Dear Seeker,

"You have been taught by wrong example and false traditions that negative thoughts and feelings such as fear, anger, and hatred are something you are responsible for; that they belong to you. Which brings us to a very important idea: you are indeed responsible for them, but not to them. Inner aches and dark feelings are not yours. They never have been and they never will be, no matter how much these inner impostors try to convince you otherwise."

~ Guy Finley

Excerpted from "The Secret of Letting Go" (pg 118)

Special exercise: Mum's the word

The exercise this week is to practice keeping our thoughts to ourselves. Much easier said than done! But that's exactly what we want to see, that we always have something to say about everything. Whether it's approval, criticism, praise, judgment, or correction of a person, a situation, or ourselves -- in our minds or out loud -- we're filled with constant commentary. So what happens when we practice not blurting out whatever comes to mind, good or bad? We immediately feel the pressure behind the words. The natural question that follows is, am I the person who's dying to say something, or am I the person who can decide whether or not to say it? Am I the words themselves, or the vehicle for their expression? Am I angry, or am I a person who's giving life to anger by expressing it? These are the types of questions that lead to a new life.