Showing posts with label childhood imagination. Show all posts
Showing posts with label childhood imagination. Show all posts
Monday, December 21, 2020
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
How about a Happiness Check?
When I was a little girl I loved to play “pretend.” I imagined lots of different scenarios from being the first female baseball player for the Chicago Cubs to flying like Superman. I had a friend, Teresa, who would pretend with me. We also put on little performances. I only have a vague recollection of the entertainment, but I do remember singing, “Side by Side,” by Harry Lucas. It was written the year my mother was born, so it was an oldie even when I was a youngster. My favorite chorus was:
Oh, we ain't got a barrel of money,
Maybe we're ragged and funny
But we'll travel along
Singing a song
Side by side.
On more than one occasion I got in trouble for my over active imagination, although never from my parents. Mom and Dad encouraged creativity and even differing points of view. This mindset was not held in esteem by most of my teachers, but I believe my fanciful thinking has served me well. Now I find that visualizing happy scenarios and thinking “outside the box” are seen as empowering and desirable.
There are so many great books about the Law of Attraction, visualization techniques and creative thinking that I do not feel the need to describe the benefits. However, I DO think it’s important to remind people to have joyful, empowering thoughts. Not only can we manifest our dreams, it’s just downright fun.
I was talking to a friend of mine and I told her I like to stroll through shopping centers and pretend I’m famous. I even have a shirt that says: “Nobody Knows I’m Famous.” Anyway, on these little joyful jaunts I look around and I think, “These folks have no idea that I’m the famous Sally Marks.” I smile and meander along, content in my success, as well as my ability to outsmart the paparazzi (who mystically never seem to recognize me either!)
Before you call to have me taken away ha ha to the funny farm where life is beautiful all the time..” (try googling Napoleon XIV for the rest of the lyrics), please know that I’m playful, but completely sane.
Another diversion is the singing game. My book, Erase Negativity and Embrace the Magic Within, was recently released and I occasionally receive checks for it. Every day I go to the mailbox and I sing, “Checks in the mail, checks in the mail. I love it when I get checks in the mail.” It certainly is better than crying “Stinky bills. Stinky bills. I don’t want more stinking bills.”
For several days in a row I sang my little “checks in the mail” song, and lo and behold, I received checks in the mail. Some were expected payments, some were not. One day I had a very strong intuition that I received a whole STACK of checks. I took a deep breath and smiled. I could just feel a stack of checks waiting for me in the mailbox.
And there were.
Unfortunately they came in a box with a new check register. I completely forgot I had ordered checks a couple weeks before.
I told the story to my siblings, niece and nephews at a family get together. My niece, Ashley, sang a new version: “Checks I can cash. Checks I can cash. I love it when I get checks I can cash.” So I’ve learned to be more specific and vary my lyrics a bit.
The point I’m making is we all have imaginations. Unfortunately, when many of us get older we no longer create fun and loving scenarios. We fill our minds with visions of gloom and doom. The average person has 40,000 to 65,000 thoughts a day. Guess what percentage of those thoughts are negative? A whopping 95% ! We haven’t forgotten how to pretend, it’s just we’re focusing on manufacturing stinky, dismal scenarios. So I ask, who is crazier, the person pretending to be famous, or the one who is imagining they are going to get hit by a bus?
The good news is we do have the power to change our minds. That is why I encourage folks to follow the first three steps in my book.
1. Become aware of the negativity in your life.
2. Replace negative thoughts, speech and actions with a positive alternative.
3. Smile. Even when you don’t want to.
And I’d like to add one more tip to the list. Imagine happier events in your life.
Just like when I was singing with Teresa, you may not have a barrel of money, but if you continue to laugh, sing and imagine better things, you can create more positive events in your life. And if you want to make my dreams come true, buy a few copies of my book so I can enjoy watching my postal carrier shake his head in confusion when I sing my check cashing song.
But most important of all is the song I always have in my heart as I imagine all of you side by side learning how to erase negativity and embrace the magic within.
Oh, we ain't got a barrel of money,
Maybe we're ragged and funny
But we'll travel along
Singing a song
Side by side.
On more than one occasion I got in trouble for my over active imagination, although never from my parents. Mom and Dad encouraged creativity and even differing points of view. This mindset was not held in esteem by most of my teachers, but I believe my fanciful thinking has served me well. Now I find that visualizing happy scenarios and thinking “outside the box” are seen as empowering and desirable.
There are so many great books about the Law of Attraction, visualization techniques and creative thinking that I do not feel the need to describe the benefits. However, I DO think it’s important to remind people to have joyful, empowering thoughts. Not only can we manifest our dreams, it’s just downright fun.
