The Anne Report, Honoring Your Body's Limitations, reminds us that older bodies need more care. The Main article, Thought Freedom, invites us to a deeper level of awareness. The Healthy Living article, Losing Weight, teaches that our mindset is the most important factor in losing weight. The Anne Talk is Anne's video, The Path To Conscious Awakening. The Featured Product this month highlights Anne's first book, Offbeat Prayers for the Modern Mystic. Click to read What is EZosophy?  Click here to learn about Anne's newest book, Words Make a Difference.

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

Living EZosophy, June 6, 2017
Published Weekly on Tuesday Mornings

Phone: 281-419-1775
Email: anne@annegillis.com

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  The Anne Report

Honoring Your Body's Limitations

Dear ,

Today we are back on the road again, headed to North Carolina. Though my sister passed away almost a year ago, her celebration of life service is this weekend. There will be plenty of family and reminiscing about this amazing woman. She lived her last 12 years in an increasing mental fog, but she lived her first 64 years as an adventuresome pioneer of life. One of her greatest fears was that she would end up like my mother. She would say, “If I get to be like mother, I’m going to sail my boat out in the ocean and disappear.” I was very concerned that it would become a self-fulfilling prophecy. She did end up like my mom; she had full blown dementia. By then she didn’t have the ability to even get to her boat, much less sail it. I told her of my concerns, but I don’t think she understood what I was trying to tell her.

Life on the road has been more challenging as we've grown older, so we are making this trip in three days instead of two. Riding for two 12 hour days is not what we really want to do.

I remember Wayne Dyer talking about running and jumping over a fence, and his wife said, "Wayne, you are 60. You can't just take off like that any more." He felt 25 but his body was no longer as nimble as it had been. We know Wayne was a possibility thinker, but he was also wise to recognize that he did have physical limits.

I have a friend who is 60-ish. Her yoga instructor requested the class members to run to get something that was in the middle of the room. He was trying to illustrate some point. She took off and injured her foot. She didn't turn it; it just was too stiff for that quick takeoff. In yoga class they tell us to stretch our bodies to the limit, but not to stretch it too far or we could injure ourselves. This teacher didn't understand that older bodies need more warm up than younger bodies.

We are taking the EZ way out and allowing our older bodies some down time, by extending our travel time. Honoring the body's limits is tough for active Americans, but as we age physically, it's courageous to listen to our body's requests. We are always Young at Heart, but it's wise to take it EZ on our bodies. Our bodies love it and treat us well when we take care of them. That's it for the Anne Report.

Anne

  Main Article

Thought Freedom

Do you feel dragged around by your mind chatter? Do you want freedom from thought or emotions? Maybe you've tried to forget your thoughts and feelings by watching a movie, drinking a glass of wine, or by harnessing them. "If I could just get rid of these thoughts." "I need to just think positive." Then, when you get rid of them, change them, or forget them, more disturbing thoughts take their place.

Is there any freedom from the mind, and if so, what is it? Freedom from thoughts and feelings does not mean we won't have thoughts and feelings. It means we do not buy into our thoughts and feelings. We do not give them power over us. Every seasoned meditator knows that at some point, thoughts and emotions surface and resurface, but to go beneath the turbulence of thoughts and feelings, one must stay present and ride the waves. Surfers have fun on their surfboards, as they turn gigantic and powerful waves into toys. Can we ride the waves of our thoughts and emotions, without being battered about by them? Can we even play with them? Sometimes I start laughing when I catch a preposterous thought. But I make sure not to criticize my thought flow. I realize that whatever is thinking me has a sense of humor as well as a sense of horror.

