Pay attention, Dear One.

Take notice of what happens to your thoughts and your actions when you remember to remain fully present in all that you do.

When you see that they are hurting, when you see that they are struggling, when you see that they are lost, confused, or in pain and you want to help, but don’t know how — Love them, Dear One.

There is no more useful thing that you can do.

We know that sometimes love does not seem like it’s enough, but trust us, it is.

Love heals. Love inspires. Love transforms.  Love can do a great many things.

• Don’t pity them
• Don’t fear for them
• Don’t be sad for them
• Don’t join them in their grief

See them as well.  See them as whole.  See them as prosperous.  See them as confident.  See them as happy.  See them as healed.  See them as the person that they want to be in this moment.  Hold an image of them in your mind and in your heart that they are not yet able to hold for themselves.

You can’t give your attention to their pain, to their struggle, to their problem, or their grief, and hope to be a part of their solution, Dear One.

If you really want to help, if you really want to make a difference,  keep seeing the best in them, and for them and just keep loving them.

It truly is the best and most useful thing that you can do.

Choose to love yourself first, Dear One, and show them how it’s done.

We can think of no more powerful gift that you could give them today then to help them to know the experience, the joy, the potential, the pleasure of self-love/self-care.

Whatever your priorities are, Dear One, regardless of how long the list, we implore you to please add one more; make enjoying the process, enjoying the path, one of them.

Prioritize it just as high, or even higher than achieving your goals.

That way, win or lose, success or failure, victory or defeat, you come out on top.

So what do you think? Can you make room for one more?

More often than not, Dear One, it is not the conflict itself that is the source of your pain, discomfort, anger, frustration, racing heart or sweaty palms.

It is your response to it.

It is your response that determines how you feel, what you think, the story that you tell, the flow of your energy, the focus of your attention, and as a result, the quality of the solutions that will present themselves to you or that you will take notice of.

Don’t dig in, tense up, or pinch yourself off from well-being in fear, anger, or self-righteousness when facing a conflict.  Relax, be gentle, open up, let go, and allow yourself to connect, allow your energy to rise up, not sink down, as you seek a resolution.

Choose your response consciously, Dear One, with intention, clarity, trust, and an open heart, and you just might be surprised to discover the source of your conflict dissipating as you do, and the circumstances surrounding it rising up to meet you.

Once you choose to engage in a relationship with someone, Dear One, once you choose to invest your energy, in any capacity, it is invested, and it will stay invested until you choose to consciously take it back again.

Simply walking away, ignoring, dissing or dismissing someone is not going to be enough to sever your connection with them.

If you are wondering why it is that so often feel as if you are being pulled in this direction and that direction, tugged this way and that way, when all you are trying to do is focus on the task that is in front of you, this is why.

Your energy will continue to interact with theirs, Dear One, whether or not you are actively engaging in the relationship, until you consciously choose to disengage, until you consciously choose to take it back, until you consciously choose to move on, and not a moment before.

Step out onto the field today as a pitcher instead of a catcher, Dear One, and watch how the whole game changes right before your eyes.

If you want to see more love in the world, Dear One, start giving yours away more freely.

Don’t worry.  You won’t run out.

The more you open you heart, the more you’ll have to give.

Open your heart, Dear One, wider.

Start spreading it around.

It is so much easier to make a decision, Dear One, when you are clear on what it is that you want, on what direction it is that you want to be moving.

Choosing is not meant to be a guessing game.

So, if you are stuck, if you are unclear as to what choice you want to make next, what action you want to take next, how you want to respond, here are a few simple questions to help you to figure it out.

Ask yourself, in this moment:

• Do you want to love more or less?
• Do you want to trust more or less?
• Do you want to connect more or less?
• Do you want to be more or less compassionate?
• Do you want to be more or less brave?
• Do you want to be more or less creative?
• Do you want to be more or less confident?
• Do you want to be more or less trustworthy?

Are you ready to choose now, Dear One?

You’re never going to be finished, Dear One. You’re never going to get it all done.  So you might as well stop trying.  You might as well stop looking for the end.

Allow yourself to accept and be at peace with this reality.  Allow yourself to enjoy the fact that there is and always will be much for you to do – much for you to practice – much for you to learn – oh so very much for you to experience.

You can choose to allow your constantly expanding reality to be a source of stress in your life, or you can choose to embrace it, enjoy it, relax into it and be excited by the fact that change, growth and renewal are available to you in each and every moment.

You will never run out of choices.  You will never run out of options.  You will never run out of opportunities.  You will never get it all done, Dear One.

You will never reach the end of what is possible for you.  Never.