Moving Past Futility

I am finding access to new habits which have been blocked for me.

I realize I am moving past the futility which was built into my childhood.

I am able to get simple things done which were always treated as punishment.

I am sensing a kind of order which is deeper than what could be treated as punishment.

My sense of order is being achieved with my own deep sense of identity and my right and freedom to express myself.

As I began cultivating what I love to do, I have given myself permission to be a person who is loved.

My true respect for myself, for going deeply into who I truly am, is giving me a balance and order which I welcome.

I can do my daily and weekly chores without feeling hemmed in by someone else’s definition of me.

I have my own identity, even when it comes to chores.

I have my own rhythm, and I can proceed in a way that makes sense to me to get the job done.

I have the same happy feeling now, doing chores in my gentle way, as I do when I am working on a creative project.

My life has a new balance, where there is a gentle flow and everything gets done.

The great ravages of strength I used to employ are no longer necessary.

I have defeated my adversary.

I am in charge of my own life.

© 2018 Kathryn Hardage

www.lovedcherishedadored.blogspot.com 

Welcome to Your Self

You know how certain things make sense?

Just every once in a while, there is a fleeting glimpse.

Coming into your Self feels like that, only over and over again until it is a permanent state.

The practice of listening to your inner guidance and following through on your priorities is a coming home to Self.

Making decisions is a different experience altogether from a feeling of being at home with your Self.

It is so much easier to do things from a basis of how it feels to be your Self.

Chores are easier, there is less pressure from outside sources, there is a peace and security within.

Not having to bridge the gap between doing required things and who you are makes life much more congenial.

I no longer have to wait to do things I enjoy because they constitute my entire life and work.

I can work in the chores since they are a series of short breaks when I need to let ideas settle or to give my hands and eyes a rest.

Eating well by eating healthily is a natural part of my day as I learn to garden and preserve food.

I can guard my health, which gives me a greater physical sense of well-being.

Including exercise as I walk around the house in addition to a couple of scheduled classes rounds out another physical activity for health.

Recreational reading is a great way to take breaks and appreciate the work of wonderful writers.

Knowing who I am lets me include all these good activities.

My former sense of worry, anxiety and depression is mostly gone because I know how to value my Self.

© 2018 Kathryn Hardage

www.lovedcherishedadored.blogspot.com 

How I Fill My thought

I choose to fill my thought with goodness and purity.

These are not popular topics, but they are important to me.

When I taught pre-schoolers, I felt the energy of their purity and innocence.

As I taught them songs to expand their awareness of the world, they gave me feedback through their delight and desire to learn them.

I have kept that feeling of what innocence and goodness feels like.

I like that particular energy.

It is empowering in a very uplifting way.

That is where I like to direct my thought.

When I move into that feeling of delight, I find myself surrounded by simple, wonderful things.

I connect with happy people.

I am guided through my day in an effortless flow.

I seek out positive news.

I am not overcome by the pervasive negativity of the media harassment.

I find moments which connect me to other moments until my day is filled with innocence and purity.

I am so grateful for the opportunity to contribute to innocence and purity through my work of writing songs and music learning materials for young children and their parents.

I am happy to provide uplifting moments for others as well as for myself.

© 2018 Kathryn Hardage

www.lovedcherishedadored.blogspot.com 

The Freedom of Living in Modest Circumstances

Removed from the pressures of big city life and big city acquisitions is a relief and a delight.

While we were involved in the big city life of working and raising a family, there were lots of pressures of time and money.

We own much less and love our freedom.

We have much less to take care of.

We have the freedom to spend our time doing things that are more interesting than maintaining so much stuff.

Although we wash the same amount of dishes, it is by washing the same few dishes over and over again.

The dishes never pile up.

I sweep small sections of the floor at a time.

The entire Studio, Shop, Canning Kitchen never needs to be done all at once.

It is easy to care for a small number of clothes.

I experiment with small sections of the yard as I turn it into a self-sustaining tiny food forest.

At some point, there will be no yard to mow.

We borrow more books through interlibrary loan instead of building the vast personal libraries we once had.

