This is what makes us human; to become more aware of ourselves, what is around us, and how we impact all that we touch through our lives. Of course, this is my view behind the painting, but each person who views it will see it through their own awareness, and it will take on a life of its own which is ever changing.

I'm In Denial

I see ten horses running at full gallop toward us. I'm pleased they are coming to say hello, but everyone else runs for cover. They claim I'm in denial; I compare myself with them and wonder what is wrong with me. Alternatively, they stay and I run, and we all understand I'm a coward. If our experience has led us to think the horses would hurt us, running is sensible. If our experience has led us to think horses are friendly, we stay to greet them. Some of us have learned one, some the other, and so we behave differently. By presuming my behavior doesn't make sense, you don't get to learn that horses may be friendly. - pg 57, On Becoming An Artist by Ellen Langer

A special thank you to Marilyn Brown for the photo of the horses!

The Many Dimensions Of Life

© 9/21/09 Don Shetterly - #1 (click thumbnail to enlarge picture)

This is the first painting I’ve ever painted outside of elementary or junior high school. I don’t really see myself as a painter but I do enjoy putting colors together and trying to find the different depths of dimensions that the eye may or may not pick up.

Maybe in some ways, this is how I see my current life at the moment. I guess if it is like my music, my creativity usually depicts my current mood, moments and life
.
In life, there are many dimensions and so is the same true in this picture. Even if you look at any one part of it, within those parts, you will see different dimensions through the use of colors, textures and the layering of the colors and textures. The dimensions of this painting are many and vary from the obvious to the almost hidden from view.

As life goes, there are always mountains. Sometimes we are climbing the mountains and other times we are looking at the mountains from afar. Within the mountains, there are many beautiful trees and snow covered peaks, but underneath, there is the grey rocky soil.

Nestled within the mountains is a lake of refreshment and peace and calmness. It is full of depth in itself and offers an oasis within the mountains we climb. While it may look out of place to the overall aspect of the mountains, this is usually true of how we find those peaceful moments within the challenges. They are not always straight forward and obvious but sometimes often hidden from view and from a different viewpoint than we may normally look.

Running through the lush hillside of earth and grass, is a winding river with many crooks and turns. Even sometimes before we get to the mountains, we follow a path which may not be straight and known. Often it is filled with the unknowns and the surprise bends and turns. But it leads us further into the mountains and the challenges and it also points the way to the lake we will need in the future.

Our house or our life is filled with colors and in this painting, it reminds us that each day we get to choose the colors we want to create the story book of our lives. There is no right or wrong in what we choose but there are many colors to choose from. Our life and our house may have many windows in it which some are open and others are obscured from view.

Following upwards to the sky, you may notice all kinds of things from the different colors and textures to the hint of clouds. Never when you look at the sky do you see one solid color. There are always varying colors and often clouds to some degree in some part of the horizon. Our life is much the same way in that even the way we see it, there is so much more. It isn’t just a one color “blue sky” type of life. It is much more than that.

Last but not least is the angel that stays close to me. I never fully feel alone even when I get moody and I’m struggling because I know the angels are around me. There is way too much evidence to refute any suspicions and denials. While my depiction may not be like others would see them, this is how they reference in my mind and my life would not be complete without an angel around me.

Broken Windows Or Openings

When I saw the picture that Marilyn Mott Brown posted on her Facebook page, I could not help but ask for permission to post her picture and write about it. (note: this picture is being used on my blog page per Marilyn's permission).

For most of us, if we had to write a paragraph about this picture and how it relates to our life, I'm sure each one of us would write something different. So let's do a quick exercise. Before you continue reading, why not write a paragraph about what this images means to you in your current life. And then when you do that, take a look at it and read what you wrote from an Observer's mindset. Now compare the two thoughts and contrast them. You might be amazed at the insights you receive from doing this and whatever you write is your truth. It is what you need to probably hear for your own life in this moment. It could be the next epic adventure in your own story book and be a life changing event or it might lead you to the next morsel of information that will help you move in the direction you need to go.

So before I share what it means to me, make sure you write your paragraph first and then come back and read what this means to me. Ok, are you writing? No cheating now. Write yours first.

Ok, if you did as directed and wrote something, please feel free to comment and share what you wrote. I'd feel honored as well as all my readers would to see the various insights. Who knows what I may learn as well from what you write. And what you wrote is just as valid as what I wrote. Please don't compare mine to yours. Each of our writings stands on its own.

So here's what I wrote: ..

The minute I saw this image, I thought - wow - what a story for how life sometimes looks. An old rustic shed with wood that shows every grain and fiber. It has weathered the storms of life and appears that even through the years, it may be leaning a little but it is still standing. The door is slightly ajar and may all most be off its hinges from the winds of time and the many times it has been opened. The tools and belongings just inside the windows are varied and act as if they were placed in that particular order for whatever reason which remains a mystery to the viewer of this picture. Two of the four opposing window pains have been knocked out as if the window was meant to be that way. The way Marilyn took this photo, it leaves so much of the image as a mystery. There is no way to know for sure exactly what is around the narrow view of the picture unless you were standing there. This gives possibility of so much more than what the picture shows.

And as I think about all of this, isn't this a good representation of life. We sometimes see all our faults just like an old shed barely standing there with the door hanging open and the windows broken out. Yet, we often fail to realize that we're still standing strong despite the winds and storms of time. We have the tools and responsibilities and pieces of our life organized in a way that works for us in that moment even if we have some broken out windows. And as we look through the broken out window panes, we stare in to the darkness of the shed, wondering what is in there and what we have not become aware of in our lives. It reminds us of how much we have not yet discovered. The narrow view of the pictures shows to me, that there is so much more about us than we can currently see and if the photographer moved just an inch it would reveal so much more. In many ways, that is how our own lives come to be, because if we saw everything in this moment, it would take away the excitement and possibility of what lies ahead. In addition, to see to much too quickly, it may overwhelm us as we would not be able to take it all in and understand it.

So for me, this picture says, look at the entire picture and see the beauty. Don't be concerned with each detail of fault that you can see but know that this shed has stood the test of time and through the open windows of my life, may I be reminded to look further into my life and discover all that there is. It is not about what I can currently see but how I can see this image in the context of my complete life.

Each Day We Create Our World

Every day we wake up into a world that has not been created at that moment. It is with each waking moment, each step we take and each thought we derive, that creates our day. What we choose to do with it and how we choose to live it, is our choice and our choice alone. In this moment, no one in our past, present or future, can create the day for us. While others may influence and impact it, the choices we make are still up to us.

Yet for so many of us, we go through life feeling as if events and circumstances are in control of who we are. We are blown by various winds in our day, drenched by the storms and drawn to pretty colored fake neon signs. These things take our eyes off our path and draw us away from that which we are here for.

May we be as a ship coming into the harbor watching the beacon from the light house that illuminates the path ahead. May we not lose sight, watching the lightening from the storm and run aground into the rocks.

Don't Quit

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all up hill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must -- but don't you quit.


Life is queer with it's twists and turns,
As everyone of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don't give up, though the pace seems slow -
You might succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than
it seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up
When he might have captured the victor's cup.
And he learned too late, when the
night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out --
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt --
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems afar;
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit --
It's when things seem worst that you mustn't quit.

(this came from a poster I had hanging on my wall for years, no author was listed)

Learning Lessons

I am amazed at how events in our daily schedule can bring out connections to things we experienced so long ago. Current and past events may be completely different in the details, but they do impact each other. It is our unique opportunity to be given the chance of learning from them. We do have the option of ignoring what lesson is being given to us or we have the opportunity to see what we can learn from it.