Author: Karen Lang

Counselor/Energy Healer Grief Mentor/Mindfulness teacher/ Author of two books.

Compassion and Patience

by Karen Lang, posted in Uncategorized

An extract from SoulSeeds

An 85 year old man was sitting on the sofa with his 50 year old son.  Suddenly a crow perched on their window.  The Father asked his Son, “What is this?” The Son replied “It is a crow”.

After a few minutes, the Father asked his Son the 2nd time, “What is this?”The Son said “I just told you “It’s a crow”. After a little while, the old Father again asked his Son the 3rd time, What is this?”

Then the son got impatient. “It’s a crow, I told you, a crow, a crow”.

A little after, the Father again asked his Son the 4th time, “What is this?”

This time the Son shouted at his Father, “Why do you keep asking me the same question again and again. I have told you so many times ‘IT IS A CROW’. Are you listening?”

A little later the Father went to his room and came back with an old tattered diary, which he had kept since his Son was born. He opened a page, and asked his Son to read it. The following words were written in the diary-

“Today my three year old son was sitting with me on the sofa, and a crow was sitting on the window. He asked me 23 times what it was, and I replied to him all 23 times that it was a crow. It made me smile so much. I hugged him  each time he asked me the same question again and again for 23 times, smiled and told him again. It was a beautiful moment to share.”

Remember that if someone is annoying you, they are often just doing the best they can. And remember that you were once an innocent child, asking naive but beautifully open questions. And remember that you were once a self preoccupied teenager, thinking the world only revolved around you.

When we find ourselves caught up in the world of impatience and frustration,  remember to become still and see life through eyes of compassion and patience for ourselves and each other.

Becoming Aware

by Karen Lang, posted in Uncategorized

“We attract what we’re meant to because we’re aware & self-empowered enough to choose most of the time. Other times we have lessons to learn”  – Jay Woodman

I was having a massage the other day by a Physiotherapist and she said, so many people come in for treatment and yet are not aware of what their bodies need or their limitations.

I have heard this from people who have just been given a tragic diagnosis as well, when they say “I never knew.”  Why are we not aware?  I have found that when I became aware and conscious of my thoughts and beliefs, I became aware of my body and all that it needs.

“Be afraid of nothing but be aware of everything.” Rajan Shrestha

I believe we can’t do one without the other.  We must first become conscious of ourselves, our thoughts and our beliefs and work out why we do what we do.  It is then we can start to know who we are and what we need.

When we ignore the signs and warnings that our bodies give us, we are ignoring our needs from being met and what could be important than your life?  You cannot rewind time, so when you trust that your body will tell you what you need, you will learn to live a healthy long life.

This of course does not happen with a switch of thought but rather through a practise of stillness and meditation regularly, and overtime you will become aware and learn to feel and know what you need.

How often have you felt tired, exhausted and run down, only to tell yourself “I cannot stop, I need to keep going”.  When we respect our bodies and nurture ourselves regularly, we will learn that a short break is far easier to do, than a long haul in hospital or in bed.

There is only one you, there is only one life.  You make all the decisions and choices that create the life you are living, so become responsible in those choices and enjoy the immense love and joy that is waiting in life for you to experience.

Be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars. In the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul.” ~Max Ehrmann

Eagle’s View

by Karen Lang, posted in Uncategorized

From above, everything looks smaller…..It’s much easier to get over something small. 

When I’m overwhelmed with thoughts of stress or feel I cannot see past my present problem, I remember the picture I have of an Eagle flying above and remember that when I look at my problem from a different perspective, I see things differently and I find I have more clarity and a clearer vision to find a solution.

Whatever happens, it is important to be aware that we create our thoughts and allow images in that have a greater or lesser impact within us.  When I learn to create thoughts of love, courage, trust and determination about any situation I am in, it allows each situation to unfold and I begin to work with it, rather than against it.

“Never too old, never too bad, never too late, never too sick to start from scratch once again.” -Bikram Choudhury. – See more at: http://exploreforayear.com/clarity/45-inspiring-quotes-change#sthash.KLYwACzj.dpuf

When I accept myself and the situation, it means I am allowing myself to feel what I am feeling at that moment.  If I argue against it, I suffer.  On accepting it, I become what I should be and that is vast, spacious and connected.  When I accept it, I feel that I am in the right place, at the right time and I am doing exactly what I should be.

