Dreams have No Expiration Date . . .

"People like you and I, though mortal of course like everyone else, do not grow old no matter how long we live . . . [We] never cease to stand like curious children before the great mystery into which we were born." ~ Albert Einstein (letter to Otto Juliusburger)

Photo: Upward by Llima Orosa (courtesy of the artist)

I can relate to this quote from Albert Einstein. I find myself in love with life and the beauty of nature and people around me at all times. I look at the sky and I am constantly amazed by what I see. Cloud formations that bring to mind magical cities full of wonder. On my daily walk to catch the bus I spend the 8 or 10 minutes it takes to get to the bus stop in pure bliss, just staring at the sky, amazed if I see an airplane flying above and cutting through a big cloud. What a miracle!

I've never been one to think too much about age. I think the last time a birthday made any sort of bleep in my radar was my 25th. That was the only time I thought about it and only because someone asked me how it felt to be a quarter of a century. I had never thought of it that way. But, that was it really. I went through my twenties not really paying much attention. Well, I was hardly paying attention to my life let alone what age I was. Thirty made no impression or thirty five. Most of those years I sort of coasted along, not really putting too much emphasis on where my life was headed or what I was doing here.

This all changed a couple of years ago when I started to question my purpose here on Earth. One thing led to another and the more involved I became in taking control over my reality, being a participating co-creator in my life, the more enchanted I became with the world around me. Then, when I was chosen by my art to bring it to life on paper, nothing's ever been the same.

This new-found sense of wonder and excitement has just grown stronger ever since I started daydreaming on a regular basis. I've written before about how we come into this physical realm with the ability and knowledge to be able to do anything we set our minds to. There was never any doubt that what I wanted to happen, would indeed happen. It was a given. Nothing was going to stop me from doing what I wanted to do.

OK, so I lost the connection for a while but exercising my imagination with guided daydreams and visualizations has once again connected me to this brilliant energy. The energy that I felt when I was a child. I do believe that anything is possible and that we have the ability to use our magical powers to create our lives. We have the ability to make the impossible, POSSIBLE.

And age? What's age? We are ageless beings. As Dr. Wayne Dyer writes in his new book, Excuses Begone!, "Part of you has an ageless mind and is quite oblivious to the physical aging process - and it's available to you if you'll just encourage it with conscious invitations to participate in your life." Our ability to dream and to act on those dreams and make them a reality is also ageless. The thoughts that shoot rockets of desire off into the ever-abundant and wish-granting Universe have no concept of age. They have no idea how long my physical being has been here on this planet. Those thoughts are absolutely pure, without an expiration date, and have every right to have me work towards their manifestation.

I encourage you to once again take the time and nurture your dreams. Take them out for a test-drive and play with them a little. Slowly, bring back that little kid that believed in magic, in fairy tales and in the impossible. He or she is still quite capable of teaching you all you really need to know about why you are here and what amazing things you can do, what beautiful things you can have, and what a brilliant person you can be. Take a lesson from the child in you about what an incredible world we live in. Bring back that sense of wonder and every single day, you'll be able to give thanks for being here and find new things to be grateful for. Defy aging and join Einstein in becoming one of the "curious children", always amazed by life!

Peace and Light and KEEP DREAMING!

Gene-Manuel

Watch your words with care . . .

"Watch your thoughts, for they become words.
Watch your words, for they become actions.
Watch your actions, for they become habits.
Watch your habits, for they become character.
Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.”

~ BUDDHA

After a daydreaming session, it's so important to keep that dreamy, positive energy going. I can't stress this enough. Make sure you follow a daydream with some words affirming those dreams. This is important, because the last thing you want to do is negate what you've done with negative thoughts or words.

For example, let's say you've taken a five-minute break to do a little dreaming. All is beautiful. All is just perfect in your daydream. The time is up and you follow your dreams with "Well, that was nice. . . But, it'll never happen." BLOCK! With just those few words you've completely blocked the manifesting energy of your dream. With a simple thought of "that was a complete waste of time," you're on your way to proving yourself right. It was a complete waste of your time if you just didn't let yourself believe.

