Osho\u2019s<\/a> <\/strong>signature. I began practicing Osho\u2019s Active Meditations\u2122 in 2003 and I felt deeply connected with his teachings. His signature was like art, it looked like this:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The tattoo artist said she wouldn\u2019t do it because it would end up looking like she had an accident with the tattoo gun and she didn\u2019t want her name attached to it\u2026 I understood her point.<\/p>\n
She suggested I design a tattoo that represents my connection with Osho and I came up with the idea of getting a cherry blossom tree. This decision was inspired by a Zen story captured in my most treasured Osho book.<\/p>\n
The story is beautiful, here it is:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
When your heart is full of gratitude any door that appears closed can be an opening for an even greater blessing.<\/em><\/p>\nVery few women have attained to the Zen ultimate; Rengetsu is one of those rare women.<\/em><\/p>\nShe was on a pilgrimage, and she came to a village at sunset and begged for lodging for the night. But the villagers slammed their doors. They must have been traditional Buddhists in the town, and they wouldn\u2019t allow this Zen woman<\/em> to stay there; they threw her out of the village.<\/em><\/p>\nIt was a cold night, and the old woman with no lodging\u2026 and hungry. She had to make a cherry tree in the fields her shelter. It was really cold, and she could not sleep well. And it was dangerous too \u2013 wild animals and all.<\/em><\/p>\nAt midnight she awoke \u2013 she was very cold \u2013 and saw, in the spring night sky, the fully opened cherry blossoms laughing to the misty moon. Overcome with the beauty, she got up and made reverence in the direction of the village.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n
Through their kindness<\/em><\/p>\nin refusing me lodging<\/em><\/p>\nI found myself beneath the blossoms<\/em><\/p>\non the night of this misty moon.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n
With great gratitude she thanks those people who refused her lodging, otherwise she would have been sleeping under an ordinary roof and she would have missed this blessing \u2013 these cherry blooms, and this whispering with the misty moon, and this silence of the night, this utter silence of the night.<\/em><\/p>\nShe isn\u2019t angry, she accepts it \u2013 not only accept it, welcomes it. She feels grateful.<\/em><\/p>\nLife is immense, and each moment it comes with thousand and one gifts for you. But you are so engaged, preoccupied with your desiring mind, you are so full of your thoughts, you refuse all those gifts. God comes; you go on refusing.<\/em><\/p>\nA man [person] becomes a Buddha the moment he [a person] accepts all that life brings with gratitude.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n
—–<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Anytime I sit down to write I like to get clear about my intentions. This blog idea came to me when I read a quote from Diane Ackerman \u201cWe are all shape-shifters and magical reinventors. Life is really a plural noun, a caravan of selves.\u201d<\/p>\n
This quote made me smile as an image of my own life caravan came to mind. I started to reflect on how often I\u2019m reinventing myself, shedding, shaping, shifting, etc.<\/p>\n
I realized that my embodiment of gratitude and compassion is what drives my work today as a communications coach and advocate for mental health. So, the intention of this blog became that I wanted to connect with readers through sharing an insight I\u2019ve learned about how my life stories can either drag me down a rabbit hole into the past rumination and feelings of guilt and shame, or the stories can become a lifeline to the present moment and evoke a sense of gratitude and compassion.<\/p>\n
I encourage you to reflect on your own life stories and note what experiences trigger shame and guilt. Consider the strategies you use to help yourself steer out of old story rumination and into present moment inspiration.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Until next time!<\/p>\n
Amber McAuley<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I can\u2019t say that the scars on my body don\u2019t bother me, but I can say that I no longer ruminate in the stories behind the scars. For example; when feelings of shame and guilt bubble up, instead of festering in those feelings based on past experiences, I take deep breaths and cultivate a sense of gratitude for the present moment. Or, when I see sharp objects and the scars <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n
The Scars On My Arms - Coach Amber McAuley<\/title>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n