Birthing Your Life Dream

You Matter and God Loves You

Everything you do matters

Everything you do is important. Honor the Gift that you are.

Every smile, nod, acceptance, support, word of encouragment, energy of Love you send out and touch someone with makes a wonderful difference.

You may not get immediate feedback on what you do for others, or even in many cases receive feedback at all.

But still you matter and the gratitude is there.

God, the Universe is deeply proud of you and what you're up to.

Remember this.

For it is so.

Teacher-Child Communion

During the early 1980’s I worked as a day care substitute teacher in the greater Boston area. Populations ranged from inner city kids to wealthy suburban kids, providing a rich and diversified experience.

One of my most touching experiences occurred with a boy about six years old, who regularly attended the inner city day care center I manned.

He was normally a shy, quiet individual who played sometimes by himself, sometimes with the other kids and had a friendly disposition.

Whenever a child acted out or acted inappropriately I had a simple intervention. This consisted first giving them two warnings then after the 2^nd warning, if he or she still acted inappropriately, I would declare a time out and walk them to the side of the room. We would then sit together for about 30 seconds. Next I would tell them they were free to go back and play as soon as they explained why we are sitting here and what they did to provoke this experience. Once they accurately told me what they did, I merrily released them to rejoin their group and we usually had no more issues with that child the rest of the day.

One day this particular boy was having a rough go of it. He swiftly received his two warnings due to fighting with other children.  After his 2^nd warning, I walked him to the side of the room and pulled over a chair for him to sit in while I sat in a chair next to him.

After awhile he calmed down and it was time to set him free to play again. I asked him my standard question “why are we sitting here at the side of the room like this”, he immediately explained the situation and after assuring me he would not do it again I said “Great! Feel free to go back and play, you are free to go have fun now..” Instead of bounding off the chair and running to play like everybody else does, he just sat there.  With an encouraging and joyful voice I repeated “go ahead.. you are free to go have fun and play”, and looked at him in the eyes.  His mouth pouted, face wrinkled up and he began to cry and cry.

He hopped into my lap and cried even more, and I held him in tightly my arms.  Apparently he had never in his life experienced non-blaming, respectful discipline when acting out. This was a first for him and a moving experience for both of us.

After awhile his crying turned to sniffles and eventually stopped altogether. It still took awhile before he was ready to leave my lap and join his classmates.

From that day onward, our relationship had transformed. Whenever we went on a field trip, which usually consisted of walking as a class to a nearby playground, he would run to the front of the line to join me and hold my hand.

I was single then, and he kept telling me “in January you will meet a nice lady”.  “That’s wonderful, tell me about her” I responded.  He always walked with me hand in hand during our excursions and played peacefully with classmates in the classroom.

I once met his mom and was shocked to see the scowl in the way she walked and generally conducted herself. It amazed me how this boy could be generally so calm and well behaved, living with a mom who was so intense.

I believe that this child and I had been touched by a communion.  Here, 30 years later he is still on my mind with fondness, though once I left that job we were never in touch again.

I never did meet that woman in January or for that matter years afterwards. However, it’s touching to reflect on the care and concern this young being of light reflected to me.

Three Important Thoughts to Consider for Inner Harmony

• "You don't have to have your shit together to be on the path"
• "Strive for excellence, not perfection"
• "Have Mercy on yourself"

 

These thoughts are inter-related and point to the need for us to offer loving kindness to ourselves.

Thought number one refers to the fact that some people believe in order to prove their spirituality, godliness or other desired trait, they need to be completely free from uncomfortable human emotions, life issues, etc.

Truth is, even in our perceived flaws, we are deeply loved and cherished as children of God. We all have special needs and according to Marshal Rosenberg, founder of Nonviolent Communication, these needs are universal.

Thought number two refers to striving for perfection as being a slippery slope and interpreting one misstep as meaning we "blew it". By constantly striving for perfection, we almost never "get it right", and one slip up costs us the perfection we worked so hard to attain.  This life posture creates much personal suffering and "walking on eggshells" for both ourselves and our loved ones. When we strive for perfection we tend to punish ourselves for our mistakes and live in a self-inflicted world of criticism and pain.

It's much better to strive for excellence, which includes celebrating our successes, staying present to situations, maintaining personal integrity, turning mistakes into insights, transforming breakdowns into breakthroughs, and staying committed to being authentic.

Thought number three is originated by my namesake Stephen Levine and his wife Andrea, who have taught death and dying workshops and relationship/personal growth workshops for decades.

Stephen points out we all carry grief, and unless we are very conscious, this grief stays with us practically every minute of our day. When something happens to us where we may believe we didn't "measure up" to the circumstance, or we have  disappointments in ourselves, acquaintences or overall situations, we tend to further self-inflict pain by putting ourselves down, criticizing or condemning ourselves, or telling ourselves we "Shouldn't" be feeling like this. This self-inflicted pain only makes us feel worse.

Instead the invitation is for us to have compassion on ourselves, accept ourselves where we are and offer ourselves plenty of love. 

