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HOLIDAY SPECIAL -- Three Coaching Sessions during the month of December or January for $100.00 -- Get ready for the New Year! Tie up all of those 2001 loose ends and set your goals for 2002.

This would make a great stocking stuffer! Do you know someone who could benefit from having a coach? Coaching can be a wonderful gift with benefits that last a lifetime.
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Table of Contents

1. Welcome Notes
2. Article -- Focus on the Gift of The Present
3. Words of Wisdom
4. Resources
5. Win a Free Membership to Coachville

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1. Welcome Notes

Dear Friends,

I am enjoying writing this series of articles on Finding Inner Peace in an Unpeaceful World. You see, I'm writing to myself as well as to you. I can get caught up in my "inner terrorists" too. By focusing on writing about finding inner peace, I'm experiencing expanded inner peace. What we focus on expands and what we give, we receive.

Last night I was exposed to the most interesting contrast between love thoughts and fear thoughts. While watching CNN and listening to the hate and fear around the newest Bin Laden tape, I heard a loud sound coming from outside. When I opened the door, I was amazed! Two ships were on the water all decked out in Christmas lights. From those ships came the most beautiful Christmas music; songs of love, peace and joy. It was like having a ship of carolers show up at my door. What a gift!

I hope you and your loved ones are finding many opportunities for love thoughts during this Holiday season.

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Finding Inner Peace in an Unpeaceful World
2. Focus On The Gift of the Present

"To meet everything and everyone through stillness instead of mental noise is the greatest gift you can offer to the universe."
--Eckhart Tolle

What if you had the power to:

1. Slow time down
2. Slow down the aging process
3. Improve your memory
4. Be more in tune with your inner guidance
5. Have more energy
6. Notice and enjoy more beauty
7. Sleep better
8. Love everything you do
9. Experience more joy, peace and happiness
10. Be more authentic
11. Be more present to others
12. Be more productive
13. Be more creative

You do have this power! We all do! It's the power of presence, or The Power of Now, as Eckhard Tolle calls it. The Power of Now is the first book I reached for after the events of September 11th. I had read this book and listened to Eckhart's tapes in the past, but I must not have been ready for them. They didn't have much impact. After the shock of 9/11, I was ready.

Since then I have been studying Eckhart's work and putting it into practice. Initially, I felt frustrated to discover how much time I spent in the past or the future. I prided myself in being a "present person". After all, I am trained as a counselor and coach and both professions require great presence.

As I persevere through the frustration and continue to practice being in the present, frustration is being replaced by great joy. The above list is what I experience when I'm in the Now. Note: It's too soon to know if the practice of being in the present will slow down my aging process, but given my experience so far, I believe it will happen.

Most of us are rarely in the present. Even when we think we are, we're only partly there. Rather, our minds are flitting back and forth between the past and the future with only minor touchdowns in the present.

We were born present. We learned to be in the past and future. Watch small children. They are very present, until they learn not to be. Perhaps that's why time seemed to go slower when we were young and speeds up as we get older. The older we get, the more past and future fills our minds, crowding out the present.

Are you fully present right in this moment? Stop reading and tune into yourself ñ your thoughts and your feelings. What thoughts are you having? Are you thinking that you need to hurry up and read this so you can get onto the next thing you need to do? Are you thinking about something that has already happened, like a conversation or interaction you had with someone else? If so, you are in the past or future.

If you have a hard time tuning into your thoughts, tune in to how your body feels. Is it relaxed and at ease? Are you feeling at peace? Or, are you tense and uptight? If you feel anything other than at ease or at peace, you are not in the present. Your body is the best barometer of your thoughts. It reflects what's going on in your mind.

Our inner terrorists live in our past and future thoughts. Guilt, regret, sorrow, resentment, grievances, sadness, bitterness, and all forms of non-forgiveness are past thoughts. Fear, anxiety, tension, stress, and worry are future thoughts. The present is free of inner terrorists. If you doubt this, tune into the present moment and ask yourself "What am I lacking in this moment? Are my needs met in this moment? Am I safe and secure in this moment?

Inner peace, bliss, inner guidance, God (or whatever you call your Higher Power), beauty, enlightenment, joy, your true self are all in the present. Have you ever had moments that you just wanted to save and take within yourself to keep forever? I've had moments like this when I've witnessed great beauty. When I feel in awe of something. These are fleeting moments of being fully present in the Now. Some call them "peak experiences". By becoming present to the Now more often, we can experience life as a peak experience.

Two keys to being in the present are 1) quieting the mind and 2) letting go of all resistance. The incessant chattering in our minds is like having a cloud of smog hanging over us, dulling our awareness of the profound beauty of the present. Smog is a buildup of toxins. Continual thoughts of the past and future are mind toxins. Allowed to continue, they drain our energy, rob our peace and destroy our health.

