Costa Women Blogs

EGO-the black sheep of human existence; we burden it with so many sins. But I need my Ego. It gives me a distinct sense of myself. It helps me to decide what to buy for dinner and what hairstyle to wear. My ego puts a structure into my life, helps to choose from that infinite offer that surrounds us. It is a programme of behaviors-compromise between rules of society and my own preferences. Even if I sometimes hesitate I know what clothes I like, what food I want to eat, what books to read and films to watch, my ego/identity helps me to verify it. Trouble begins when this identity turns stiff and rigid, fortified with conviction of absolute truth. And it talks; it is actually a great talker, creating rivers and avalanches of words, stories and arguments, explaining and judging all the time. Ego can get so attached to its own form and story that it wants to dominate and overpower everyone and everything. When I want it to shut up and be quiet, it will not listen because I am no longer an authority to it. So I have to regain my authority, I have to trick it to silence and wisely let it work for me and not the other way around. The question is how? The answer is: meditation.

When I meditate I don’t go anywhere; I don’t “leave” my body and move to some fancy world of blissful happiness following a fairy-tale stories of my mind. Contrary I stay here, as close as possible to the “banal” physical world of my body. I stay with my subjective reality that I experience through my very own senses which are actually situated in the body Habitually I am constantly with my thoughts-the thinking mind. That’s why I need a change, a shift, a holiday. I don’t want to dwell on my thinking all the time. I want sometimes to stop thinking and rest.   And the best and simplest way of doing it is by placing my attention on my body. I witness its presence, what it experiences just here, just now. I scan my body moving my attention from one part to another, feeling and listening to what is going on, simply being a witness of my own existence. And when I do it, busying myself with the present, my mind switches off, disappears and suddenly I am in some wonderful place of safety, peace and acceptance. This place is simply here with me and in me, and I know that I can always get there. I can meditate.

Mindfulness has taught me a game called “I don’t know”. The point of it is to see objects without engaging thinking. It goes like that: I can see a common sparrow on my balcony. My mind is immediately producing an assessment like: “It is an unimportant bird and it leaves droppings on the balcony-no good”. But when I play that game I just look at the sparrow as if I have never seen it before. I sense the colors and form it has, I observe the way it turns its head and its constant moving; I share with it the same air and the same place. I experience its presence in my life. I can play that game with anything. Take a cup of coffee for example. I engage all my senses to receive this ordinary drink into my life. I see the shape, texture and tones of the cup, the color and density of the liquid, I feel the temperature it has and the taste of it. I sense how my body reacts to it- kinesthetic response to the sensation of coffee.  I allow myself to be in the presence of that cup. And I remove my attention from any commenting thoughts. This game is about feelings and sensations and disengaging from assessments and judgements of the intelligent mind. The skill learned there can be very useful in situations when my mind is locked, running around on a trade-mill or can’t find any explanation or solution to a certain situation. When the mind in spite of its repetitive efforts doesn’t know, truly hasn’t got a faintest I redirect my attention to my body, because it can always tell me something through feelings and sensations. So I stay with it, I concentrate on the kinesthetic feeling I have about the situation or a problem and I allow the energy in my body to move. It is really worth trying. It is also called meditation.  

