...'Gently DOWN the STREAM'

"To see a world in a grain of sand, and heaven in a wild flower, hold infinity in the palms of your hand, and eternity in an hour." ―William Blake.

BEYOND the Ordinary

Playing The Glad Game is a creative and highly effective method to create a long-lasting shift in our attitude and re-align with our higher self. It cuts the wallowing in misery short, thus presenting us a way out of the negative lower state of mind, which plays a detrimental factor in keeping us stuck in our negative state of mind while establishing a new thought pattern. This shift from anywhere from self-pity, sadness, gloominess, anger or depression to name but a few of these lower vibrational states into an Attitude of Gratitude is a vital step in order to move ahead towards the higher vibrational stance of joy, happiness, love, compassion, appreciation and much more, which in turn allows us to re-gain our co-creator skills along the lines of the law of attraction reclaiming well-being, abundance and prosperity as our divine right. The essence of the method is intuitively very quick to follow at least in theory. The Game is simple in structure and design. It is in fact as such, easy to follow on the conscious level. However, do not be deceived, it does tend to present a bit of a challenge, as you try to put it into practice and it does require some minimal effort on your part, at least during the first few days while the rebellious subconscious mind tries to present resistance upon this new experience. In any case, once natural momentum builds up, it does get easier and enjoyable to practice even before real results manifest before our eyes.

"Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly. Hold fast to dreams for when dreams go life is a barren field frozen with snow." ―Langston Hughes

THINGS That Make You SMILE

There are an infinite number of tiny, minuscule everyday things to be glad about. Start noticing the little things—a pretty sunset, a walk along a picturesque street, freshly brewed coffee, a friendly smiling face, clean water, a cosy bed, a starry night, an old oak tree, fresh mountain air. When you begin to notice the little things and start to be glad of them, the big things will suddenly seem dazzlingly brilliant.

The best way to start playing this Game is to start right this moment! And for that purpose I invite you to follow up this little exercise as to give you a taste of what is to come as well as to serve as, an initiation into the process. Find a quite spot where you will not be disturbed and make yourself as comfortable as possible, sitting down. Relax and close your eyes for a moment. Now, take a deep breathin on the count of three, hold in as you do so, and release the air on the count of five. You may repeat this little breathing exercise three times. Open your eyes. Make a list of three things that bring you joy, put a smile on your face or fill your heart with appreciation, for this moment alone, right now. These can be big things like―your family, your friends, or your pets, as well as little things such as―the fact that someone held the door open for you this morning... or, you have found the perfect parking place coming back home... or, a pleasant conversation with a colleague at work... This can be a mental list or written down (just for the sake of this exercise, later on you will want to write everything down to the detail). There is absolutely no right or wrong about it, as long as you do not put too much thought into it. Alternately you may try this option—as you open your eyes after the breathing sequence, just let your eyes fall on an object in front of you, and around you. Do not dwell on the consequences, trust that your intuition will present you with the best choices for you at this time. Repeat it three times for three different objects. Describe these three things as detailed as you can. Now spend a few moments contemplating one of them. You may choose to close your eyes again while doing so if the list is a mental one. If you have written it down, proceed with reading it to yourself. Next, try to concentrate on the emotions this thing evokes in you and make a little list of these. Finally, just bask in those emotions for a few moments fully, completely and unconditionally! When you are ready, move on to the next step. Search your heart for a moment and, find someone or something you can thank at this moment in terms of either placing a phone-call, writing an e-mail, or addressing personally. This may be done in form of a letter, a phone conversation or a face to face talk of appreciation of course, should you choose to. However, as effective—in form of a simple and very short thank you note, or call, or talk, as long as you feel comfortable with it. Having done that all that remains is, for you to end this session with the following prayer—take a deep breath inhaling on the count of three, holding your breath for a moment as you do so, and exhaling on the count of five. Now, recite the following―"I already have everything I could ever need within me. I am totally fulfilled, whole, perfect and complete, now and at all times. I know, everything is always working out for my highest good. I am expanding my awareness of my infinite abundance, well-being, love and prosperity everyday in every way." You are done. You can move on with the rest of your day, with a smile in your soul and joy in your heart.

