July 11th, 2016
Out of the corner of our eye we catch the flash of a firefly in the darkness of the night. Thrilled to be seeing one after so long we scan the darkness for another flash not knowing where it will appear next.
For many people the flash of a firefly in the night is akin to the flash of happiness in their life. It suddenly appears and than disappears and they wait for another flash of happiness somewhere sometime.
“But”, you say, “I have more happiness than just a brief flash once in a while”. “Excellent” I say. “How big is your celebration?” “What celebration?” you say. “The celebration for all the happiness in your life.” I say
When something goes wrong in our life, everybody hears about it. We walk like we have a problem. We talk like we have a problem. We eat poorly and we mope around. There is no other topic to talk about except our problem.
We all have some happiness in our life and most of us would like more but where is the gratitude and the celebration for what we have? Where is the joy for all the people who have loved us and helped us? Where are the feel good feelings?
When our life is free of problems we look to where we live for problems. When our life and surroundings are problem free we look to our work and our friends for problems. When our life, our surroundings, our work and our friends are good we look to the world for problems. WHY???
Stop looking for problems! Focus on what is right in your life. Focus on what is good in your dwelling. Focus on the benefits of your work. Focus on the love of your friends. Focus on the beauty of the planet. Ask yourself – Right now am I looking for what’s right or what’s wrong?
Never let the pursuit of happiness be sidelined by the pursuit of problems.
Sundrops On Life – Better Thoughts. Better Days.
July 5th, 2016
Change how you look, change where you live, change your job but nothing really changes until you change what you consistently think about because what you consistently think about is the biggest influence on your life.
If you consistently think that you are handicapped by your looks or your age or your health or anything else, that self imposed roadblock will pop up every time you try to step out of the confines of your life as it is right now. You will be unable to take even a baby step forward and you will live with frustration.
Right now you could scan the internet and find people who are handicapped in every imaginable way and you can read about their adventures. Why can they do what they do? They are not that different than you. They just think differently than you do. They think they can so they are willing to try. Thoughts are the key.
“Woe is me” breeds more woes. “I can’t do that” breeds more cants. “I could regret doing that” breeds more fears of trying. “I’m not strong enough” breeds more weakness.
BUT
“Sometimes you just have to go for it” breeds more courage. “I will find the strength ” breeds more assurance. “I am Divinely guided” breeds more faith. “I am ready for this” breeds certainty.
No one is going to show up at your door with pompoms and a marching band. You are going to have to be your own cheerleader. And you are going to have to be your own cheerleader every single hour of every singe day.
Change the thoughts you consistently think and you will open the gates to the dreams and desires that have been waiting at those gates for you. You can do it. Think about that!
Patrick McBride’s Sundrops On Life
(c)2016 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com
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June 27th, 2016
We see the world and everything in it with the eyes of love or with eyes that are devoid of love.
Eyes that see through love see people just like us. They are not our identical twins but they feel loss and they feel pain, both physical and emotional much the same as we do. Loving eyes see but do not judge those who are reluctant to ask for help because we have seen those times. Love sees people who put on a very good front while a dark storm rages inside of them and tears at their souls and we have seen those times too. The eyes of love see through all the false fronts and the overblown fears and looks for a way to help, to care, to support. The eyes of love see clearly.
The eyes that are devoid of love see only the differences between people. They judge based solely on the pretenses, the facades,the armor and the circumstances. The judgements come swiftly and mercilessly and the eyes move on. The eyes that are devoid of love become colder and more cruel the more they see. Turned inward, the eyes that are devoid of love become their cruelest. The eyes that are devoid of love see only the flaws.
How do we know if we are seeing with love or not? We look into the mirror. If our sight is devoid of love the mirror will let us know because there we will see someone who is full of flaws, someone who is aging, someone who is not perfect, someone who is unacceptable, someone who is afraid.
If we look into the mirror and we see someone there who is not judging but rather just peacefully accepting, someone who is strong, someone who is a little bit indecisive, someone who smiles easily, someone who allows the reality of the moment and is not adverse to change but not driven by it either then we know that those are the eyes of love.
You will see the world the way you see the mirror. Look into the mirror and learn to accept the figure there. If it makes you smile, you are seeing clearly.
Patrick McBride’s Sundrops On Life
(c)2016 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com
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June 20th, 2016
Every year in this country four hundred people drown when their cars go into water. This weekend I watched a video about surviving such a frightening event and watching it I was reminded about something very important about living.
All the experts agree that once a car hits the water you have less then a minute, sixty seconds, to save your life. All 911 operators are instructed to tell a person in such a situation to “Get out as quickly as you can!”
