I decided to re-publish one of my favorites. Enjoy.

Hocus Pocus. Abracadabra. Remind you a little of Practical Magic? Witchcraft. Trouble. Fire burn and cauldron bubble. Forgive the drama, but unfortunately it’s true. Spells exist. Big spells. Little spells. We live in a world where spells are cast and someone falls prey.

You are probably right now under the influence of more than one spell.

Take a breath—it’s not life threatening. But it is serious. According to Caroline Myss a spell is a mental lock-in. She explained to her Hay House radio listening audience: “What if someone says, ‘You look terrible today?’ You accept the spell. Voilà. You feel terrible all day.”

Mrs. Middleton taught me speech and typing in high school. One day I wore a black t-shirt with jeans to school. She pulled me aside. “Allyn, I must tell you. You look sick when you wear black. Never wear black near your face.” Do I wear black against my face now? Do I have to tell you the answer to that question?

A spell is like a superstition:
“I can’t lose weight.”
“I can’t succeed.”
“I’m stupid.”

Here’s the deal. You have locked into a false belief. FALSE. A superstition. Did a black cat just walk underneath the ladder? Did you break a mirror? You now have seven years of bad luck.

I cringed as I listened to Caroline. Thinking I don’t look good in black. Spell. Believing women over 40 can’t lose weight. Spell.

Here’s what is not a spell: I am five feet, three inches tall. Here’s another … I was born in New Orleans.

Spellcasters don’t have to be witches either. It can be Ms. Middleton, my well-intentioned high school teacher, who was only trying to help. It can be your mom. Your best friend. Your spouse. Spellcasters can have your best interest at heart. Really. Or so they think.

Recently my husband and I attended a school event. We ate lunch with our daughter. Her friend’s parents couldn’t come, and we invited the child to join us. We laughed. Joked. Then it was time to leave.

Later that evening my daughter reported, “Sylvia told me some things about you.” “What?” I asked. You know about curiosity and the cat.

“She said dad is bald and you are a little wide in the hips.” Ouch. Cats are part of spell casting magic. And to think I had been feeling pretty good about my appearance. As much as I tried not to let them, the spell of a nine-year-old girl’s words stung. A child speaks, and I ask, “Are my hips that wide?”

The reality is…spells are cast all the time. Ricocheting from parents, friends, teachers, magazines, movies, commercials, the culture itself—you know, groupthink—and most of us are immediately spellbound.



Hollywood casts spells. TV casts spells. Fashion casts spells. Let’s talk about the popular TV reality show What Not To Wear. Hosts Jillian Hamilton and Clinton Kelly grab unsuspecting victims turned in by friends or family who are only trying to help. Jillian and Clinton give it to them about their lack of fashion sense.

And Jillian and Clinton are NOT nice. They put Little Janie in a room with surround mirrors. Talk about my worst nightmare. They have Little Janie try on her awful clothes and tell her why she looks so terrible. They then send spellstung Little Janie off with $5,000 to get her new look.

When she returns, Janie is told why everything she selected using their rules and expert advice works for her. “See Janie. The flared leg is so much more slimming.” Little Janie, who is now smiling and so pleased with her self, nods in agreement. “Remember those slim cut jeans you used to own. You know the ones we threw in the trash? They made you look 10 pounds heavier.”

Scriiiiitch. Slim cut jeans are back! What does Little Janie do now? Little Janie looks fat in slim cut jeans. The spell has been cast. And the spell has been accepted. How can Janie believe anything else? The famous TV Fashion People told her she looked fat in slim cut jeans.

Even though I don’t know a spell to counter a spell, I do know a place to begin—a way to stop at least one spell. It’s black-t-shirt-buying time. That’s what time it is. And after that it’s time to wear my black t-shirt. And you know what? I’m going to look damn good in it too. Poof. Spell be gone.

Allyn Evans
www.liveapowerfullive.com
www.allynevans.com

Lessons From My Teacher

Caroline Myss

Update: Something interesting happened to me after writing this initial post. Obviously our earthly teachers, mentors and guides are humans...just like us. As humans we make mistakes and have opinions for starters. By her own admission, Caroline Myss labels herself "obnoxiously opinionated." On this we both agree! However, there are many times that I have not agreed with Caroline Myss. After listening to the taped version of my missed Chicago seminar, I realized just how far apart we are in some basic ideologies. And sometimes her "obnixious opinions" interfered with my ability to absorb a lesson or a point. Certainly, I don't think that was her intention, but nevertheless it's what happened to me.

So, will I continue to claim her as a teacher?

Yes. Yes, I will. Is it okay that I disagree with her? Yes. Yes, it is.

Original Post
She doesn't know she's my teacher. I take that back. Maybe she does. Maybe she saw the roster with my name and the names of 250 other students on it a few weeks ago. Never mind that I never made it to the class in the first place. Remember the failed trip to Chicago?

But surely she knows. Right?

Of course she doesn't know. And the truth is it really doesn't matter. Whether we ever exchange a word or not isn't important because I have learned so much simply by reading my teacher's words and listening to her lectures and radio show. What matters is what I have learned.

Today, while doing some mindless tasks I tuned in to Caroline Myss's most recent radio show archived on HayHouse Radio. During the show, she talked about self-esteem. This piqued my interest because I have been talking to GirlTech students recently about self-esteem.

She told us things I already know, but what I love about my teacher is that she articulates the ideas so beautifully. Makes me want to say: "Yeah, what she said."

Caroline explained to a caller, "Each person has to earn self-esteem." I agree. People don't arrive here fully loaded with or without the self-esteem gene. It's something that living your life helps you grow. Some of us have more challenges than others, sometimes this makes a person grow stronger and sometimes, it leaves one with stuff to overcome. No matter, it's the culmination of our experiences and how we deal with them that develop or destroy our concept of self.

Caroline said something else that interested me. She said, "The illusion is that you get self-esteem by pleasing others." When we think about this we know she's right. An important question to ask ourselves is are we still making desicions because of what the all important others might think? Caroline tells us it's as if we think all this people pleasing activity will eventually rid of us our need for approval. If you continue down this path, the opposite is the result. Our need for approval from others intensifies leaving us without confidence and lost. Before signing off today, Caroline gave us some tips about how to help ourselves and to build self-esteem.

So, I'm sharing a little Caroline Myss wisdom with you. To take steps toward a more powerful you:

1. Release the fear of humiliation.
2. Face your fears.
3. And keep promises you make to yourself.

Hmmmm. I think this is easier than it sounds. As always, though, I am up for trying. And you know what? I'll continue this discussion in a few days or so. We'll start with releasing the fear of humiliation first.

Think you'd like to read some of Caroline's books. I suggest starting with "Anatomy of the Spirit." If you have an illness or health issues, you might benefit from her earlier work, "Why People Don't Heal."

http://www.allynevans.com/
http://www.queenpower.com/