"Happiness is when, what you think, what you say, and what you do, are in harmony!" –Mahatma Gandhi

Your FEEL GOOD Place

Gratitude is a habit. Gratitude is an attitude. Gratitude is a choice. When we consciously practice being appreciative and learn to live from gratitude—of the people we share our life with, and for the situations and resources around us—we begin to attract well-being, abundance, and prosperity through and through. The habit will be strengthened as you make the choice each and every day. Your main tool at hand for the next few weeks—and hopefully beyond, should you choose to make much more of it—will be your Praise & Joy Journal in which you will write down, the things you are grateful for, each day. This act of putting pen to paper promotes mindfulness, it reminds us to notice and make note of the little things we so often dismiss or forget about altogether throughout the course of a day. Something like a song that sets our foot tapping, or the brilliant autumn foliage outside our window, or even something as simple as a friendly face. Here is the magic—keeping an appreciation journal orients you to naturally look for things to appreciate, and this gratitude orientation will attract into your life more things to appreciate, which will set up a chain of events to keep you moving upwards to the place of alignment, you are seeking.

You will need a notebook, or a scrapbook, a pen, and some coloured pencils if you are inclined to add little sketches to your daily entries. Any would do, any form, any size or format would do, as long as it feels comfortable for you to use and handy enough to carry around with you throughout your day. The only restriction, however—as strange as it may sound—is that in this case, no virtual journals will do the trick, unfortunately. Your entries have to be made in your own handwriting, as well as your drawings should you choose to add some. The reason behind it is based on the knowledge of the old, as well as on some discoveries based on some experiments done in recent times. Researchers have found that the act of handwriting activates brain regions which help boost recall. Brain scans revealed that while learning by handwriting prompted activity in a particular part of the brain known as Broca's area, learning by keyboarding prompted little or no such activity. Which in turn led to some conclusion regarding the act of writing by hand as an actually very different sensory experience than that of typing on a keyboard, since each activates distinctly different parts of the brain. That said, you may additionally add snapshots you choose to take at certain moments of your day as an added feature—especially if you do not feel comfortable with sketching—but these should be seen as an added feature and not as a substitute for your written words.

"'Oh yes', nodded Pollyanna, emphatically. He [her Father] said he felt better right away, that first day he thought to count ‘em. He said if God took the trouble to tell us eight hundred times [in the Bible] to be glad and rejoice, He must want us to do it–some." ―Eleanor H. Porter

Experienced INNOCENCE

Every morning directly upon waking up, still with your eyes closed, spend a few minutes searching your heart and choose three things you expect for yourself on this new day just beginning. Beware—these are to be only good things. Write them down in your journal. Recite the following morning prayer—"More than I want to make anything happen or change my external world in any way, I want to awaken to my true identity, my true divinity, and realize my full potential. I am fearless and free, I am an inlet and outlet to the mind of God." Move on with your day confident that it is a good day that is unfolding now just for you—it is your new day! As you go about your day keep your journal close at hand so as to be able to gather your three things to be grateful about for this day. If for some reason you are not able to carry it with you, at least have some method of making notes which you would than transfer into the journal upon returning home. According to your lifestyle and daily schedule find a certain time of the day where you can allow yourself around twenty minutes of undisturbed time and space to relax and play the Game. This should follow along the lines I mentioned above in the initiation section—sit comfortably in your favourite quiet spot. Do your breathing exercise. Write in your journal your three things to be grateful for today, followed by a full-length description of these things. Contemplate each thing and focus on the emotions it evokes. Describe those in as much detail as possible. Read through your descriptions accordingly. Bask in the feelings of gratitude & appreciation for as long as it takes you. Take one long deep breath. Choose your someone or something to thank for whether personally, in writing or by means of placing a phone call. Recite your closure prayer—"I already have everything I could ever need within me. I am totally fulfilled, whole, perfect and complete, now and at all times. I know, everything is always working out for my highest good. I am expanding my awareness of my infinite abundance, well-being, love and prosperity every day in every way." You are done. Take a deep breath. Go about your day. Every night just before falling asleep say your thanks—―to yourself for following your courage on your path for a change and to the universe for guiding you along this undertaking. Briefly call to mind your three things of the day. Recite the following evening prayer—"I already have everything within me—infinite abundance, infinite well-being, infinite wisdom. And I know that whatever insights, guidance or direction, I may need, in any given time along my path, are easily and effortlessly unfolding in my mind and heart, and are being put into action in my life, even now." Sleep well knowing the universe is within you, doing its part at all times! And all is working out perfectly, for you.