I was talking to a friend of mine and I told her I like to stroll through shopping centers and pretend I’m famous. I even have a shirt that says: “Nobody Knows I’m Famous.” Anyway, on these little joyful jaunts I look around and I think, “These folks have no idea that I’m the famous Sally Marks.” I smile and meander along, content in my success, as well as my ability to outsmart the paparazzi (who mystically never seem to recognize me either!)
Before you call to have me taken away ha ha to the funny farm where life is beautiful all the time..” (try googling Napoleon XIV for the rest of the lyrics), please know that I’m playful, but completely sane.
Another diversion is the singing game. My book, Erase Negativity and Embrace the Magic Within, was recently released and I occasionally receive checks for it. Every day I go to the mailbox and I sing, “Checks in the mail, checks in the mail. I love it when I get checks in the mail.” It certainly is better than crying “Stinky bills. Stinky bills. I don’t want more stinking bills.”
For several days in a row I sang my little “checks in the mail” song, and lo and behold, I received checks in the mail. Some were expected payments, some were not. One day I had a very strong intuition that I received a whole STACK of checks. I took a deep breath and smiled. I could just feel a stack of checks waiting for me in the mailbox.
And there were.
Unfortunately they came in a box with a new check register. I completely forgot I had ordered checks a couple weeks before.
I told the story to my siblings, niece and nephews at a family get together. My niece, Ashley, sang a new version: “Checks I can cash. Checks I can cash. I love it when I get checks I can cash.” So I’ve learned to be more specific and vary my lyrics a bit.
The point I’m making is we all have imaginations. Unfortunately, when many of us get older we no longer create fun and loving scenarios. We fill our minds with visions of gloom and doom. The average person has 40,000 to 65,000 thoughts a day. Guess what percentage of those thoughts are negative? A whopping 95% ! We haven’t forgotten how to pretend, it’s just we’re focusing on manufacturing stinky, dismal scenarios. So I ask, who is crazier, the person pretending to be famous, or the one who is imagining they are going to get hit by a bus?
The good news is we do have the power to change our minds. That is why I encourage folks to follow the first three steps in my book.
1. Become aware of the negativity in your life.
2. Replace negative thoughts, speech and actions with a positive alternative.
3. Smile. Even when you don’t want to.
And I’d like to add one more tip to the list. Imagine happier events in your life.
Just like when I was singing with Teresa, you may not have a barrel of money, but if you continue to laugh, sing and imagine better things, you can create more positive events in your life. And if you want to make my dreams come true, buy a few copies of my book so I can enjoy watching my postal carrier shake his head in confusion when I sing my check cashing song.
But most important of all is the song I always have in my heart as I imagine all of you side by side learning how to erase negativity and embrace the magic within.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Let Your Spirit Fly
One of my favorite dreams is about flying. There is something powerful about defying gravity and soaring above the earth, or perching from the top of a tall building like a bird. And no, I’m not tempted to mimic our feathered friends and leave deposits on people’s windshields. This blog is about erasing negativity, not creating more nastiness.
Flying dreams make me think back to when I was a little girl. I remember someone coming to the school and giving us an inspirational talk about how we could be – or do – anything we wanted. That wasn’t entirely true We weren't allowed to chew gum or leave school early. I had tried both of those activities and got in trouble. But the future did seem to have a lot of possibilities. My friend, Laurie, decided she wanted to be a nurse. I wanted to fly. My problem is I didn’t want to fly in an airplane – too many gadgets to worry about. I just wanted to do it on my own – like Superman or Mighty Mouse.
Most of the kids took the message with a grain of salt. We were probably seven years old and already a significant number of my classmates had put a limit on what they thought they could achieve in life. Laurie’s dad was a doctor. She wanted to be a nurse. I don’t think it occurred to any of us that she could be a doctor. This was the early 1960s and female doctors were still a rarity. As far as most of my classmates were concerned, Laurie had about as much chance of being a doctor as I had of flying.
A couple years later I decided I wanted to be a writer. I had entertained the idea of a couple other careers – the first female professional baseball player, a nurse, a pediatrician, but I decided writing was an achievable dream. Fortunately, I believed I could attain this goal, and so did my mother. I took journalism classes, wrote for the school newspapers and even won a few contests. The first story I submitted to a newspaper, the Arizona Republic, was picked up. I earned a whopping $30. My first submission to the college newspaper won first place in the Rocky Mountain Community College Journalism Competition.
Then reality set in.
Everyone told me how hard it was to be published. Tales of constant rejection – even for the most famous and talented scribes - circled around my head like mosquitoes in a swamp. My idealism and optimistic mindset were severely challenged. I had occasional victories, but it was always after a difficult battle. There were times when I thought I just didn’t have what it takes to succeed as an author. Fortunately, I’m a stubborn cuss. People may have varied opinions about whether or not I have any talent, but I will only be defeated if I give up. And I have no intention of doing that.