When we can allow ourself to take a break from our busy life and feel the energy around us… we will feel the unrest that continues to play out globally. It’s been going on for the last 14 years but intensifying and coming closer to home. It has the tendency to make us panic, feel personally attacked and start to worry about our safety and future. It reminds us of our own past wars and fight for freedom from power hungry leaders in the western world, cruel barbaric dictators who desired nothing more than to control everyone and bring about their own ideal world. We have sacrificed many of our men & women to bring about a glimpse of freedom and have founded our western democracy, although it’s a far cry from true freedom, we know we don’t want to experience any more pain and suffering, but are we ready for true freedom? or are we going to continue to play victim in the old Human power game. The recent attack on Paris has brought the unrest to our shores. The Middle Eastern fight for freedom has created thousands of refugees who are running for safety and to find a new home in the lands of the free. Unfortunately, the great exodus brings along  bad apples; to try and entice us into their fight. These radical fanatics are not fighting for freedom, but POWER, using religion as an excuse to create they and us; the old Human game of monopolising POWER through FEAR. Thank goodness some of us realise that it is because of our own radical and negative side of society and the individual that fanatics continue to target us; firing at our weak and dark parts, to fuel their fire. We understand that like attracts like, violence attracts violence and know that warfare is not the answer because of our own experience. Unfortunately our leaders continue to respond in the old way, fuelling the fire. We have to ask ourselves, for what… because they know it doesn’t work, it only holds the old pattern of control tightly in place and creates more FEAR. So how can we end this cycle of POWER and FEAR? How can we best respond to what is happening? How can we stop our knees shaking and feeling unsafe? How can we truly be free. There is no other way than to be conscious and aware of ourself, observing ourself, feeling and sensing our own passion and desire and when we are clear and understand ourself we can serve ourself. When we realise we are loving beings of light at our core, we can begin to welcome home and embrace our own darkness and allow ourself to shine brightly in the world. Knowing light only attracts light. Knowing light shines on darkness and dissolves it. Knowing we attract everything we are, into our life. Fear attracts more fear. It is the choice of each person to choose how we want to live, in fear or in love? My question to YOU is are you ready for true FREEDOM?  If the answer is YES, then take this opportunity of unrest to focus on yourself, be clear of  your own darkness, weakness and fear and choose to LOVE all of yourself, allowing your light to dissolve the darkness and radiate light out into the world. Be conscious of yourself as a beacon of light that only attracts more light into your life. Be conscious of your part in the Magnificent Consciousness that you are and all life is; a powerful being of light that creates your life as you desire in each moment. For the last 35 years I have been on my own journey, discovering the Magnificent Consciousness we live in and the freedom I found within it. I have written about my experience in my first book Your Magnificent Self… A Journey to Freedom. My book is now a creation of consciousness of its own and is as deep as the Heavens above and the Earth and Body below and will inspire everyone to open their heart and realise their own magnificence; the love and light each person indeed is and their soul’s desire to experience a most loving, joyful and harmonious life, here on Earth. We are all Magnificent Master Creators, but dare we all choose to experience it NOW amidst the turmoil? Barbara Franken… Master CreatorInspiring New Energy Consciousness     My book can be purchased in all major online Bookstores or find the links in my store…   

I paint pictures. Does it make me an artist? I don’t know. I would like to be one, because I am in awe for art. Art stops me; makes me turn my head and be curious. To be an artist one needs creativity, talents, skill and imagination. Every child owns it, but it is harder for adults. In front of every piece of work I make stands a big, skeptical Critic. This guy is magnificent in finding faults, mistakes and errors in my work; his main occupation is simply to criticize me, to make me feel doubts, insecurity and limitations. He can speak through other people but his favorite location is actually in my own head, on my mind. In order to negotiate my right to be an artist I am in constant dialog with this guy justifying and explaining almost every stroke of brush, every stain of paint and asking for approval. But the Critic is never satisfied and is just growing bigger, stronger and more vindictive.   I started my training in meditation and mindfulness because I wanted to learn how to switch off this nagging voice, how to disconnect from the constant intellectual judgment and criticism that was suffocating me and how to stay with the experience, playfulness and joy of painting. It is getting better every day. The Critic is growing obedient and keeps quiet oftener. He doesn’t like meditation, but I DO.   

I have felt so very magnificent this week, with all the attention and support during my Book Launch Party Week… from marvellous Costa Women living around me and my friends and family around the world. So a big THANKYOU to you all… together we have managed to give my first book Your Magnificent Self… A Journey to Freedom a big lift into the universe, for it NOW to take on its own part in creation and find its way to the many hearts that are ready to take the next step in their Human experience… in fact the next stage of all HumanKind if they choose. (To find out what this is you’ll have to order a copy of my book… he he). I self published my book with IngramSpark and IAM very impressed with how they have professional distributed it literally all over the world. Everyone can easily go to any of the major online book stores e.g Amazon and Apple and type in Your Magnificent Self… A Journey to Freedom and it will come up to purchase. A few pictures of my 3 local launches in Torremolinos, Malaga and Los Boliches.  For more information about my book, my Creator Master Class I will be giving next year and my Project Magnificent Consciousness (my creative art project in local schools) you can connect with me by email Barbara@memymagnificentself.com Until the next time we all meet up…  Barbara Franken Creative Visionary and Master Creator Inspiring New Energy Consciousness