I possess tremendous power to make life miserable or joyous. I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration; I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal. In all situations, it is my response that decides whether a crisis is escalated or de-escalated, and if I humanize or de-humanize another. 

If we treat people as they are, we make them worse. If we treat people as they ought to be, we help them become what they are capable of becoming.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German Philosopher, Novelist and Poet 1749-1832

 Von Goethe’s amazing insight impacts me profoundly. Are you as amazed as I am by the infinite truth found in his ancient wisdom? A TRUTH never changes – so why does it take so long for us to fully understand or emotionally accept it? I have read this many times over during my own personal journey and its only effect was ‘words’. Today, as I read it I feel within me great emotions of understanding, love and the essence of the responsibility of the ‘I’ of me ~~ to have such power.  Humbling, frightening, and breathtaking, it brings me to my emotional knees.

 Marianne Williamson demonstrated great depth of understanding when she spoke this truth about humanity: “Our Deepest Fear is not that we are inadequate, our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure, it is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.”   Fear is a peculiar emotion in that its characteristics are both common and pervasive. In teaching about Forgiveness and the Law of Attraction, I have found that most people feel they are inadequate or defective in some way.  Indecision and doubt caused by fear are at the root of suffering.  According to Napoleon Hill, in his book, Think and Grow Rich, there are six basic fears: 

•       The fear of POVERTY
•      The fear of CRITICISM
•      The fear of  ILL HEALTH
•      The fear of LOSS OF LOVE OF SOMEONE
•      The fear of OLD AGE
•      The fear of DEATH

 Notice that the top three are most often the roots of most all of our worries. 

In Chapter 15 of Think and Grow Rich, Hill says, “The prevalence of these fears, as a curse to the world, runs in cycles. For almost six years, while the depression was on, we floundered in the cycle of fear of poverty. During the world war, we were in the cycle of fear of death. Just following the war, we were in the cycle of fear of ill health, as evidenced by the epidemic of disease which spread itself all over the world.” Just as patterns and cycles run in our personal life, so too, cycles appear in history, from the big picture of collective thought our personal thoughts join collective thoughts. Think about what is happening in our world right now. Do you see the beginning of another cycle of fear of POVERTY? But here is the good news: We have the power to change the outcome, first by making a decision to change ourselves; followed by collectively joining others with thoughts of hope and change for the better; and finally, by empowering each other and holding to the truth of abundance for EVERYONE AND EVERYTHING.

 We can do this because fears are nothing more than states of mind.  It is now a fact, that every human being has the ability to completely control his own mind. This is our birthright, our power of WILL.  In 1929 following the Wall Street crash, the people of America began to think poverty. Slowly that mass thought was crystallized into its physical equivalent, which was known as ‘The Great Depression.’  We, as individuals and members of our global society, now have the opportunity to heal ourselves and to collectively transform that old cycle into a new one…one of ABUNDANCE.

  If you have been reading my blogs, you will know that I have CHOSEN to raise my vibration –[myself] from what I call the ashes of what could have been called despair. Six months ago I chose to leave a relationship that no longer served my highest good. In my story, I made a 100% commitment to this relationship, along with a commitment that there would never be anything we could not work through. In my heart, I believed our relationship would last forever. We co-created a beautiful home that was sure to be our home until I left this life; and I chose to ‘plant’ myself, growing my ‘roots’  through deep involvement in our new community because I felt it would be ours for a very long time. 

 Because of my commitment, letting go of my story was exceptionally hard. Though I felt this would be the last love of my life, it turned out to be an illusion, or simply put, just a story in my mind.  How could I have known this experience would be my greatest gift, teaching me to accept MYSELF just as I am, in all my magnificence?! I had been given the favorable opportunity to look at the larger picture, to once again, see my old patterns and cycles being played out for me.  Because I was willing to see, I could choose to heal and ultimately be FREE!

This was an inside job!  This was my  decision to be  willing to heal, to walk my talk as a teacher empowering others, and to stand not as a victim but as an empowered body. I am not going to kid you, remaining true to my choices was not easy; in fact it was extremely hard to do, but when all was said and done, my new found freedom and empowerment could not be described by mere words. Make no mistake…this was a choice – my choice–and with a little help from my friends [earth angels], I walked through it by the gifts of profound grace and tremendous power that now produce a prevailing peace in my life. 

So what fears did this experience bring up for me?  Only all of them.

 Fear of Poverty –even though I have always made it on my own, I feared I would have to work until I dropped. I held the old pattern of Cinderella complex, believing that somehow I would be taken care of. The Truth is I will be taken care of…ME [God within] with my decision to choose thoughts of Trust, Faith and Abundance.  

 Fear of Criticism – I felt rejected on many levels of who I was especially as a woman, and in my ability to create a healthy partnership or relationship. I also feared what people might say about me because we had appeared to be the perfect couple. I broke down an old belief pattern that I attract men who are not right for me. Here is a hint, the Law of Attraction says we will attract to us what we believe. I did just that with my belief thoughts!! I had to come to terms with my talents, abilities and authenticity—the truth of who I am. 

Fear of Loss of Someone –I had to overcome thoughts of abandonment and being alone which is not the truth of me either. I am very loved by many loving people. The truth is that no one outside of me is responsible for my happiness and knowing with every cell in my body that I am loveable. I and only I am responsible for my own happiness. 

Fear of OLD AGE—This was one of the easier ones for me to overcome even being over 60 years young because I choose to be ageless, need I say more? 

