sketches of the mind

A moment ago I heard somebody knocking at the door. It was the courier company, and they were delivering my Starlight Day merchandise! I can’t believe that the time has passed so quickly since I registered.

I’ll be volunteering as a Location Leader at Church St Mall (St John’s Gate) this upcoming Saturday (9am – 5pm) so if anybody is in the area please feel free to drop by, say hi, and show some support by buying an item!

Location: Church St Mall, Parramatta
Date: 05/05/2007

If anybody is free I could also do with one more helper between 8.45am – 1.00pm. Please contact me ASAP if interested.

If you can’t make it down, you can purchase merchandise elsewhere or donate online at www.starlightday.org.au

The money raised from Starlight Day will help brighten the lives of seriously ill and hospitalized children and their families. Each year there are over 60,000 child admissions to hospitals across Australia. Currently Starlight reaches only one in three. Starlight’s goal by 2010 is to reach ‘3 out of 3’ of these children and their families. We can only reach our goal with the generous help of people like you.

This Starlight Day, your support will help Light up a little Life.

Happiness comes when your work and words are of benefit to yourself and others. — Buddha

In my ongoing quest for happiness and fulfillment I participated in The ISA Experience last weekend. "ISA" stands for the "Institute for Self Actualization". The Experience is a four-day seminar that encourages self awareness and provides the right environment to learn and grow.

This was a powerful event as it provided some insight into the way I was leading my life and why certain things weren’t working. It gave me a platform from which my life could now move on from.

The presenter was great - always captivating and a lot of laughs, and the group of sixty-odd people were just amazing.

Not only did I learn a lot about myself, but I now have new friends that are free from judgment and are all following similar paths.

During the weekend, the group participates in various activities including discussions, sharings, and exercises. In the Experience, you focus on you. You are encouraged to look for yourself to see what works for you and what doesn’t - without any judgment or criticism.

I found out about The Experience through a work colleague who happened to be one of the assistants at the event.

Funny story - originally my manager and another work colleague were scheduled to attend the course. I had sent a request to my manager expressing my interest and he replied saying that if he and the other colleague found it to be of good value then I could attend the next one in July.

As it turned out my manager couldn’t attend but he’d already paid so I was asked to take his place. I was like "hell yeah!"

I’m so glad that I did it sooner rather than later. It opened my eyes to the truth behind my past actions and beliefs, as well as the way that I’ve been programmed. With the information that I acquired over the weekend I can continue to apply changes in my life. I’ve already begun.

I strongly recommend anybody interested in self-improvement to attend the next ISA Experience. The next one in Sydney is in July. It may change your life, and you certainly won’t regret it.

ISA holds events in Australia, United Kingdom, USA and Sweden. Refer to the web site for event dates, registration and further info.

We spend so much time and money on things that make us temporarily happy, why not spend some money on the one thing that can really determine whether or not your happiness is long term… You.

www.isaexperience.com

A moving tribute to Dick Hoyt - Super Dad.

Read the Hoyt story here.

Here’s a story that I came across on the propertyinvesting.com  R.E.S.U.L.T.S program forum…:

"Are we there yet?"

After slogging through knee-deep snow for an hour in heavy rain up a 30-degree grade on a hike, I jokingly asked that question.

Sometimes I ask a similar question when what I want doesn’t seem to be showing up. "Is it here yet?" Usually the answer is a definitive NO.

Then, I have to stop and consider: What am I really saying when I ask that question? Deep down, I know that I’m saying, "It’s not here, and I’m angry that it’s not here. I want it now. I can see that it’s not here. I hate it that it’s not here."

In other words, I’m focused on the fact that I don’t have what I want.

Guess what I’ll get more of? You got it - I’ll get more of not having it.

Wishing that I was at the end of my hike didn’t put me at the end of my hike. I still had about another hour before I reached the top. But, get this. That last hour was pretty enjoyable. Sure, I was soaked through, but I stopped thinking about what I didn’t have and thought about what I did have - great health, living in a spectacular place where I could be hiking in a protected forest only 40 minutes from home, and having great friends as hiking buddies.

Enjoy the journey. Stop whatever negative stories you’re telling yourself and think about how wonderful it is to be alive. You are a miraculous creator. Everything changes and you have the ability to enact those changes.

Go out and create the life you want. You can and you will.

Are you there yet? Maybe not, but you are "here". And, "here" is a fabulous place to be because it’s where you can make the immediate decision to get clear about what you want, decide to have it, expect to have it, and then go out and get it (this is NOT a passive adventure you’re on!!)."