How can we know we are thriving – only when we have found ourselves facing the turbulence and paced through it coming out with a new. The ability to marvel ourselves from one decision to the other leading us to decision fatigue, we extend our capacity to affirm and reprogram what is consuming us. For me varied affirmations, unlearning and building resilience channeled a brewing energy of power and joy.
Recalling a powerful and empowering poem by John Keats, ‘To Hope’ was captivating and striving to be resilient. During the tough and dark times, one would affirm to dwell on Hope to thrive. I remember visiting Keats-Shelly memorial house in 2019, when I visited Rome for a conference. The panoramic guide navigated me to varied poetry from Romantic Poets. Reading through some of the world’s most extensive collections such as, letters, manuscripts, and paintings relating to Keats and Shelley, as well as Byron, Robert Browning, and Oscar Wilde made me reflect – deeply.
Resilience has been elevating and evolving within us when certain emotional blockages, situations, and/or experience becomes so tough that we hope, persevere, and in many cases try to brighten our outlook towards optimism. This is when resilience is a victory of overcoming a despair, pain, experience and other situations practicing several approaches to heal, thrive, and grow. Precisely, to be equipped with various methods.
The lines from the poem by John Keats, ‘To Hope’ below is a lyrical stream of resilience during dark times and how writing about it affirmed and reminded one of chance to rewire the thoughts of the brain.
When by my solitary hearth I sit,
When no fair dreams before my ‘mind’s eye’ flit,
And the bare heath of life presents no bloom;
Sweet Hope, ethereal balm upon me shed,
And wave thy silver pinions o’er my head…
Moreover, Affirmations enable us to activate and charge our brain’s reward system. For me affirmations are a great self-help strategy to empower self-confidence and belief in what I do. The shift that can be felt within the brain and the subconscious mind is therapeutic. It enables me to conquer the doubts, fear, and kind of unpleasant feelings which helps me strategise or even acknowledge self-love and worth to resilience. It was important to know life in its deepest core and go beyond the surface – the physicality of what we see or experience and shift it to the better – the progressive.
Additionally, a poem I recently wrote, ‘Indispensable Dedication’ strives on the experiences and thought process of reprogramming to being conscious and our authentic selves. I believe we need more and more people to be equipped with the complexity of life. It is important to stay grounded, centered, empowered, and open to fulfilling the potential to growth. This kind of dedication to ourselves to shift the limited beliefs, experiences, and people we spend time with is an imperative reality check on how we affirm to making necessary shifts for us to be liberated from the controlled patterns of pain that bullies our minds to believe that pain and trauma cannot be released.
IT CAN!
Indispensable Dedication
elevating it far beyond
the ordinary
everyday
distinctive for discerning
individuals
creating something or
nothing unique
sometimes entertaining
the bizarre – yet
welcoming beyond
flavoured choices of
external ambience only to
navigate back after
an era of patterns has
finally woken back up
pouring the lava of
unshakable truth making
sure that you are shaken -UP
creating that chaos only to meet
the NEW!
Indispensable dedication
the necessary that
becomes the absolute
to lead you to
somewhere you should
be spending time with
Dedication.
According to Author Norman Doidge, in his book, The Brain That Changes Itself acknowledges neuroplasticity and shares how we think, visualise, and say to ourselves can change your body, brain, and life. One way to harness this power to help us is through affirmations. Several research studies suggest that positive affirmations can help us and even plants. Affirmations are those personal triumph reinforcement and a mental health tool that can help us develop a healthy sense of self and build a more resilient brain.
I like integrating music with writing. The rhythm of instrumental music helps me in creative journaling where I express my thoughts, write affirmations, and add pointers for a short story or flash fiction. The psychotherapeutic flow of music empowers me further with expressing emotions, developing a plot, strengthens the cognitive, spirit, and social integration in storytelling. The relationship that builds and emerges becomes healthier to awareness and also apply it in creative writing. The stimulations of therapeutic interventions by varied music stirs up brain function to contribute to the inward notions to be expressed outward. With this process it enables me to reprogram my mind and channels to something creative and therapeutic.
In relation to the book, Designing Your Destiny by heartfulness spiritual leader Dr Kamlesh Patil (Daaji), reflects on how meditative practices lead to changes personally, in relationships, re-programming, breaking patterns, live conscious lifestyle, and we can design our destiny. I have and still practicing several practices that enables me to re-program my mind. There has been so much of un-learning over decades reclaiming my power and I don’t have to entertain the baggage of mental and emotional pain. The conditioning only led to health issues and I was not living life of purpose, meaning, growth, but was sucked into believing that several aspects of living have to be and needs to be in a certain way because of generations. Wanting different things was not accepted well. However, ancestral pain can surely be shaken, broken, and healed. We have the power and several spiritual practices that allows and empowers us to believe and make healthy changes. I am practising that. Creating healthy boundaries and voicing out enables me to check the reality and whether something is serving me good or being unhealthy.
In turn, Eckhart Tolle’s book, The Power of Now, reminds one of their spiritual paths, changes to limiting beliefs, and once one becomes aware of mental programs it can surely be shifted. This can also change the subconscious mind. This book really helped me when I needed it. It was a good reminder to bring myself to the present which also helped me in my writing journey.
Books, research journals, poetry, fiction and non-fiction books, open to learning from varied and diverse cultures empowers, nurtures and nourishes the path to resilience. Reprogramming is that personal torch dissolving all that does not serve purpose and reminding oneself of the value of living life consciously and authentically. Some personal affirmations I would like to share with you:
Gratitude
- I am grateful for the life I am living feeling centred, calm, and joyful.
- I am grateful for being able to give and receive love abundantly.
- I am grateful to be able to acknowledge a spectrum of emotions and embrace the balance within.
Love
- I am worthy of love growing within and receiving externally.
- I am open to supporting, empowering, loving, and committed relationships.
- My relationship with myself and other people are harmonious.
Growth
- I am an empowered, motivated, and a confident being.
- I move forward and living a heart-growth mindset without fear.
- I am open to learning, changes, and living my progressive life.
Money
- I release any resistance to attracting more money.
- I am open to receiving financial stability and helping those in need.
- I receive more cashflow and I am wealthy, healthy, and grateful.
Health
- I am emotionally, mentally, and physically in balance.
- I am living a joyous, conscious, healthy, and vibrant life.
- I am grateful for my body, immunity is strong, and keeps me safe.
We are here to dissolve the chains that bind us from our greater good. It is vital and essential for connecting within the unlimited flow. It is completely okay to let go, refine, polish, and express what benefits and rejuvenates one’s life. There is no extra time for another life time. The time to affirm and reprogram is now.
Connect or reconnect to reprogramming and own your power. It is invaluable! I – you – we deserve it! We can accept, manifest, and receive the consistent changes/gifts for our own abundant and prosperous growth. Remember to be grateful along the way.
Bhavna Khemlani’s empowering journey entails being a university lecturer, poet, author, among other roles.
