dreaming

A Summit of Dreams

Posted on by Sandi Amorim 10 Conversations

I had a dream recently.

It felt like both a vague memory and something yet to be realized.

Maybe that’s what dreams are – reminders of what’s possible – but possible coming from the truth of who you are.

The truth of who you are.

The dream you are here for.

It triggers that small part of your brain, on the alert, protecting you from:

  • failure
  • rejection
  • disappointment

That part of you, your lizard brain, so totally committed to keeping you safe. Even from your dreams.

And safe you remain.

Thinking of someday . . .

A day, far off in the distant future.

A day when the planets align and the moon is blue.

A day when you finally get your ducks in a row.

But (this is where your dream becomes a nightmare) someday N E V E R comes.

Unless . . .

  • A loved one dies suddenly
  • You get the diagnosis you never want to hear
  • Mother Nature wreaks havoc and destroys life as you know it

We’ve all heard stories of this type of wake up call.

Stories of that inspiring person who wakes the fuck up and refuses to succumb to the diagnosis, embracing their dreams instead.

What if you didn’t have to wait for that kind of wake up call?

What if instead, you found yourself in a room with 500 of the most awake human beings you’ve ever encountered?

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3 Steps to Your One Percent

Posted on by Sandi Amorim 14 Conversations


So it happened again.

I admit it, Seth Godin (who you may remember inspired the start of this blog) did it again by writing about what might happen on the day everyone is pleased with their work.

It’s basically a “now what” scenario.

You spend so much time working towards that day only to feel…

  • let down
  • critical of the result
  • and disappointed in yourself

His post also relates to what I think of as magical, someday thinking.

I know, I know. I’ve said it before and I’ll keep saying it because you’re still living like there is a someday.

But there isn’t. . .

And yet, every single day someone dreams of someday.

Each day those thoughts move you closer and closer to a state of complacency and toleration. Months, even years go by and the dream becomes vague, a wishful memory.

For the love of whatever you believe in, it is time to get over this.

Which brings me to the 1% solution.

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One. Small. Action.

Posted on by Sandi Amorim 26 Conversations

 

“If I am not for myself, who will be for me? And when I am for myself, what am ‘I’? And if not now, when?” – Hillel the Elder

 

One day. Someday.

Wish I may, wish I might.

Good things come to those who wait.

WTF?

Good things come to those who take action on their wishes and dreams.

Even if it’s just one small action that nobody sees but you.

One.  Small.  Action.

 

Day after day those actions add up.

Day after day, action by action. Step by step.

The life you say you want, the dreams burning a hole in your chest – they depend on these small actions.

 

Over to you:

  • What dream have you put on hold?
  • What one action could you take today?

 

“Stop wearing your wishbone where your backbone ought to be.” – Elizabeth Gilbert

 

Explanations Be Damned

Posted on by Sandi Amorim 13 Conversations

 

“A warrior of light knows what he wants. And he has no need to waste time on explanations.” – Paulo Coelho

How much time do you spend explaining yourself to others?

20 minutes? An hour? More?

Imagine for a moment, striding out into the world and offering your gift boldly, without hesitation, without concern.

Imagine drawing a line in the sand, a demarcation that announced for all to hear,

“This is my work damn it, and I’m going to shine like nothing you’ve ever seen before!”

Right now, go on, say it.

Let. It. Out.

From deep within your belly. Let the world know what you’re up to. It’s waiting for you to take that step.

And once you do, life transforms.

It’s time.

  • To get out of your own way.
  • To stop withholding your gifts.
  • To stop suppressing your joy and passion.
  • To stop playing small when you were meant to shine like that brilliant star Sirius!

“Your work is to discover your work, and then with all your heart give yourself to it.” ~ Buddha

You know what you want.

It’s time to get real about it, because this is all you’ve got. . .

Reasons or results.

Fuck the explanations and choose.

 

Inspired by Paulo Coelho’s The Manual of the Warrior of Light, the warrior is a metaphor for those in pursuit of their dreams.

 

 

The Warrior Emerges

Posted on by Sandi Amorim 16 Conversations

 

“Every warrior of light has, at least once, believed that he was not a warrior of light.” – Paulo Coelho

You are a warrior of light.

You probably didn’t ask for it. You might even try to ignore and avoid it at all costs.

And still, the light keeps shining, mesmerizing you with its brilliance.

Sometimes, you stumble towards it, unable to help yourself.

You catch yourself and step back from what your whole being longs for.

Who are you to step into the light so boldly?

You are a warrior of light.

