Aching to See

the first deep fire in the clouds,
day erupting into the textures of the sky
intricate whorls and twists and mysteries
I dive in with my eyes
Strain to behold each eddy,
feel each red and orange as it appears
savor each shadow frolicking with the light

I cannot.
I am too impatient,
And instead I miss precious minutes to rush from the building
And run silent into the sun
Trying not to disturb the vastness

I cannot take it all in! I cannot. Can. not.
And I close to the beauty as I try
Snapping shots, hoping to capture the impossible
When all I had to do is be still
And let my heart burst

Making Love with This, A book of Poetry by Ephraim Mallery

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Get your copy today!

Your Gifts May Be Rough. Offer Them Anyway.

I’m excited to share the wonderful poem below by one of my mentors, Chela Davison. Chela consistently and insistently calls me to be more present with me and all of me.

Your Gifts May Be Rough. Offer Them Anyway.

Diamonds start rough and so do our gifts.
The measure of what we have to offer should not be in its popularity or “people getting it” or likes or uptake.
The measure of what we have to offer is by how much it’s killing us to keep it inside and who is suffering without it.
My friends, I know the fears.
“It’s been done before, it’s been said before, my ideas aren’t unique.”
“I’ll be judged or shamed or persecuted. Or worse, I’ll be boring, irrelevant.”
“It’s too noisy, peopl e want quick fixes, success and ethics don’t mix.”
“I’ll lose my loves. I’ll lose myself. I’ll lose.”
“I’m not ready. I’m not good enough. I need to be better.”
We forget that we’re animals. That we’re wild, that there’s freedom right here.
We’re looking for each other’s medicine. We’re looking for a safe den and a warm body to cuddle up to. We’re hungry for nourishment and have nourishment to offer.
Sure, the world is a dangerous place. Sure, it’s cut throat competitive out there.
Except all of the ways in which it is not.
We help to create those spaces, one by one, group by group.
No single one of us will heal and change what’s sick and broken.
But many.
Many of us, toiling on our own sacred curves of the Earth.
Our hands and hearts busy making love into things, reaching out in offering.
So what if your gifts are rough. Give them.
Our souls are weary, we don’t need polished diamonds.
We need each other’s medicine, in all forms, in all ways.
We’re waiting for you, hopeful that you’ll show up.

– Chela Davison, ChelaDavison.com

The Good, The Holy, The Beautiful

“Every moment is a doorway through which the good, the holy, and the beautiful can be expressed . . .”
From the book:
The Way of Mastery – Part One: The Way of the Heart
Shanti Christo Foundation

What does this mean to you?

Typically, I might start looking around me or noticing what I’m reading to declare, “This one is good, that thing is holy, and the woman over there is beautiful.”

When I read it recently, I had a different response.

I’m on Day 24 of a challenging 40-day meditation. I’ve been resisting it because it involves holding my breath 52 times for longer than feels comfortable to me.

Shortly, after I read, “Every moment is a doorway through which the good, the holy, and the beautiful can be expressed…,” I began my meditation. As soon as I started, it occurred to me to simply experience the good, the holy and the beautiful in the challenge.

I was shocked by how easy it was. Without the resistance I’d been creating, all that was left was the good, the holy, the beautiful. Truly.

One of the infinite expressions of the good, the holy, the beautiful
One of the infinite expressions of the good, the holy, the beautiful.

Wow, where else in my life have I been overlooking the opportunity to experience, create, express or allow the good, the holy, the beautiful?

I’d love to hear your experiences! Join the conversation – comment below.

To expressing the good, the holy, the beautiful.

How Do You Stay Calm in the Middle of Several Problems?

It’s been happening for five of my clients. It’s been happening in my life. We put out a fire in our personal life and two erupt in our business. It looks like we’re getting those under control, and then we have a health scare. We do what needs to be done for our health and then there’s a crisis with our mother or daughter.

Maybe something like this has been happening for you too?

My clients tend to solve problems well. So do I. You probably do too.

And constant problem-solving takes a toll on us – physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.

I’ve been pondering Einstein’s idea that “we cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” I then argue with God that I didn’t create some of the problems in my life. Then, I realize that I’ve created so much thinking around the problems – including labeling them as problems.

So, onto new thinking …

I’m engaging and encouraging my clients to engage in a specific type of new thinking for just 5 minutes once or twice a day. From the book, The Way of Mastery, Part One: The Way of the Heart: “Sit in a chair for 5 minutes. And, observe all that you see, all that you feel, all that you think, as though a perfectly awakened Christ was the only one sitting in the chair.”

I’ve found my 5-minute sessions to be truly miraculous. One filled me with beautiful self-compassion. After I finished another, the idea of “problem” didn’t even make sense.

How Do You Stay Calm in the Middle of Several Problems?
In a third session, I saw myself as an explosion of Light.

One of my clients came out of one of her sessions giggling. Another dissolved a long-time grudge. A third client came out of one of her sessions without a physical pain that had been bothering her for months.

I wholeheartedly encourage you to try this simple and powerful 5-minute practice. Including when you don’t have any problems!

Even though I’ve been practicing the 5-minute sessions only intermittently until recently, I notice flickering moments beyond my sessions of also being only a perfectly awakened Christ. It’s awesome.

I’d love to hear your experiences! Join the conversation – comment below.

To living our perfectly awakened Christ Self more and more …

“Are You My Mother?”

