joy – Pam Grout

It’s my birthday and I’ll blog if I want to

February 17, 2023 67 Comments

“I was wise enough never to grow up.”–Margaret Mead

Just so you know, this is not a plea for birthday wishes. I already feel blessed by each and every one of you. I know (except when I occasionally get cranky) that I’m deeply loved and, if anything, I want to give birthday wishes.

Because that’s how it works. When we’re filled up with love, with the truth of who we are, it can’t help but gush over to everyone in our vicinity—even if it’s the vicinity of a blog. I write these posts for one reason. I love to write them. I do it for me.

And, yes, that’s another gravitational rule of life. When you do what you love most in all the world, it brings blessings to you AND spills on to others like an over-running cup.

When I blather on about the largesse of the world, I occasionally hear comments like “You’re out of your mind.” And I say, THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH!

My mind, as useful as it is, has never delivered much joy. It’s too busy keeping track of stuff, making to-do lists and filing all the reasons I should focus on the human meatball part of myself. But boy, when I get “out of my mind,” all I experience is joy and a beautiful awareness that I am so lucky to have occurred at all.

Today’s Course lesson is “There is nothing to fear.” So my third birthday wish for all of you is this: Get out of your fear-producing mind, recognize the Truth and enjoy a big honking birthday celebration on me. #222 Forever!

Pam Grout is the author of 20 books including E-Squared, E-Cubed, Thank & Grow Rich and her latest, The Course in Miracles Experiment: A Starter Kit for Rewiring Your Mind (And Therefore Your World).

Wishing you a ridiculously awesome winter holiday

December 22, 2022 46 Comments

“This life is a brief, ecstatic spark. Darling, fling yourself into the stars.”—Chelan Harkin

The headline for this post is a paraphrase of my new Consuela purse. My bestest friend, Mary, made a valiant effort to walk away when she first spotted it. But when she discovered that every single Consuela product bears the motto “Make Today Ridiculously Awesome,” usually hidden somewhere inside, she was left with no choice but to snatch it up and gift it to me.

The purse I now proudly own makes no pretense of subtlety. The life-affirming motto is plastered right there on the front in crazy wild neon. It represents my philosophy to a tee: joy, loud and proud, no matter what.

I know very little about this world, really. All I can be sure of is that this particular physical lifetime is fleeting and uncertain and well, why not make the most of every precious moment.

Is joy a crazy delusion? Or is it the underlying truth? The consciousness that goes on long after the body crumbles away?

I don’t know, but I have a hunch that love is the underlying reality of everything, that light exists in every being (whether apparent or not) and that all thoughts to the contrary are little more than a temporary broadcast that we can tune into or not.

I wish for each of you the broadcast of big ass, immutable love this holiday season. #222 Forever!

Pam Grout is the author of 20 books including E-Squared, E-Cubed, Thank & Grow Rich and her latest, The Course in Miracles Experiment: A Starter Kit for Rewiring Your Mind (And Therefore Your World).

Unicorns are the national animal of Scotland and other magical things

November 7, 2022 44 Comments

“When all your desires are distilled; You will cast just two votes: To love more, And be happy.”—Hafiz

Wow! This is a rather strange admission for a writer to make, but sometimes that’s the only thing I can really say. Wow!

Well that and, of course, thank you, thank you, thank you!

I have just experienced the most extraordinary three weeks, the first two in Scotland where I fell in love with Edinburgh (gotta love a city that regularly perches an orange traffic cone on the head of Adam Smith’s statue) and had a rip-roaring time traveling with the band, The Town Pants.

There were 27 of us together on a bus and not once, in our entire tour of the Scottish highlands, did I hear a complaint, an unkind word or really anything that wasn’t a synonym of “Wow!” Props to this amazing group of musicians and their band of merry fans. As Trish, our plucky tour guide liked to say, “It was pure dead brilliant.” I guess that’s Scottish for amazingly awesome.

