Do you really want to change? Do you really want to live a joyous, full and glorious
life? Are you willing to try an experiment on yourself? If you are, this is what I
suggest you do: for a whole week, think only positive, constructive, optimistic,
creative, kind and loving thoughts. Watch your thinking and if you find a negative
thought popping up, don't dwell on it, don't give it any life force - think of something
else. 

When you find yourself being critical, judgemental, depressed, disappointed,
troubled, spiteful, jealous, or having thoughts of sickness or accident, in fact
cultivating any kind of limitation or pessimistic thinking, whether it concerns
yourself or anyone else, don't dwell on it; think of something good and positive.
This is easier said than done. You will find, however, that wheh you are able to
switch from a negative to a positive thought, it can change your whole life. 

It means you have to be very watchful, very aware all the time. There is so much
negativity all around in the newspapers and on television and radio. See that you
are not drawn into that negativity and become part of it, but look for the good in
everything. 

Suppose you find yourself with a person who is being negative and critical about
something or someone. You don't have to lecture them, or pull them up for being
negative. Simply, in your thinking, let that negativity slide off you like water off a
duck's back. You don't have to get involved in it; think of something else. Your
thoughts are your own and you are master of them. Remember - as you think, so
you are and so you bring about. So when you think loving, positive, constructive
thoughts, you live a joyous, harmonious life, and that draws others to you like bees
to a honey pot. 

When you refuse to be overcome by the difficulties you meet in your everyday life
and are not fearful of them, or even look on them as problems, you will overcome
them by your positive thinking and they won't affect you in any way. Carry on your
ordinary life and affirm to yourself, when faced with any negative situation, 'None
of these affect me,' and know that all will be well. 

When you know you are master of your thinking, you can take negative thoughts
that are thrown at you and see them as a boomerangs going straight back to the
one who has thrown them, without your doing anything. You don't have to snub the
person or shut them up; simply don't accept their negativity. It is what is in your
mind that can change the situation, not discussing, arguing or preaching a sermon
about it. It is how you react to the situation that matters. 

I know how this exercise on positive thinking works in my life, because in the early
days at Findhorn I would receive some extraordinary guidance and share it with
Peter. Off he would go and act upon it and I was left shaking in my shoes. I allowed
doubts to step in. Peter said that he felt I needed to read and study some papers on
Positive Thinking, that it would help me to stop doubting myself and the guidance I
was receiving. So every evening for an hour I would sit in Dorothy's little room
facing the window and use affirmations (although I didn't call them affirmations
then). They were very positive, constructive, loving statements such as sI am love'
or 'I am power' or 'I am faith'. I would say them aloud over and over again,
wondering what on earth I was doing. Thoughts would go through my head like,
'What would anyone think if they passed the window and heard me talking to
myself in this way?' or 'What a waste of time this is, sitting here saying these
things over and over again.' It was a real battle to keep my mind on that one
positive and constructive thought for an hour. It was not like meditation, all done in
the silence and stillness - that was so much more simple. This was really boring to
begin with, too. Once I got into it, however, I found the words became alive. They
began to mean something, and I no longer felt like a parrot. Then, gradually, I
found I was becoming the words and finally I realised: 'I am the words. I am love,
power and faith.' 

I also began to realise that when I said I AM it was the God within me, the highest
part of me, I was referring to and of course that part of me is love, faith and power. 

I feel that what you can do is to try it out for yourself and see how it works. Don't
just take my word for it. Experiment with it for yourself.

Eileen Caddy