"Pollyanna now, like Mrs. Snow, was knitting wonderful things out of bright coloured worsteds that trailed their cheery lengths across the white spread, and made Pollyanna–like Mrs. Snow―so glad she had her hands and arms, anyway." ―Eleanor H. Porter

In the FLOW of VISIONS

In order to enforce the habit of living in the now, you should make sure your entries in your journal are always in the present form while using the positive form exclusively at all time, for your descriptions. Since this is not your common diary, where you would spill your negative emotions at times of need—although this act in itself serves its purpose at times it is not to be practised in conjunction alongside the Praise and Joy Journal, and throughout the next weeks while you play the Glad Game Revisited. In fact, if you currently keep a diary of sorts, you are advised to relinquish it altogether for a while.

Every entry should begin with the words either I thank... or, I am grateful for..., When it comes to either writing your thank you mail, letter, or placing a phone call for that matter, you may have occasionally the opportunity to do that spontaneously during your day, which is wonderful. Just make sure that you make a mental note of it. Bring it to mind later during your daily ritual and indulge in the feeling of it, as reinforcement to the process.

I suggest that you write down the three prayer versions on the front page of your journal so as to have them handy for use accordingly. If you wish so, you may also record them in your own voice. This can be very beneficial during the rituals as the sound of reciting them in your own voice will have some added emotional impact. As mentioned above, the act of writing in this process is most important, therefore, I highly recommend that you take notice of the following—as you go about the act of writing your descriptions, take care to mentally sink into the task at hand. You may follow this imagery to capture the essence of this suggestion—imagine the words literally forming themselves in your mind, then gently flowing into your heart. Once there, gathering the power of emotion. This energy than keeps flowing through you, down your hand and fingers, finally into your pen and onto the paper...

I encourage you to use as many adjectives, adverbs, and superlatives as you feel comfortable with. This will enhance and enrich your text so that it will literally come to life whenever you turn back to it to recapture the feeling. But again, do not overdo it, and not on account of your unique way of observing and writing style.

That said, it is possible that—at least at first—you will not be able to write but a few lose lines, that is fine and you need not worry about that. It is a process and as you proceed every day your trust in it will grow and with it, your flow and creativity. Meanwhile, you may find it helpful to use some mementos in form of—for instance ...a fallen autumn leaf, ...an entry ticket for a favourite show, ...a favourite praline wrap and so on. As mentioned before, you may take a quick snapshot of the thing, you wish to appreciate and praise.

You may find that at times, your day is presenting you with real time events which may easily turn into praise things. However, at times, it is only during your ritual and upon practising focus that you may find your things of the day, so to say. Be reassured, either is fine, there is no right or wrong in this matter. The subject list of things you may give thanks to and feel gratitude and feel joy for is literally endless, and unlimited. It can be anything in your direct environment or beyond, it may deal with close members of your family and friends or persons you are but randomly acquainted with, it could be your pets, your plants, and more. As well as things which you do not necessarily own but made you feel, that which you are looking for. Anything and everything, including inanimate things as well owned or appreciated from afar, newly purchased or old, such as a favourite book, a special piece of clothing, jewellery, art and crafts, your laptop, your iPhone... The list is endless, so long as you recognize in it a certain quality which is beyond the actual function of it. If it evokes the feeling of appreciation and gratitude in your heart then you know you are right on the spot. Your feelings are the indicator by which you know what serves you best.

You are to play the Game on daily basis but should you occasionally be presented with some hindering circumstances do not be alarmed, and under no means beat yourself up for it. If you do not care to carry your journal around with you, or for some reason you are not able to do so, make sure to make notes in real time in order to later transfer them into your journal. On the other hand, you may find that keeping your journal at hand can bring with it an added advantage. Whenever you find yourself experiencing a challenging moment follow these quick few steps—Close your eyes. Take a deep breath on the count of three, hold it for as long as you comfortably can, and release on the count of five.You may repeat this three times. Now, pull out your journal, open it up arbitrarily, trusting your intuition. Let yourself sink in your own words. You will find this small procedure to be very powerful. In itself full of wonder!