This is a feeling Universe and as I've written before, when we let ourselves dream as vividly as we can, we come close to "living as if!" We let ourselves experience those feelings of living the life we truly want. In turn, powerful manifesting powers are activated. But, with a simple sentence of doubt or disbelief, you can block that flow. There is, as the famous book states, MAGIC in believing. Let yourself experience this magic if only for those five minutes a day. But make sure to keep the magic going. Once you're finished with your daydream, follow it with a few positive closing words. Try "As we think, so we'll become." "Let all these things or something greater manifest for me." Or, as Meister Eckhart said, "If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is thank you, it will be enough." Just say a simple "Thank You" after your daydreaming session and that will be enough to keep you in the flow.

I try to stay in that creative dream flow for as long as I can after a daydream session or after my meditation. With a simple "Thank You" I acknowledge what I've done. I give thanks for all of the possibilities and opportunities that will appear as I work towards those dreams. Oh yes! There's work involved when there are dreams to manifest. But, it all begins with the dream!

Peace and Light to you and KEEP DREAMING!

Gene-Manuel

The Dream Symbol

Symbols are an integral part of my art. Whenever I'm working on a piece, they somehow make their way in. Most of the time I am not really aware of what symbols will end up on a particular piece. It's really a moment by moment process unless the art is commissioned and I know what specific symbols I need to concentrate on.

Dealing so much with dreams and daydreaming lately, I decided to Google "dream symbols" or "symbols for dreams" and all I received were either books on dreams and what they mean or images that really had nothing to do with what I was looking for. I really wanted to find a symbol for just dreams or dreaming. As it turns out, there weren't any. So, I thought I'd give it a try and see if a symbol came to me. I wanted to start using it in my art and also as part of "Day-Dreaming Tuesdays."

I sat down at my drawing table and the symbol below came to me rather quickly.

As you can see, it's very simple. The flame in the center stands for many things. Sometimes I think of it as our imagination. The spark where all dreams reside waiting to explode into the physical world. The symbol also stands for always keeping your dreams alive. That's what that flame represents as well. It means to always keep that little light burning inside of you. Many times during my major bouts with depression in the past, one of the ways I got through them was just knowing that I was meant to do something with my life. I might not have known what that was, but I always felt some thing, some small piece of hope inside me that would always keep me going. I see that flame in the symbol as that small amount of hope that has always kept me going in times of deep sorrow or depression. Even when I wasn't aware of how the Universe works and the power of my thinking, I always had that inner knowing. That spark within me was always flickering and giving me, whether I was truly aware of it or not, strength to continue.

I've started using the Dream symbol in some of my art. It also stands for HOPE and BELIEVING in your dreams, your future, your LIFE! There's always a space for all those things in my work I think. Feel free to copy the image above and print it out. Place it on your Vision Board or anywhere that's visible to you. Make it a reminder to always believe in your dreams and no matter what your present situation might be, that spark within you will never die, it's always flickering away. We're here to enjoy life and make our dreams come true. We all have the power to do so. And, we all need a reminder every now and again.

Peace and Light and KEEP DREAMING!

Gene-Manuel

Back to the gym

So, finally, after about 8 months, I took the walk to my gym. The gym that I've been making monthly payments to just to help them out with their rent I guess, since I haven't set foot in it. When I first stopped waking up at 7am and doing my morning workout, I blamed it on my new-found love and obsession: my art. I was working until 2 or 3 in the morning every single night on all these wonderful pieces of art. I really could care less about getting to the gym in the morning, and after I come home from my various jobs, I'm too tired to go.

One thing led to another and one week turned into two, two weeks into a month and a month into 8 MONTHS. I'm of the belief that if I don't work out, and stop counting points (Weight Watchers) I will gain weight, therefore, I did. I've gained about 20lbs back out of the 35 I lost last year. Not a big deal to some, but I feel them right away. My jeans let me know something was up a couple of months ago actually. Looking good in jeans is one thing but I'm more interested in occupying the right amount of space in this world. What I mean by that is this: when I'm bigger than my "normal" size, I feel like I'm occupying more space than I need to. I'm heavier, not in just the physical sense, but in all ways. When I'm at the weight that is right for me, I feel so light and so just "right" that it's as if I'm able to float. It's also a mental weight that gets lifted as well.

So, anyway, I gained the 20lbs and with work and my mom being sick and facing that depression I wrote about, I just have not concentrated on working out at all. Today was the day though. I didn't plan on it. I woke up and just knew that I was going to go back to the gym. Now, I've been working on minding my own business, like Byron Katie says. And also, not letting my ego get in the way and making me afraid of doing things just because I fear judgment from others. For the most part, I can say I do pretty well with that. What other people say or think about me is not really my problem. You cannot live your life trying to please others because you will most likely always be disappointed or hurt. I totally get that.

