PARTY! PARTY! PARTY!

WhooHoooo!! Let's GO!!

Tracey, that's just awesome that your cousin "checks in" too! See, Gracey? You *can* do it! It works!

It's late, and I'd need to gather up some really good texts I have stashed away on my computer, but I'll post some things that helped me break through and learn to meditate. If this Gemini jackrabbit mind can do it, ANYONE can, lol Actually, I'll probably post them over on Consciousness and Awareness sometime over the weekend. Fair warning, it's probably not classically traditional, but that "clear your mind" stuff just would NEVER work for me. I'd clear 3 or 4 levels of thinking and start on more only to realize that they'd started back up as soon as I left them alone. Ack! The trick I had to learn most was to not "stop" thinking, but instead to focus all those random bouncing-off-the-walls thoughts together on one point. Soooooo much easier! Hey, I think I just DID post on meditation! LOL

Gracey, only two pages? LOL Well, I'm so very glad you think it will help! I am so UP right now just thinking about you!

You mention feeling down because you leave something unfinished, oh MAN, can I relate! After reading about my troubles meditating, you can get an idea of how haphazard and whirlwind I can be sometimes. Considering I'm actually a pretty calm and rational person (HA! like it looks that way tonight! But I really am!) leaving things undone used to just *really* eat away at me. All the negative thoughts I'd beat myself with (You can't do anything right! You never finish anything!) Uggh!

However, I learned that whenever one of those thoughts popped in, the best counter was to start logically listing all the many projects I *did* finish, all the stuff I *had* done very well on, all the times I surpassed expectations. I was simply amazed at how much I've done!! Eventually, it became an ingrained habit to immediately respond like that and now I can just "give myself a dirty look," so to speak, whenever one of those negative messages sneaks in. (You know those "looks" a mom can give a kid and stop them in their tracks? Yeup! I just mentally "Mom" myself! lol)

Oh, imagery works because of all kinds of things! There are lots of books out there on positive visualization. On a basic pyschological level, what we think of is what we notice, what we notice gets into our thoughts, kind of a spiraling effect - eventually we "create" our own reality. We convince ourselves via our thoughts that something will happen and it becomes what they call a "self fulfilling prophecy." It's like the stuff you mentioned on Andrea's forum. There are metaphysical and spiritual definitions of why it works as well. To me, if so many different disciplines are all agreeing on something, there *must* be something to it! For now, you can just believe it works because the evidence is overwhelming for it. Later you can pick up some books that go into much more depth and detail. =)

About the scanning, yes, you *have* done it before. You gave a wonderful example of it when you mentioned driving some place where something didn't *feel* right and you'd leave! No, you're weren't just being afraid, you were being wise and "tuning in." See, you *do* know how, you're just rusty! It's like when you can't remember the words to a song you haven't sung in years or the steps to a dance you did all the time in high school. If someone re-shows you the steps, pretty soon you're be-bopping all around the living room! It's still there, you just needed a little reminder in how to do it. =)

> "The message is always right!"

Yes! Remember that!! Sometimes you have *no* idea why you suddenly feel something, but there *is* a reason for it! Just because you don't *see* one right in front of you just means it may be around the corner. Listen to your inner voice, your intuition - it is "listening" to your gift for feeling those outside emotions. Between the two of them, I've found they ARE "always right." And yes, I had to learn that the hard way as well! LOL I have *always* regretted it when I *overthink* those feelings.

NOT projecting your emotions actually flows naturally when you learn how to "tune in" like I discussed earlier. Instead of "pushing" out, just take a quick inventory and "pull in." It sounds much more mysterious and harder than it is. You don't need to focus on breathing in or breathing out air except when you're winded, right? It's actually just that simple once you get the hang of it. "Whups! Time to pull in more air." and "Whups! Time to pull in some of that energy." Once you get used to handling it, it will come just that naturally and just that easily. =)

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