Sometimes in life, we are going through our daily activities and suddenly we hit the dark, murky waters of depression or worthlessness. Maybe someone says something to trigger it. Maybe a random thought starts germinating inside our mind. Problems, darkness, anger, anxiety suddenly wash over us and what do we do?
Usually we can feel what’s coming and we hopelessly brace ourselves for the onslaught of bad feelings and fears. We pray that we will be able to hold on and down we go.
What if we used the survival instructions of being in a sinking car? What if instead of bracing ourselves, we used every ounce of our strength to get out quickly?
An amazing, wonderful Buddhist nun, Sister Palma, many years ago taught me one of the most valuable lessons of my life. She said “Thoughts are real, living things. When a dark thought comes to you, immediately say ‘Go in Peace, Thank You’. Say it every single time that thought surfaces and do it immediately. You may have to say it dozens of times but never fail to do it and the thought will wither and blow away.”
The lessons for today are don’t stay in a car that is going down and don’t hold on to a thought that is dragging you down.
Patrick McBride’s Sundrops On Life
(c)2016 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com
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June 6th, 2016
What will be your legacy of greatness? Will you be remembered for your great wealth, your dangerous explorations, your amazing discoveries? Probably not.
Your legacy of greatness will be all about how you acted under trying circumstances. Were you a great complainer, worrier or whiner? Oh, they will definitely talk and laugh about that after you’re gone.
Maybe you were a great practitioner of patience under trying circumstances. They will tell great stories and laugh about how you patiently waited and waited before you made any necessary changes.
Maybe, just maybe, you will be remembered because you had great kindness and great love under any and all circumstances. They will tell great stories of your selfless acts and no one will laugh and many will sniffle and wipe tears away. They will tell how when you didn’t feel well and everything looked bleak you shared your light and not the darkness. Maybe they will tell about how you inspired people with your gentle encouragement. Maybe they will even tell how you were the only one that loved them. Maybe they will say that your memory will always comfort them.
At some point in time everything you now think of as yours will be in the garbage or in someone’s possession and they will consider it theirs. Your legacy is what you will leave behind and will remain yours. Your legacy hasn’t been written yet and you still have time to change it. Start walking your talk. Start improving your outlook regardless of what is going on. Take good care of yourself. Be an inspiration. Be accepting of other people’s foibles. Be less quick to anger or to criticize. Love more. Be better. Leave a legacy of real greatness.
Patrick McBride’s Sundrops On Life
(c)2016 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com
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May 23rd, 2016
Drama is a over exaggeration of a life event. Sure it looks great on the big screen or stage where we often recognize in the actors that which we can’t see in ourself. Take for instance a play where a child disappoints a parent and the parent reacts as if they have just lost the will to live.
How many times have we blown out of proportion our reaction to an innocent or an off handed remark? How many times have we given an oscar worthy performance when we felt ignored by someone we love? How many times have we become even more dramatic when we are told that we are being too dramatic?
There is no place in our life for personal drama. All it shows is that we have lost our faith in being able to explain our reaction to an event in words from our heart. Just like spanking seems so much more efficient then taking the time to talk and educate, drama too is a non-loving response.
We don’t get into personal drama because it feels good, quite the contrary it feels more and more draining the longer it goes on. Sure, in the beginning it seems clever and warranted but as it grows it starts needing lies and exaggerations to keep it from becoming transparent. Our voice, our demeanor and our posture must also fall in line with the farce.
There is no way to stop the personal drama of others but there is every possibility of ridding yourself of this toxic reaction. Resist the temptation of personal drama. Embrace reality. Embrace the facts. Speak your feelings after you have centered yourself. There is no need to ever become an actor in your relationships. Over reacting is not communication. It’s a ploy to manipulate another person.Be you, wonderful, compassionate, loving you. Drama on the stage is for entertainment. Drama in your personal life is a childish form of communication and there’s no oscar for that.
Patrick McBride’s Sundrops On Life
(c)2016 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com
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May 9th, 2016
Do you like leftovers? A day or two after a meal they still taste good. In fact, sometimes they taste even better. Well then how about the leftovers of a really terrible meal? A day or two later they probably taste worse if possible. Would you partake? Of course not.
A really bad meal can’t be forgotten but do you dwell upon it? Weeks from now will you still be seriously thinking about it? Will it define all of your cooking and eating experiences? Will you stop eating because of what happened? Of course not.
When something goes sour in our life, a job, a relationship, a project, a dream, a move, it’s just like that bad meal. It seemed like a good idea to eat it but it turned out to be a bad decision. You feel bad for a while maybe even a long while and then it’s over. You learn to be a little more cautious and you put it behind you AND YOU MOVE ON.
