just think about what you want

The tighter you try and hold on to something that you are afraid of losing, the more you are pushing it away. Those thoughts are filled with fear, and if you continue to persist, what you fear the most will come upon you.

Fear nothing - just think about what you want. It feels so much better!

- lessons from The Secret

guest blogger: liz davies

Liz Davies is a recent college graduate and aspiring writer especially interested in health and wellness. She wants to make a difference in people’s lives because she sees how cancer has devastated so many people in this world. Liz also likes running, playing lacrosse, reading and playing with her dog, April. Her article follows:

How Exercise Can Aide in Cancer Treatment

Going through cancer diagnosis and treatment is a difficult road and for most survivors, keeping the cancer from coming back is their first priority. Research has shown that exercise may help. Even for those still going through treatments, exercise can help by strengthening the body and becoming a strong motivator. Exercise and healthy eating has been recommended for years as a way to avoid cancer, but it is also becoming apparent that the same combination can aid with cancer recovery and help keep the cancer from returning.

In general, exercise is beneficial to nearly everyone, but cancer patients may find it extremely beneficial as it is well known that exercise can improve mood and reduce fatigue, something that cancer patients in particular may suffer from as they go through treatment. Many people slow down during their struggle with cancer, as depression sets in and cancer treatments wear down the body. Then, after recovery, they tend to remain sedentary and let fatigue get the best of them. That is the point when an exercise plan should be implemented. This is true for people will all types of cancer such as breast cancer, pancreatic cancer, and even rare forms of papillary mesothelioma.

compliment

You bring a nice energy to this place.

- a very nice compliment received from a Paya Bay guest this evening

Thank you, Mr. Silky, for all you have taught me! I love you so much, my brother. As you know well, you're one of the brightest and most beautiful stars in My Personal Milky Way®.  Your dazzling and exquisitely twisted light reminds those of us fortunate enough to be caught in the Silky Vortex® how absolutely astonishing a human being can be. Dude, I can't imagine you ever having anything less than a 100% of my love, respect, gratitude, and admiration.

honduran honor

El hondureño que se venda motivado por corrupción o avaricia en perjuicio de su propia patria y sus propios compatriotas no merece el noble honor de ser hondureño. Punto. 

(The Honduran who sells out motivated by corruption or greed to the detriment of his own country and his own countrymen doesn't deserve the noble honor of being a Honduran. Period.)

photo of the day

A very special tree. Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Honduras.

Photo: Naomi Ford

paya poetry

The twisted, awesome literary creation of Richelle, Marlo, Naomi, and Lisa. Crazy-assed friends make life sparkle.

desiderata

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible, without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even to the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons;
they are vexatious to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain or bitter,
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals,
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love,
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,
it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life,
keep peace in your soul.
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

- Max Ehrmann

Thanks for the reminder, Lisa! I love you, Ms. Bright Star in my Personal Milky Way.

rina

I'm back in Roatan and facing the anxiety of dealing with a glancing blow from Rina, which will likely become a major category 3 hurricane some 120 miles or so north of Roatan. Fortunately for the Bay Islands of Honduras, the storm is forecasted to continue moving away from our area. Our best wishes go out to our neighbors on the Yucatan Peninsula who may have to deal with a major hurricane head-on.

Here's an infrared image of the storm at noon today, with its forecasted path indicated by the red icons. The outer bands of the hurricane are currently giving us tropical storm-like conditions here in Roatan: strong surf, waves of heavy rain, and strong winds.

Image: NOAA

the center of divine operation

Your job is you and only you. When you are working in harmony with the law, no-one can come between you and the Universe. However if you think another person can get in the way of what you want, then you have done a flip to the negative. Focus on creating what you want.

You are the center of divine operation in your life, and your partner is the Universe. No one can get in the way of your creation.

- lessons from The Secret

panama canal

Today, while Michelle shopped, I took a quick tour of the Bridge of the Americas, the span that connects North and South America, and then visited the Miraflores Locks at the Panama Canal. I walked away with a sense of awe at these engineering marvels.

catm 2011

Images from the Central America Travel Market event in Panama.

The last photo shows Paya Bay's Michelle McNab meeting with a travel buyer at the fair.

welcome to panama!

The Central America Travel Market Welcome Reception was held in the courtyard of the Panamanian Foreign Ministry building. In addition to some amazing food, there was lots of show, dance, and general highlighting of Panamanian culture and folkloric traditions.

My niece, Michelle, poses with a handsome Panamanian military officer. From what I've seen so far, Panama is a truly spectacular country!

they line up

A view of the Bay of Panama from my hotel. I circled some of the ships that are lined up to use the canal. Apparently this line can stretch for a mile sometimes. One busy canal.

canal town bound

My niece, Michelle, and I are currently in San José, Costa Rica on our way to Ciudad Panamá for the Central American Travel Market (CATM), an industry fair. For both of us, it's our first time traveling to this (sorta) Central American country. Judging by photos of the capital city's skyline, it seems much more "First World" than any Honduran city. It should be a very interesting, eye-opening trip.

changing history

No human being would ever deliberately bring anything to them that they did not want, but unfortunately throughout the history of humanity many human beings have suffered pain, sorrow, and loss because they were not aware of the one law that affects their lives more than any other.

