Luminescent Lessons from Louise Hay
A celebration of what makes life worth living
Many years ago, in the midst of my healing journey, I came across the work of Louise Hay. I became deeply immersed in her work, listening to this recording every morning without fail, from walking the dog on brilliantly sunny mornings to driving through tiresome rush hour traffic. It became a staple in our household much like beans and rice, but instead of being nourishment for the body, I constantly ingested new ways of thinking, believing, and seeing the world.
Then one night, unable to sleep, I woke at 3 a.m. and went to the couch. The lights outside glowed in an amber haze, and the world was for once serenely quiet.
As I looked out at the iridescent shimmer cast on the window, Rumi’s immortal words echoed and reverberated through my psyche and heart.
“The breezes at dawn have secrets to tell you. Don’t go back to sleep! You must ask for what you really want. Don’t go back to sleep! People are going back and forth across the doorsill where the two worlds touch, The door is round and open. Don’t go back to sleep!”
Okay, I guess won’t go back to sleep, I thought. I’ll try asking for what I want. And what I wished for was healing, deep, powerful healing to enliven a brilliant future, free from the burdens of the past. And then I curled up facing the back of the couch and began to relax, breathing deeply, opening my heart to the magic that surrounded those words that I had lovingly recalled from the recesses of my mind.
I must have dozed off because, before I knew it, I was awake again a few minutes later, and I had the answer.
The missing piece of humanity’s puzzle. I had the key to healing.
After so much suffering and self-inflicted punishment, what truly remained?
The answer for me was forgiveness, compassion, and love.
As I continued to explore Louise Hays’ work, it struck me how forgiveness, compassion, and love are nothing less than a triumph of resistance against the merciless race of modern life, where we are so focused on achieving and producing at the expense of our sanity, creativity, and well-being.
Why is this the norm?
When life is so short, why are we killing ourselves figuratively and literally in the pursuit of the “next big thing”?
At the most fundamental level, we are beings enmeshed with the great web of existence, all wanting love, compassion, survival, and comfort. Perhaps there is a better way to do this.
Who was Louise Hay?
Louise Lynn Hay (October 8, 1926 — August 30, 2017) was an American motivational author and the founder of Hay House. She authored several New Thought self-help books, including her 1984 book, You Can Heal Your Life. Louise Hay dedicated herself to teaching people how to live an optimistic and empowered life, often with the aid of positive statements and beliefs.
She contended that our point of power is always in the present moment, where we can plant the mental seeds for creating new experiences. We are never stuck, because we can choose new ways of thinking. And our future can always be increasingly positive, love-filled, and prosperous.
Here are five of her quotes to inspire self-love, awareness , and compassion:
1. “I am in the right place, at the right time, doing the right thing.” This is a reminder to be kinder to yourself today. Let go of pressures and expectations while knowing that everything is going to work out as it should. Each place is the right place, and where we are now can be a sacred peaceful space. Allow yourself to believe that everything is as it should be, and if something isn’t to your liking, just change what you can and release the rest. Yes, it takes practice, but it is wholly possible.
2. “Every thought we think is creating our future.” Each thought is precious. We can learn to think in positive affirmations. It takes a bit of doing to gain control over our thoughts, but the rewards are tremendous. Remember, there are endless opportunities before us. Every action has its roots in your thoughts, whether the actions are negative or positive. Our human minds like to run away with us, so remind yourself that your thoughts do matter, they do carry weight, and they can be shifted.
3. “You have the power to heal your life, and you need to know that. We think so often that we are helpless, but we’re not. We always have the power of our minds…Claim and consciously use your power.” So much of our suffering is internal and comes from our thoughts. It may be easier said than done to make choices that help you rather than hinder, but realizing the power of our minds can certainly help.
Personally, I have made tremendous progress healing and living a normal life with chronic pain, fibromyalgia, and auto-immune issues. Has positive thinking cured everything? No, but my outlook is healthier and I am more prepared to take on life’s inevitable challenges if I see my illness as a starting point for healing. I have a self-written healing plan that I update every few months and it helps me stay focused, motivated, and transparent about my efforts.
4. “I have never understood the importance of having children memorize battle dates. It seems like such a waste of mental energy. Instead, we could teach them important subjects such as How the Mind Works, How to Handle Finances, How to Invest Money for Financial Security, How to be a Parent, How to Create Good Relationships, and How to Create and Maintain Self-Esteem and Self-Worth. Can you imagine what a whole generation of adults would be like if they had been taught these subjects in school along with their regular curriculum?” I’ve thought about this a lot, and I think that these life lessons aren’t taught in school because most adults weren’t taught them as kids. I certainly wasn’t. That’s okay, because we are all doing the best that we can with the tools that we have, but I also think this places too much responsibility on the children in our lives. A little boy stopped by our house the other day, and I heard him remark, “I am just dumb. That’s how it is.” And I replied, “Oh no, you are very smart. You are capable. No one is dumb.”
Build up the children in your life, because a healthy dose of self-esteem can do wonders for their future.
5. “I say ‘Out’ to every negative thought that comes to my mind. No person, place, or thing has any power over me, for I am the only thinker in my mind. I create my own reality and everyone in it.” This is a powerful statement, and I use it if I start to slip into old ways of thinking, such as scolded myself for being less than perfectly neat. Ridiculous, right?!
So make it a point to think thoughts that make you happy.
Nurture the power of mind with affirmations, so that you are consciously choosing what to think, because those thoughts really do cloud our perception or polish it to a lustrous shine. Here are a few that I use:
I am in the process of positive change. This is just a thought, and a thought can be changed. My happy thoughts help create my happy life.
Keep an open mind and remember that the passageways to wisdom and awakening are always open.
What we send out, we receive back, and this too can shift with time — and often does.
Cultivate the healing power of believing in your inextinguishable inner light, and you may remember the innate goodness that lies within us all.
With love and gratitude, Aurora