And last night, I returned home from Lake Geneva and the All Souls Conference where, even though I was on the bill of speakers, I sat in on every single session (there were mediums, intuitives and, of course, “I’m Spiritual, Dammit’s” Jen Weigel and her intrepid partner Amy O’Keeffe) and can truly say, I feel completely re-energized. For one thing, I spent the week before going through notes from previous talks and playshops. Funny how my own words and ideas feed me.

So for the next week, I’m going to post about some of the beautifully inspiring miracles that have transpired starting with what one of the All Souls speakers said about angels, spirit guides and all the other beings who count on us humanoids to serve as their ground crew.

She mentioned that right now there is a surplus of unemployed angels who are chomping at the bit for a job. They really, really, want to help us and, in fact, are constantly doing what they can to give us signs and direction. Most of us, sadly, aren’t paying attention.

We on the ground crew can facilitate the process by actually asking. Hey, you up there (metaphorically speaking), could you lend a hand? Could you, you know, just step in here for a sec and smooth out the bumps? No ask is too small. No ask is too large.

So Happy Monday, my glorious tribe! Have an extraordinarily epic day! And stay tuned for more magic and miracles right here in this space. #222 Forever!

Pam Grout is the author of 20 books including E-Squared, E-Cubed, Thank & Grow Rich and her latest, The Course in Miracles Experiment: A Starter Kit for Rewiring Your Mind (And Therefore Your World).

Reboot your spirit: a guest post

March 20, 2020 28 Comments

“Joy is not an escape from reality’s hard edges, not a privilege of the few or a luxury to be allowed once the hard work is done. It’s a life-giving, resilience-making human birthright.”—Krista Tippett

I loved this essay by a friend of mine who describes himself as “Holder of lots of jobs, author, coach, nice guy.” I asked Dunn (see his bio below) if I could share here on the blog. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

A Perspective on All This

Sometimes God gets to call a time out, and while high school coaches get either 30 or 60 seconds, the Man gets as long as He needs, as long as it takes.

Why this? Why now? To me, something had to do it and if not now, when? And if not this, then what? We’ve been crippled before – we survived Ebola and Y2K – and we’ll never forget the days of September 11th.

Still, I recall September 12th, when perfect strangers hugged on the streets, when there were two-minute standing ovations to the National Anthem when the games began again. Now, as I’ve written, some don’t even bother to stand anymore.

For some reason, we were chosen – we were the winning sperm cells – we get to play. We’ve enjoyed piano recitals and 4th of July celebrations, competing win, lose, or draw. We’ve got to cry good tears and bad – fair and unfair – and quite frankly, we get to participate. I have to let that sink in as I write it – for some reason, we GET to participate!

We appreciated all this after 9-11 – for a while – and then we became a phone-staring culture – Screenagers as great writer Tom Greene wrote. We spent all this time doing and doing and doing and waiting for our next email while the world went unappreciated and our souls got corroded in the process.

I sit now in an empty school – not one student in here that needs to get a copy made, or to go to the bathroom, not one kid is flirting with another, there’s that lethal silence where there’s supposed to be slamming lockers, chirping voices, a Smart Board delivering some message.

We are on our knees – it’ll probably get worse before it gets better. Obviously, it’s time we take care of our bodies, though I contend it’s time to take care of our souls. I sit in an empty classroom, waiting in wonderful impatience for the next time 22 kids pile in here – all filled with piss and vinegar and life and dates and agendas.

I write crippled as you are – on my knees and with scabs that are getting worse. But I still write in gratitude. We have survived before. We will survive again. Life is here and for some reason, we were chosen to play.

Okay, so who the hell am I? Do I think I’m God’s gift? Yes, I do. And SO ARE YOU! Damn it, SO ARE YOU!

It’s time we appreciate that fact, take care of it, mentally and physically.

And in closing, I picture the day – not far away – when these halls refill, priceless smiles everywhere, the sounds of laughter replacing this God-awful silence.

I love that thought. And I choose to love this life.

