Turning Your Brain into an Athlete

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Unless we train that heady organ of ours, it remains on autopilot and could lead us down a destructive course. The subconscious parts of our brain automatically guides our behavior. Sometimes, we can’t let go of negative thinking or past negative experiences.

So, if that happens, it’s time to make obstinate brain pull over, make it sit in the passenger seat and force it to listen.

(Brains are stubborn and stuck in their ways so try to be patient as you pull out the new script you have written. Read it aloud.)

You: Brain, here’s what’s about to happen and I need you to go along with me. After all, you can’t get along without me just as I can’t get along without you. So, every time you try to cover me in self-doubt, I’m not going to listen. Instead, I’m going to concentrate on all the things right with me. I’m going to force us to think positively and compassionately.”

Brain (frowning): You want to break my patterns? I like my patterns and I’ve done nothing wrong.

You: I didn’t say any of this is your fault. I’m just telling you how we are going to proceed from here on. Here. Lift these barbells. We are going to make new patterns. And to make these new patterns, sometimes we are going to be very still and very quiet. You listening?

Brain (huffing): No comment.

You: I’m going to show you a picture. Tell me what you see.

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Brain (forming a smile): Different on the outside, same on the in? We talking about compassion now?

You: At’a girl. (boy)

Brain (nodding slowly so no jarring occurs): Can we start training now?

 

 

photo credit

photo 2 credit

related article on meditation and the brain here:

Daily Word Prompt: Athletic

The “Feeling” of Flavor

Flavorful is not the chip in front of me.

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It is seeing the knowledge in my great-grandmother’s eyes as she looks down

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It is the power of her fingers holding up my whole arm

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It is knowing that, in touching her hand, I feel a lifetime of experiences

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It is the insightfulness I discover when she speaks to me

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It is the feel of a tongue that speaks words of wisdom

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Flavorful is the kiss from her lips that says, “I love you.”

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Compared to these things, the chip has no flavor at all.

 

Daily word prompt: Flavorful

 

How to show you care

Play a soothing, encouraging song – like this one

 

Give a sad smile

 

Offer a shoulder to lean on

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Reach out and hold a hand

Sit closer  –

Listen –

 

Give a warm hug –

Unless we lost someone or were there on 9/11, we will never be able to completely empathize with the victims nor their families. All we can do now is to remind them that …

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Sympathy– Daily word prompt

 

 

 

Backstabbing during a hurricane

In case you haven’t heard, Trump continues to posture and force Mexico to build a wall on the Texas border to “keep Mexican immigrants out” of the U.S

Meanwhile, just over the border, Mexico has offered to help get Texas “back on its feet in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.” Apparently, vehicles, boats, troops, medicine, water and food are soon to arrive.

Trump has not said anything publicly about their offer, nor has he officially accepted the it. He did, however, accept Singapore’s offer to lend us Ch-47 helicopters for rescue efforts and spoke directly to their Prime Minister.

Here:

It’s unclear how Trump, who arrived in Texas on Tuesday to survey Harvey’s catastrophic damage, will react to Mexico’s offer to help. The president and Mexico have had an acrimonious relationship dating back to Trump’s first day as a presidential candidate, when he referred to Mexicans as rapists, murderers and criminals.

Mexico is still more than happy to help its Texas neighbor.

But here’s where it gets weird.

Although our (ahem) Governor Abbott has accepted Mexico’s kind offer, he has been working to implement Senate Bill 4 which would give ...

local law enforcement the authority to ask about a person’s immigration status during routine interactions such as a traffic stop.

It also required local officials to comply with requests from federal immigration authorities to detain anyone suspected of being in the country illegally. Local law enforcement officials could be fined and removed from office if they did not cooperate with federal immigration authorities

 

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Luckily, on Wednesday a US District Judge ruled that  “Texas officials may not implement Senate Bill 4, a controversial measure designed to crack down on so-called “sanctuary cities” in that state.

Ha! Take that, Trump and Abbott.

But Abbott promises to get the ruling appealed. It’s like he’s saying, “Come on in, Mexico. Help us out! Done? Now get out.”

Lee Gelernt, deputy director of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project praised Garcia’s ruling.

“The court was right to strike down virtually all of this patently unconstitutional law. Senate Bill 4 would have led to rampant discrimination and made communities less safe. That’s why police chiefs and mayors themselves were among its harshest critics — they recognized it would harm, not help, their communities,” said Gelernt.

Friday, activists are planning a statewide protest against this discriminatory bill.

Ricardo Ainslie, director of the Mexico Center at the University of Texas at Austin said, “Mexico has been the brunt of a lot of highly pressured, hostile rhetoric. So I think it’s very interesting that Mexico is saying in so many words ‘Hey, we’re present, and we’re critical to things that happen in Texas.’ They’re showing real political maturity.”

Yes, Mexico has taken the high road and many Texan, like myself, are grateful.

As to the ungrateful, fear-mongerers — I just hope it’s not too hard for you to cross your own Rio Grande River without help.

References:

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/weather/2017/08/29/mexico-awaits-abbotts-response-offer-hurricane-harvey-relief

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/08/30/547459673/federal-judge-temporarily-blocks-sb4-texas-law-targeting-sanctuary-cities

The Ultimate Sign of Compassion

As many of you know, I consider myself more “spiritual” than religious. I have not attended a church, for various reasons, in many years. I did grow up in a Lutheran church – baptized, confirmed and married in the same one. I also know that every religion teaches us something.

In the Bible, Jesus’ washing of his disciples feet is a wonderful metaphor of how we need to treat others. No matter how powerful, important, confident (or lack thereof) we might think we are, humbling ourselves and serving others can only be a good thing.

 

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painting by me, CD-W