One tool I found very helpful from Stephen's work is being aware of "tight belly". If our stomach muscles are clenched, this is a sure sign we are feeling grief. When we become aware of our tight belly, he instructs us to breathe deeply into the tightness and assist it to relax, thereby easing our distress. 

He also suggests we carry grief in each of our body's orifices.

(C) Stephen Eric Levine

Veganism, Sentient Beings and Spiritual Self-Discovery

Greetings everyone and Happy New Year to you!

In September 2012, I read a potent book called the Engine 2 Diet, authored by Rip Esselstyn, a Texas firefighter whose family has an impressive medical background.

This book is a convincing stand for being vegan, and includes account after account of medical healing success stories as well as interesting tales from his fire fighting experience.

The book was introduced to me by a friend whose doctor handed it to him instead of handing him a drug prescription to lower cholesterol, and within a few months after reading the book and turning vegan, his cholesterol dropped dozens of points.

In response to this, my wife and I chose to become vegan, and she has been cooking exquisite diets from both this book and a companion book called "Forks over Knives".

As a former devoted meat eater, upon occasion the smell of roasted chicken or the thought of salmon would perk my attention since starting this diet. However, I have remained committed to being vegan for my health and a more recent discovery of the brutal farming practices chickens are subjected to.

The other night, I had a dream underpinning this diet to an even greater extent.

This dream had two parts; the first part consisting of me eating thick juicy hamburger meat and enjoying it; thinking to myself "hmmm this is good".

In the second part, I am standing in a pond that has recently been stocked with sardines.

In waking life, I've never actually seen a sardine, but in this dream they were small dark gray, almost charcoal fish swimming around the pond.

I caught one with my bare hands, thinking "wow I can eat this and I know it will taste good".

Then I held it in my hand and looked into it's eye facing me. As I looked into its eye I could see deep into the soul, the spirit of this fish. It had a depth, a presence, a vast aliveness that touched me. Seeing this I thought to myself "I can't eat this". Then the dream ended.

Thus in my dream time I was given a vast spiritual underpinning for going vegan.

My overall awareness of the sacredness of sentient beings has expanded deeply these past several months.

For years my commitment has been to refrain from killing anything unless it presented a direct threat to me.

Flies, wasps and water bugs in the house were caught in a jar and let outside. The only things I killed were mosquitoes landing on my arm. If I saw a cockroach, I would catch it and flush it down the toilet hoping it would survive the journey.

When we had an ant infestation I grimaced when needing to put out poison that I knew would kill them.

Sometimes when I did kill a critter, it seemed it's spirit came to me almost immediately and said "why did you do that?" This only served to increase the regret I felt for killing it in the first place.

I explained my reason and asked for forgiveness. Forgiveness came swiftly, much swifter than the time it took for my regret to fade away.

During the past couple months, the ante has seemed to increase even more.

A couple weeks ago I killed a silverfish ( an insect found in houses and can eat holes in cloths). Afterwards I felt the same feeling of regret and remorse.

This week I found another one sitting on the bathroom floor. It was large, about 1/4" or 3 mm long. This time, thinking of prior regret I chose to not kill it and instead to leave it there. (they are very hard to catch and usually die in the pursuit and release experience anyways)

I thought to myself "well, if it eats something, the material will eventually need replaced anyways".  There was no remorse or regret after this, and instead a peace came over me.

Many cultures, especially the traditional Native and Buddhist cultures honor the sacredness of all life.

Before snipping a cutting off basil, I pause to connect with the plant and ask for a piece.

Both being vegan and honoring the sacredness of all things at this level is a more complicated way of being, yet one bringing more depth of peace and onement with all of life to me.

Mosquitoes with their dangers are still a challenge for me, and at this point I believe if killing a mosquito on my arm or buzzing around my face will likely preserve my optimal health, this will justify taking its life - however not without regret.

I welcome your thoughts on all this.

 

Celebrating Light during the Darkness- A Season's Tribute

Greetings brothers and sisters!

Are you finding time to relax, breathe and celebrate some of the deeper meaning this Amazing season brings to us?

Almost every religious and spiritual tradition celebrates this time of year as a festival or celebration of light and hope.

To Christians, the birth of Jesus, taking place as brilliant celestial light beckoned the three Wise Men onward represents the birth of hope and salvation.

To Jews, Chanukah is a festival of lights, celebrating the miracle when oil in the destroyed Temple only expected to burn just one day instead burned for eight days as a sign of light and hope.

The Celtic and Pagan traditions celebrate the return of light which occurs just after our upcoming Winter Solstice.

It is often stated during the darkest hours just before dawn, or during one's dark night of the soul, the first glimmers of light appear. Their subtle shades belie their significance, for any light appearing within a sea of darkness shines brilliantly by virtue of its own being.

We now together share a season where light of renewal, hope, positive possibility, grace and transformation beckon us to celebrate.

Nowadays, during my night time bike rides I marvel at the amazing splashes of multi-colored lights gracing my neighborhood lawns and homes.

And, as per usual I gaze into black night time sky overhead and marvel at the brightness of the few stars shimmering above city lights and the brilliance of Jupiter ascending our Eastern sky.

