Written by: Jean Nelson

When we are young we look to those who are older and more experienced, to the wisdom they have gained from a life rich in learning. We try to emulate them. We come into the world innocent and without experience. We are given our lives and the agency to choose our own way. Many of us are blessed from our youth with hope for opportunity, yet it is up to us to seek what we will, no matter what we are given. It is up to us to think, feel and then to act, using the wonderful gifts of our minds and our hearts to create. Will we build a life of meaning? Will we seek knowledge, love, wisdom? Will we be happy?

I have always loved quotes. In high school I had a little red notebook dedicated to collecting quotes that were inspiring and thought provoking. I searched through lots of books to find gems that I could record. I read them over and over and pondered their meanings. I treasured my little book and still have it, forty years later. It is the thoughts of our hearts that makes who we are, isn’t it?

I still love quotes and use them to lift and inspire myself and others. A few weeks ago, I organized an activity for some young girls and their mothers. This group of girls had been learning about manners and etiquette. I decided to provide a way for them to practice their newly acquired etiquette skills with beautiful china, real silverware and cloth napkins. Arrangements were made at a local tea room and a date was set for a luncheon. I printed some inspiring quotes on card stock and decorated the tables with the cards. We used the thoughts on the cards as a way to shape our conversation, insuring that we would feel the uplifting effect of the quotes, as that was their intended purpose. We enjoyed the delicious food, so elegantly presented, and had lovely conversations. I was happy to see smiles on the girls’ faces. It was a special time for them to be together as friends and to be with their moms. We kind of didn’t want the time to end. I hoped, when it was over, that we had created something that would be a wonderful childhood memory for them.

One quote that was placed on a table read: “Your thoughts are the architects of your destiny,” by David O. McKay. How true that is! What we think builds our future life. Thoughts nearly always precede actions, don’t they? The things that you think about are eventually the choices and actions of your life. How you spend your time, the talents that you work to develop, what you learn and how you apply your education, the career that you choose, the relationships that you nurture, where you decide to live…all depend upon what you have thought about. The thoughts of your heart and mind will set a plan in motion to build your destiny. Eventually you will end up with what your thoughts and actions have created. This brings an awareness with it, that we are largely responsible for the outcomes of our lives. The actions that produce our results have been brewing in our hearts and minds all along.

When you experience an unwanted outcome, how did you get there? Where did it start? Did a certain thought create a negative feeling? Or did negative feelings lead to incorrect thinking? It’s kind of like asking, “Which came first, the chicken or the egg?” I think it can go either way. We can be influenced by circumstances, the choices or feelings or reactions of others, incorrect or insufficient information, and many other things that cause us to think or feel. One thought or feeling can and does lead to another. Actions with their consequences inevitably follow, whether we like what happens or not.

We can’t always think and feel and choose our actions correctly. We’re human. To attempt to do so is admirable, but we do make mistakes. Life is actually kind of like a lab or a school to provide opportunity to learn how to choose. What’s important is that we take notice of our thoughts, learn from our experiences and choose to feel good that we are growing, in spite of our challenges. The sooner we catch ourselves in our mistakes, and correct our course, the better. That means less damage, less baggage, and more learning. Experience can be a good teacher, whether it is our own or observed.

How can you change the outcomes of your past actions that are now causing problems? How can you change the results that you don’t like? If you retrace your past actions, you may find choices that you made, which came from the thoughts and feelings that you once had. It’s important to realize that those things may have contributed to, or created your current reality. If you want to change that reality, you may need to adjust your attitude, or in other words, find a new way of thinking and feeling. That reminds me of another quote that I put on the table, this one by Oprah Winfrey. “The greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change his future by merely changing his attitude.” As you change your attitude, actions may be affected and changed as well. If you are willing to learn and let go of incorrect thoughts and actions that don’t serve to get you where you want to go you are bound to feel an upward momentum toward a better result, which hopefully includes more happiness.

Scientifically speaking, there is energy that is generated from feeling and thinking. When energy has a negative vibe, problems can result, especially if that energy gets stuck and stays with you. With a negative emotional frequency in your energy field in the form of a trapped emotion you may have a hard time changing your attitude, because you’ve got “emotional baggage.” You might find yourself feeling, thinking, and consequently acting differently than you otherwise would if that energy weren’t there! Negative trapped emotions and thoughts cause physical, mental and emotional imbalances of all sorts which may persist until the energy moves out. Albert Szent-Gyorgyl, a Nobel Laureate in Medicine said, “In every culture and in every medical tradition before ours, healing was accomplished by moving energy.” Just like cultures of the past were able to see the value of moving energy, alternative thinking individuals in today’s culture have embraced energy healing once again because they have seen the impact that trapped energy can exert on the mind and body.

Did you know that you can inherit emotional energy from your ancestors? No joke, your ancestors can pass the energy of their negative feelings and incorrect thinking to you. Those energies can get trapped in your body creating problems that you didn’t even choose. This is not the kind of heritage that you want. Their old emotions can be affecting how you feel and think, and can be contributing to an outcome that you don’t want for your life. They can cause physical pain and malfunction and often, do exactly that. They are real and can hurt you in many ways. Fortunately, trapped emotions are easy to find and easy to get rid of.

If you want to see if emotional energy and incorrect thinking is at the root of some of your challenges, all you have to do is make a decision to invest a little bit of time to learn how to do the Emotion Code. It’s a very simple method and a powerful tool. You can experience it for yourself. You will love the new feelings of lightness and freedom that will come after your emotional baggage is gone. You will probably find yourself feeling happier, thinking higher thoughts, making better decisions and getting better outcomes. Well known is the quote, “There is no time like the present.” The time to build a better destiny is now. The Emotion Code can help you to live your life from your heart, free from the injuries of the past. I hope that you will choose to empower yourself with the Emotion Code, to create the life that you want. All you need to do is to put forth the necessary effort, after all “The difference between try and triumph is a little umph.” That one was anonymous. 🙂