Birthday time and another year of aging is on the calendar for me! I haven't been able to get moving in the morning to get out of a dark space of negativity and a personal monotonous rhythm. It has been a 100-degree temperature since May, the Ukraine war, the school shootings of little children, Covid, and Inflation all have been weighing on my motivation to move forward with new visions and plans. I was in bed this morning when a childhood memory occurred of a family member telling me: "Never say Can't!" I received a jolt of energy from these words, kicking me out of that bed. I began to think about how powerful these words are. I remember that many years ago, a spiritual teacher told me that in my life, I would have many difficulties and doubts but to keep saying, "I Can! I Can! I Can! There was also a time that I was team coordinator at a well-known computer company. The team members were worried about all the work we had to do and felt that we would never make our quota. I told that team, "Let's have a CAN-DO ATTITUDE!" I saw the change in motivation right away. We worked together in unison, rallying to surpass our quota that week.
“Our every action has consequences. Thoughts have consequences. Since actions start from thoughts I guess I can say technically that thoughts, in general, have consequences. In our thoughts we make dreams. So if I think I can do it, then my actions will be “I CAN” and I am able to do it. So the result or the consequence will be “I did it!” Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.”
I bring up these examples because right now, as we all know, there is a reckoning going on in our nation and the world. In our individual and collective experiences during this reckoning, we can affirm I CAN! I CAN! I CAN! This affirmation can open the door to the Creator's highest Grace and Will for us to channel: Strength, Courage, and Motivation to stand tall against any negativity, depression, or fear of the darkness occurring at this time. Consider the words of poet Denise Levertov as she contemplated Rilke:
“A Variation on a Theme by Rilke (The Book of Hours, Book I, Poem I, Stanza I)
A certain day became a presence to me;
there it was, confronting me—a sky, air, light:
a being. And before it started to descend
from the height of noon, it leaned over
and struck my shoulder as if with
the flat of a sword, granting me
honor and a task. The day’s blow
rang out, metallic—or it was I, a bell awakened,
and what I heard was my whole self
saying and singing what it knew: I can. ”
From the Little Shack: Your honor and your task today is an "I CAN ATTITUDE: I CAN! I CAN! I CAN!"