The Port of New Year’s Eve

December 31st, 2012

(The Port Of New Year’s Eve)

The Maker of your ship gave you this vessel to travel in all the days of your life. As we all get ready to sail into 2013, to where have you plotted a course? Is it written down and mapped out? Or is it just a vague “try to stay clear of any storms and try not to sink” kind of a plan? Has your ship seen better days? Is there work to be done? Do you have a plan to do it? Is it written down? Are you carrying baggage that is of no more use to you? Are there passengers that need to be put ashore? Are there passengers who need to be picked up?

There is a year’s journey in front of you. In one year, God willing, you’ll be back here at the Port of New Year’s Eve. What will you have to say about your journey? Did you travel with companions that enhanced the trip and helped out? Did you rely on God as your first mate or did you try to go it alone? Did you go around the storms that you could and did you find the courage to go through the storms you couldn’t avoid? Are you wiser and more compassionate than when you left? Did you make a difference?

We will all set sail into the New Year this evening, each in our own vessel. I can’t sail your ship and you can’t sail mine but as we set sail I know that we sail in the same ocean and breathe the same air and see the same sun and moon and stars. I pray that you will find more love than ever before in this year. I pray that you will go to sleep each night in peacefulness and in gratitude and you will awaken each morning to abundant happiness, love and opportunities. And if we should meet, and I hope we will, I pray that you and I will both be surprised at the amount of love we see in each other. Happy New Year and Bon Voyage!

(c)2012 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com

 

Your World

December 17th, 2012

(You are a Leader!)

What’s going on in the world? You probably know about the tension between Israel and Iran and you probably know about what’s going on in Afghanistan and sadly, you know what happened in Newton, Connecticut but what’s going on in your world? Yes, there are two worlds. There is a planet with seven billion people and oceans and mountains and cities almost too numerous to count and you live there. There is also another world and that is your personal world.

Your personal world is made up of all the people you come into contact with at anytime. Some stick around for a lifetime and some for only a moment or two. You influence them and they influence you in small or large ways. How’s your personal world looking? Are there tensions and wars? Is there a disparity of incomes? Are there great differences of opinion? Are there some age old grudges? Are there cries for help that go unanswered?

Your world and the big world have a lot in common. In fact, in some respects they are identical. We sit in our kitchens or desk chairs and voice or type our opinion on exactly how to fix the big world but we resign ourselves that some people in our personal world are toxic or liars or uncaring and so we focus on the illusion of fixing the big world.

The big world was never your job. All you have ever had to do is to take care of your personal world. All you have to do is make your own world more loving. All you have to do is to be a good example and foster great love and compassion for a very limited number of people. Turn off the news and pick up the phone. Forget about letters to the editor and send a letter to someone close that’s hurting. Forget about getting nations together at the peace table and instead get everyone you love to the dinner table. Forget about disarming the world and instead work on disarming your tongue. Forget about what the planet needs and find out what your neighbors and friends need.

You’ve been given the stewardship of a world, your personal world. Look at the people around you. How are you doing?

(c)2012 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com

 

In Charge

December 10th, 2012

(You are in Charge!)

If you were sitting at your computer and screen after screen of violins popped up, you could deduce with nearly 100% accuracy that you were doing it. If you were sitting alone in your car and the radio stations started to change to different ones you had preset, it would be a pretty good bet that you had something to do with it.

When you feel angry, unloved, upset or put upon, guess what? You are doing it. It may be by default. It maybe because you’ve got a damn good reason for feeling like that but no matter how good the reason, it’s your hand on the buttons. People can’t push our buttons, contrary to popular belief. People act a certain way and WE push the response button that we believe is justified. Sometimes (most times) there is little or no thought given to our response. We’ve learned that a certain reaction serves us well and it goes on auto pilot.

There is a secret to changing all of this. There is a secret to getting control of your emotions. The secret to responding not in a way you always have, not in a way that puts the other person in their place but in a way that best serves you each and every time is… THE POWER OF PAUSE AND CHOOSE.

When we were kids we were told to count to ten before we emotionally exploded. That was some of the best advice ever! It was the perfect P&C formula and guess what? It worked. Somewhere along the line we decided that if we paused, the other person had a chance to jump in and take control of the conversation so we kept talking and reacting. We became mere robots with pre programmed responses.

Do want to live your life as a free person? Do you want to be in charge of how you feel under any and all circumstances? Then start practicing P&C today. Pause and let your heart catch up with your mind and Choose the response that best serves you. Pause and give infinite intelligence a chance to speak through you. Choose your words and actions not out of anger or hurt but out of love and respect for yourself. It’s a whole new feeling and a very, very good one.

(c)2012 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com

 

This Planet

December 3rd, 2012

(You are Resilient!)

Do you want a perfect world? Do you want a world free of suffering and strife? Do you want a world where everyone in every country holds hands and sings a really cool song? Sorry, wrong planet.

Let’s get real for a moment. Our world is filled with every imaginable and unimaginable person, place and thing. It is the greatest amusement park, museum, movie, sitcom, documentary, boxing ring and concert. It has cancer and it has warm, fresh bedsheets. It has great love and great loss. It has a plethora of both laughter and tears. It has it all, the good, the bad and certainly the ugly. So where, if anywhere, is perfection?

Perfection lies not in this world but in your judgement of this world of ours. EVERYTHING on this planet has its place and its reason for existence. Is it perfect? Yes it is, in a way. It’s perfect if you love kaleidoscopes, and changing seasons and sunrises and sunsets. It’s perfect if you can love change. You don’t have to love polliwogs and warthogs. You just have to love change.

There is a part of the day that you love but you would soon tire of it if there was no other time of the day. It changes and that’s perfect. There are puppies that are not house trained. It changes and that’s perfect. There are things you don’t understand and then you get older and you understand. It changes and that’s perfect. You criticize yourself and the world and then comes the day when you accept both just the way they are. It changes and that’s perfect.

Like the weather, if you don’t like the way the world is, stick around and it will change whether you want it to or not. Life is not about stagnation. Endless bliss or perfection would be stagnation. Life is about being alive and surprised and challenged. Life is about experiencing and growing. Life is a series of wonderful, horrible, marvelous changes. Embrace that and life is an amazing adventure.

When you were born, a voice whispered in your ear. “Welcome to this planet. Your changes will arrive shortly. Enjoy your stay.” Perfect!

(c)2012 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com