Dealing With Stuff

How do you deal with all the stuff you've got? What does it take to deal with the stuff you must let go of? I do a talk about stuff and a deep meditation that is very relaxing to be aware of what's going on inside you and how to use the tools you have to deal with it.

Transcript

Aloha,

I'm Reverend Cindy Paulus.

I needed to talk to you about stuff.

I think one of the great talks given by George Carlin was about stuff and our stuff.

And I've been going through my stuff because I have to move again.

Things on Maui have gotten kind of crazy with landlords being offered extreme amount of monies to house fire victims,

And so a lot of people,

Including me,

Have been having to move out of their house so the landlords could get more money from people who would get paid more because they were fire victims.

Now I've traveled a lot,

I've lived here on Maui a long time,

I've moved a lot,

Probably on Maui about 12 times.

But each time I travel,

I'm amazed at how much stuff I accumulate.

Now I wouldn't call myself a hoarder,

But I do think of many things I have as very precious.

It may be a rock,

It may be a gift that was given,

You know,

Lots of,

Mostly not very big things,

I have those too.

So I had to stop and really meditate on why we hold on to stuff.

As you get older,

As I am,

You realize you just can't take it with you when you go.

So you start having to realize that you've got to throw some things out or give stuff away,

You know,

Probably a little bit of both.

Certainly throwing stuff out,

And I am going to be giving stuff away as well.

And it's hardest when you have to make decisions,

You know,

Because each little thing you have has a memory in you,

Oh,

Should I keep it or would I like that,

I really like that.

So what is it in us that is not wanting to detach,

That wants to hold on?

It's a very deep question,

Actually.

I mean,

It could even go to how deeply it is that we feel insecure,

That we realize that time is fleeting,

And we might want to have some special things around us as a cushion,

Kind of a teddy bear or a comforter to hold on to as time moves on.

But we know that that's just a temporary thing.

Now,

I know a lot of people who pray a lot,

And many for very different reasons.

Some people pray when they're in a desperate situation and it's out of their hands and they desperately need help.

Now,

Some of those prayers come true.

I absolutely know that for sure because it's happened to me,

And some don't come true.

Some are almost miraculous,

And I've had that happen to me,

And some just like,

Well,

Not today,

Uh-uh,

Sorry.

It's out of our control,

But we think that if we can at least pray,

We can get some help beyond what we can do and what we can handle.

And again,

In this last year,

Maui going through the fires,

There's many people,

Including myself,

That have prayed and prayed and prayed because there's been so many that have lost everything or needed help.

So there's prayers.

Of course,

There's meditation,

Which I do every day as well.

I meditate and pray.

And in meditation,

We can get to a place that it feels like,

Hey,

It's okay.

It's just this energy that goes on and on,

And we don't have to worry even about dying because the spirit goes on and everything is really lovely.

But that's only part of it,

Right?

I mean,

Yes,

You can be in that place,

Which is called illumination or maybe nirvana.

But the reality is you come back and I can meditate all day,

But I'm still going to have to move in a week.

So what you can use meditation for is to get stronger and more confident and attuned to the real reality,

The higher reality,

And use that to get through with the stuff you have to deal with on a daily basis.

And it kind of really can help.

But at the same time,

We come to some point where it's just like,

Okay,

I've got the prayers out there.

I've got the meditation that I've got under my belt,

So to speak.

The center,

The Chan Chen center,

The second right under the navel there,

That's why I said under the belt.

That was a pun intended.

But it still means you have to go through whatever you have to go through.

And you know most likely you're going to get to the other side,

But you don't know with how much ease and grace that's going to happen.

I had this on this last trip I took to Ireland,

And as much as I pray and meditate and I have a book out about how to fly with less stress,

There were many,

Many,

Many challenges that came up with delayed planes,

Canceled planes,

Times where I just had to spend the night in a city I don't like that much.

And it happens,

You know,

It does.

Even if you meditate and pray,

It still takes a toll on just going through it,

Right?

Because there's always ripple effects of I was going to do this,

I've got to call and cancel that.

So we are living in these kind of times.

We're living in times where everyone is trying to maybe downsize or simplify in times where we're going to travel and we're going to have to realize it's going to take as much planning and a plan A and maybe a plan B and a plan C.

And through that all,

There's got to be something inside that's like a life preserver,

Right?

There's got to be something inside that's stronger than giving up stuff,

That's stronger than the frustration,

That's stronger than any anger that may come up.

And it does come up.

There's got to be something more that you can go to,

Your go-to place.

And you know what?

It can be a few things.

It can be friends that you can talk to.

It can be music you can listen to that lifts your spirits.

And it can be breathing and awareness,

Mindfulness really,

Really helps.

And I think it also can be those prayers.

And you know what?

It might take all of the above.

But it's good to have all of the above as a tool that you can use in your everyday life in the hard times.

That's what it takes.

Those tools so solid,

So strong that you've gotten used to,

That they naturally get employed,

That they naturally happen.

Because when you're at that point,

You really can move with more grace and more ease.

It doesn't mean you won't get challenged,

Believe me.

You will.

These are testing times.

For me,

I know that,

Sure.

And for a lot of people,

I know it's going on as well.

But I also have to go back at the end of the day and going,

Okay,

What lessons did I learn?

What was I supposed to be learning about the situation?

Did I get there?

What am I doing on those lessons,

Right?

Because I believe all of life is kind of a lesson we came here to learn.

And as much as we think we've got it,

Believe me,

The next time you turn around,

There's going to be another situation that might up the ante and make you have to go back to those steps of awareness,

Forgiveness,

Inner strength,

Courage.

All the things that you have learned are going to have to be put into use to get through the hard times that we face.

And believe me,

No matter how hard you might think you have it,

There are people out there who are in some third world countries and war zones that are going through much,

Much,

Much,

Much more.

So of course,

That wonderful other tool you get when you get to this frustrating point is gratefulness.

Now as much as I hate moving,

And as much as I like philosophize about all I want and having to let go and not travel light,

And I still hate moving,

It's just a lot of work.

But as much as I can say that,

I know that there's still stuff I can be grateful for.

And I also know that if I am aware and take the time to be grateful,

I can turn on that light switch and remove a little bit of that frustration and anger and just remember,

Hey,

I have a lot of stuff to be grateful for.

Now maybe I have to give away a lot of that stuff,

But I'm grateful I had it.

And I really hope whoever gets it enjoys it.

You know,

More and more and more we're going to be seeing this kind of recycling in our lives,

Especially as we get older.

I mean,

I have a sister who had done very,

Very,

Very well and lived in gorgeous places just as I had.

But she got,

I don't know,

Her husband was a composer,

Songwriter,

Got three Grammys.

And then when he died,

You know,

She eventually had to go to assisted care.

And now her assisted care insurance ran out,

And now she's living in one room with the help of her son.

So we have heard these stories,

Right?

I mean,

I know not just her,

But many other people who have had to go through this.

So what do we really,

Really take away from this?

What do we do and take away from this to get through the roller coaster of life,

Especially when you're walking through the valley of the shadow of death,

You know?

How do you fear no evil,

Right?

Your rod and your staff should comfort you,

Right?

What is the rod?

What is the staff that you hold,

You know?

And how are you comforted?

And how do you allow yourself to be comforted?

Let's breathe and imagine this right now.

Let's just first do the tool always,

Which is one of the strongest tools,

Which is breathing.

Because breath sweeps mind.

So let's take a deep breath in and see how your spine is feeling.

Now,

A lot of times if you're going through stuff,

Your spine can get whacked out of shape.

I know mine sometimes does.

So I'm going to see how my spine is.

Is your spine flowing with energy through it from the top to the bottom?

Breathe and see how that energy is flowing through you as you just breathe.

Don't stress your mind.

Just breathe.

Don't worry.

Be happy.

Breathe in.

Hold.

Just relax,

Relax,

Relax,

And breathe out all the way out.

Breathing in,

Holding,

Letting the light in,

And letting that light pour through every single cell of your beautiful energy field in your body.

Feel good.

Feel the re-energizing and the reuniting of your strength and your power and your light.

Be aware of your head.

How does your head feel?

Is there any tension?

How's your jaw?

How's your mouth?

How are your ears?

Allow them to relax and let go,

Let go,

And breathe into that.

How's your neck feel?

How's that neck?

Is there tension there?

Breathe into that neck area.

Relax any muscles that are tight.

Feels so good.

Feel that spirit coming in here.

How's the shoulders?

Are they up or are they down and relaxed?

And now let that energy flow through your neck,

Your shoulders,

And go to your heart.

And breathe gratefulness into your heart.

Think of one thing you're grateful for right now.

Breathe in that gratitude and allow that gratitude to flow through your entire energy field.

Breathing out,

Breathing gratitude in,

Being grateful,

And breathing out.

Let that energy work.

Continue to feel like you are reigniting that spark of soul into all of who you are right here and right now.

You are connected to your soul here and you allow your soul to feed you the energy you need.

Breathe that soul energy in and let it go down to your solar plexus and just imagine all the blessings there flowing through all of your organs and if you've been stressed,

Let that stress go.

Breathing in and allow it going down into your feelings and your second chakra and just send love and understanding and compassion to yourself,

Dear one.

If you've had a hard time,

Let yourself be hugged by spirit.

Let the angels surround you and protect you with love right now.

Breathe that love in and allow it to go to the base of your spine.

See it flowing down your legs,

Down your knees,

Your calves,

Your feet.

Let any tension,

Any darkness be released into the ground and now just be.

Just take a moment or two and be aware of how you feel.

Allow your emotions to speak to you.

What would they say?

Can you give your inner child and your emotions some love right now and let them be heard and recognize what they're going through?

Sending love to that inner self that's having possibly a hard time,

Knowing that it's going to be okay,

That all will be well.

Breathing in,

Feeling good and just be aware here as you allow yourself to be.

Breathing in,

Setting a protective light up above you,

Way high and white light around you and in front of you and behind you and below you.

When you're going through these times,

My dear friend,

Allow yourself to be loved.

Allow yourself to be nourished by your prayers and remember when you have prayers it's not just saying them but it's receiving the answer back as well,

Being open to receive.

And when you meditate,

Allow yourself to be all of who you are,

Not just your body,

Not just your mind,

Not just your emotion,

But your light that you really are in your soul.

I'm going to close now as you gently come back and say the Aramaic Lord's Prayer.

Avung de borsh maya nid gadaa shishamaa tei tei melkuta na wei de sevyanaka ganaa de borsh maya o barhaa.

Haalan lakmaa de sunkhaana nyamanaa.

Wash woklaan alpain ay ganaa daapan yin shwaakin alhaya bain.

U laatalaa na nisiyoonaa alaa pisaan menbishaa.

May taal de leki melkutaa u hailaa u tishpaktaa.

Laa alaam aameen.

Amen.

Allow that light that you are to flow through you.

Allow the love that you are to fill you.

Allow the peace that you hold inside the deepest part of you to be present in you now and always.

My deepest blessings and love to you.

Reviews

Thank you for this meditation that surrounds and fills us with love and light to help us navigate life with gratitude, strength, ease, and grace.

Wow. This was great and grand and supportive. It was a little bit overwhemingly strong too. Thank you so much teacher

What a lovely introduction to you, your work and life Cindy - thank you for your guidance and blessings 🙏🏼💗

Beautiful thank you.
I appreciate you
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