In order to establish some consistency, I advise you to create some ritual around the actual playing of the game. Create an inviting atmosphere—prepare your favourite cup of tea, ...light a scented candle, ...sit facing a window, ...pick up a pillow or wrap for comfort, ...put on some soothing music as a background. If you practice yoga or meditations, by all means have a session just before starting to play. Although all of these are not necessary for the success of the Game in itself, they may enhance your readiness to open up to it, enjoy it and in turn ensure rapid results. I urge you to experiment with it and find for yourself what best works for you. Another factor to take into consideration is building a relationship with your journal. It may seem a bit far-fetched at first, but it will serve you good to establish an intimate rapport with your journal, so as to learn to cherish it as such. I advise you therefore to choose it carefully and treat it accordingly. You may want to have a certain ornamented cover for it, or you may choose to write in it with some special pen. It may also feel good to keep it under your pillow, during your night’s sleep if possible. Any addition which will make it more attractive in your eyes and more personal which in turn will effectively bond you with it, will do.

The instructions given above as for how to best Play the Game are meant to serve you in establishing the ground rules for a daily ritual, but as such you may choose to—after a while and as you get used to the procedure—to variate and adapt it according to your personal lifestyle. You will certainly find that with time your intuition will lead you to make these changes, and that is wonderful. By all means, follow your intuition. At all times, do not forget your inner voice. Remain authentic. Write in your own words as they feel natural to you. Play the Game in the language you are most comfortable with. Be true to your own unique way. Express yourself, using personal references, memories and expressions. Maintain your own style that which best suits you will best serve you.

Almost there, just a few more words of encouragement before you shall finally start. During the first few days, you will be actively looking for the things that make you smile. As you move ahead you will notice a gradual change of roles, if you will, in which these things find you. This will occur naturally, as you get into the Game and will—aside from making things easier for you in general—serve as an indicator that you are moving along, on the right track. As you progress along these lines you will have become more of an observer of reality, which is in itself a very desirable state of mind as you will later discover when you move on to practice your manifestor abilities. Just make sure you remain alert to these messages and open to them, using all your senses―listen..., taste..., feel..., see..., and smell... these signs as they reach to you. Thank them for showing up and use them. Most of all rejoice in them as much as humanly possible!

Another aspect of evolving throughout the Art of Playing the Game is that you will at first probably intuitively look for, or pay attention to, bigger things and that is very natural and actually advisable. As the days and eventually weeks go by however, you will notice a gradual change as the things that make you smile will get smaller. Not in meaning of course but rather they will have become subtler in essence. This development means you are reaching the point where you can see more into the details. Which in turn means you have reached a higher frequency level along the path of vibrational alignment. Here too, make sure you acknowledge these markers as you progress into this stage fully aware of its advantages. Know this is another indicator you are on course!

And most important of all please do not turn this Game into a burden or some chore to be done just for the sake of having it done. Should you feel so, let it rest for a while and come back to it at a later stage. Give yourself time with it. If at any point it seems to feel like work, stop in your tracks immediately and retrace your steps to the point where it feels good. Make a mental note over this feel good place and stay there for a while before setting back on course. It may well be that for you it will go smoothly with no interruptions or setbacks whatsoever, in which case you would probably choose to ignore this unnecessary precaution on my part. However, due to personal experience I know it may take some waltzing and adjusting at times before one has reached the safe sailing mode. And, under no circumstances, force yourself into perfection. It is absolutely unnecessary, if at all it may in fact prove to be counter-productive. Rule of thumb is to enjoy the Game at all times. If only in order not to create a tag of war between the two mind fractions. Be sure to pay attention and rely on your feelings as they serve as an indicator and operate very similar to a built-in navigation system, if you will, which keeps you on course, when you choose not to ignore it. And last but not least―know this―when you choose to play the Game for twenty-one consecutive days―and as doing so follow the process whole heartedly―you are up for wonderful rewards. Remember the ground rule for this Game―The Glad Game Revisited should be enjoyed! So now without further ado, go play...