The Anne Report, Looking Back at Life From 70, gives some hints about what Anne learned on her way to age 70. The Main article, Overcoming Our Past, shows that we can overcome past traumas to move into a better life. The Healthy Living article, Prosperity Talking Points, provides some ways to guide our self-talk so we prosper in life. The Anne Talk, EZosophy With Anne Sermons Gillis, gives you a tip on how to be more authentic in answering the "How are you?" question. The Featured Product This Month highlights Anne's book EZosophy:The Art and Wisdom of EZ or At Least EZier Living. Click to read What is EZosophy? Click for Abundance Affirmations. Click for Shareables From Anne.

The EZ Mantra: "Everything can be EZ or at least EZier." -- Anne Sermons Gillis

Living EZosophy, October 9, 2018
Published Weekly on Tuesday Mornings

Phone: 713.922.0242
Email: anne@annegillis.com

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  The Anne Report

Looking Back at Life From 70

Dear ,

When I was young, I imagined how it would feel to be old. I fantasized about gray hair and wrinkled skin. I would squint my eyes to distort my vision, so I could see like the old people. I was in my twenties, and to me old age seemed impossible and undesirable, but I knew old age would make a steady and unwelcomed advance into my life. Today I am 70 and I look fondly upon those memories. I could never have known how wonderful my life would be when I was 70. I never imagined that wisdom, compassion, and unconditional love could outrun age. I could not have known that my dreams would come true: that I have a wonderful husband who loves me with all his heart, two incredible grandchildren, an amazing daughter and son-in-law, and friends who have lasted a lifetime.

I dreamed of traveling then, but never really considered the adventures that would expand my life view. I stood at the edge of the world, so many times, and looked across humanity: from the Amazon Jungle to underwater adventures on the continental shelf; from the Andes to the Himalayas; by boats, private planes, jeepneys, rickshaws, and camels. What a world, but it was always the people that touched me, not the waterfalls. It was a vision that humbled me and planted the seeds of compassion.

More important than the outer journeys were the journeys within. I was so focused on making my outer world conform to society's model of success, that I was lost in useless endeavors. How could I have known of the expansive inner worlds? I wanted to write books but laughed at the thought. How could a nobody, with nothing to say, write a book? Yet, to date, I've written five books. I wanted to know the truth and see the face of God. Today truth bubbles up all around me and I've seen the face of God. It doesn't look like I thought it would when I was 25, but, at 70, I see God's face shining in the faces of my loved ones and feel a radiance shining through me. It's an ongoing appointment with love.

So today is the day I turned 70. I don't know what the future might hold, but I consider each new and upcoming present moment, the best time of my life. And that's it for the Anne report.

Anne

  Main Article

Overcoming Our Past

People are as great as we allow them to be. Some people act like jerks, but basically, we see what we want to see in others. Some people look at harsh behavior with disdain and judgment, while others feel compassion for inexcusable behavior. They realize that people who were hurt continue a legacy of pain. We build or create an image of people based on our personal stories.

I had a client who was sexually abused as a child. The abuse was repressed. She stormed into my office one day and relayed a story about how some guys down the street yelled at her. They whistled and shouted, "Hey, good-looking." She was outraged. We didn't know at the time about her past abuse; it would have explained her outrage. She was looking through the eyes of an exploited child. She couldn't protect herself when she was young, nor express her anger. But that day she was a grown woman and she could rage without fear of being assaulted.

I was working on healing my image at the time and wanted to see myself as beautiful and attractive. I pumped daily fuel into my self-esteem, so when the same construction guys cat-whistled me the day before, I felt appreciated and thought the work I was doing was bearing fruit. I beamed and waved back at the guys. "Some guys thought I was cute and whistled at me; how cute." Neither one of our reactions was right or wrong. The story illustrates how our past, and our present moment emotional space, affect our interpretation of the present.

The old saying, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" should be extended to say that "hate is in the eyes of the beholder; cynicism is in the eyes of the beholder; angry-righteousness is in the eyes of the beholder. Any way we look at life comes from the eyes of the beholder."

We select tribes who have similar wounds, coping mechanisms, and beliefs. There are tribes that peddle entitlement, tribes who are angry with the world, and tribes who operate from altruism. We find our tribes in social clubs, activist groups, spiritual organizations, political groups, and even in the gym. We feel best when we surround ourselves with people who are as pissed off as we are, those who are as happy as we are, or, in short, those who have a similar emotional climate. Even though the famous Cosmopolitan magazine editor, Helen Gurley Brown, warns against being trite, I can't resist dragging out this worn reference, "Birds of a feather stick together."

These sticky birds tend to be afraid of birds who are different. The contemporary classic, Jonathan Livingston Seagull, tells the story of a young gull who was banished from his flock because he would not live under his community's existing and limited cultural narrative. They wanted to eat and sleep; he wanted to fly.