The bad meals in your life are not the norm. The bad days in your life are not the norm. We have a tendency to let a bad day turn into a bad week by constantly bringing it to mind and mentally reliving it. We wouldn’t constantly think about a bad meal we have had every time we sat down to eat. Why not? Because it would taint the meal we are about to eat. Similarly, by replaying a poor decision we made in the past we taint the day in front of us.
We can never forget what we have experienced but we can choose the mental movies we replay. Some will make your day and some will ruin it. Choose wisely. There are ALWAYS better thoughts to think.
Patrick McBride’s Sundrops On Life
(c)2016 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com
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May 3rd, 2016
We may never touch mortar and brick but we still build walls. We build walls around our past transgressions. We don’t want to be reminded nor do we want anyone else to see them. We build walls around our heart so that no one may enter and hurt us. We have been hurt in love and that is where we were most tender so that wall must be the strongest of all.
We build walls around our perceived weaknesses. We are assured by our mind that someone will take advantage of our weakness should they see it. We build walls in front of us so that our view of our inevitable demise will be hidden from us. We build walls against the unknowns in our life, against all that is in conflict with our beliefs and comfort.
What do we get with all these walls? Security? Contentment? Stability? Hardly. We are more anxious than ever. Life cannot be stopped. It will find a way over, under or through any wall we build. Like the flower that grows in a crack in the sidewalk, life will get through.
Don’t all these walls offer some protection? No. Our mind sees it as protection but the truth is that all we are creating with all these walls is a maze and the more walls, the more difficult the maze. No wonder we feel lost at times. So, what’s the answer?
Tear down your walls. Come out from behind them. Bare your body, mind and spirit to each day. Greet life with open arms. Embrace it. Let your resistance to life dissolve in a bright, iridescent pool of gratitude and love. Yes, you are opening yourself to the good, the bad and the ugly parts of life but you will be 100% alive.
Physical death will find every one of us some day. Will it find you cowering behind your dark, damp walls or will it find you out in the sunshine enjoying every moment? Security is an illusion. Living is a gift. Dismiss the illusion and open the gift.
Patrick McBride’s Sundrops On Life
(c)2016 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com
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April 25th, 2016
Who do you complain about most often? Who is it that disturbs your thoughts so much that they become a constant topic of your conversation? Whose failure to do things “right” has got you boiling from time to time? Who is this person?
This person is called by many names but the one that is most appropriate is “Your Teacher”.
This person is in your life for a bunch of very good reasons. This is the person who will teach you strength, courage and self reflection. This is the person who will make you define what you want by making you absolutely sure of what you don’t want.
When you look at this person in real time or just bring them to mind, there is probably a visceral reaction that you can feel immediately. That feeling says there is still work to be done.
Remember when you were in school and you were sitting at your desk and you wanted to study one thing but your teacher wanted you to study something less pleasant? Well, he or she is back! Your teacher may now be disguised as a relative or neighbor or boss or fellow worker and you know what? Your reluctance to learn from them has grown stronger with time.
So what’s the answer? The answer is LOVE. Love yourself so much that change is inevitable. Love yourself so much that decisions come easily. Love yourself so much that complaining ceases and action begins. Complain and you cease to grow. Take action and you grow. Grow and you graduate.
Patrick McBride’s Sundrops On Life
(c)2016 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com
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April 18th, 2016
What could make today memorable for you? What could happen or what could you do, say or experience that would put this day in the top ten days of your life? Win the lottery? Get promoted? Find mr or mrs right? Have publishers clearing house ring your doorbell?
How about moving your little finger? How about just wiggling your pinky finger? “Oh, right. Move my pinky and this day goes into the top ten rankings of my best days?” “Are you crazy?” Yes, but that’s besides the point. Just give me your attention for a moment.
Go ahead and look at your pinky right now and wiggle it. Go ahead. What made that happen? You had a thought, a command really, for your pinky to curl towards you a couple of times and that’s exactly what happened. Was there any resistance from your pinky? Was there any doubt that your pinky would respond?
You just uncovered the secret of the ages. You easily wiggled your pinky finger without resistance or doubt because you THOUGHT that it was easy. You THOUGHT that it was a no brainer. You THOUGHT that all you needed to do was to command and it would happen. And you were RIGHT!
Most people have a lackadaisical approach to their bodies. They have forgotten the power of their own commands. They have allowed doubt to steal their strength and authority. They have forgotten their power, the power that resides in their thoughts.
Today you can command your body to crave better choices, to have better posture, to want some exercise, fresh air and sound sleep, to feel good. Today can be the day that you return to a harmony of mind and body. Today can be the day that you and your resolutions become a team project of mind and body. Today can be one of the best days of your life. It’s as easy as wiggling your little finger.
Patrick McBride’s Sundrops On Life
(c)2016 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com
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