Help! An 80-something year old Woman Is Taking Over My Life!

Months back, when my whole being was just a washed up confused mess, I won an Instagram competition to a Yoga/Wellness session with Holistic Health Honey. Topics of self worth, aspirations, affirming your every action and desire and learning to love yourself and through that love others were passed around the room. Rituals to get you into a positive state of being, and meditation techniques were a topic of discussion and practice during the day. It was not my scene - I am quite scatty at times, my brain tends to ruminate and chew on ideas until they're tatty and full of holes, the juice and vibrancy of my imagination lost in the negatives and worries that begin to appear and desiccate my mind. The idea of mediation, of affirmations and of self-help books was far removed of my normal attempts to chill out. 

The girls in the room cried praise at someone in particular called Louise Hay. And in my mind a resounding "oh here we go" echoed - I was cynical. But I figured I like the Facebook Page, because it's not exactly "crap". It's definitely not going to be one of those viral and disturbing "tag a mate who..." images creeping into my news feed. 

I have got to say that her words have helped clarify so much in my life to date. Particularly, things of the past have hovered like a cloud and slowly they're fading to present to me the clearest mental sky (the brain fog is disappearing, and it's a good time for it to do so!). Her post a couple of days ago, an "affirmation", really stuck with me. I read out loud to myself "the way ahead is clear and free. I give myself permission to move out of the past with gratitude, and into a glorious new day."

Those words. So precious. Giving yourself permission - we often forget to allow ourselves the freedom to make decisions, we constantly bicker internally with ourselves about what others would think. Think again, friends. It is not doing you any good. Moving out of the past with gratitude. When thinking back to good memories, of course we are gracious. But it is with heavy hearts and anguish that we reflect on past relationships, events, happenings and situations that haven't gone our way. It is exactly these things, however, that create in us a clarity of mind to pursue greater, more whole things in our lives, and we should move out of these past "negative" places with gratitude. Be thankful as you move on to a better place, and do not belittle the awesome power of yourself to get through difficulty, no matter what your role was in it. The present is what invites the future to become its full, flourishing self. Not the past. 

Let the following day, hour, minute and even second be that "glorious new day" that you move into. You want a do-over? Don't wait until Monday. Stop trying to fit into sequence whether it be a new week or the next day. With gratitude, move into the next day right now. Have a "Hey [insert your name here], let's give this another shot, shall we?" moment to yourself and throw yourself into the opportunity that each second of your life is throwing at you. 

So, Louise Hay. You may have a crazy tan and an All-American self-help Tony Robbins demeanour, but you've definitely said a couple of great things as of late and I'm grateful. Truly. Also happy 89th birthday, you wonder.