Pain

by Shelley D. Brienza

As I sat watching Oprah's Life Class last week on TV I began taking notes. So many of the things she teaches on her show are things that can be applied to anyone's life.

This day she had Iyanla Vanzant speaking out to the audience. She talked about pain. She said pain stands for "Pay-Attention-Inward-Now"!

Throughout the class questions were asked and I thought those very questions can be asked of you and of myself.

What do you want? Sounds easy enough to answer but is it? I want a lot of things and some of those things I just don't really need. I just want them. I think wants are too many to list and not even important enough to list. It's like it's frivolous things. What do you think?

What is your vision? The vision they speak of is, what do you see for yourself? They talked about how one's vision is different from what idea you may have for your life. And that often people can "fall in love" with an "idea" and not the reality that a "vision" can bring. What do you envision for yourself? I know I have often "fallen in love" with my "ideas", only to have them not work out and become sad or disappointed. Now I see if I have a vision for myself then it is more likely to become a reality. I envision that I will continue to work hard to make my publication successful even though it is a hard process, the rewards are great.

What is your story? This question asks you what words can you use to describe what your life story really is? Is it, "I am a mom and have four kids and stay home to raise them?" Or is it, "I am a visionary who tried many routes to get to where I am today as a publisher?" I am a woman, whose life struggles created a more independent woman who goes against the grain to fulfill my own path for myself. I am a mother of two, a wife, a dreamer, a creative person, a compassionate woman, always curious. I am a publisher, author and blog writer. That more accurately describes me. So you can see how your story is.

And then some tips I learned were, "Love can fill your hole. Love being God. State the facts and tell the truth." And many of us have an "idea" or "picture" of what we think we want for our lives but we don't have a "vision" which is the reality of what something is.

If you start off talking like "I want this and this or that in my life," this is not a story. State the facts and the truth, that will be your true story. It's a learning process for us all; That is part of the journey.