Don't Forget the Basics

Did you watch Obama's acceptance speech last night? I did. And it stirred up something inside me. It always stirs me up when I listen to him speak, not surprising since he is considered on of the great orators of all time. He has a gift for being able to connect to people on an emotional level and for giving people hope. Change for the better is possible - there is HOPE.

Nowadays, many people feel like they are stuck in a rut they just can't get out of. Even those who typically have a good attitude about life have found themselves victims of high gas prices, ridiculous interest rates on their credit card bills, and a mortgage they are unable to pay. So many people in desperate situations, acting out of desperation, learning to be helpless, and feeling hopeless. But there is a way out. There always has been and there always will be, so long as the Universe exists.

You see, we need to go back to the basics. We need to re-examine our lives and the choices we have made to land us in the situations we find ourselves in. We need to accept responsibility for creating many of the problems we currently face on a personal level, as well as on the community level. I mean, who did you vote for eight years ago? If you are taking the time to read this, you probably didn't vote for George Dubya, but if you did, what were you thinking?!!

Here's another question: Did you really need that thing you bought even though you have already maxed out your credit cards? And who was that who made that insensitive comment to their partner? When you saw that dead cat in the road the other day, did you just drive by it? Or did you take it off the road? Did you at least say a little prayer for it? And let me ask you this, when your child came home from school the other day, did you take the time to stop what you were doing, look them straight in the eye, ask how their day went, and actually listen to their response without resuming some other activity?

I find that how we answer the above questions reflects our current spiritual state. We live in a world that is designed to keep us off balance, that makes us forget that we are at the core, spiritual beings who only temporarily reside in these physical bodies. When we get sick, we go to the doctor. At least we go to the corner drugstore and buy some over the counter remedy to alleviate our symptoms. But what do we do when we are spiritually dis-eased? Who do we go to for that?

I would venture to say that many people go through life in a zombie state, doing what their master society tells them they are supposed to do. They don't question our zombie president, his zombie politics, or their zombie lives. They get stuck in that rut, get depressed, and can't move. Or they simply aren't aware of how much control they have over their lives. Or they have forgotten about the law of attraction.

Remember the Law of Attraction (LOA)? That you attract what you put out on a cognitive level (thoughts), behavioral level (actions), and spiritual level (values and intentions)? In essence, every choice you make regarding how you live your life is an order placed to the Universe; a Universe that is more than ready to deliver.

Listen, I know the law of attraction works, because I work it. Here is an example. My son and I play with the principles of the laws of attraction all the time. We make a game of finding "rock star" parking places when we go shopping. It works like this: we are driving into a parking spot and we state to the Universe, I will have a parking place right in front because I am a rock star! And it works without fail, EVERY TIME! May the Gods strike me dead if I am lying about this! (Trust me; I don't want to die right now). Go ahead, try it!

Here's another example. One day, my son, who was nine years old at the time, told one of his little friends about the Secret. So his friend put his order out to the Universe that there would be no school that day. What do you know? There was no school that day due to the weather! Now they could have gone to school...the weather was not that bad compared to other areas in Iowa today. In fact, we got a phone call that same day from the Superintendent of the schools that there was a two hour delay. So, we drove to school thinking it would be a regular day but when we pulled into the parking lot, guess what? That's right, NO SCHOOL! That is when my son told me about his friends order placed to the Universe.

Now you might be saying "That's great and all, but where is the money?" That is a legitimate question. When taking a leap of faith, which in this case is the belief that the Universe will deliver its promise of co-creation, you have to take baby steps. Using the LOA is retraining your way of thinking and your way of being and for some, this means making a complete 180. I like to think of the secret as a skill that requires honing, and with enough practice, we can become experts at living the life we want.

So how does this work in the real world with money? Well, I am no different than most people. I have had my share of financial struggles as a single mom trying to make ends meet while at the same time paying for a PhD at a very expensive private university. At one point I was facing withdrawal because I simply could not come up with the tuition. Then I put my order out to the Universe. I started saying I would be able to pay for my tuition, I would stay in school, I would get my doctorate, I would make $10,000 a month (why not? I have paid my dues and work my ass off...I am ready to live the good life). Did the Universe answer my call? Let me tell you what happened in a matter of three months.

At the time this was going on my father had just died from cancer. I barely had the energy to seek out the resources I needed to turn my situation around. I couldn't think, and I was absolutely exhausted. Well, I had forgotten that I had applied for a Fellowship about a month earlier. Then, one day I checked my mail and in it was a letter from the university. I thought it was a financial suspension letter. Instead, it was a letter of congratulations. I had been chosen to receive the Fellowship, in the amount of $10,00.00!

The following month, I was checking my personal hub page online at the University. I discovered that the University had awarded my account $26,000.00 as a grant to pay for my tuition!

WOW! If everyone only remembered that one universal law, we could all be living the kinds of lives we need and want! Because, contrary to popular thought, there is enough abundance in the Universe to go around. This doesn't mean you just make a wish and it magically comes true. Working the "secret" means you have to work in tandem with universal forces. You have to do your part. I wasn't just chosen to receive $10,000.00 at random. I was chosen because of the quality and importance of my research, which was judged by the quality of the proposal I wrote and submitted, which was the culmination of months of preparation. I did my part.

Admittedly, the LOA is only one of many universal laws and it does not operate in a vacuum. For example, another law is the law of reciprocity. This means that whatever you give, you get in kind. When working this law, I like to add the Buddhist principle of giving without attachment, without expectation for personal gain. This can be quite challenging when you think you have nothing to give, or you are in the throws of "getting ahead." I just think of it as contributing to my karmic bank account. In this spirit, I have a free gift for you at my website. Go here to retrieve it.

The Universe is listening. What order will you place today?