SimplyNumbers

Doubts, Fears and Transformation

Many of your doubts fears may be limiting you from living up to the true individual you can be. Our fears and doubts can keep us deeply rooted to a place that is not fulfilling. Finding ways to loosen their grip can help you to better pursue your passion.

Your Numerology reading offers insights and guidance to best live your life authentically and purposefully. Part of living authentically and purposefully is understanding fear is a natural part of life. We all have fears, uncertainty and doubts. However, we all have found tools or techniques for navigating our lives despite our difficulties. Numerology is one of these tools, and it can help you to transform your fear into transformational guidance.

You can begin to tap into your own guidance by developing a connection with your Life Path. Your Life Path represents your inner drive and passion. It’s the “What do I want to do with my life” impulse that is buried deeply within your heart and soul. It’s a question that must be answered, but you can only fully answer it by following your heart. But, by following your heart, you’re fueling your own transformation.

How to Go for Something With All Your Heart

[From Oprah.com -- By James B. Meigs]

"Today everything is "extreme," adrenaline is the sought-after high, and risk—especially the risk of serious injury—is celebrated as an end in itself. Yet if you talk to rock climbers, surfers, explorers, and the like, they don't mention adrenaline rushes. And aside from a bit of black humor, they usually don't say much about the risks they face.

What they do talk about—to the extent that one can find words for these things—is the much deeper, almost spiritual role that these pursuits have in their lives."

Read more: http://www.oprah.com/spirit/How-to-Live-Adventurously-Live-More-Fully#ixzz1UlqHvVJf

TV Question: How do I escape my troubles?

I was watching the season finale of “Private Practice” and I was struck by a question that Addison asked her doctor on the show. She asked, “When is my life going to change?” Her doctor says, “When you make it happen.” I believe that this answer really doesn't fully answer the question. And, I think it only focuses on the desirable parts of our lives. On the show quite a lot is happening in Addison's life. She has recently ended a relationship, wants a baby, her best friend is moving away and the office is under investigation. For me, the question sounds like "When is my life going to get better?" or "How can I escape and get to the good stuff?"

There are later scenes where she introduces herself to a new man and attempts to leave for a trip to Fiji with him, at least partly to escape all of the trouble and trauma happening at the office. Then while at the airport she realizes that what she is doing might be a mistake, and she turns back to confront her problems.

Recently, I’ve been rereading “When Things Fall Apart” by Pema Chodron. I think it addresses some of the issues that this show tries to address. I first read the book in December of 2001. The practices in the book helped me to look at pain, change and trauma in new ways. At the time, I understood the importance of having a personal practice that incorporated regular meditation, but this book really helped to solidify why it’s so vital. The book encourages you to look within yourself at your own mindfulness. In the book, Pema writes that “the most fundamental harm we can do to ourselves, is to remain ignorant by not having the courage and respect to look at ourselves honestly and gently.”

Pema really encourages us to find a way to accept our fear, rather than hiding from it.  She elaborates by saying, “When things are shaky and nothing is working, we might realize that we are on the verge of something. We might realize that this is a very vulnerable and tender place, and that tenderness can go either way. We can shut down and feel resentful or we can touch in on that throbbing quality. There is definitely something tender and throbbing about groundlessness.”

Ultimately, It’s a book about accepting life as it is, and not trying to escape or discover the perfect solution. By letting go of the need for control, we can free ourselves to face our difficulties and fears. In other words, it’s about living life in the moment and finding the space to address your doubts and embracing life at the same time. Pema writes, “Things falling apart is a kind of testing and also a kind of healing. We think that the point is to pass the test or to overcome the problem, but the trust is that things don’t really get solved. They come together and they fall apart. They they come together again and fall apart again. It’s just like that. The healing comes from letting there be room for all of this to happen: room for grief, for misery, for joy.”

Like Addison, you can find ways to lean into your life. Rather than trying to fly off with a new friend, which was extremely enticing for Addison, she understood that she needed to face her life. We see the recognition on her face as people, some of whom she knows, zoom by her to new potential. Her accepting the problems, especially those at the office, requires some big changes, but she accepts that. Of course, her work and yours is not magic.

Living your life mindfully and with compassion requires real dedication and honesty on your part. Once you recognize that you don't have to escape, the payoff comes in not feeling exhausted from continuously trying to flee from your doubt and worry, but instead honoring them.

Waiting For Opportunity

What is opportunity, and when does it knock? It never knocks. You can wait a whole lifetime, listening, hoping, and you will hear no knocking. None at all. You are opportunity, and you must knock on the door leading to your destiny. You prepare yourself to recognize opportunity, to pursue and seize opportunity as you develop the strength of your personality, and build a self-image with which you are able to live / with your self-respect alive and growing. ~ Maxwell Maltz


The above quote speaks about having both the ability to act, and the ability to step out of your comfort zone. You might not necessarily step all the way out of your fear, but you’ll be able to take advantage of your opportunity as you push open your own doorways. We all have moments when we realize that if we don’t take action, nobody else will.

