Vince Shifflett

The thought has crossed my mind several times lately that I am probably in the last quarter of my life. The average current adult life span in the United States is 76 years. The older I get, the more I realize that it doesn’t take long to get to 76. Time flies when you’re having fun.

Being in the last quarter is not a negative or gloomy thought for me at all. It is instead a time of gratitude, reflection, and contemplation.                                                                       Gratitude for where I am in this moment. Gratitude for what I have.                                 Reflection related to the past with all the experiences and lessons learned. Contemplation over things including, what do I want the last quarter of my life to look like, feel like, and be like? What experiences do I want to have in the last quarter? The beauty is that it’s all up to me and me alone. We have that beautiful gift called choice.

I have been working a tremendous amount lately, which has only led me to think about things more. I am feeling more like a human doing as opposed to a human being. In this last quarter, I want to be, and not just do. It is about balance, which is something I feel I have been lacking. Again, we get to carve out what it is we want our lives to look like.

I think of my Mother who worked very hard until the age of 72. Three months after her retirement, she was gone. It is important to experience life today. In this last quarter I want to be less fixated on getting things done and think more about my present journey. Seems I am always striving and trying to cross the finish line. I end up many times missing the beauty of being right where I am now. The destination is always within us. I have learned that for me, new insight and guidance comes from accepting where I am right now and being present with what is.

From an Optimal Health perspective, I want to be the best I can be physically, mentally, and spiritually in this last quarter. That may look different for each of us but again, it is up to us. No matter what quarter you are in, you can make it what you want it to be. Time is precious. I want to live, love, and serve more in this last quarter. I want to spend more time appreciating and being aware of this very moment, with no thought about the past or future. I want to take care of the body I’ve been given through proper nutrition and activity. I want to facilitate my spiritual growth through prayer, meditation, and anything that feeds my spiritual being. I want to take better care of my mental health by filtering the thousands of thoughts that come into my mind daily being careful not to give focus to the negative. Focus on the positive. Remember what we focus on expands.

It is my hope that no matter where you are on your journey, that you will take time to think about your physical, mental, and spiritual health in an effort to be the very best you can be. What do you want your life to look like right now? The answer comes from spending time in the now. Having an awareness of this very moment and the gift of this moment.

I look forward to seeing you next Sunday for my weekly Sunday blog. I hope you will be inspired to leave a reply with your thoughts. Your thoughts contribute to my growth and the expansion of my thinking. I stand in great appreciation of your support.

 

Peace and blessings

The Other Side of the Coin

There seems to be a tremendous amount of information out there that is meant to help us on our journey through this life, all of which I appreciate deeply and even write about in my weekly blog.   The information serves as a great reminder and road map for me to stay on track spiritually. I rely on the information and inspiration from others to guide me and keep me more aware.

There is the other side of the coin, however, which is reality. The other side of the coin is the fact that we all experience sadness, darkness, frustration, confusion and other challenging moments on our journey. To say, or pretend, that these emotions do not exist or that we are in some way at fault for feeling them, is not reality. To somehow think that you are less spiritual for having these emotions is a non-truth. Yes I do believe that our thoughts create our reality but I also believe in reality itself. We must embrace the other side of the coin and not judge ourselves for the feelings we are experiencing.

On a personal level, this has been a week on the other side of the coin for me. I have experienced frustration, sadness, confusion, and a bit of darkness. Even being conscious of that, it has still been a struggle for me to stay out of the quicksand so to speak.  If we never experience darkness, we will have no appreciation for the light. I appreciate all the positive affirmations, inspirational messages, and new thought philosophies that are out there. I practice them and firmly believe in them. I know from personal experience that they work. With that being said, there will still be times on the other side of the coin.

I am happy to say that I flipped the coin over this morning to the positive side. I am back on track for the moment. For me, it takes a constant reminding myself of the truth. The truth that says I am all I need. The truth that says the one source, and one creator, lives in me and flows through me when I allow him to. The truth that says happiness is an inside job as cliché as that might sound. The truth that says infinite possibilities exists for all of us to the degree that we are willing to trust and believe.