Imagine you are on an island. The night sky is ablaze with stars, you hear ocean waves rolling in, but your mind can't relax. You think about all the things you have to do when you return home from vacation. You mull over what you left undone. Your body may have taken a vacation, but your mind is still working. I used to say that by the time I unwound and could relax, my vacation was over. This is the story of our lives. We substitute real life with thoughts and feelings. We don't revel in the stars at hand or listen to the song of the waves. We are off on some mind trip that keeps us bound to the past. We are on a train that's bound for Glory, but when we get to Glory, we don't get off the train. We've invested so much time in the vehicle that's taking us where we want to go, that we don't want to give it up.

Seasons come and go, and when we reach the end of our lives, we suddenly realize all the time we've wasted on inconsequentials. People write about how they would wear purple hats and eat more desserts, if they could do it over. But if that's all they are going to do with another life, they might as well forget it. Eating more ice cream and wearing a purple hat will only get you another course of life as it's always been. I really have nothing against purple hats or the Purple Hat Society. They are sweet, and the idea serves many. The purple hat/ice cream exposé points out that glamour, eccentricity, and gluttony will not be helpful in calming the seas of our minds.

The main function of our lives is to stay present and aware so we can experience what's really going on. We do not need to mentally comment on everything that happens in our lives: we need to experience life. The mind generates words and feelings, but we don't need to continually run after them. We must let them pass. Freedom comes with an awareness that watches a thought or emotion but doesn't get freaked out about it.

Here are some of the ways I get freedom from my mind:

• I watch how my mind categorizes people, things, and events. Rather than believe the thoughts, I think, "That's what the mind does. It has its little tricks." I use one thought to detach from another thought. When my mind churns, I dive deeper. My self-talk goes like this, "This level of mind will not bring you what you want. It gives you a lot of reasons to put others in an unfavorable light, but you are smart enough to know why it does that." I then focus my awareness on my breathing and let go of the uproar.
• If I can't detach, I ask for help. "Help," I say to the Universe. "I am willing to have my mind freed, but something is hanging on." I then refocus on my breath. Relief usually comes, but only when I am willing to drop the content of the drama.
• I look for myself. There's a space in the center of my head that I bring into focus. It's behind the eyes. I try to experience it, and when I get in the right space, I have that "Here I am" feeling. I don't comment on it; I just sense that space. It is calm and peaceful.
• I also focus on the three parts of my body that house emotional upset feelings. One is in the center of my chest. Another is in my solar plexus region, and the third spot is in my lower abdomen. I center my awareness in each space and watch my body's sensations. I stay focused on the area of unrest. Just watching helps me detach.

There are many paths to bring us into conscious awareness, that move us into freedom. It doesn't matter which one we take, but it is imperative that we stop aligning with our thoughts and feelings. Join me in stopping the mental mayhem. I'm sure that when we do, our lives will be EZier and EZier.

Anne

  Quotes

Anne Quotes

"Relevant living means living in an ongoing flow of harmony, rhythm, and peace. Relevant living not only erases fear, it creates an anticipatory style of being that remakes each moment into wonder."

"Things don’t have to be as they’ve always been. We can break the patterns and start again in love. It’s a great place to be if we don’t mind living in harmony. Of course, we will have to sacrifice our pettiness, gossip, and our need to be right. Just saying!"

"Humor creates insights that run deeper than words. It is the soul’s sword. It enlists the ego’s surrender. While the ego takes life as a series of problems to be solved, the soul celebrates the quiet, still reality of love."

  Featured Product This Month

Click here to check out Anne's newest book, Words Make A Difference, a book of affirmations, action plans, and deep insights into the human consciousness that transforms and heals the soul, the local and global community, and the planet. Travel with Gillis on a journey through deep psychology, metaphysics, and nondualism.

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  What is EZosophy?

Click the graphic above to learn about EZosophy.

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  Healthy Living

Losing Weight*

As I've aged, I've put on weight. This was not such a great problem. I used to be skinny, so I could stand to gain weight, but now it is a problem. I stopped taking natural hormones and my body shape rearranged itself. Now I'm not feeling too lithe, and so I'm ready to take off some fat.