Preserving food in bulk reduces an immense amount cooking time.

What we have room for is vast amounts of creative space which are filled to overflowing with ways to carry out our creative ideas.

Every step through our Studio/Shop reveals happiness.

I can’t wait to work on creative projects which are piled on top of each other as I work through their solutions.

I have the freedom to design or sew or weave or knit  or draw or paint  or write or cook at any time of day or night at the slightest stroke of inspiration.

There is nothing I have to do first.

It is the greatest and most satisfying freedom I have ever known.

© 2018 Kathryn Hardage

www.lovedcherishedadored.blogspot.com

Being Employed

It is important to employ one’s thoughts in useful and uplifting directions.

The most valuable asset we have is our knowledge and our thoughts.

Things which distract us from our true work are interrupting our connection with our deep identity and what it can provide for society.

It is important to make provision for carrying out our work, and to leave the distractions behind.

Our focus on what brings us the most intrinsic satisfaction is the key to employing ourselves well.

We have a feeling of joy, of ecstasy, when we are involved in our deep purpose.

We provide service to society when we follow through on our uplifting ideas.

We engage the best part of ourselves when we bring our ideas into manifestation.

We challenge the existing viewpoint and refresh it.

We refine the current offerings and make them more efficient.

We introduce new meaning along with efficiencies.

We reach more people with our service.

We are more inclusive and benefit more people.

We reach people whose needs have been unaddressed.

We lay the fabric of our society across a wider segment of the population.

We see others who have been neglected by society and serve them.

When we truly employ ourselves, we lift up others.

Our work, in every segment of society, can contribute to making all of civilization live better.

© 2018 Kathryn Hardage

www.lovedcherishedadored.blogspot.com

Treasure Yourself and Your Work

Once you discover your individuality and discover its uniqueness, you realize that your purpose will go unfulfilled if you do not do your work.

At first, you cultivate the qualities of good workmanship, craft, timeliness, excellence.

Then, your style begins to emerge as you explore different materials, phrases, vocabulary.

As you infuse yourself with inspiration, your craft supports your emerging style and you find your voice.

As you lift yourself up, by loving and appreciating and recognizing your gift, your diligence, your perseverance, your spirit permeates your work.

Your creativity flows.

You naturally coincide with your materials, workspace and ideas.

What you are communicates itself through your work.

Color, design, shape, form, language all combine to carry your art and your message.

Because you are reaching beyond yourself, your art and your message have a power beyond your personality.

Your willingness to transcend your current view of life leads you to create and to communicate on a higher level.

You bring your viewers and readers with you.

They are compelled by the message they feel.

It is a dance between creator and viewer which you enter as you feel the desire behind your art.

Someone, many, are waiting for you to fulfill your purpose.

So take the step, the many tiny steps, and move yourself beyond your present circumstances.

Trust your art, treasure yourself and your purpose.

Do the work.

© 2018 Kathryn Hardage

www.lovedcherishedadored.blogspot.com 

To Promote the General Welfare

I offer a proposition:  

That businesses which operate in the US are required to support the principles of The Constitution.

The principle which I am considering is the requirement that a business “promote the general welfare”.

This means that businesses would not have tax advantages, but rather that they were structured to carry tax obligations in order “to promote the general welfare”.

Businesses would not be allowed to pollute the air, water or land because it would not “promote the general welfare”.

Businesses would be structured in ways which would benefit, and not hurt, their employees in order “to promote the general welfare”.

Businesses would practice good stewardship and get their raw materials from local sources in order “to promote the general welfare”.

Insurance practices would “promote the general welfare”.

Education would “promote the general welfare” and provide up to date practices which are known to be good for children.

There would not be a competition for the lowest bidder and lowest grade materials and meaningless jobs.

The whole national attitude would be one of compassion and respect for citizens, not consumers.

Laws would protect against greed and, therefore, its consequences.

There are lots of solutions when the goal is “to promote the general welfare.”

© 2018 Kathryn Hardage

www.lovedcherishedadored.blogspot.com