It was a rough week emotionally. I know many spiritual leaders and new thought thinkers teach and believe that we should not confess that or talk about that. It has been my experience that it is part of life. The rich, poor, famous, and most noted spiritual leaders all experience time on the other side of the coin. Having said that, I do know it is vital to move on from it once you have allowed yourself time to process it and be with it. We learn lessons from the other side of the coin when we are able to embrace it and not disregard it, judge ourselves for it, or pretend it doesn’t exist.

Today I express gratitude for both sides of the coin. They are both important for our growth and fulfillment. They are both important for answering the hard questions in our life. Be encouraged today and know that we all spend time on the other side of the coin. It is up to each individual how long you stay there.   Mindful awareness gives us the power to flip the coin over at anytime and continue towards growth and self-healing, and to continue to think about the lessons learned from being on the other side of the coin.

I look forward to seeing you next Sunday for my weekly Sunday blog. I appreciate your support and feedback as always. It is my deepest hope that by sharing my weekly thoughts and personal experiences, you will grow and be more fulfilled on your journey.

Peace and blessings

Suffering and pain

Suffering and pain is not unique to an individual. It is something that we all experience in our lifetime. It is the means by which we can choose to learn and grow. The old cliché, “growing pains” actually has a lot of meaning when it comes to our mental, physical, and spiritual health. Sometimes we go through painful situations that lead to tremendous growth in all dimensions of our health.

I memorialized my suffering and pain. I gave myself a trophy for the most suffered. I set it up on the mantle and looked at it everyday. I had convinced myself that I, and only I, had suffered like this. I had been the victim of pain and suffering that no one else would or could understand. I held onto my suffering and pain. I held onto the pain of my relationship break-ups, the death of my mother, my diagnosis, the death of my pets and anything I could hold onto to stay in the victim role.

Once I realized that all suffering and pain comes into our lives to teach us a lesson, I was able to start thinking about it differently. Once I realized that we all suffer, I was able to stop making my pain special. I would not be who I am today, or where I am today, without the experience of the suffering and pain I’ve endured in my life. For that, I must be grateful. Being grateful for the suffering and pain allowed me to see it from a different perspective. Asking myself, what do I need to learn from this painful experience led me down the path of self-awareness and self-healing.   For me, each situation of pain and suffering has turned out to be a lesson in being humble and an opportunity to deepen in wisdom.

According to the bible when Jesus was crucified and placed in the tomb, he stayed there for 3 days. The enlightening moment for me was when he decided to come out of the tomb and head toward the resurrection. We have a choice. We can stay in the tomb or we can come out and make our way toward resurrecting ourselves and bringing self-healing. It’s easy to stay buried in the tomb of our pain and suffering. We can feel trapped there with no way out but we must understand that it is our choice. When we come out of that tomb, we can either choose to head toward the resurrection or back to the crucifixion. Tomb time is necessary and part of the process but we must not stay there.

I hope you will come out of the tomb today and start the process of self-healing. Know that you are special. Know that you are enough. Know that you are divinity and that the one source that created us all, lives in you. Know that you are love and that you are loved.

Your comments and feedback would be greatly appreciated.  It is also my hope that you will sign up to follow my blog by email.  I look forward to seeing you next Sunday for the weekly Sunday blog.  Until then, peace and many blessings to you all.

Are you the healthiest you can be? It’s your choice: March 6, 2016

Are you the healthiest you can be? If not, what decisions can you make to change that? Optimal Health is the most important asset you can have in life. Keeping in mind that the 3 dimensions of Optimal Health (Mental, Spiritual, and Physical), all work synergistically with each other. It is impossible to be in excellent physical health and poor mental health.   For example, research has shown that stress leads to disease and illness. Stress is a mental issue that greatly affects our optimal physical health. Stress causes the release of a hormone, in our body, known as cortisol. Cortisol increases inflammation, throughout the body, which makes us more prone to many diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.

I am reminded of a time in my life when I wasn’t healthy. I was disconnected spiritually, I was in poor condition physically, and I was a wreck mentally.   I finally realized that I was a wreck mentally because I was disconnected spiritually and I was in poor condition physically because I was a wreck mentally. No separating the three. For me it started with my spiritual being.  Through a process of silence, meditation, prayer, and reconnecting with a spiritual center, I was able to begin to heal myself spiritually. The rest is history. The mental being and physical being had to come in alignment with my spiritual being. We are all spiritual beings having a human experience. The problem for me is when I start to think, feel, see, and do things the human way instead of the spiritual way. I get it twisted and it takes a constant mindful awareness to keep it straight.

