A Note From Anne

Dear ,

Hope you are having a good week and that you are on board with my EZosophy philosophy. EZosophy is about living leisurely. We live in such a fast-paced world that it takes focus and determination not to make everything so darned hard.

I developed the EZ ideas for myself. I’m an EZosophy student, not a master. I mentally sit myself down every day for examination and, of course, it’s my head that I examine. I used to be a master sufferer. I felt sorry for myself. I learned to make up games in my head so I would not suffer. If I had to clean my desk, I would pretend that someone was going to pay me $10,000 to clean it up. I knew if that were really the case, it would be easy to clean up my desk without moaning. If money could create a shift in my mind, that meant I had the ability to create a shift in my mind without the money. This logic helped me drop the drama so I could leave the drama rama.

I’m hoping you can join me by asking yourself, “How can I make this easier?” Tasks are usually neutral; it’s our internal process that creates the struggle. I learned how to suffer from family members and those in authority. Almost everyone who trained me in hardaholism has passed on. I’m stopping my hard attacks every day. Join me, because when you do, you will find that your life gets easier and easier.

  Authenticity vs. Procrastination

I am having a hot flash and my left eye hurts. 67 year old women are not supposed do have hot flashes. My body doesn’t care. My left eye feels like I have an eye lash or gravel in it and I’ve done everything I could think of to make it better. Please don’t write with helpful tips because I’m not writing this to elicit advice; I’m just sharing to be authentic. By the time you read this it will be several days post flash, so no need to go there.As I write I’m putting faces on you, imagining we are together, and I’m saying, “I don’t want to do this.” When I come clean with you, I feel more like I’m talking to a friend, than writing a piece for the newsletter. It feels like I’m cheating because I’m not writing an article, I’m sharing with friends. As a writer, I’ve learned that waiting for the muse or for the perfect inspired moment is unrealistic. This is the time I have to write this. I’ll be busy later, and so I’m writing now.

We live in a schizophrenic world. There are the fundamentalist positive thinkers who label anything other than flapping fairy wings as negative. There are the BMWers (bitch/moan/whiners) who haven’t voiced a word of hope or appreciation in years. Given those two choices, I’m opting out.

People often say about themselves, “I’m a positive person.” That’s a title I’ve never wanted. The highest compliment I could have would be, “You are authentic.” Recently I made some remarks at a convention. A friend said to me, “You always say what I’m thinking, but am too afraid to voice.”

My direct ways have gotten some reactive feedback, but other benign things that I’ve said have engendered just as much criticism. I might as well be honest. I love it when I write something witty or inspiring. I read and reread my words. I beam and smile. But today, for this article, I have no inspiration, no desperation, and no wisdom – all I can offer is authenticity.Since I am my boss, I recuse myself from this article. This definitely makes my life easier. After all, I wrote more than 1,100 words last week. After an epic article, I think you and I deserve time off, and if you average the number of words in last week’s main article, with this article, you’ll get 764 words, which is still a little long, so I’m ending this with my only inspirational thought, “When you don’t have anything to say, stop speaking.”

  Quotes

"Helping others is a part of community. Letting others help us teaches us to give up control."
  – Anne Sermons Gillis

"Don't let your mind steal the truth from you."
  – Anne Sermons Gillis

"We are a part of a little galaxy on the outskirts of infinity."
  – Deepak Chopra

  Anne's Books

Standing in The Dark

EZosophy

Offbeat Prayers

Click here to see all three of Anne's books

What people are saying about Standing in the Dark:

"Standing in the Dark, by Anne Sermons Gillis, isn't just another positive thinking book. It's a book about the difficult times in life and what we can do to make it through them. It does, however, give us positive ways to make life easier. It's a short book, but it's one that may just turn your thinking on its head, which will probably be the best thing that's happened to your thinking in a long time. It's about how to bring more ease into a life that isn't easy all of the time. Anne discusses six main areas of life: Ease, Mission, Health, Relationships, Money, and Loss."
  – Charles David Heineke

Now available on Kindle. Click for details.

