Tag Archive for: choosing

Brain FM: Now Playing…

Have you ever had a song or tune stuck in your head?
It frequently happens in our home.
Randomly, from nowhere, a catchy piece of music keeps replaying involuntarily through your mind.
It’s usually just a few notes, a little fragment, a snippet of music, a catchy chorus, a little jingle, or a repetitive melody from a familiar song.
Do you know what I mean?
It just loops over and over in your head, without intentionally even thinking about it.
It’s if your brain hits repeat on a song, you didn’t even ask it to play!
They’re commonly called “𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒔”.
They can last for a few minutes, many hours or even days on end, at least that’s our experience.
In our home, Monic and I are pretty good at infecting each other too.
Randomly, either one of us will start humming a tune or whistling a song, only to find that the other one joins in by completing the next part of the melody.
Then, the other one completes the next part, and we go back n forward, over and over again!
And just like that, we’ve passed the earworm on.
It’s like a musical baton relay with no finish line.
Its relentless!
We don’t even know who started it, or why we’re suddenly singing “Sweet Caroline” in the middle of our breakfast.
Or, one hum, one whistle “da-da-da-da-da-DAAA- da…and boom – we’re off again!
But we always end up laughing, every single time.
But here’s a thought: if our brains are that good at replaying nonsense jingles, imagine the power of putting something intentional on loop.
What if we chose our mental soundtrack a little more deliberately?
Like a kind thought, a hopeful mantra of some kind, or a bit of truth you need to hear today.
Gratitude. Encouragement. Hope.
So, tell me, what song gets stuck in your head?
And what thought could you intentionally replace it with today?

As a Man Thinketh

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭?
“For as [a man] thinketh in his heart, so is he” – Proverbs 23:7
The vast majority of Proverbs were written by King Solomon.
You will recall that he was regarded as one of the wisest men who ever lived.
Each concise proverb is designed to give us a deeper perspective on life, living, and in turn, hopefully better decision making!

My question then is…

“Is this statement actually really true?”
Consciously or subconsciously our minds are always in motion.
“Your thoughts are the architects of your destiny” said David O. McKay.
The ability to learn, to think, to choose, and to reason, all define us as human beings.
I believe that our innate ability to think, goes much, much deeper.
Essentially, our thoughts become a reflection of who we really are.
Daily, we can choose to fill our minds with whatever we want.
And there is so much choice!
Good, Bad, Beautiful, Ugly, Happy, Sad, Clean, Unclean, Cheerful, Dreary, Hope, Despair…..
Whatever we choose to let into our minds will in turn, generally become the pattern of what will then transpire in our lives.
Who we are, and where we are, in life is principally the result of our own actions and choices, all of which begin in our minds as thoughts and desires.
If you think it long enough, you are very likely to do it.
Daily we choose.
Daily we act.
It is in our minds that our futures are made.
We are responsible for the thoughts we think and the purposes we pursue.
You are the master of them.
Controlling our thoughts helps us to conquer ourselves.
“What we see triggers what we think, what we think influences what we desire, what we desire affects our actions, our combined actions determine our character, and our character determines our eternal destiny.” – Dallin H. Oaks
Is your mind a happy place to be?

What path are you on in life?

Recently I was asked “Am I on the right path?”
Throughout my life I have observed that small course corrections, can make a dramatic difference to the success we have in our home, family and personal lives.
I recall a message by Dieter F. Uchtdorf who said: “Suppose you were to take off from an airport at the equator, intending to circumnavigate the globe, but your course was off by just one degree. By the time you returned to the same longitude, how far off course would you be? A few miles? A hundred miles? The answer might surprise you. An error of only one degree would put you almost 500 miles (800 km) off course, or one hour of flight for a jet.”
Clearly errors of only a few degrees, minor things even, can sometimes lead to terrible tragedies, disasters and the arrival at a different destination than the one you set out to achieve in the first place. “The longer we delay corrective action, the larger the needed changes become, and the longer it takes to get back on the correct course—even to the point where a disaster might be looming.”

𝐀𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐨𝐟𝐟 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞?

What corrective actions do you need to take to get back on course?
Is it simply a matter of taking time to stop… reflect, consider and refocus on what really matters most?
What distractions are in your way?
Distractions: “a thing that prevents someone from concentrating on something else”.
Benjamin Franklin stated ” We stand at the crossroads, each minute, each hour, each day, making choices. We choose the thoughts we allow ourselves to think, the passions we allow ourselves to feel and the actions we allow ourselves to perform. Each choice is made in the context of whatever value system we’ve selected to govern our lives. In selecting that value system, we are, in a very real way, making the most important choice we will ever make”.
As I have grown fond of repeatedly saying recently – your personal values are your sure compass in life. Be true to them, live them, honour them – they are essentially who you really are.
“May we always choose the harder right, instead of the easier wrong” – Thomas S. Monson
From time to time, distractions and errors of judgement will happen.
We all need to accept that, there will occasionally be some moments of real serendipity along the way.
Be mindful to take corrective action, consider what really matters most, refocus and get back on the course that will enable you to arrive safely at your intended destination.
I am fond of a quote by Henry B Eyring, who said that “If you are on the right PATH, it will always be UPHILL” – How true that is!
Like my recent picture from Keukenhof below, there are many beautiful things to see and admire along the path that you choose to follow – if you will take the time to seek them out.
Where will your path lead you today?