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Dear Friends,
We had a wonderful call with Lisa Oz last Monday night and you can
listen to it on our NEW audio podium number by calling 916-233-0660
box 253 or by visiting our website and downloading the MP3 file
here.
Thanks Lisa!
One of my favorite websites, www.ted.com, contains a library of
amazing talks from some of the world's greatest thinkers and
doers. I watch these talks all the time. On Saturday, May 10th,
they're sponsoring "Pangea Day" - a global film festival and I
encourage you to check it out. The day was born out of a wish to
unite the world through film and you can read all about it
here.
Finally, our Mother's Day special ends on Monday, May 5th at
midnight. To take advantage of the savings, click here.
Have a wonderful week...
Love,
Cheryl
p.s. - Need a little Divine Direction? Use the "Touch of Grace" button on our homepage here: http://www.cherylrichardson.com.
"Love is like a violin. The music may stop now and then,
but the strings remain forever."
--June Masters Bacher
I recently had a conversation with a woman who ended a five-year
relationship. She hoped this relationship would lead to marriage,
but found that as she made positive changes in her life, her
boyfriend felt threatened and uncomfortable and decided to move
on. She was deeply hurt and disappointed and wondered what to do to
handle the pain of her loss.
I was reminded of how difficult it can be when one person starts to
grow and the other isn't ready for or interested in change. While the
goal is to include our loved ones in our evolutionary journey, the
truth is that we sometimes move apart as we head down different
paths. My heart went out to this woman. Like her, I remember the
pain of losing a love who chose a different direction.
As we start to improve our lives, it will ruffle some feathers. To
help those you love, it's important to share your journey and remind
loved ones that your commitment to growth will result in you becoming
a better spouse, parent, friend, colleague, etc. We all have our own
spiritual path to walk and we can't make someone follow along. The
best you can do is focus on your own work and let your power of
example inspire others to do the same.
Next to the death of a loved one, facing the end of a relationship is
probably one of the most painful experiences to endure. If the path
you've chosen leads you to the end of a relationship (whether it's
romantic or not), there are several things you can do to comfort
yourself during the grieving process.
1. Write, write and write some more. This is perfect time to use a
journal (or to start one) to record your thoughts and feelings. The
act of putting pen to paper or fingers to keyboard, can help relieve
the pressure of your pain. Write about your fears, your sadness, or
the ending of a dream you thought would last forever. Pouring your
feelings out on the page will help you to get to the truth. You may
discover, for example, that you've been in love with the potential of
what could be rather than the reality of what is for a long, long time.
2. Find a supportive community. When reaching out for support you
might try two things. First, find a safe person to share your
feelings with as you go through the steps of grieving your loss.
Having the support of a few good friends who know how to listen
(without giving advice or opinions) can make a world of difference at
a time when you just need to be heard. You might even ask a couple
of friends to be available for late night phone calls when you might
feel especially lonely. Second, consider joining a group of people
who understand what you're going through. Sometimes a divorce or grief support group can be very helpful as well as online groups.
Check with friends, your doctor or therapist, or search the web for
resources. You can certainly use our message boards here:
http://www.cherylrichardson.com/forums/
3. Use your loss as a learning opportunity. There's an excellent
book called, "Coming Apart: Why Relationships End and How to Live Through the Ending of Yours," by Daphne Rose Kingma. This book
offers a very useful step-by-step process designed to help you
navigate through the rocky waters of ending a relationship. The
exercises will challenge you to examine your relationship and gain a
better understanding of what went wrong so you can avoid similar
pitfalls in the future. You'll not only find support for letting go
gracefully, you'll also learn more about how to make even healthier
relationship choices in the future.
Be gentle with yourself during this time of transition. Remember,
for every ending there is a new beginning waiting just around the
corner. The more you allow yourself to fully heal from this
experience, the better the new beginning will be. Letting go can be
very painful, but with time and a strong dose of self-care, you'll be
back to feeling like a better version of yourself again soon.
~*~ Take Action Challenge ~*~
If you are in the process of ending a relationship, or suffering
through one that's already ended, use the advice above to take good
care of yourself during this difficult time. If you're not going
through the ending of a relationship, use this week's broadcast as a
reminder to thank your partner, children, siblings or friends for
supporting your efforts to change your life for the better. Don't
take loved ones for granted. Send a card, make an unexpected phone
call, say "thanks" in some meaningful way. Remember that our
relationships need extreme self care too!
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