Which brings me to my point (and yes I do have one). I still want to fly. I have a laywoman’s knowledge of how gravity works, but I’m still hopeful that someone will invent a gravity belt, or some other contraption, and I’ll shoot up into the air like Dick Tracy.
The other day I took a walk along the Sacramento River. There is a beautiful park along the river’s edge and I inhaled the scent of the trees and watched the birds. The sights, sounds and smells took me back to the nature walks I went on when I was a kid. All of a sudden, the child in me was on board. I skipped down the trail. Why is it that almost no one over 10 skips anymore? I felt more alive than I had in a long while. I watched the birds fly overhead and imagined I could join them in flight. In my mind’s eye, I could see the top of the trees and path below. My heart raced with joy.
I returned to reality and enjoyed the rest of my earth-bound hike. But those few minutes where I let my heart and mind experience flight brought me incredible joy. On the return back to the motel, I felt an exuberance I hadn’t felt in a while. Everything seemed possible again. The energy and creative thoughts that seemed unable to percolate through my system, were now flowing through me like river water tumbling over rocks.
Reality is what we make it. Was the flight I experienced imagination? Probably. Do I care? Not one bit. Perhaps my earth-bound body was on terra firma, but my spirit was flying – and I won’t let it stay grounded for too long again.
Flying dreams make me think back to when I was a little girl. I remember someone coming to the school and giving us an inspirational talk about how we could be – or do – anything we wanted. That wasn’t entirely true We weren't allowed to chew gum or leave school early. I had tried both of those activities and got in trouble. But the future did seem to have a lot of possibilities. My friend, Laurie, decided she wanted to be a nurse. I wanted to fly. My problem is I didn’t want to fly in an airplane – too many gadgets to worry about. I just wanted to do it on my own – like Superman or Mighty Mouse.
Most of the kids took the message with a grain of salt. We were probably seven years old and already a significant number of my classmates had put a limit on what they thought they could achieve in life. Laurie’s dad was a doctor. She wanted to be a nurse. I don’t think it occurred to any of us that she could be a doctor. This was the early 1960s and female doctors were still a rarity. As far as most of my classmates were concerned, Laurie had about as much chance of being a doctor as I had of flying.
A couple years later I decided I wanted to be a writer. I had entertained the idea of a couple other careers – the first female professional baseball player, a nurse, a pediatrician, but I decided writing was an achievable dream. Fortunately, I believed I could attain this goal, and so did my mother. I took journalism classes, wrote for the school newspapers and even won a few contests. The first story I submitted to a newspaper, the Arizona Republic, was picked up. I earned a whopping $30. My first submission to the college newspaper won first place in the Rocky Mountain Community College Journalism Competition.
Then reality set in.
Everyone told me how hard it was to be published. Tales of constant rejection – even for the most famous and talented scribes - circled around my head like mosquitoes in a swamp. My idealism and optimistic mindset were severely challenged. I had occasional victories, but it was always after a difficult battle. There were times when I thought I just didn’t have what it takes to succeed as an author. Fortunately, I’m a stubborn cuss. People may have varied opinions about whether or not I have any talent, but I will only be defeated if I give up. And I have no intention of doing that.
Which brings me to my point (and yes I do have one). I still want to fly. I have a laywoman’s knowledge of how gravity works, but I’m still hopeful that someone will invent a gravity belt, or some other contraption, and I’ll shoot up into the air like Dick Tracy.
The other day I took a walk along the Sacramento River. There is a beautiful park along the river’s edge and I inhaled the scent of the trees and watched the birds. The sights, sounds and smells took me back to the nature walks I went on when I was a kid. All of a sudden, the child in me was on board. I skipped down the trail. Why is it that almost no one over 10 skips anymore? I felt more alive than I had in a long while. I watched the birds fly overhead and imagined I could join them in flight. In my mind’s eye, I could see the top of the trees and path below. My heart raced with joy.
I returned to reality and enjoyed the rest of my earth-bound hike. But those few minutes where I let my heart and mind experience flight brought me incredible joy. On the return back to the motel, I felt an exuberance I hadn’t felt in a while. Everything seemed possible again. The energy and creative thoughts that seemed unable to percolate through my system, were now flowing through me like river water tumbling over rocks.
Reality is what we make it. Was the flight I experienced imagination? Probably. Do I care? Not one bit. Perhaps my earth-bound body was on terra firma, but my spirit was flying – and I won’t let it stay grounded for too long again.
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