LightShiftingÔ : Dancing To Our Own Tunes

February 13, 1999

Most of us have been taught since we were very young that there's something "wrong" with us if we don't dance to others agendas. We've been taught to "conform" and be "good" boys, girls, citizens, and religious persons. We've been taught to continually give our power of decision (free wills) away to others who (we were told) "knew better" than us about what was good for us and what we "should" do.

Most of us have never taken the time to question these "values" that have been placed into us and have been blindly following them since we were children assuming we were "wrong" or "bad" if we didn't conform. We automatically assumed that our "authority figures" values were "right" and when we did question them we were shamed and labeled as defiant or rebellious. We were forced to sacrifice our values for theirs.

Today, I thought it might be helpful to try to find and discover our own Heartfelt Truths so we can affirm our own personal values and become more resonant with our own Inner Callings. Once we find this Inner Wellspring of Joy that inspires us, we can then take steps to become empowered to share our Fruits with the World by working to express our inner joy. We can learn to replace conformity with creativity.

1. When people try to stop you or make you feel guilty for not following their agenda when you are following your own, how do you feel?
2. Is it right to try to manipulate others in an effort to try to get them to do what we want them to do? Is it right to blame people for following their own paths instead of the ones we want them to?
3. If two people don't appreciate the same things is either one "wrong"?
4. How can we help each other follow our own paths?
5. When you were a child, what was the time when you felt most "alive"? What were you doing? How did it feel?
6. If money was not an issue and you could do whatever you wanted in this world for work, what would you do? What kind of service would you enjoy giving to others? Can you find a way to do this part time?
7. When you pass on from this world, what would you like your epitaph to read?
8. If you could make a difference in improving this world, what would you like to change most?
9. What ways do you enjoy expressing yourself?

Thoughts To Ponder: