By Dr. Sandy Islands for Conch Color
We live in a world that encourages us to forge gods or devils out of entities outside ourselves. When we do this, we diminish our inner power. We’re responsible for manufacturing these entities who we’ve given our power to, and we can release them. Did you know that devil is “lived” spelled backwards? People who engage in “evil” acts are living backwards rather than forward. Anytime we view someone as better than us, we belittle ourselves. No guru, teacher, therapist, parent, spouse, or friend is closer to the truth or our God within than we are. We can’t afford to sit on a pedestal or put someone else there. What we’re doing is assigning qualities to them and falling in love with those qualities. Most people never live up to these high expectations and inevitably fall off the pedestal. We become mad or disappointed from our unmet expectations, but our anger is merely a projection of our own self-hatred for giving our power away. Alan Cohen says, “To sit willingly on someone else’s throne perpetuates an addictive illusion that will always end in pain. A halo only has to fall a few inches to become a noose.”
We often give our power away in relationships. It’s time to give up the search for the perfect partner. The desire to have someone give us what we haven’t given ourselves is what keeps us from manifesting the relationships we seek. The One we are searching for is not out there, but in here! Hopefully, the quest for the ideal mate will lead us to find ourselves. If we’re already in a relationship, let’s look at what we’re focusing on. Whether we see our partner’s faults or his/her divinity, we’ll always get more of what we focus on. The best relationships draw out our divine qualities and assist us in recognizing our own majesty.
We’ve all watched TV evangelists, political and sports icons, business giants, and media celebrities topple as our heroes are exposed as human. Feeling disillusioned is really positive because it means an illusion has been exposed. When we look within for wisdom, strength and heart, we are never disappointed. Jesus, Buddha and Mohamed were luminaries who discovered their true identities in divinity and beckoned us to join them. The leaders of our new era will seek students to foster inner dependence rather than become dependent upon them. True guides refuse adoration and identify not as messiahs, but as mirrors. Teachers of integrity guide students to find their divinity within, their passion and encourage them to focus on their dreams and to follow them no matter what. The best gurus affirm, “I am a mirror to your own true self.” One of the greatest gifts we can give is not only to share our riches with someone but to reveal their own riches to them.
My son is a senior in high school whose passion for acting
has only continued to grow since he stepped on the stage at the age of nine.
He’s been willing to do whatever it’s taken to follow
his passion and his dream. My husband and I have supported and encouraged him
to focus on those dreams and to not let fear in or be discouraged by the odds against
success. He’s set to audition for three schools in
Let’s follow our passion without hesitation and as Henry David Thoreau said, “Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you’ve imagined.”
Please write to Dr. Sandy Islands at sandyislands@hawaii.rr.com and browse previous articles at www.sandyislands.com- publications.