What people are saying about EZosophy: The Art and Wisdom of Easy or at Least Easier Living:

"Although most conscious people understand that life doesn't have to a struggle, the "how to" has been missing... until now. Anne's book makes it "easy."
  – T. Harv Eker - Bestselling author and Founder of Peak Potentials Training

Now available on Kindle.
Click for details.
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What people are saying about Offbeat Prayers for the Modern Mystic:

"I love your book. It is filled with much wisdom, humor and heart. Really beautiful."
  – Alan Cohen author, Enough Already, mentions Anne and EZosophy on page 99

Now available on Kindle.
Click for details.

  What is EZosophy?

Click the graphic above to find out.

  Theosophical Society

Anne Sermons Gillis currently serves as the president of the Houston Lodge of the Theosophical Society.

We encourage our members to live a life in service to humanity, in stillness through mediation, and in study of ancient wisdom.

"Recognition of the unique value of every living being expresses itself in reverence for life, compassion for all, sympathy with the need of all individuals to find truth for themselves, and respect for all religious traditions."
   --The Theosophical World View

Meetings are held on the first and third Saturdays at 10 AM Central Time in Houston, Texas.

For more information visit The Houston Lodge or visit our national organization at http://www.Theosophical.org.

If someone forwarded this email to you, you can click this link to have a copy delivered every Tuesday morning to your own email inbox.

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Editor/Publisher: Charles David Heineke of TheDoorway.org.

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  Anne's Services

  Schedule Anne

You may reach Anne by phone at 281-419-1775 or click the button below to contact Anne by email. Anne is also available to officiate at weddings and funerals.

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  Anne's Schedule

All times here are Central Time.

Tues. May 13, 2013, 7:00 PM
The Meeting and Purpose Group:
"Getting Clear With Money"
Donation
Unity Church
25250 Borough Park Dr.
The Woodlands, TX 77380
281-681-8883

Other Events for Your Consideration

Here are two upcoming spiritual events that may be of interest to you.

May 17-18, 2014
Awaken Houston Retreat Flyer

June 5-8, 2014
Co-Creators Convergence Conference, Year 2

  Healthy Living

Wellness

Last week I spoke to a wellness group. A friend asked later what I talked about. “I talked about the ego, making life easier, and awareness.” She asked how I related that to wellness. I thought most people realized that our mental and emotional health wasn’t just related to wellness, it is a part of wellness. My talk was about wellness.

Healthy living and wellness are about more than the body. Healthy living not only involves mind, body, and spirit, it also includes community and planet.

Last Sunday a good friend had a going away party. Friends gathered to wish her fair well as she moves 3,800 miles from Texas. We talked in small groups, but we were not a community. We were a consortium of one on ones. I asked if we could go around and tell her how we loved her and wish her farewell. She loved the idea, so we formed a circle and each friend spoke from the heart. It was special watching her drink in the accolades. Not only was she lifted, but we became a community. We shared laughter and tears. The next day she thanked me for creating, what she called, the best day of her life.

Make Your Own Community

We all have the ability to come together and make community. It takes a little ingenuity and creativity, but community is a part of wellness. That’s part of the reason Facebook is so popular – people create community. Too often we go to a party and just chit chat, but a clever host or hostess finds ways to create an ad hoc community. Her guests may never see each other again, but for one brief period of time she brings them together.

I married at 19. I moved into a sprawling complex. I didn’t know anyone, but by the time I left, there were group parties; I had a lot of neighbor friends. I created an apartment community. We moved every year for about 8 years and wherever I went, I got some kind of group going. I think a group I started over 40 years ago is still going.

Healthy living involves spending time alone, but when we stay alone all the time, our world shuts down. We become self-involved and our viewpoint narrows. Too many older people stay home and listen to hate TV. That’s the recipe for making a cynical old coot.

We hunger for emotional touching; we need to be acknowledged and seen. Just being a part of a community, creates wellness. People who meet regularly with a group of friends weekly live 7 years longer. Join existing communities or create small project driven communities. Create community in your neighborhood, join a synagogue, become a volunteer, or do something similar, and you will find that life becomes easier and easier.

  Anne Talks

Mayonnaise With Anne Sermons Gillis. Short story about a wedding performed at the local prison.  (5:30).

Click for larger image