Out of the place of acceptance, a different action is created.  An action that respects, joins together, opens, calms and embraces the situation.  I know this is easier said than done, this is no easy task when we have been hurt or let down, but when we learn to practice this belief, we become less disappointed with others and our journey.

“Never to old, never too bad, never too late, never too sick to start again from scratch.”  – Bikram Choudhury

When we don’t accept rejection, insecurity, sickness, anger, fear or disapproval, we keep it locked within us and unfortunately it doesn’t go away but grows inside until you burst or  get sick.

If you are feeling overwhelmed or stuck try this:

Sit on the grass somewhere quietly. Take in a deep breath and inhale and exhale slowly three times. On the fourth breath, let out a loud OOOOMMMMM and feel your body relaxing. Then Imagine yourself being above this situation you are in and seeing it small.  See yourself accepting this moment and this situation.  Take another three breaths in and tell yourself  “I am light, I am at peace with this situation” and see yourself resolving it.

What was, was, and has passed.  It no longer is.  Everything is a continuous change.  It is the law of life, nothing is permanent.  So embrace change wherever you can in your life and accept the law of life because when we do, we free ourselves and learn to fly like EAGLE.

“We cannot discover new oceans unless we have the courage to lose sight of the shore.” –  Andre Gide

Be Positive but Be Real …..

by Karen Lang, posted in Uncategorized

“Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the wind. Live your life to the fullest potential, and fight for your dreams.”  – Ashley Smith

Life can be full of positive experiences if we look at them positively but how hard is that to do everyday?  I think most of us can relate to the question “How is everything going?” and we all reply “Great Thanks” and yet is it?

At some point in our life, we have all been afraid to show our true-self to others in fear that others may see us less than perfect and yet, if we felt free to be more honest about our life then perhaps we would work through our issues more and run away less.

Feeling isolated from our feelings is not real and does not help us live our truth. Finding the balance between being positive and real is difficult and yet there is a formula.  I find that when I am honest about my feelings at the time, whether they are sad, angry or happy and can express them freely, I feel more positive.

Try not dwell on any one emotion for long periods because life changes constantly and when we are able connect to each moment completely, we learn to let go easily and this helps us move forward in the right direction.

“Doing something positive will help turn your mood around. When you smile, your body relaxes. When you experience human touch and interaction, it eases tension in your body.”  – Simone Elkeles

We often convince ourselves that we cannot change, that we cannot overcome the circumstances of our lives. That is simply not true. You have been blessed with immeasurable power to make positive changes in your life, so tap into that amazing power and start to live it.

So YES be positive in your life but validate your feelings when they come to the surface and give yourself time to express your feelings and then let them go.  You will find as you live this way, others will also share their truth and life will become deeper for you.

“The real question is, can you love the real you? Not the perfect person you want to be, not the image of the old you, but who you really are.”

Accepting yourself, Accepting others

by Karen Lang, posted in Uncategorized

Why compare yourself with others? No one in the entire world can do a better job of being you than you.” ~Unknown

The first question we need to ask ourselves is whether we actually believe we are lovable.  Over the years I have put a lot of pressure of myself to be perfect and this takes a lot of energy to keep up.  Of course this type of belief falls short overtime because none of us is perfect and so keeping up with the illusion is very difficult.

Most of us feel that only “certain parts” of ourselves are lovable.  So we are happy to show the perfect, “nothing bothers me” side to others but perhaps not the negative, sad side of ourself because we believe that no-one would love that part of us. This is where the process of self judgement starts to deplete our energy and love for ourself and others.

We do it unconsciously all day, every day. Just pay attention. Any time we are comparing, judging, or simply being negative we are depleting our energy, which makes us feel bad, and therefore makes us want to do it more. So how do we get out of this pattern of dislike and judgement on ourselves?

  1. Validate our feelings, “It’s okay to feel bad sometimes.”
  2. Refrain from judging or placing negativity on our thoughts or feelings.
  3. Give ourselves time to enjoy life and learn to nurture your needs.
  4. Listen to and respect your inner-self and intuition.
  5. Reassure ourselves that what we are experiencing will pass.
  6. Remind ourselves of all the wonderful things that we are.
  7. Be grateful for the little (and big) things in our lives.

When you are feeling down on yourself, write a list of the goals and achievements you have succeeded in and write about the positive parts of yourself.  When you begin to focus on everything that is right in you, you will be so surprised how you become more tolerant and accepting of others as well.

“You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection”   – Gautama Buddha