Maybe you struggle to understand, questioning this path, looking desperately for an easier way.

Like other light bearers, you suffer, beset by the endless swirl of doubts in your mind.

Who are you to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Who are you really, to think you could shine so brightly?

Maybe you withhold yourself, misguidedly thinking this will keep you safe, unaware that this is an important phase of the journey.

You are a warrior of light.

Dreaming of what’s possible, you make mistakes and learn.

You risk, and survive.

Listen.

Your heart is beating. It has a gift to offer the world.

Not some day.

NOW.

This piece was inspired by Paulo Coelho’s The Manual of the Warrior of Light and is the beginning of a series. The warrior is a metaphor for those in pursuit of their dreams.

 

More Joy, Less “Oy”

Posted on by Sandi Amorim 18 Conversations

 

I’d already been thinking about 2011 having just completed my annual review when I saw this update on Facebook,

At first funny, the message started to sink in.

As I reviewed 2010, it seemed like I’d experienced a lot of “oy” in the past twelve months. In the grand scheme of things, it wasn’t a bad year and I can easily come up with a detailed list of accomplishments.

It’s just that the feeling of “oy” followed by coulda-woulda-shoulda thinking was getting in the way of my creative process.

You  may have already noticed that “oy” is not your most resourceful state!

What if you could shift your perspective from “oy” to JOY?

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Memories of Sugar Plums

Posted on by Sandi Amorim 12 Conversations

 

This fairy caught my eye in a shop display.

She brought back memories of how much I loved the holidays as a child. I was captivated by the wonder and magic of it all.

In The Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky, the Sugarplum Fairy is the sovereign of sweets.

What a perfectly delicious, magical thought for a child!

Imagine, for a moment, seeing once again, through the eyes of a child.

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When Spirit Calls Do You Answer?

Posted on by Sandi Amorim 9 Conversations

spirit dancer sculpture, Santa Fe

“What is your spirit calling for?”

My spirit has been calling for silence.

Two weeks from now I’ll be at a silent retreat; four days of silence, rest and nourishment at all levels.

The silence has been calling for months, but I have not been listening.

I’ve ignored it, been busy, rescheduled it twice and dismissed the need.

I have been unwilling to honour the call.

Until now.

“Silence is sometimes the best answer.” – Dalai Lama

I have surrendered, given myself over, and booked off four full days (96 hours) of blissful, sometimes confronting silence.

The Spirit Dancer? Is satisfied.

And you?

  • What has your spirit been calling for?
  • How will you honour that call?

How 2 Small Words Will Snap You Out of a Funk

Posted on by Sandi Amorim 9 Conversations

Two small words that have the power to create reality.

It can be a reality that feels good, full of possibility. Or the opposite, a full on funk that has you on the couch with the remote in one hand and a bag of chips in the other.

But wait!

What if you could…

  • write that book
  • skydive
  • learn a new language
  • start a business
  • have the body, career, mate, life you’ve been dreaming of?

I’m guessing those goals, or similar ones, can easily trigger your lizard brain and I can already hear the “yeah buts” that want to keep you in the funk!

What if you…

  • aren’t creative enough
  • are too afraid
  • aren’t good with languages
  • don’t have the funding…or the courage
  • aren’t willing to do what it takes?

Familiar? I know, and not in a good way.

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What Will You Do With Your One Precious Life?

Posted on by Sandi Amorim 21 Conversations

“What is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” – Mary Oliver

“What is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” – Mary Oliver

You’ve probably read that quote before; maybe it even inspired you…for a moment. Did it actually change anything in your life though? Did it spur you to action or have you commit fully to a dream?

I didn’t think so. Me neither.

And yet? I love that quote, which is actually the last line of this poem.

The Summer Day by Mary Oliver
Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean-
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down-
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
I don’t know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn’t everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?

Maybe I’m quirky, but it’s the second last line that inspires me, “Doesn’t everything die at last, and too soon?”

The idea that my life is precious appeals to me, but it’s the reminder that everything dies “and too soon” that inspires me to action.

Consider that you don’t often do what it takes to honour that one wild and precious life. You don’t, and it’s time to tell the truth about that.

You talk about it. A lot.

You make promises and New Year’s resolutions, you join programs and support groups, spend money and waste time.

Now, until I’m on the other side and can share my perspective from the afterlife, I’m pretty sure this life? Is all you’ve got. Right here. Right now. This is it.

It’s not a practice life either.

This. Is. It.

But when you think of your life, doesn’t it seem infinite, like you have all the time in the world?

Except, you don’t.

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