Yet, there I was, walking to the gym and some of those thoughts, (in this case, little rocks not boulders), appeared on my way. "What are the people at the gym going to say? Here he is again . . . he gained weight . . . again. Why does he keep doing that?" Blah blah blah.

As I was walking and thinking these thoughts, I actually started laughing. It was a little surprising to me that I was thinking this. That there was a part of me that actually still worried about what others thought. Especially about my weight. I'm glad I started laughing and kept walking because there would have been a time years and years ago when I probably would have turned back and gone home. Can you imagine giving others that much power over your life?

Those thoughts, if not dealt with or at least investigated, could really be damaging. I think back at my high-school self and remember how those feelings kept me trapped for so long. I was afraid of doing anything because I was worried about what others were going to think of me. Now that is something I don't care to live through again.

The truth is that nobody really cares at my gym whether or not I've gained weight. First of all, that's why you go to a gym. Either to lose weight, or to maintain the weight you've got or to just be healthy. Also, I don't go to the gym to make others happy or to get complimented on my weight loss, etc. If I did, it would seem to me that I would be there every single day.

The ego really likes to take over doesn't it? It's really important to be aware of ego's presence and learn to ignore those damaging thought patterns. Those loops that we keep playing in our minds. Once you realize what they really are, just tapes that your ego likes to play over and over again, in order to gain some control, then you can push stop. We are all equipped with the ability to stop a loop that doesn't feel right. How do you know when the loop or tape or story you're playing is not the right one? Well, for me, the most telling sign is that it doesn't feel good. It makes me feel all the emotions that are opposite from FEELING GOOD.

Believe me, I'm not always so quick to press STOP and really just center myself. But, the more you do it, like today for me, the easier it gets. Also, the more you do it the quicker you get at recognizing when you've started playing one of those old, boring tapes again. In some cases, the thing is so old it's like an old 8-Track. Who needs that!?

I'm happy to report the gym experience was a great one. I was greeted very warmly by the owner. He asked how I was and what I had been up to. I got on some of the machines that I know so well and did very light weight training to just get my muscles warmed up a bit. Nobody laughed, nobody pointed and stared. Nobody really cared. I did my work out. Listened to Kylie. I visualized and felt my body changing. I daydreamed a little about what it feels like to occupy that "right space" and had a fantastic time.

Those 20 glorious pounds will come off in no time!

Peace and light and keep dreaming,
Gene-Manuel

My first Day-Dreaming Tuesday Experience . . . so far

Wow! You know, when I came up with this idea of dedicating an entire day to daydreaming, I didn't know what to make of it. Actually, the idea came to me while I was doing a short 10 minute Ah Meditation session. I'm not sure if it was during the actual session or right after I came out of it but, the message was quite clear. It was as if I could see the words written in bold letters right in front of my eyes: DAY-DREAMING TUESDAYS

I've learned to not overthink things like these too much so, I got out of my own way and let one thing lead me to another. By the end of the day yesterday, this blog was started, and I was ready to participate in this experience.

So far, I've had one of the best days I've had in about a month and 1/2. I'll go into that later this week, but for today, for right now, I am having an amazing day.

I started with a beautiful daydreaming session while on a NJ Transit bus, stuck inside the Lincoln Tunnel. I envisioned all these amazing products related to my Whirling Art and beyond. I could see the shirts, feel their texture and even see that they were tagless. ha! My affirmation/dream boxes all lined up in a row creating a beautiful display. Before I knew it, we had come out of the tunnel!

Although I had to work all day, I took the time to daydream a few minutes at a time during the day. I even incorporated a daydream into whatever I was doing. There is nothing like spending someone else's money and pretending it's your own! Loved it!

The day flew by and I was out walking towards Port Authority with Kylie singing in my ear. It might have looked like I was just walking on Eighth Avenue to the rest of the people around me but little did they know I was in an outdoor lounge in Tenerife, Spain. (Make sure that when you're always aware of traffic and other people around you so that you're safe!)

Now I'm home and getting ready to have a great dinner. Before that though, I think a good 10 minute Ah Meditation with a few daydreams thrown in will make a great appetizer.

Lots of other great things happened today as well. I'll share some of them tomorrow. I've still got a lot of daydreaming to do before Midnight.

Peace and light,

Gene-Manuel