As hard as it might be to believe Dear One, pain is not a punishment.  It is a teacher, a guide, a friend to you.  Its purpose in your life is not to hurt you, harm you, discourage you, frighten you, or weaken you. Quite the contrary actually.

Pain Dear One, is a call for love, is a call for attention, it is a call for healing, growth, and expansion.  Pain is a teacher with a valuable message for you and it is not something to be avoided.  It is something to be acknowledged and embraced.

Run from pain and you will spend an eternity pressed up against an all too familiar wall that you are quite capable of walking around, climbing over, or breaking through.

Which would you prefer?

• To live in an abundant universe filled with unlimited resources, or one filled with shortages and lack?

• To have an unlimited number of choices available to you in every situation, or only one?

• To live in a reality that is fluid, forgiving, changeable, and influenced by all those who live in it, or one that is linear, solid and unforgiving, that you are powerless to change?

Choose your answers wisely Dear One, because once you do, you are going to have to live with them, you are going to have to live in the reality that they create as a result.

Fear is not a choice Dear One.

Anger is not a choice either.

Neither is resentment, guilt, hatred, doubt, insecurity, remorse, jealousy, lust, or despair.

They are all feelings.

And feelings do not dictate actions Dear One.

Your choices do.

You want to know how to get rich in a hurry Dear One?

Celebrate joyously, gratefully, enthusiastically, and unabashedly all that you have, all that you are, all that you see, all that is already in your possession, and all of the abundance that surrounds  you each and every day.

Give all of your attention to that Dear One, and to nothing else.

Right now.

We want you to know Dear One, that the potential for joy exists for you in every moment.  Yes, every single one.   That does not however, mean that every moment of your life is meant to be joyful.

We would not like to see you trying to deny yourself the experience of fully embracing all of the other emotions that are available to you as well; excitement, anticipation, exhilaration, concern, sadness, loss, fear, anger, confusion, and so on.  They all deserve your full attention when they arise for you.  Always honor yourself Dear One, by honoring your feelings.  Grant yourself the freedom to fully experience them in the moment.

And once you have done so, once you have allowed yourself to have the experience of embracing your current emotional state, fully, completely and genuinely, and have learned the lesson that it was trying to teach you, have become aware of what it was trying to bring to your attention, know that joy will always be there for you, right behind the other, whenever you are ready to return to it.

The most productive thing that you can do for yourself today Dear One, is whatever it is that is going to make you smile.

The only time that what they say, what they think, and what they believe matters Dear One, is when you decide that it does.

We have been asked time and time again Dear One:

• Does religion matter?
• Does politics matter?
• Does the news matter?
• Does art matter?
• Does their criticism matter? (or their praise)
• Does a lie matter?

And every time we are asked our answer is always the same – we have absolutely no idea at all what so ever.   It is not for us to say.

But what we can say to you with absolute certainty is this:

• Your opinions matter
• Your ideas matter
• Your beliefs matter
• Your actions matter
• Your feelings matter
• Your heart matters
• You matter

To reclaim control of your life Dear One, simply reclaim it, one decision at a time.

Sometimes the answer really can be that simple.

Take note — we’ve said simple, not easy.

Which is more important to you Dear One? Which do you want more?

• To protect your ego
• To pursue a greater, deeper, richer, and more heartfelt connection with another than you have ever known before

It’s not possible for you to do both at once.

You’re going to have to choose.