Feeling contented helps us weather life’s ups and downs more easily.
?Sign-up for My Newsletter – and read my past messages at: Sign up for My Newsletter
? I also offer a variety of writing services, see My Writing Services Page
There are many ways to get to a place of feeling contented, with the most obvious one being from externals, such as …
– Getting the job, reaching a goal, or becoming successful. These give us a sense of accomplishment, bringing feelings of contentment.
– Moving into a house, finding the perfect partner, or starting a family also brings feelings of contentment, however …
For Most of Us, Feelings of Contentment
that Come from Outside of Ourselves Is Fleeting
? ? ?
Contentment That Comes from Within –
From the Depths of Our Being – Has More Staying Power
Once the newness of what we accomplished or have gotten has worn off, we seem to need to reach for the next thing. The wanting, satisfying, and wanting again trap humans fall prey to is one of the major reasons that true and lasting contentment eludes us.
? ? ?
All my writing is based on themes from my books:
Your Journey to Peace …, and Why We Are the Way We Are,
See below for info on My Upcoming Books,
Overcome Your Unconscious Influences…, and Relationship Intelligence …
? ? ?
This month’s message was inspired by a friend’s recent question on a Facebook post – and my answer.
Traci asked: “What is one good thing you are experiencing even with the times we are in?”
My answer (which came to me quickly) was: “I’m feeling even more contented than usual – even though I’ve had some tough times lately, and I feel blessed for all those who helped me get there. And I realize that there is nothing much else that beats the feeling of being content.”
Since that day, I’ve been pondering where that sense of contentment came from. I realized that it came from a combination of:
? *Loving the Holiday Season
? **Making peace with recent disappointments
? ***Appreciating what was now good
? ****And partaking in three powerful meditations with Allison Carol Blackburn just before and between Christmas and New Year.
? ? ?
? *Loving the Holiday Season (or any other Celebration) – is an easy one because …
Embracing the Spirit of Celebrations Heightens
Our Senses Allowing Contentment to Grow in Our Being
? **Making Peace with Disappointments (*or True Forgiveness as taught by A Course in Miracles. See below for a fuller explanation).
I had been feeling disappointed that my extended family could not attend my usual brunch (it wasn’t the numbers but more distance and the many commitments the young adults had).
Slowly, as the week went on, I started to make peace with this, until suddenly, it felt ok. With the acceptance that they were all growing up and had their own lives, a huge shift occurred in me, and I realized it was time to move away from expecting – and wanting what was.
At the same time, my other son and his girlfriend in the Montreal area were self-isolating.
So, we were two instead of being our usual seven or eight for my Christmas celebration. However, my other son and I had a lovely brunch and few hours together.
Making Peace with Disappointments or
Difficult Situations Makes Space for Feelings of Contentment to Arise
? ***Appreciating What Is Good
Although I always loved having the gang over, Christmas day was quiet, and it felt very peaceful. And I really reveled in having such as clean and tidy space so quickly and effortlessly because we were just two of us.
Also, that Fall right up until just a few days before Christmas, my living area had been in chaos.* There had been a problem in my kitchen, and I had bins all over the place.
Sitting in my clean and uncluttered living room throughout the holiday season with only a few decorations I had time to put up had me feeling so appreciative, peaceful, and very Zen for the next ten days or so.
*I also practiced the true forgiveness A Course in Miracles teaches regarding the disruption in my living room.
Appreciating What is Good Raises
Our Joy Factor Making Room for Contentment to Blossom
?****Partaking in Meditations / Uplifting Practices
Although I do regular meditations with Alison Carol, I believe doing three within a 2 ½ week period raised my vibration – and this, along with the spirit of the season, forgiveness, and appreciation, helped me tap into that place of contentment
Immersing Ourselves in Meditations or Uplifting Practices
Opens the Pathways to Our True Self and Its Feelings of Contentment
*True Forgiveness: A Course in Miracles Teaches a Different Kind of “Forgiveness.”
A Course in Miracles is a profound practice and philosophy. I am sharing a simplified explanation of true forgiveness – one of its basic premises. And I often substitute the term “making peace with” because the word forgiveness carries a lot of divisive baggage. It promotes the ideas of I-am-right and you-are-wrong – and of – me-versus-you rather than me-and-you.
Whether about a person, group, or situation, this type of forgiveness is in the mind. It is not about proving ourselves or hashing it out with the other person (although we can discuss the issue if we feel it can be done calmly and will not create bad feelings).
With True Forgiveness, We Are Choosing a
More Peaceful Way of Dealing With Others and Life
? True Forgiveness requires us to not focus on – and to look beyond the other person’s wrongness.
? True Forgiveness asks us to make peace with – and not react emotionally to what is wrong in unwanted situations.
We all come from a place of wrongness. Society has taught us to judge, criticize, blame, and react to others’ wrongs or bad behaviors and get angry at unwanted situations.