While we all have psychological and emotional limits, there resides a Jonathan within that wants to soar. Jonathan haunts us until we take flight, and no matter how high we fly, it continues to call us to greater heights. We can't rest until we can soar freely through our lives. There is no freedom until we are free of our past pain, prejudice, and limits. But that's not the end of the story. Given all these limits, our propensity to stay with our tribes and flocks, and our allegiance to the past, we fly anyway. Yes, I said we couldn't fly until we were free of the past, but that's only a partial truth. It's not the story of the human family. Record numbers of people are breaking through limits. During our darkest days, there are legions of imperfect beings ascending to a new order of well-being. We are rising and falling at the same time. What is up?

Could it be grace? Could it be unconditional love? Could it be angels? Could it be past life karma? Maybe it's all of those. Maybe we are a part of an experiment called humanity. Maybe we are in the choir, but we are not the choir director. There may not be an answer to these questions, but there is something greater than our limits, greater than our prejudices, and greater than our faults that's directing the choir. We might as well get used to it. Unconditional love has this thing called life covered. It doesn't make sense when we look through our personal stories, but love doesn't care about our stories or our limits or our upsets. It just keeps giving, and I find that comforting! We don't have to keep attending psychological soirées to figure this out, because it can't be figured out. It can only be enjoyed and savored, and when we realize this, our lives become EZier and EZier.

Anne

  Quotes

Anne Quotes

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 Featured Product This Month

At last, the reprint of EZosophy: The Art of EZ or at Least EZier Living, is out. If you've been wanting an EZier life, this book provides a clear path toward EZ.

EZosophy:The Art and Wisdom of EZ or At Least EZier Living is a simple philosophy that radically changes lives. It is a book for the spiritually-based reader who no longer values the ego driven struggle of contemporary life.

EZosophy will help readers:

• Give up Hard Attacks. Hardaholic no more.
• Drop the drama.
• Make your life EZier. Ease is not indolence. Rather, ease is the art of accomplishment without struggle.
• Learn to identify ego driven suffering (EDS).

Click here to learn more about Anne's book, EZosophy.

  What is EZosophy?

Click to learn about EZosophy.

NOTE: If you are viewing this on a cell phone, be sure to scroll to the right to see the other column.

  Healthy Living

Prosperity Talking Points

If you look below this article, you will find an ad for my Prosperity Affirmations page. I was hesitant to start the Facebook page, but I had an urge that would not let me alone until I started it. I once told the Universe that if I could figure out money and abundant living, I'd share my knowledge with others. That was 35 years ago. Unfortunately, I have not figured it out, but I have made progress. Things that used to knock me over about finances, rarely cause a ripple in my mental pool now. I guess the Universe is calling in on my promise and it's my time to share my experience.

I had plenty of lack talking points. It was clear to me that I had to protect me from me. Therefore, I have developed prosperity talking points to soothe my nerves. These ideas and thoughts return me to sanity.

Here are some of my prosperity talking points:

• I have strength to accomplish what I need to accomplish. If I don't have the strength to accomplish it, I don't need to do it.
• I belong to a well-stocked Universe that knows what I need before I need it, and it always responds to that need. (I have what I need, when I need it. A favorite of mine!)
• I am enough. I have enough. I do enough.
• I allow plenty of time to nourish myself. I know when it's not about "me, me, me" and I know when it's too much about you and it is time to put the focus on me.
• I am generous and give my time, support, and resources to others.
• I am grateful that I receive time, support, and resources from others.
• No person, situation, or circumstance can stand in the way of my good.  (Thank you, Catherine Ponder)

We live in a fear driven culture, and if we don't feed our minds with good thoughts, we will go down with the Dow. We are addicted to money, worry, and lack thinking, but with a little willingness, a few prayers, and different thoughts, we can change the course of our force. We can use our force to help and heal, and when we do, everything is EZier and EZier.

If you have any healthy living tips for the newsletter, send them to me at anne@annegillis.com.

  Abundance Affirmations

Join Anne's Facebook Group

This group is a place to post uplifting affirmations and thoughts about prosperity and abundant living. Let's create a right relationship with money so that we feel comfortable about money. Let's use money as it's meant to be used, and not as a way to accumulate power or to fill a void. We don't need money to buy more stuff. We need it to create a world that works for everyone. We want to cast off old beliefs of lack and reclaim our natural state of abundance.

  Anne Talk

EZosophy With Anne Sermons Gillis

In EZosophy With Anne Sermons Gillis, Anne gives you a tip on how to be more authentic in answering the "How are you?" question. Time: 2:20

  Anne Art

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  Anne's Schedule

All times here are Central Time
unless otherwise specified.

Sunday, October 28, 2018
11:00 AM-12:00 PM: "Wisdom"
Unity of Brazosport
507 S. Brooks St. (Hwy. 36)
Brazoria, TX 77422

Sunday, December 23, 2018
11:00 AM-12:00 PM:
"Celebrating Christmas in Your Heart"
Unity of Brazosport
507 S. Brooks St. (Hwy. 36)
Brazoria, TX 77422

Contact Anne to book your event:
713.922.0242 or anne@annegillis.com.

  Shareables From Anne

The World's Best Weight Loss Secret

Thought Freedom

40 Days to Abundance