The course of history has now changed, because you have the knowledge of the law of attraction and you can create the life you deserve. You are changing history!

- lessons from The Secret 

help or hindrance?

Neither "God" nor "Being" nor any other word can define or explain the ineffable reality behind the word, so the only important question is whether the word is a help or a hindrance in enabling you to experience That toward which it points.

- Eckhart Tolle

the evolution of pablo

Had a fun Friday evening with some friends in West End. It was a rainy night, so we decided to stay in and have a little house party at Rochelle and Marlo's place. While mixing smart cocktails in the kitchen, I observed that a genetic mutation had resulted in a pineapple having a crazy "fro." Pablo, "the party pineapple," was born and it all just went downhill from there!

Toward the end of the evening Pablo was looking a bit rough, but had even scored and got an "Asian" lady friend! There's no telling what will result when you mix vodka, common fruits and vegetables, and twisted, creative people.

photo of the day

A view of Buccaneer Landing from the new Sky Trail. Paya Bay Resort, Roatan, Honduras.

a paradox?

Closely associated with the Southern California surf culture, the "No Fear" concept is a deeply spiritual idea.

As one approaches fear-free living, the unlimited possibilities of the Universe begin revealing themselves. With time and experience, these possibilities steadily become clearer and more tangible. We are then often surprised to realize that "the impossible" is actually within our reach.

The fearless among us have transformed human experience. Imagine a world where every single human being was living a life free of fear. In a Universe of infinite possibilities, this -- by definition -- is one of the possibilities we could (and perhaps should) intend for our species. We must simply neutralize and abandon our unfounded fear that we are incapable of being fearless. It could be said that fear (along with the negative energy that emanates from it) is a malicious virus that ought to be quarantined and eliminated from the "software" of Universal Consciousness.

These musings are summarized by the words of one of the most extraordinary men to have ever walked on this planet, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."

The paradox: is one practicing fear by fearing fear itself.

Top image courtesy of nofear.com; middle, lilliesloves; bottom: learnnc.org

the insubstantiality of the past

Through forgiveness, which essentially means recognizing the insubstantiality of the past and allowing the present moment to be as it is, the miracle of transformation happens not only within but also without.

- Eckhart Tolle

Our ability to forgive or not to forgive is a good gauge of how much control ego has of our psyche. The ego must be the pettiest of all prima-donnas. It typically holds on to a perceived slight with the same tenacity of a dog holding on to a bone.

Forgiveness has been a very challenging spiritual lesson for me. Doing better with it, though. As Tolle suggests above, it's a concept that is really only becomes necessary if we have empowered "the past" to affect our present moment. Tolle's wisdom suggests that "the past" is simply an illusion that exists only in our minds.

I'll repeat that brilliant nugget of wisdom for emphasis: "the past" is an illusion that exists only in our heads. And so is "the future." The present moment is all we have. Try to live your life 100% in it.

happy 70th birthday!

The last two photos are of the family watching a slideshow of the patriarch's life from childhood up until this amazing moment.  Can you imagine the exquisite happiness this very fortunate gentleman must have felt?  Paya Bay Resort is a wonderful place for a family reunion/birthday celebration!

aaaahhh!

Back in Roatan. Simply the best place to be. I'm SO lucky!

I'm happy and grateful EVERYTHING goes right for me.

complete control of your film

Your body is exactly like a movie projector, and the film running through the projector is all of your thoughts and feelings. Everything you see on the screen of your life is what has been projected from within you, and is what you have put into the film.

By choosing higher thoughts and feelings you can change what you see on the screen at any time. You have complete control of what goes into your film!

- lessons from The Secret

peace monument

I'm currently in Tegucigalpa on a business trip. This afternoon I played tourist and visited the Monumento a La Paz (Peace Monument) that sits atop a nicely forested hill in the center of the city. The monument was completed in 1948 at the end of the administration of one of our more colorful and longest-serving caudillo presidents, Tiburcio Carías. Many oldtimers look back fondly on the Carías period as he instituted and effectively enforced a zero tolerance policy on crime and criminals. Interestingly, this monument was just chosen by the capitalinos (Tegucigalpa residents) in a newspaper poll to be the "symbol of Tegucigalpa." Such is the yearning for justice and peace in my country.

Tellingly, in a country traditionally considered to be "devoutly Catholic," the "pagan" Monumento a La Paz beat (by a very large margin) the Cristo del Picacho, a statue representing the Christian prophet that sits on a peak overlooking the city. More evidence that even in supposedly deeply religious societies people are realizing that the emperor (hate-breeding organized religion) has no clothes.

geaux tigers!

My alma mater, Louisiana State University, is currently ranked Number One in the AP college football poll.

Anyone who attends LSU gets football in their blood. As they say in bayou country, "You bleed purple and gold." The 'Eye of the Tiger' art that marks the 50 yard line of Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, is one of my favorite symbols at the LSU campus. It's amazing how the strength, confidence, grit, determination, and focus of a LSU Tiger (be it a student, alum, administrator, or faculty member) is caught in this image painted on grass in the football stadium. Geaux Tigers!

the key to all the treasures

People go through their whole lives chasing everything in the material world, and they fail to discover the greatest treasure of all, which is within them. Shut your eyes to the outside world. Direct your thoughts and words to the inside of you. The Master within you is the key to all the treasures in the world.

- lessons from The Secret