Now this is not to say that these fears don’t come up from time to time, because they do and they surely will continue through out this life journey. The difference is I now know that when they come, I do not try to avoid them. I just notice them and simultaneously realize that I can choose to accept those thoughts or choose to reframe them or choose new thoughts—thoughts that serve me and empower me instead of thoughts that have potential to victimize me or render me powerless.

 Accurate analysis of over 25,000 men and women who had experienced failure disclosed the fact that lack of decision was near the head of the list of the 20 major causes of failure. This is no mere statement of a theory—it is a fact.

It was in July that I discovered a lump in my right breast [first to put your mind to rest…I am in perfect health… read my blog of this journey and insight] but it did bring up Fear of ILL HEALTH and Fear of DEATH.  While I know I am not my body and this journey is another lesson in letting go, I am practicing methods everyday that transform those thoughts of fear and remind me of the truth of ‘I”. My body can die and some day will die, all things in the physical world die, but it is my belief that all things are made new again. The ‘I’ of me will not die, I am energy inhabiting this vehicle called Carol– which will be the subject of my next blog. For now, I leave you with this thought:

I am in this World by Divine Appointment!

Where I have been at any time in Life, has been by Divine Appointment!

Every place, every situation, every relationship, held its unique meaning and purpose!

NOTHING is without meaning and purpose!

Every place I have been at any given moment was the right place for me at that time!

Every situation I have ever experienced held some magnificent purpose for me!

NOTHING has been by chance or without purpose, for the Spirit of God moved throughout my life leading me to this place, this time, this situation, and this way of being!   

‘My intention from now on is to expand my awareness of what is truly possible right NOW!’

Feeling much relief and an acceptance that my ‘breast experience’ is NOT who I am and only a physical manifestation of what I had been thinking and feeling in the past, I have reframed this issue as an experience in dying to myself, [my body]…in order to be IN the world…but not OF it.  I cannot tell you how many times I have read or heard that statement, yet it really never quite sank in. I can tell you that NOW it has sunk in and the mere feeling of that thought brings me immense joy and heartfelt emotions as I dissolve into ONENESS with all things.

I am grateful that I attracted a compassionate surgeon who is willing to accept my decisions of what I truly want for my body. I am grateful to experience our health system and feel in some small way I awakened the hospital staff by being in the present moment in watching the movie as it was felt by them, while my faith that this was just an early experience allowed me to remain unattached to a specific outcome.

I am grateful to the other surgeon for allowing me to share with her my opinion of why mammograms don’t always work and that without the radiologist being present to actually see the ultra-sound, they reported to me that nothing was wrong even though they did it twice. I am grateful to my family and friends far and near for their love and support. I am grateful to have the money to pay cash for my surgery as it is not covered by insurance. At first I was upset because most of my life I have not had health insurance and now that I am of age to possibly benefit from Medicare guess what?  Medicare does not pay for this type of surgery, because it is “elective.”

I am ASKING the Universe to have them pay to remove the implants as they are a detriment to my health; knowing maybe they will and maybe they won’t. I will continue to hold the energy and trust that regardless of what happens, it is for my highest good, and the good of all.

In my work as a radical forgiveness coach I not only suggest to my clients, but I use it all the time for myself, and that is to use the radical forgiveness worksheet, one of the best tools for making a shift in consciousness about an upset. (By the way, there is one free to download on my website). I have used plenty of these worksheets in working through my personal upsets, big or small and when finished with them, I tear them up and throw them away because I am done with that issue and grounded in the Truth of WHAT IS and healed from it.  Many times what is bothering us is not really what we are mad or angry about, this worksheet empowers you by helping you to see the underlying issue and shifts your perceptions revealing the initial thought that put you into the victim role, in the first place!  Easy to do and fast!

In dealing with my recent relationship breakup I experienced much anger, which I feel attracted to my physical body the manifestation of a rupture in my breast. Did I attract it? Yes, I did. It has been researched and proven by Quantum Physics that our thoughts are like magnets and that like attracts like. Did I intentionally attract it? No, I did not. But I did ASK to raise my vibration above these earthly experiences so that I can live a more peaceful life, grow spiritually and be of better service to others. I am grateful that I was able to walk through that break-up with grace and love, walking my talk in seeing my former partner as my healing angel and practicing self forgiveness again. However, I am human and I did have my moments of ego driven anger, pain, self-pity, and despair.  With all said and done, I am clear that I have attracted all this for my own spiritual growth and I am grateful for all these experiences and opportunities to raise my vibration so that I can better assist others in raising the consciousness of our planet. For deeper understanding on the principles of Radical Forgiveness, please go to my website, www.lifeworks-marketing.com.

By using the Law of Attraction and the radical forgiveness tools, I easily attracted the perfect plastic surgeon and have surgery scheduled on December 2nd. I am at peace and open to infinite possibilities. I hope you are too.

We have no idea how powerful our thoughts and words really are. We actually have no idea what powerful beings we are. That realization alone leads to the awareness of our thoughts and deliberately choosing to change them for our highest good and the highest good for others involved in our life. What we think today creates our tomorrow! Stop a moment and just let that sink in. What are you thinking about? Are you hooked into the drama that ‘seems’ to be happening all around you? Do you feel like your life is just a random set of circumstances? I am here to remind you that it is not, YOU are a powerful being and life IS purposeful.  Peace be with you.