In my 68 years, I've had many occasions to reduce my weight. I always kept myself on the slim side. People said I was lucky, but I knew it was exercise, mindset, and eating wholesome foods that did the job.

While it is important to eat appropriately and exercise in order to slim down, these are not the most important ingredients. I found that my mindset is the most important factor. My mind has to be in the right place. When I want to take off weight, I picture myself in my favorite clothes, and see them as fitting well in the present moment. These are ones that fit tightly now, but I pretend they fit well. I imagine myself standing on my scales and seeing myself at my desired weight. I develop an image of how I want to be and operate, as if it is true right now.

I don't try to restrict my eating right away; I wait for a signal. There's always a "this is it" moment, when I know I am ready to stick to my restricted eating plan. Once this signal goes off, I know what to do. I know what to eat and how to eat. My vegan plan leaves off sugar, grains, pasta, and breads. It focuses on eating raw foods. Each one of us has "the plan" that we know will work for us, but it is important to get our minds set in the right direction before we embark on weight reduction or our health renewal plan.

I prepared my consciousness for several weeks to drop weight, but had not gotten my "I can and will do it now" signal. My signal came this week. I had been to four social events, all food laden. I got up one morning with a food hangover. I felt terrible. I marched into my husband's office and declared, "We have to do something about this." He laughed. I poked my stomach out. The next day I went on my plan. I already feel better and, unfortunately, I am going on a 2-week trip that will not allow me the opportunity to stay on my plan. But my resolve will keep me from going full throttle on eating while on vacation. I work with this affirmation, "I always lose or maintain weight while traveling." Somehow that thought seems to back me up and I don't gain weight. Another of my other favorite affirmations is "My health is more important than my appetite."

If I go too long without getting a deep resolve to restrict my eating, I ask for help and continue to picture myself at the desired weight. Eventually something seems to turn around, and my eating patterns start changing. It is important to keep the image of how we want to be in our minds, rather than focusing on our current size. None of what I am doing is based in sacrifice; it is based on flow. I simply lose my desire for certain types of food.

You might be interested in Demonizing Food, another approach I take toward losing weight, that appeared in the Quest Journal in the winter of 2013. There are many approaches to losing weight, and the one to use is the one that works for you. Whatever the approach, it works best when we have an internal image of ourselves being the way we want to be. If we have an image of how we are now, sprinkled with a little hopelessness, the mind replicates that image and keeps us at that undesirable weight. When we continue to pretend we are the weight we want to be, it brings up a strong internal resolve to behave in a way that will bring our desired body image to pass. Bon appetite and happy healthing. We can do it.

* Some people believe we should not say we are going to lose weight, because when we lose something, we try to find it, so it's best to say "release weight." While I believe words are important, I think it's the intent behind them that is the important factor. I don't want to have to be politically correct when I'm talking about losing weight! If you find the idea of releasing weight more helpful than the idea of losing weight, then it's a good idea for you to use that term. Just remember, what is really important is seeing yourself the way you want to be.

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

  Anne Talks

The Path To Conscious Awakening

  Anne Art

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  Anne's Schedule

All times here are Central Time
unless otherwise specified.

Sunday, July 9, 2017
Unity Circle of Light
10:30 AM Service
"The Stages of Spiritual Awakening"
Creekside Elementary School
5949 Creekside Forest Dr.
The Woodlands, TX 77379

Saturday, August 5, 2017
Workshop, 9 AM - 3 PM EDT
"Ending the Suffering Syndrome:
The EZosophy Philosophy" $45.00
5 hours LPC, CE credits for LPC
Location: "The Cottage"
122 Alicia Drive
Summerville, SC
Click Here for Registration

Friday, August 11, 2017
Workshop, 9 AM - 3 PM EDT
"Building Self Esteem and Courage"
5 hours LPC, CE credits for LPC
Location: "The Cottage"
122 Alicia Drive
Summerville, SC
Click Here for Registration

Call or Email Anne Now to Schedule Her for Your Meeting.

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.