Recently, I gave a talk at church. I shared a bit of my journey from seeking love in romantic relationships to seeking love in the hills of New Mexico to eventually settling down and realizing I am love.

I highly recommend you allocate 17 minutes to listening.

I didn’t know until I gave the talk that what I was really talking about was letting go of the idea of finding anything outside myself so that I was available to experience what is within me.

Profound.

Strong from Within. Alas . . . Enjoy!

[audio:http://annstrong.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/080518-CelebrationSpeaker-AnnStrong.mp3]

Click here to download

And, if you’re inspired, I’d love to hear how it speaks to you . . .

Join the conversation – comment below.

“I Am That,” Remembering Who You Are

Today is my 11th day of a 40-day meditation, with my delightful meditation partner, Dev Darshan, to purify the subconscious.

A few days ago, I spontaneously started watching some short videos from the spiritual teacher Mooji. I didn’t know of him before I “found” one of his videos.

Then yesterday I “found” a video from spiritual teacher Lisa Nichols that deeply spoke to me.

Mooji opens one of his videos by saying, “You’re looking out there for an answer. And, I’m looking at you as the answer.”

Deep breath.

I took that in. I knew that I know that. And then I forgot.

Fast forward to this morning when my mind is racing with all I have to do before I get on the road tomorrow to go to Durango and speak at the 9th Annual Women’s Small Business Conference. And then I hear a quiet, clear voice in my head. “Remember who you are.”

Immediately, the anxiety vanishes and I’m experiencing my own Divinity. I Know that I am the answer.

Perhaps I needed to purify the subconscious to remember!

I’d love for you to experience Mooji talking about “I Am That.” To me, he’s a shining example of living his Divinity.

I’d also love for you to experience Lisa Nichols. To me she’s a shining example of living her strong-from-within humanness.

And, if you’re inspired, I’d love to hear what’s on your heart and mind . . .

Join the conversation – comment below.

What Helps You Be More Aware of the Bounty Surrounding You?

This morning this exotic iris popped out into full bloom. It’s never bloomed the whole time I’ve lived here – four springs now.

We’re in such a severe drought right now that the Forest Service is closing Santa Fe National Forest tomorrow. It will remain closed until we get a significant amount of rain to radically reduce fire danger.

What Helps You Be More Aware of the Bounty Surrounding You?

Do irises thrive during a drought? I don’t know. And, the evidence is clear about this glorious one. It’s thriving right where it’s planted because of, or in spite of, the drought.

Just after I heard of the Forest closure, I noticed this miracle. What miracles are surrounding you right now? Even if you’re in the middle of a tough time, as many of us are, what’s calling your heart?

I’d love to hear from you. What bounty is in plain sight at this moment?

Join the conversation – comment below.

What Makes This a Good Life for You?

Recently, I noticed something that might seem obvious.

When we get to be ourselves, we tend to be happy.

This struck me after I coached two clients back-to-back. The first client is doing work she loves that really engage all of her strengths doing work she is passionate about. The second client is doing too much of the back office work in his business instead of the creative work he loves.

Both at work and at home, the more all of our strengths and interests are engaged, the more life feels good to us. When our strengths are frustrated, overused or underused, well, we just aren’t very happy.

What Makes this a Good Life for You?

The simple act of taking this photo makes my own top strengths super happy.  Maximizer loves the symmetry I captured.  Empathy feels the artist.  Connectedness feels the connection of art, artist, nature and art appreciator.  Activator just had to take the picture.  Individualization chose to photograph only two pieces and this was one of them.

What about you? If you know your StrengthsFinder strengths, please do share your ideas and insights below.

If you’d like more direction for your good life, take the Gallup StrengthsFinder assessment. And, if you’d like some strengths coaching, I’d be happy to help!

Join the conversation – comment below.

What If We Are Here to Love?

“When next someone asks you, ‘Who are you?’ please do not give them a name. Do not say, ‘Well, I was born in a certain town in a certain part of the planet.” Do not tell them that you are a democrat, or a republican, or a communist, or an atheist or a catholic.”

Tell them the truth:
Who am I? I am the extension of Love in form.
I have never been born and I will never taste death.
I am infinite and eternal.
I shine forth as a sunbeam to the sun.
I am the effect of God’s Love.
And I stand before you to love you.

– From the book, The Way of Mastery, Part One: The Way of the Heart
By the Shanti Christo Foundation

The Way of Mastery, Part One: The Way of the Heart

“I stand before you to love you.” I read that and just melted into the desire to be that person. What would life be like if I simply loved each person around me? How would life change if I stood in a crowded room or drove on a busy highway and simply loved?

Without judgment, without qualifiers, without conditions, without exceptions and without needing reasons …

It feels so good as I ponder it. I’ll get back with you after I’ve spent some time practicing knowing I am that person and being that person!

Join the conversation – I’d love your insights and experiences below.

Love Is

Love Is.

I can’t
buy it,
trade for it,
beg for it,
demand it or
work for it.

Love Is.

I can
open my eyes,
soften my gaze,
deepen my breath and
acknowledge what is.

Love Is.

Love Is

Opening my eyes, softening my gaze, deepening my breath and receiving the dynamic love of this sky

I can
open my eyes,
soften my gaze,
deepen my breath and
receive.

Love Is.
Love Is.

I can
open my eyes,
soften my gaze,
deepen my breath and
be.

Love is.
Love is.
I am.

From Ann’s forthcoming second book, Strong from Within: Loving, embodying and expressing you.

Join the conversation ~ post your insights, feedback and experiences below.