Back when The Secret was making the world spin, I read a blogger rave about it. It seemed every time she applied the technique, she found a choice parking spot at her favorite shopping center. The kind you never get. It feels good to find a parking spot, and with such a modest gain, the woman didn’t think she was being greedy. But then I wondered, “Why doesn’t she just give the parking spot to someone else and feel really good?”
It’s no secret. These things keep bubbling up like hot wax and we get stuck in gooey dissatisfaction and self-service. We may think we know a secret, but we’re always exposed for who we are. We’re just the last to see it.
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lawdy.
i somehow missed this secret society of self-help gurus while i was playing legos with my son – though i'm aware that i've dodged a wave of e-courses while "yookin for bugs" with satch.
i'm forever reflecting on your words, which always helps me see more clearly the beauty of "being".
today, i'm grateful for legos, for the insects that creep me out but give my son joy, for strong coffee at 5AM, for the gift of seasons, and for you.
Comment by wendy — September 21, 2009 @ 11:03 am
I'm Reading The Secret and it does work..
Here is the basis..
If you act Optimistic and Positive it spreads off and others will Respond in Like.
If you act Negative and Pessimistic that is the energy you often get back.
And if you LOOK for Opportunity you find it; you see it more; because you feel more deserving to have a Good Life.. and one Full of Abundance.
I take what I like and leave the rest when I read or hear anything.
There are parts that do seem self-serving… so I take the parts I like.. and leave those parts behind.
I find that in everything in LIFE. I concentrate on people's positive attributions and that is a good thing.
LOL. in the mirror I concentrate on my Blue Eyes and not the wrinkles coming at 48 years old.. Just being Positive and that makes me more Confident and more pleasant to be around (and I do like wrinkles on people.. to me they look Artistic).
I love your blog.
Betty Ann
Comment by Ms Hen — September 21, 2009 @ 12:44 pm
The NYTimes must have been "gettin' religion" this weekend. Did you see the long article on prayer? http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/20/magazine/20Prayer-t.html?scp=1&sq=how%20to%20pray&st=cse
Comment by J — September 21, 2009 @ 2:14 pm
Like prayer, the secret does work but it is no secret. The secret is pure awareness. Pure meaning it is blind to ego and serves the needs of others, a continuous loop of kindness. There are infinite opportunities to be kind, the needs before us are overwhelming. Be kind and kindness will keep company with you all the days of your life.
J, I didn't read the magazine, but I have noticed NY Times getting religion, sometimes with a jaundiced eye. Like all things, the Times reflects the suffering in our world. Someone should do something about it! 🙂
Comment by Karen Maezen Miller — September 21, 2009 @ 2:20 pm
Wow, thanks so much for taking this on. I have been feeling like a curmudgeon lately for freezing up whenever anyone mentions The Secret or teachings similar to it. It IS religion in the part of LA where I live! You cut right through this for me, "Why didn't she just give the parking spot to someone else and feel really good?" and in your comment "The secret is pure awareness."
Comment by mommymystic — September 21, 2009 @ 5:25 pm
Hey! Giving life coaches a bad name!!
Comment by jena strong — September 22, 2009 @ 1:41 am
I love this: "the secret does work but it is no secret." Thank you for getting to the nub again, for reminding us that we show ourselves to be who we are in our every day lives, in every moment. Be aware. Be alert. Live this moment, right here, right now. There really is no tomorrow, is there?
Comment by GailNHB — September 26, 2009 @ 2:25 am
i bought the secret on audio cd and was listening to it one morning in my car, speeding to work as i was running late and having a negative conversation with myself in my head. i went around a curve and lost control of my car. i ended up upside down buried in a snow bank, completely disoriented, all the while the dang cd continued to play. "you create your reality".
lesson learned.
Comment by flying mama — October 3, 2009 @ 3:37 am
i've been getting hints to come here from various other bloggers. glad i did. i love your take on the secret. i saw people going nuts about this a few years ago, one thrust at me the book and video, to borrow, mind you, and return asap, and i read it and said to myself, this sounds like truth turned into self-help (as in help yourself) hoakum.
so glad i spent a lifetime searching seeking finding through so many cultural spirutal paths to develop my own, just so everyone else could read this book and make a bazillion/acquire their dreamhouse/lover, just by telling the universe what they want. "hello, universe! i want!"
seems like my toddler at my knee. where is the enlightenment in that? before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.
Comment by cath c — October 16, 2009 @ 11:55 pm
@ 4. Karen, come on, does that mean I’ll never park my car? Yes, kindness and serving the needs of others, absolutely. But ahimsa starts at home, don’t you think? How about burn-out whilst in service of others?
Comment by Jewels — February 1, 2012 @ 3:09 pm