However, by the Law of Attraction, we attract back to us where our focus goes.
Focusing on Negativity and What Is Wrong Sullies Our Minds.
And With a Sullied Mind, Feelings of Peace, Joy, And Contentment Evade Us
Forgiving Another
We forgive others not because they have done something wrong, but because we are all only ever thinking, speaking, reacting, acting, or not acting from a place of misalignment from our True Self (my term).
We all yearn for unconditional love. But it is rarely given or witnessed these days. Practicing this type of forgiveness (forgiving in our mind – no matter what) retrains our mind.
It reminds us that unconditional love is an option because true forgiveness is offering unconditional love to another with whom we have an issue.
And the more we offer unconditional love, the more it anchors into our being.
Forgiving (Making Peace With) Situations
We make peace with situations so that we feel peaceful. When situations arise that we do not like, we do what we can to better it, but once that is done, making peace with “what is” is our best option.
Becoming angry, anxious, blaming others, or kicking up a fuss takes away our peace of mind at the moment. It sullies our mind, affecting how we will feel in the future, and influences what we will attract back to us.
We still speak up or act when appropriate when we see unfairness, cruelty, or any other kind of bad behavior, but we do so without judgment or blame – so that we do not sully our minds.
Forgiveness / Making Peace With – Is Our
Best Option, and it Has Far-reaching Effects
Forgiving Doesn’t Come Easily, and Feelings of Blissful Contentment Don’t Last
It takes time – and practice to get to a place of forgiving others and unwanted situations easily and with regularity.
However, knowing that these are our best options – to feeling better in the moment and inviting better communications and circumstances into our lives – is an excellent incentive to start forgiving and making peace with.
If these concepts are new to you, do not despair. We are fighting years of habits we learned from our pasts and society.
And even if you forget or get triggered into responding in your habitual ways, forgiving afterward also has great value. It means you are becoming aware of when you could have responded better. And awareness is the 1st step to change.
And just like feelings of bliss and pure joy don’t usually last, neither do heightened feelings of contentment.
Unfortunately, our bubbles usually burst. Mine did – with just one day of tech issues and too many long conversations. Still, I fondly remember that feeling I had for those days and know that I can recreate it as it is inside of me – just waiting to be re-awakened.
Healing Our Minds Heals that of Others, Past and Future Generations, and the Collective
As we forgive others and make peace with situations, we heal the part of our mind that wants to focus on the wrongness, making room for love to flow – out of us – and to us – and for more favorable situations to come to us.
And as we heal that part of our mind that sees others and life through wrongness and focusing on the negative, we help heal the other person’s mind, our past, present, and future generational, and ancestral lineages – as well as healing the mind of the collective. See my post Healing and Our Ancestral Lineages
This cross-person-space-and-time barrier is possible because we are all One, and God, Spirit, and the Universe do not operate in linear time.
From our 3D perspective, we aren’t aware of it, but our Universe is holographic, with all the parts affecting each other. And with the Oneness of it all and time being fluid, healing happens at the soul level and across time barriers.
Forgiving / Making Peace With – and Contentment Go Hand in Hand.
When we feel contented, life becomes easier and more pleasant, and we can more effortlessly go with the flow.
When we have an issue with someone or something unwanted happens, we don’t feel the need to push, stive, blame, or make a fuss – all things that bring us down and take away our peace and sense of joy and contentment.
Wishing you lots of bright sunny days as we move through January and that you find contentment in your soul this winter. ???
Connect with Allison Carol Blackburn through her Facebook page.
Brightest blessings??
Rosemary?
©Rosemary McCarthy, January 13, 2022.
My Facebook Page My Blog Page Sign-up for my Newsletter All My Books.
About Your Journey to Peace, Bridging the Gap Between Religion, Spirituality, Psychology, and Science.”
About Book 1 of my new series, “Why We Are the Way We Are”
About Book 2, Overcome Your Unconscious Influences, like Anger, Hurt Feelings, Frustrations, Control, Blaming Others for Your Unhappiness.– due out early 2022. (Sign up for my newsletter to stay updated on the release – link above)
About Book 3, Relationship Intelligence, Choose Your Ideal Partner, Improve Your Couple Relationship, Heal Your Family Relationships – due out Spring 2022.
You can share this article post as long as you include the copyright message below. If you share through Facebook (link is also below), the message will automatically copy.
———————-
Copyright© Rosemary McCarthy January 13, 2022. All rights Reserved. To copy, share, or distribute this article simply ensure the content is copied in its entirety, is unaltered, and is distributed freely and for no monetary or personal gain, and that this copyright notice and the link for the article and the website www.spiritedfawnpublications.com are included. You can contact me at: rosemary@yourjourneytopeace.com. Blessings, and thank you kindly. Rosemary?