Me, Myself and I party
Now Playing: D'Angelo
Topic: WC - Daily Practice
11Mar07 4:30pm Sunday
Playing music and having one of my Me, Myself and I parties without alcohol of course since it is the afternoon. I really should be outside since it's so beautiful outside but alas the music calls me more and here I sit.
I pretty much slept all day yesterday which really isn't my thing to do. I hate the feeling of wasting a whole day. But something about the Daylight savings time and worrying that I'd be sleepy all next week losing that hour got me paranoid and sleepy in advance. That's my lie and I'm sticking to it. The cats joined in the sleeping fun and it was a pretty quiet apartment.
I caught a bit of Sense and Sensibility in the moments that my eyes were open. My absolute favorite part of that movie is when Emma Thompson's character lets go of her true emotions and breaks down when she discovers that her love interest isn't married after all. Makes me cry every single time. I love a character that does something out of character in a realistic way. I've said that time and again but I find it's one of the best ways to get a point across. She's so proper and keeps her emotions in check for so long and then finally when the one wish she dare not wish has the possibility of coming true she's blows her load with out of control crying. sigh!
Of course in the Color Purple I always mention when Celie threatens Mister but my other favorite scene, in the movie, is when Shug starts singing, "Speak Lord, Speak to me," after she'd sinned for so long and had moved so far away from God that it seemed impossible that she could go back. By the time she stands in front of her father, the preacher and says, "See father, even sinners have soul," I'm balling my eyes out. ha ha!
It's such a great release to do something out of character. Going from the quiet child who never had the guts to speak up for herself, when I finally started to speak up it felt damn good.
I really should try to get my lazy, sleep ass, butt outside for at least an hour or so. Can't decide if I should walk east and see my donkey and go to the chapel where Davin's plaque is or if I should walk west in hopes of running into a friend or two. Decisions, decisions. I haven't been to the chapel in a long while, not since the summer, I think. I love the peace of the little chapel. That's about as church as I get. But running into one friend would be a nice Sunday treat as well. I guess I'll see where my legs take me.
Forrest Whitaker is on Inside the Actor's Studio tonight so that should be good. Just love that man. Most of the shows are in repeats this week except of course Nip/Tuck. And no Heroes until April 23rd! What kind of pain is that? There are no words to say how not right that is. Bastards!
Maybe I'll have something interesting to say after my walk!?! Sleeping all day and listening to music the next day only has so much, unless I discuss who I've been dreaming of, which I'm not gonna! tee hee!
EY
Critique of The Secret
Topic: Someone Else Said It
In his blog
Dan Millman provides a link to another critique...
Thursday January 04th 2007, 1:58 pm
Filed under: Dan's Posts
Some weeks ago, a young man wrote to us, declaring, “In six months I’m going to have three million dollars, the woman of my dreams, and a beautiful house – because I’ve seen . . . The Secret!
The Secret, for those of you who haven’t yet heard, has become an internet phenomenon. It began as an Australian television production featuring a number of well-known authors and pundits, speaking about the “Law of Attraction.” This law says that we attract or manifest into our lives what we think about or focus on or earnestly desire.
As fate would have it, the producers, in a stroke of foresight, ended up delivering this 90-minute program via internet. One can go to the web site, watch a dramatic teaser, sign up, pay a mere $4.95, and download the program to watch to one’s heart’s content — to learn “The Secret.”
I’m not surprised by the popularity of this program. Magical thinking has huge appeal for many – especially when it intersects with ideas from quantum physics and metaphysical science.
In this respectful critique, I’m going to first express what I genuinely like about the program:
I find much of the program up-beat, good hearted, encouraging. It also has excellent production values, cinematography, effects, and sound. And the editing is excellent. I’m especially impressed by the cutting-edge method of delivery — internet streaming — ushering in a new era of movies on demand with the click of a mouse.
I also like the message that what we bring into our lives begins with a vision, a longed-for aspiration — a good reminder for those of us who haven’t yet stretched the wings of possibility and allowed ourselves to embrace higher possibilities. If The Secret opens the way to expanded dreams, it serves a useful purpose.
What concerns me, however, are the program’s primary suppositions. The message, repeated in different words by the various guests, is that if we simply intend and visualize and dream big enough, we can “manifest” all our dreams — effortlessly, magically, mystically.
However, this “Law of Attraction” does not, in my view, qualify as a law at all. In my book, The Laws of Spirit, I present twelve spiritual laws (including, to name a few, the laws of balance, choices, process, faith . . . action, surrender, and unity) — laws which apply consistently and universally to everyday life. This quality of consistency is essential to any law, and differentiates it from proverbs, principles, or aphorisms, which may or may not apply. In other words, a law works every time here on Earth, much like the law of gravity.
In any case, this “Law of Attraction,” as taught many decades ago by metaphysicians like Catherine Ponder and others, is certainly a positive and expansive idea. But dreams, desires and visions are only the beginning — they must be followed by focused effort over time – something barely mentioned in the “Secret” production.
Thomas Edison wrote, “We often miss opportunity because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” It has the ring of truth, doesn’t it? But suggesting that we need to work hard over time to achieve our goals doesn’t sell well. It isn’t sexy or fascinating, or sound much like a “Secret.” Common sense rarely does.
In “The Secret,” we personally witness a little boy who wishes and hopes for a bicycle—he thinks about it, visualizes a bike, cuts out pictures from a magazine. And lo and behold, one day he opens a door and there is his new bike! Personally, I would have been more drawn to see him walking a paper route, or doing chores to earn some money, or at least asking his parents directly for a special Christmas gift. Which reminds me of a story I relate in Living on Purpose:
Louie goes to church every Sunday and prays to God, “Dear Lord, I’ve been a good and devout man for many years, living according to your Laws, doing acts of charity, serving the poor, supporting my family. So please, please, let me win the lottery just once!” He repeats this plea every week for years, but his entreaties go unanswered. So Louie starts to pray to win the lottery every night and every day. Until one day, he hears a voice thunder down from the heavens: “Louie, will you at least go half-way with me and buy a ticket?”