What are you acting on right now? It doesn’t have to be world changing, only something that helps you to take a step toward being the you, that you want to be. It might seem like a small thing right now, but you might look back and smile at the courage and tenacity that helped you to stand firm, and make a decision that helped your life to unfold along a new path.

We’re almost at the halfway point for the year. 2011 is a year that requires us to be practical, but also calls for us to listen to our hearts. Are you listening? Are you living your life in a meaningful and purposeful way? Numerologically, 2011 can provide time for you to more deeply evaluate where you are in all areas of your life. Are you opening the doors to progress that present themselves to you? Are you seeking out new challenges?

Although, it may be important to take a rational and balanced view of your aspirations, it’s also important to look within and ask yourself about how you are meeting the needs of your heart. Again, are you listening to your heart? You heart is simply calling for changes that can help you to push past obstacles, and into new opportunities. Are you ready?


Good questions to ask at this time:

• How might my heart be offering important wisdom and guidance?
• What have I been waiting to start in my life?
• What has my heart been calling for?
• What have I been afraid or unable to step into?

Washington Post: Friday the 13th phobias

Friday the 13th phobias and the five strangest fears you never knew existed.  What's yours?

Today’s date will send cold shivers of fear down the spines of those suffering from Friggatriskaidekaphobia. (Also known as Paraskevidekatriaphobia)

The Situation Room

By now you've seen this situation room photo of President Obama watching live as Navy Seals infiltrated into the compound where Osama Bin Laden was secretly living. The grim reality stands out on the faces of all present. It speaks to the difficulties that many of these people face on a regular basis, and makes them all seem more human and accountable.

However, I'd like to look at the image from a compassionate, symbolic, deeper and more intimate perspective, outside of the political world. For some people viewing the photo in this way may be difficult. Looking at any image from a symbolic point of view isn't about the outside world, rather it's about looking within. If you can consciously reflect on the photo, outside of the political realm, it might begin to help you to catch a glimpse of something within yourself that is normally hidden, unseen or ignored. This photo has the potential to help you to look into your own shadow as it is connected for many of us with painful events, especially September 11th.

I'm not trying to be insensitive to anyone's pain or grief. It's the opposite. I believe that this photo has the potential for us to deeply connect and work with your difficult emotions, memories and fears, as well as compassion and centered-ness. By connecting with the shadow aspect of the photo, you may be able to begin to heal trauma and let go of certain fears which may be restricting or limiting you. The results can be dramatic, although the process may be hard at first.

I do feel that the photo has much to say about the world today. How do you feel? For me, the photo connects with helplessness. I remember the helpless feeling in the pit of my stomach as I watched the planes crash into the buildings. As I look at the photo this feeling comes up. I also recognize that this feeling, although not necessarily as powerful, comes up when I'm feeling stressed or doubtful.

I feel that the photo also speaks to the connectedness and closeness of the world today. For me personally, the photo speaks volumes about a need for compassion. Working with it, I came to the realization that I'm not helpless and my actions, or inaction, can have far reaching impact. I matter. What I do matters. I recognize that having compassion for my feeling, and not simply dismissing it, and believing in myself can be a way to step past some of the helpless feelings when they arise.

Of course, these feelings won't just go away forever. We're human and we have feelings. Other situations could trigger a feeling of helplessness for me, but coming back to compassion and being willing to recognize the feeling can help to alleviate it, instead of pushing it away or ignoring it. Whatever you learn about yourself will probably be part of an ongoing process of insights, realizations and acceptance. It's not an easy or fast process and it may take some time to recognize, accept and move through your feelings and emotions. With acceptance comes new choices and possibilities.

Symbolically, for me, this image allows me to more deeply connect with helplessness, which helps me to recognize that I have value and my presence is important. For you, the photo may connect you to something entirely different. Recognize whatever it is that comes up for you, and be willing to look for a way to process, accept and finally release it. It might be that you recognize your own humanity, and that you begin to take your relationships more seriously. Whatever unfolds for you, allow it to have meaning for your life and be willing to take action that can help you step past restrictions or limits, and bring greater connection and vibrancy to your life.

Yes Magazine: Teaching children about death

Sharon Hayes, writing for Yes Magazine, has written a moving article on the issue of death and how to discuss it with children. She discusses how her family dealt with death as she was growing up. She writes, "I considered the grown-ups from my own childhood, who had prevented me from seeing my dying Aunt. Why would they have done that? I suspect they wanted me to remember her healthy. Maybe they didn’t want me to be frightened."

Many of us may have similar experiences to hers. I also have memories of missing the chance to say goodbye to my maternal grandmother. Like Sharon, I remember visiting the hospital, but not going to see my grandmother.

Sharon finishes the article by talking about how she wants her daughters to understand death, and she takes them to visit their grandfather who is dying. She explains that it's not easy process for her daughters, but that they will continue to visit their grandfather while they have the chance.

Quote ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

All of us can practice nonviolence. We begin by recognizing that, in the depths of our consciousness, we have both the seeds of compassion and the seeds of violence. ~ Thich Nhat Hanh, Creating True Peace

TED Talk: Jonathan Fields - Turning Fear Into Fuel

Words Hurt