• Posts by Celia McBride

    The Bigger Picture

    • September 23, 2009 6:29 am

    Would you believe I woke up 30 seconds before the cat pounced on me in anticipation of the rude awakening?

    Sometimes we know things before they happen.

    How does that work?

    Last night I went into the local Correctional Facility to talk to a group of female inmates about what life could be like for them if they stopped drinking.

    There were eight women there and they were all (perhaps save one — though she looked it) First Nations.

    I was reminded of Steve Earle’s song “Billy Austin” in which Billy describes the men in his prison as “mostly black, and brown and poor.”

    All of these women were brown and poverty was something they had no doubt all experienced. All of them were there because of crimes committed under the influence of alcohol.

    We were talking about the “spiritual experience” of noticing the world around us, seeing the bigger picture, connecting to a higher sense of being through nature; tuning in to the colour of the sky, the texture of the grass, the birds flying above.

    By the end of our session there was hope in the room.

    Inspiring Message for the Day: When we take the time to think about how a tree can grow from a tiny seed, how the earth spins around the sun, how we can know things before they happen, we are connecting to the Life Force Energy of the Universe, and we can overcome hopelessness.

    Forgive the Thief

    • September 22, 2009 5:10 am

    When you sleep with your arm purposefully resting along your side so your cat won’t damage your kidneys when he leaps on your exposed waist at 5:07 a.m., you do have to wonder, “What is the message?” when he does just that.

    I was dreaming of a man talking about a thief. Judging him for what he’d done.

    POUNCE!

    Shocked awake.

    Instead of strangling the cat, I pray.

    What is the message?

    I am immediately reminded, because of the dream, of an incident that happened to me recently when I went away to see a friend get married and lead the Inspiring Workshop, Cultivate Your Courage, in Vancouver.

    When I returned home from the trip I noticed that a traditional Native-looking beaded bracelet was missing from my bathroom. I waited a few days, not really thinking it could be stolen, and then looked in all the places I may have put it for safekeeping.

    Not there.

    I called the house-sitter who had been staying here and asked her if she’d seen it. She said she would ask her granddaughters.

    I had met one of her granddaughters when the lady arrived to look after the apartment. A small child of five, the young girl had played with the cat while I hurriedly did a last minute check before heading for the airport.

    Sure enough, the house-sitter called back and said her granddaughter had the bracelet and could she come over to apologize?

    Poor thing, I thought. How sad. How sweet.

    I imagined her coming into my apartment, crying, and I would sit her down and say, “I used to steal things, too. It’s okay. You told the truth. That is all that matters.”

    When the knock on the door came and I readied myself to teach the crying little girl a profound life lesson, I was surprised to see a 16-year old Native-looking girl as tall as I am standing before me.

    “Sorry,” she said and handed me the bracelet. She wasn’t crying. Her mother looked more sheepish than she did.

    A teenager! Boy, I could really teach her a lesson! I could give her a lecture she wouldn’t soon forget. I could tell her about all the things I stole and how I’ve had to make amends. I could tell her that despite the fact that she wasn’t truly remorseful she one day would be.

    “It takes a lot of courage to do what you just did and I appreciate that,” I said.

    Her mother and I exchanged a smile.

    When your cat leaps on you at 5 a.m., what is the message?

    Take advantage of it. Blog for change.

    Inspiring Message of the Day: It is better to thank someone for what they did do rather than chastise them for what they didn’t .

    Joining the Masses

    • September 21, 2009 5:47 am

    This is what I used to think about bloggers:

    Self-centred in the extreme. Ego maniacs.

    Who thinks that she is important enough to have people read her thoughts about everything and anything? Who cares?

    Yesterday I went to see the film Julie and Julia and instead of judging Amy for blogging about cooking her way through Julia Child’s book I was inspired.

    The movie, however, was not exactly what led to this auspicious beginning.

    At 5 o’clock this morning the cat woke me up, as he does every bloody morning, in the cruelest and most unusual way:

    He jumps on my stomach from the window ledge above the bed. It’s not only a shock to be woken out of a deep sleep, it is painful.

    I was mad. Like, ready to hurt him, mad.

    So I began to do the thing that I do to survive and thrive in this crazy world: I pray.

    Please help me to accept this little beast, help me to understand what it is I’m supposed to do, how can I see this in a different way, how can I love him despite the fact that he is such a pest, show me what to do, free me from my anger, guide me in this situation.

    And the idea for a blog just swooped right in.

    “I could write a blog to inspire people,” I thought. Inspiring Works is the name of my coaching business and Inspiration is Courage.

    So here is the Inspiring Message of the Day:

    When something happens to me that I do not like, that feels like cruel and unusual punishment, I will see it as an opportunity for growth. I will use it to change the world, be of service, help others. I will thank the person/place/thing that gave me the lesson, for he/she/it is my greatest teacher.

    Thank you Julie and Julia. Thank you, cat.