Spirit is unconditional love for every living being.  Spirit is truth. Spirit is compassion. I am working on always knowing that I am a spiritual being. Do I get caught up in the human experience at times? Yes, but those humans experiences only lead to lessons learned. They only draw me closer to my spiritual being. The closer I stay connected to my spiritual being, the closer I stay to optimal health.

Who wants to have illness and disease? It is imperative then that we understand that the connection to disease and illness lies in the spiritual and mental dimensions of optimal health. I trust this will encourage you to think about where you are in each dimension. If you are unhealthy, ask yourself the tough questions about your mental and spiritual health. Are you holding onto negative emotions?   Making decisions falls under the mental health dimension. Are you making the best decisions to be physically healthy? Are you exhibiting the true virtues of a spiritual being? Think about it.

Make a conscious decision to evaluate your every thought and action then ask yourself, am I coming from a place of a human being or spiritual being. It is my desire to always come from a place of spiritual experience in my life. I trust this will encourage you to do the same.

See you next Sunday for my weekly Sunday blog.   Peace and blessings!

Winter Silence 

As we near the end of winter, I think about the silence that winter brings. Longer days of darkness, no more birds chirping, no more leaves rustling in the trees, no more kids running around outside, or cookouts by the pool. I also think of winter as a time of hibernation. A time when people typically spend more time indoors.

February 2015 in the middle of the cold winter, I moved out on my own, for the first time in about 24 years, after a challenging and difficult break-up from someone I loved dearly. I went from living in a 6-bedroom/5-bath house, to a tiny one-bedroom apartment. I was afraid, sad, and lonely. I was afraid of the silence. I pondered the question why am I 52 years old and alone? I wondered if I would be alone for the rest of my life. It was a dark  silent time.

Life is kind of like the ocean with our surface mind being like the waves, on the surface of the ocean, which are always moving and never still or silent. If you go deep into the bottom of the ocean, however, it is calm, still, and silent. The same is true for our minds. If we go deeper into our minds, it is calm and still.

This past year has taught me that at the center of my being is a place that nothing or no one can disturb without my permission. For the first 6 months of living alone I was living on the surface. I was in the surface mind. Worried, fearful, lonely and sad. After a period of time, I realized that I could go into my deeper mind where there was peace, calmness, and silence. I could go to the center of my being. The past year of silence and being alone has lead to tremendous self-healing, a beautiful reconnection to my spiritual being, and great personal growth. Turning inward to my deeper mind and diving deeper into the ocean has helped me reconnect with my inner sanctuary. Something we all have inside of us if we take the time to be silent. Do not look for a sanctuary in anyone except yourself. I was looking for my sanctuary in other people not being aware that it was inside of me all the time.

As the time recently came for me to sign a new lease on my tiny modest apartment in the city, I found myself back in my surface mind experiencing sadness and realizing that I would be alone again for at least another year. As much as I tried to go back into the deeper mind, I struggled. I stayed on the surface for about 3 weeks, sad and miserable. Then my dear friend and life coach, Greg reminded me that by signing a new lease I just bought myself another year of self-healing, another year of focusing on my spiritual connection, and another year of independence. What a beautiful thing to realize for myself. It changed my whole outlook on the situation.

Silence is where our answers come from. The answers to all our tough questions are already within us. We just have to be silent and ready to receive the answers. They may not be the answers we want to hear which has sometimes kept me from asking.

You can experience Winter Silence year round. Sit aside several times a day to just be silent and focus on your breathing. Focusing on your breathing will keep your surface mind from wandering. On exhalation, dive deep into the ocean, deep into your mind. There you will find peace. There you will find answers to your questions. There you will find silence. This takes practice and consistency but the benefits have been life changing for me.

How do you connect to your inner sanctuary? How do you connect to the center of your being? Do you practice silence? I would love to hear about your experiences as well. It is my hope that you all have a week of connection to your deeper mind, the center of your being, your inner sanctuary. Have a peaceful week and I’ll see you next Sunday for the weekly Sunday blog.

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Peace and blessings