I invite you to take time and reflect on shimmers of grace, hope and transformation in your own life.

When have you witnessed the birth of hope, the return of light during times of deepest darkness, and the revelation of Grace?

As you reflect and give thanks, you are gifting extra special personal meaning to a massive world-wide celebration.

I affirm many blessings to you and a truly brilliant Holiday season.

(C) Stephen Eric Levine, All Rights Reserved.

Savoring Fall Beauty 2012

The beauty I've witnessed this fall here in the Dallas Texas area has been stunning. Several nights in the 30's have awakened trees into colors very unusual for our area.

Following are photos capturing this rare blessing:

 

Lighten Your Load by Banning "Should" from Your Vocabulary

I believe that one of the ways we can enhance loving kindness in the world and assist in eliminating suffering is to speak our words gently and lovingly.

I believe that the word "should" can unintentionally trigger intensified discomfort  when there could be a way of expressing our viewpoint that both states our point and supports our beloved. Consider the examples below:

"I should have done that" = regret plus a putdown. Had you known differently you would have done it that way. A kinder way to state this is "gosh, I wish I had known differently then. But now I know, so I will choose differently next time.."

"You Should" = a rather bossy, "I know better than you" way of making a statement or request. When we desire that someone does something for us, or have a different way of looking at a situation than our friend, why not say: "I'm wondering if this might be a better choice for you?" Or, "Would you be willing to do me a huge favor and .."

"You should have done that" = a strong negative judgement about the person you are speaking to. This statement when combined with regret on the part of your friend only serves to increase the sting of hurt or disappointment they may already be feeling.  A better statement would  instead offer empathy for any emotional distress your friend is feeling due to a choice that brought them negative consequences.

Let Your Body be the Guide:

When reading the underlined statement then reading the statement written in green ink, feel free to tune into your body and noting the subtle sensation you feel. Does your body feel a tension or vague anxiety when you read the underlined "should" statements? Do you feel more soft and relaxed when you read the alternative statement?

Finding Beauty in Our Everyday World

This stunning scene flashed before me as I turned a street corner during a bike ride on March first of this year.

When we are open, beauty surprises us many times in delightful yet unexpected ways.

Other images of our daily beauty might include:

• Bushy tail of squirrel wagging as he or she pauses and puts hands over their heart on our company grounds
• Inspirational uplift as we gaze a hawk circling spreadwinged overhead
• Morning Doves cooing on early mornings in our neighborhood
• Brilliant orange butterfly fluttering by us then landing on a nearby flower. As we watch, its wings slowly open and close revealing oceans of color
• Whisper of wind in our ears, perhaps telling hidden stories
• Sudden shooting star scooting across sky when we look up
• Distant lightning dancing and playing amongst shadow and mountains of clouds then leaping to earth in magnificent ribbons of light
• Sweet scent of rain in wind
• Tickle of snow flakes upon our face
• Wisdom or beauty in the eyes of a stranger, new acquaintance or friend passing by
• A song on the radio that touches our heart..

Through savoring beauty we enhance our level of gratitude for being alive. Through acknowledging the beauty around us, we enhance our life energies and bring ease to our otherwise busy work days.

Give it a try and see what you discover..

(C) Stephen Eric Levine, Contact me at stephen@joyfulstormhunting.com

 

Transforming Shame to Love..

Greetings Brothers and Sisters..

It's a joy to come back online with this blog. During the past two months, I have been very busy with preparing to move then moving, on top of buying my very first new home (both my wife and I are thrilled with it), taking care of maintenance work on the home, working full time, etc and etc.

So today as I renew these posts here, I look forward to sharing with you a wonderful folk tale that I first heard in church a few years ago.

It felt so inspiring that it brought tears to my eyes. 

There are a couple ways to take this story, my favorite is that even with our "warts" or what we see as character flaws, we are beautiful. In fact, perhaps what we see as flaws could be the very thing that assist us in watering the ground below us so that flowers of blessings might grow in our wake.

An elderly Chinese woman  had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a  pole which she carried across her neck.

One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of  water.

At the end of the long walks from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.

 

For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of  water.

Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments.

But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and  miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do.

 

After two years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream.

'I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house.'

 

The old woman smiled, 'Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side?' 'That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them.'

For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful  flowers to decorate the table.

Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house.'

 

   

 

Celebrating Your Magnificence..

Remeber that you are a truly Divine Miracle.

You are a wonderful being of light, totally worthy of all the greatness that comes your way, and then some.

Take time to give thanks for your miraculous body and how it keeps you running, without your thinking about it.

Take time to be gentle with yourself today; take a break from the hustle/bustle and relax, unwind, renew..

If going through a period of intense stress, find ways to be loving and kind with yourself; remember that you are not whatever is out there provoking the stress.

There a many helpers available to you to assist you in resolving the problem at hand.

Remember that you are not alone and that you are welcome to reach out and ask for assistance.

Together we are vibrant pieces of an interconnected Universe.. where the miracle of life burns brightly like billions of stars, from tiniest atom to vastest galaxy..

 

Copyright, Stephen Eric Levine