One of the passages that I really liked, page 96 :
"'Well, right now this is how it is. I can either accept it, or make myself miserable.' The primary cause of unhappiness is never the situation but your thoughts about it. Be aware of the thoughts you are thinking. Separate them from the situation, which is always neutral, which always is as it is."
In some situations I've seen I find it amazing how differently people can take the same exact situation. I have also found that people who take things lighter have a better outlook on life and are just more enjoyable to be around. This excerpt has helped me when I feel a little overwhelmed in a situation, I try and step back and see things for what they simply are at that time. I try and stay aware of what my thoughts are even if I am not saying them out loud.
I haven't watched any of the webcasts yet. Has anyone else been able to catch them?
On a different note, what the heck kind of name is Eckhart? What do you think his nickname was growing up? Eck-y Seems like a hard name to me in my 'present consciousness' and this is coming from the girl who named her son Ajax!
2 comments:
I appreciate that passage as well. There is a famous quote that says, "Life is 10% what happens to you, and 90% how you react to it", which is a similar sentiment. I think it is so important for us to recognize how much we contribute to the negativity of a situation, just through our attitude about it.
Here is a perfect example: yesterday on my way to work I got into a fender bender. I had to call work to tell them that I would be late because we had to wait for a police report. The report process took so much longer than I expected, and I sat there watching the minutes tick away, getting more and more angry about being so late to work. Then suddenly I caught myself. I realized that at that point the situation was out of my control. Getting angry about it certainly wasn't going to help me get out of there faster, or reduce whatever amount of repercussion I might experience once I got to work. So I backed up a step, took a deep breath, and let the negativity go. I decided to just wait patiently and get through it with a good attitude. And wouldn't you know, nothing about the situation itself changed! And when I finally got to work, all I experienced was concern for my wellbeing (no trouble).
I have watched three of the webcasts and am hoping to watch the fourth today. I find that it is much easier to understand and appreciate the content of the book when I watch the webcasts, because they really explain it in detail and give examples. And people call in and ask questions that you might also be wondering about, or at least that help to explain the content further.
Not sure about the name either. He has said that he grew up in England, but I don't know where he came from originally. Who knows, maybe Eckhart is a common name wherever he comes from!
Hi Ladies, this is off topic but I wanted to spread the word. I'm collecting woman's clothes for Lucy's Hearth and if you are cleaning out your closet anyways this is a great place to donate to. I'll collect everything to make it easy too!
Here are some of the things that she said they could really use right away:
baby clothes sizes newborn - 2 years
diapers - any size
baby wipes
teenage girl clothes
woman's clothes - any size & could really use larger & plus sizes right now for some of the moms there
maternity clothes - any size as well
So if there is anything you think you could help out with it would be greatly appreciated and used right away.
Thanks,
Sondra
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