All bad feelings arise from resistance. We resist what is, what was and what might be. Resistance keeps us stuck. In contrast, when we accept instead of resist, we relax into the present and into peace. Acceptance frees us to move on. If you have trouble sleeping, try accepting everything that is. As past or future thoughts arise, just say to yourself "I accept this" and let it flow on by. You will know that you are practicing accepting instead of resisting if your body fully relaxes.
To quiet your mind, try the following:

1. Pay attention to your breathing. When your mind is too full, you quit breathing. Breathe deeply. This gets you out of your mind and into your body and inner self.

2. Tune into your mind and body. Witness your thoughts and feelings. As thoughts arise, don't judge them, rather observe them and then let them go. As you notice your feelings, lean into them, feel the feelings. They will pass as you allow yourself to feel them. Resisting feelings keeps them stuck in the energy field of your body. Illness often arises from stuck energy. Merely being aware that you are not in the present, will put you in the present.

3. If you are still having trouble quieting your mind, try journaling. Empty your mind onto paper. As you document your thoughts on paper, you can release them from your mind without worrying that you might forget something.

4. Allot a certain amount of time during the day to ruminate on past and future thoughts. This is like setting aside worry time. A half hour a day is more than enough. Then, during the rest of the day, when past and future thoughts arise, jot them down so you can think about them during your allotted ruminating time.

5. Make inner peace your greatest goal. Write down "My greatest goal is inner peace" and post it in your home, car and workplace as a reminder.

If you practice these suggestions, you will soon find yourself spending the majority of your time in the present with only brief touchdowns in the past and future, as needed for practical reasons. You will find much greater inner peace. You will begin experiencing the:

Symptoms of Inner Peace*

1. A tendency to think and act spontaneously rather than from fears based on past experiences.
2. A loss of interest in judging self.
3. A loss of interest in judging others.
4. A loss of interest in conflict
5. A loss of interest in interpreting the actions of others.
6. A loss of ability to worry.
7. Frequent, overwhelming episodes of appreciation.
8. Contented feelings of connectedness with others and nature.
9. Frequent attacks of smiling through the eyes of the heart.
10. Increasing susceptibility to love extended by others as well as the urge to extend it.
11. An increasing tendency to let things happen.

*by Saskia Davis, Seattle, WA contact her at 206-364-7762 or at saskialucia@eartlink.net
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3. Words of Wisdom

"As we see the beautiful holiday lights going up, we know that having light-filled moments and having an experience of connection to God is not something we only experience on holy days. Every day is holy. Light is not absent from the everyday life we're living. It is meant to be in the everyday life we're living, in traffic and in the work we're doing and with our family of origin. The light is always available to us if only we are available to It."
--Mary Manin Morrissey

"The best way to prepare for tomorrow is to make today's consciousness serene and harmonious. All other good things will follow upon that."
--Emmet Fox

"By listening to the creator within, we are led to our right path."
--Julia Cameron

"I keep the telephone of my mind open to peace, harmony, health, love, and abundance. Then whenever doubts, anxiety, or fear try to call me, they keep getting a busy signalóand soon they'll forget my number."
--Edith Armstron

"It is not enough to have a good mind. The main thing is to use it well."
--Rene Descartes

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4. Resources

The Power of Now, By Eckhart Tolle, A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment

You can read a description of this book at Amazon.com. I highly
recommend this book!

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5. Win a Free Membership to CoachVille.

I've been given one free CoachVille membership to do with as I wish. I would like to give it to one of you. Read the description below and check out the CoachVille website. If it looks like something you would like to have, please send me an email and let me know that you want to be included in a drawing. The drawing will take place on Saturday, December 22nd, so be sure to write to me right away.

CoachVille is an online training firm for personal, professional and corporate coaches. It was founded by Thomas Leonard, sometimes called the Patriarch of the Coaching Profession. I joined CoachVille as a founding member because I have a great deal of respect for Leonard's work. I have been delighted with receiving access to the very latest in tools that I can use with my clients and for my own training as a professional coach. Leonard has a reputation for giving a lot of value for the money and he certainly is living up to that reputation with CoachVille. Whether you are a coach, aspire to be a coach, or think that coaching skills might be helpful in your work and/or your personal life, I encourage you to visit the Coachville site at: http://coachville.com/

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Until we meet again, remember to:

Count your garden by the flowers,
Never by the leaves that fall.
Count your days by golden hours,
Don't remember clouds at all.
Count your nights by stars, not shadows.
Count your years with smiles, not tears.
Count your blessings, not your troubles.
Count your age by friends, not years.
--Author Unknown

Blessings to you and yours,

Sharon

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Copyright © 2000, 2001 all rights reserved.
U.S. Library of Congress ISSN: 1536-5891
Permission is granted to reproduce, copy or distribute One of a Kind News so long as this copyright notice and full information about contacting the author is attached. The author of this newsletter is: Sharon L. Demarte, M.A.