That’s all I’m suggesting — a simple point ignored by “The Secret” — go to the effort to buy a ticket. Or as an Arabic sage once said, “Trust in God . . . but tie your camel.”
So if you wish to be successful, dream big, but start small — then connect the dots. In other words, start with a vision, then take baby steps. Neither dreaming nor wishing nor magical secrets get the laundry done.
The biggest issue I have with programs like The Secret (or other idealistic notions such as learning “positive thinking”) is that when their magical methods don’t work, we end up believing that it’s our fault, our lack, our fault. We believe that if we had truly deserved it, or really applied ourselves, or focused more intently, or visualized more clearly with a sincere heart, surely it would have worked.
The Secret, then, with its lovely and uplifting promise, is a foolproof supposition: If we don’t heal, manifest, get what we want, it’s due to our own lack of faith.
Or maybe it’s because we forgot the “taking action” part . . .
There are some successful people who claim to have mastered “The Secret” and who have manifested their dreams and desires. Few of them tell us about their years of struggle and labor and preparation.
By all means strive in the direction of your dreams! Visualize a grand life! Then get to work. While we cannot control the outcomes, we can control our efforts. And by making the effort, we increase the odds of creating a larger life.
I close with my warmest wishes, and with a reminder from Henry David Thoreau: “If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost. Now put foundations under them.”
As a post-script, both for those who mistakenly believe that I support the message of “The Secret,” and also for those who believe I’m being unjustly critical, I offer another articulate blogger’s
Comments about "The Secret"
Grogged out
Topic: WC - Daily Practice
Saturday 2:30pm 10March07
Feeling all grogged out. I went to lie back down for a minute this morning and it turned into a 3 hour deep sleep. Of course I had the haunter of my dreams following me throughout. Back to waking gripping the pillow and body aching. Damn! The subconscious is a funny thing for sure. I need to find a way to smoke out the dream haunter, but how? Some kind of feminine magic I guess.
Drinking my beet juice in an attempt to jump start my energy level. Said I'd go to a celebration for frog legs tonight. She's gonna be a cop! I've already asked how soon she could hand cuff me, jokingly of course. What is with people who like to be tied up? Not my thang.
Haven't a thing to say that doesn't fall in line with the things that I really want to say and can't say. But the tide is changing, it's a new month with new energy, and my birthday month at that. So far so good. Had my evaluation at work and it was glowing. It's nice to have my hard work noticed in a genuine way. My boss cracked up that he didn't have to add much to my evaluation because I'd written a novel. He did tell me to write a lot!
It's a rainy mild day outside my windows. At least I think it's mild. Trying to find some winter sports on T.V. For some reason CBC always seems to cover curling. I don't get it and am not interested in getting it. So for now I settle for snowboarding. I'd rather see some skiing or speed skating.
This morning I was reading some critiques of the Secret, the movie that has taken the world by storm and has even been covered on Oprah (I missed both times she covered it). The basic criticism is that it extols the virtues of the Law of Attraction but misses the boat on the nest step... hard work. I have to admit that I know a few people that talk about how they've placed their intention and can't figure out why they haven't received that intention yet. Like someone who sets the intention to get a million dollars but isn't receiving it. Yeah some of us are going to win a lottery but most of us are just going to have to work for the money.
I haven't watched the movie yet so I certainly can't critique it. How I use the law of attraction is that I set my intent, say, to be a prolific writer and then I look for anything that will inspire me to write and set goals for writing. I think that based on my intent, the universe offers me messages to inspire me but I realize that if I don't write, I won't become a prolific writer. Setting an intent for love, I have to be willing to give what I want to receive. Setting an intent for lots and lots of money, I have to have something that I'm going to give, a service that I'm going to provide, something that I love to do. Just sitting in my apartment wishing and hoping isn't going to make it happen, doing some actual work is what will get it.
I'll see if I can find the critiques that I read this morning.
That said, however, I always have to laugh at how quickly people within a certain community criticize what is a stepping stone to a good thing. They berate people for putting information out there that doesn't have enough depth but forget that not everybody in the whole world knows about the concepts that the spiritual/new age community is using. We have to start somewhere. My best example is when Spike Lee first started making movies. I had a friend that would invite herself out with me every time she knew that I was going to see his latest movie. She'd always walk out angry by the end of each movie about his portrayal of women. He should be doing more, she'd say. Yes his women were a certain kind of black woman but it wasn't like we didn't know those kind of black women. It just so happened that we weren't them.
I'd always say to her, if you want to see other portrayals of black women start getting your work out there. You can't expect Spike Lee to be the only black filmmaker and cover every single issue that we deal with in the black community. It's impossible. Yes I wished that he showed more hard working black women like me but he gave me a lot of other things to hold on to. And he paved the way for John Singleton and any other black filmmaker that came behind him.
I think the so-called new age movie explosion is at that stage. They are drawing people in, people who wouldn't normally watch that kind of stuff. They are giving people food for thought and providing the stepping stone for people who are interested in more to delve deeper themselves. We can't expect one movie to give us all the answers but we can hope that it will inspire us to want to look for more.
EY
The Daily Practice is an exercise in anti-perfectionism, discipline, and practice.
I designed My Five Precepts of Blogging for my parameters: 1)Write 250-1,000 words per night.
2)Post first drafts only. 3)Write it in under 30 mins. 4)Never blog about blogging. 5)Be nice, fair, and honest - without selling out.
