So I made the comment after the first Democratic Debate in June that the other people on stage had no idea what to make of Marianne Williamson. And then the people at home watching who had never heard of her were like...whaaa?
I knew who she was. I read her first book back in the 90s. I knew about her charity work. I knew about her connection to Oprah. I knew she had a whole big deal company now. So it was kind of amazing to me to see how many people had no idea who she was.
Last night she was, again, the most Googled person on the stage. There are tons of article about her now. And tons of people mocking her. And tons of people mad that she's taking up space on the stage. And..well...
I don't think she should be president. I really don't. But I don't think most of the people running should be president. Including our current president. I think you should have a different skill set than she has to be president. But I'm not mad at her for being on stage. I'm really not mad at her for getting attention to her ideas.
In the 90s, when I read her book, I was on a quest to find a guiding principle in life. I didn't realize it at the time, I just thought I was interested in a lot of ideas. But looking back and I can see that I was lost and searching for something. I was raised in the church. I had a whole set of beliefs and rules built around that. And when I decided that they were wrong, that I didn't believe them, that I was leaving I suddenly found myself unmoored. If I didn't believe that then what did I believe?
And her book, A Return to Love, fell in to my lap at that point in time. I can't tell you a lot of specifics from it, and like I said I was reading a lot of things like that at the time, The Four Agreements, Conversations with God, a few others. By reading those things, at that time, I started to knit together what I believe.
I took the things from the church that I agreed with and I added on. I didn't take everything from every book. But I took what spoke to me. And a lot of what she had to say spoke to me. Kindness is important. Healing our hurts is important. The world needs more love is important.
There is a quote of hers that makes the rounds a lot (though often attributed to others)"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure." It's what holds a lot of us back. We think we aren't enough, but maybe we are everything. Then what is our issue? Why aren't we doing everything we want to be doing? Accomplishing everything there is? I remember when I read it that it sat with me for days. Years. Decades.
I molded a lot of what you see from that time period. My own rules of living, and a lot of that came from her ideas.
So I don't think she's a joke. I don't think she's crazy. I don't think she should be mocked. I also don't think she should be president, but I will say that I think we would all do a little better to listen to her, and reflect some of her ideas than to listen to Trump and reflect his.
Denise's Rules for Living a More Loving Life
Practice your first best thought.
That moment when you think I should do this kind thing, do that kind thing.
If you love someone tell them.
It does them no good if you keep it to yourself.
Be kind. Listen to strangers when they want to talk.
You could be the only contact they have all day. Five minutes of your life can make a real difference in theirs.
Understand that not everything is about you.
Sometimes people are having a bad day and you just got caught in the blast zone. Walk away.
Smile more.
It will make you feel better, it will make the people you smile at feel better.
Smile at yourself as well.
Do it. When you see yourself in the mirror give yourself a smile.
Give that compliment.
See other rules around being kind. It really does make someone's day to hear something good about themselves.
There are more, but that's a big chunk of what I took from that time frame. Basically don't be an asshole. Be actively kind instead. Now you all know I am fully capable of being an asshole and I think at times people deserve what they get...but in general? I try. That's my motto. I try.
So discount what you don't believe in what she says, but don't discount everything. There are a lot of good life rules in there. You can try as well.
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