Reflections in the Mirror - You and Yourself Archives | Page 6 of 12

Circle of Family and Friends - You and Your Personal Community, Reflections in the Mirror - You and Yourself

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March 20, 2013

Letting others be . . . to grow as they will . . . or not, is a true gift

Detachment is knowing that happiness is the guaranteed byproduct of how we live our lives, not how others are living theirs. It's my intention to do a few posts on detachment over the next few weeks. I have learned that being being sucked into the struggles of others leaves no time for me to fully experience the day that stands before me. Allowing others to be glad or sad, successful or unsuccessful, angry or dour, sober or drunk; and knowing how ever they are need not be central to our journey, is real freedom. But coming to understand how to live "peac[...]

Reflections in the Mirror - You and Yourself

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February 13, 2013

Our journeys are holy. . .

Almost every belief I cherish today, I scoffed at before becoming committed to a 12 step fellowship. I didn't believe in God. I thought that if you gave something away, it was gone forever. I was sure that hanging on to resentments was both normal and protective; and in fact, others deserved my negative thoughts, judgments and responses to them. Why would they ever change if I didn't point out the ways in which they should change. Yikes. What an unkind, uncompromising woman I was. I'm so glad I'm not her any more, but, and it's a big but, I can recl[...]

Reflections in the Mirror - You and Yourself

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January 8, 2013

Making new year’s resolutions. . .Why? Why not?

Most of us have made resolutions over the years. And probably we have broken them before the first week of the new year had even passed. If that's troubling to you, take heart. It's common. Remake the resolution. And then try again to follow through. Perfection is not our goal. Improvement is. There isn't a single one of us who can't do a better job in regard to a resolution if we put our mind to it. Giving ourselves the freedom to try again, to recommit to what ever our goal was, is a sign of emotional maturity. Goals give our lives purpose a[...]

Karen's Musings, Reflections in the Mirror - You and Yourself

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December 6, 2012

The spirit of giving. . .

I am one of those folks who loves all aspects of the holidays. As I said in my last post, from the lights to the music, I am hooked. I also honor the tradition of giving to others and take many opportunities to do so. Pulling an angel from a tree at the grocery or at church, and then shopping for the very item someone has requested fills my heart with joy. It's even more fun than choosing some thing for myself. I didn't grow up in a wealthy family, but we could always count on a few gifts at Christmas. Far too many children aren't that lucky and taking[...]

Reflections in the Mirror - You and Yourself, Your Experience, Strength and Hope

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November 13, 2012

Take a moment to pause. . .

We celebrate Veteran's Day annually but it's far oftener that we should pay homage to those men and women who so willingly serve in some branch of the services to protect the rest of us. Every moment of their deployment puts their life on the line and they do it willingly; they have not been drafted. Each of these individuals has made the decision to put the lives of others before their own: that decision includes our lives as well as the lives of their comrades. What they too often get for their courage, their commitment and their loyalty is silence from t[...]

Reflections in the Mirror - You and Yourself

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October 26, 2012

Helping others is how we help ourselves. . .

There is no truer suggestion offered to us in recovery rooms than the above. I didn't get it when I came into the fellowship in 1974. I didn't understand why other women reached out to me. I didn't understand that "to keep what one had, it had to be given away." That went against everything I had ever been taught to believe. My family wasn't selfish, at least I didn't think so; but they certainly didn't believe that giving what one had to others assured us of keeping it too. My confusion then was because I thought only in terms of material possessions[...]

Circle of Family and Friends - You and Your Personal Community, Reflections in the Mirror - You and Yourself

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October 16, 2012

Inner peace is a by-product of right thinking coupled with right actions. . .

I wish I could say to you that I have constant inner peace. But that would be a lie. I can say, however, that I am more at peace today than at any other time in my life. And it's the direct result of changing my thinking. I wrote a book a few years back titled: Change Your Mind and Your Life Will Follow. Some of you reading this might have read it. You can check it out on amazon or my website if interested. But the premise of the book is the idea that if we truly want our lives to change, we have to change how we show up in our lives. In other wor[...]

Reflections in the Mirror - You and Yourself, Your Experience, Strength and Hope

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October 11, 2012

Loving what we do is the first, best step. . .

I've discussed topics similar to this before in blog posts, but something a friend said to me recently brought it to mind once again. I could never have imagined as a child that I'd spend my life as I do. I loved writing stories as a young girl in grade school and loved speech class in high school too. For some unknown reason, standing in front of my classmates and talking didn't scare me. I felt exhilarated. But I didn't have any notion then that both loves would play such a big role in my life as an adult. True, I wandered around a lot before gettin[...]

Karen's Musings, Reflections in the Mirror - You and Yourself

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October 5, 2012

Picking up where I left off. . .

I'm amazed and a bit chagrined that I have been away from my blog for three weeks. It's the longest I have been away since beginning it in 2009. And actually, I didn't go any place. I was simply caught up in the book I am writing and a writer strikes while the iron is hot. I was making good progress and every minute I could, every minute I wasn't preparing for a talk or a workshop, I was deep in thought and sitting at the computer plugging away. I plan to spend next week rereading it very carefully, making additional changes where necessary, and then off[...]

Karen's Musings, Reflections in the Mirror - You and Yourself

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September 10, 2012

Reconnecting with good friends . . .

I spent the week end in Augusta, MO, leading my 12th annual writer's retreat at F.R.E.S.H. Renewal. Many of the same individuals come yearly, but always there are a few new participants and they add a richness that's so appreciated, much like a contrasting, vivid color woven through a tapestry in a spot where you'd least expect it. The participants and I have become good friends over the years. And I look forward to this fall gathering with both excited and thoughtful anticipation. It's a restful, comforting week end, one that includes lots of laughter, m[...]

Reflections in the Mirror – You and Yourself