Today, I’ll reboot my spirits instead of my computer. And I can’t wait to see you all again, cellphones be damned…Dunn, James Dunn

Dunn Neugebauer is the author of two books – Funny Conversations with God, and Rock Bottom, Then Up Again (and other spiritual essays). He lives and works in Atlanta as a Sports Information Director, Upper School sub, cross country and track coach, and football announcer. When not at school, he reads, writes, runs, and works crossword puzzles for sanity sakes.

Pam Grout is the author of 20 books including E-Squared, E-Cubed, Thank & Grow Rich and her latest book, The Course in Miracles Experiment: A Starter Kit for Rewiring Your Mind (And Therefore Your World).

Just in: My monkey mind officially announces its theme song

April 8, 2019 44 Comments

“When you get stuck fighting small battles, it makes you small.”—Hank Green ego

You’ve probably heard it: Sir Mix-a-Lot’s “Baby Got Back.” The all-time favorite line of my monkey mind (the Course calls it my ego) is “I like big but’s and I cannot lie.”

Monkey mind doesn’t just LIKE big but’s. It throws them out like parade floats toss candy.

Here’s an example:

Spiritual wisdom tells me I’m love, light, peace and joy.

Ego’s big but: But you often feel like the possum that got hit by the Range Rover over on Lyons Street.

It’s Monday and I want to dive into an ambitious new project.

Ego’s big but: But it’s already 10:41 and you’re just getting started.

My intention: To see my TV series produced.

Ego’s big but: But you live in Kansas…..

My highest belief: Taz and I are eternally connected. Remember the Henry Scott-Holland poem, the line about her just being in the next room?

Ego’s big but: But she’s not available to go for coffee.

Luckily, I’m on to the ego’s theme song. Instead of buying into its “big but nonsense,” I choose to focus on love and light, to launch my new project anyway, to keep believing in my TV series and to continue meditating with Taz every morning.

Pam Grout is the author of 19 books including E-Squared, E-Cubed, Thank & Grow Rich and her latest book, Art & Soul,Reloaded: A Year-Long Apprenticeship to Summon the Muses and Ignite Your Daring, Audacious, Creative Side.

Don’t let the past assault your now

May 7, 2018 13 Comments

“We lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies.”—Jack Kerouac

beatleskum

Kum Back, a bootleg album packaged in a plain white jacket, rubber-stamped in red or blue ink and released in January 1970, demonstrates everything you need to know about why I go through the lessons in the Course workbook every year.

The album, sourced from a multitrack tape recording of the Beatles at Twickenham Film Studios, is an early version of Let It Be. Recorded by Glyn Johns, the band’s engineer, this unauthorized bootleg features Paul McCartney singing out of tune, John Lennon botching lyrics and more than one poorly-conceived guitar lick.

The point is the Beatles, the bestselling band in history, were far from perfect. They had to practice. In fact, by the time Beatlemania swept across the globe, the music-bending group had honed their skills at tiny clubs in Hamburg for three entire years.

They practiced over and over and over again.

Someone commented to my musician friend, Cindy Novelo, “You’re such a genius. I wish I had your talent.”

Cindy quickly responded, “Well go home, practice an hour today and every day for 20 years and you’ll have my talent.”

Letting go of my old story takes practice. My brain has been running the bootleg album–the inferior album of limitation—most of my life.

But it’s not real.

And I’m ready to let go of those ill-conceived guitar licks.

That’s why I get up every morning and flex my ACIM muscles. That’s why I get up every morning and devote my day to peace, to joy, to seeing love in everything.

ACIM Lesson 127 encourages me to free my mind. It encourages me to let go of all laws I think I must obey, to surrender all limitations in which I’ve placed my faith.

None of it is true.

The only thing that’s true is love. Love has no opposite. Love can’t change. Everyone’s included.

Today, I escape from every limitation, every cultural paradigm as I practice letting go of the past.

And before I close, thought I’d make a couple quick announcements:

1. The Hay House World Summit is underway. That’s where 100 speakers, folks like Mike Dooley, Marianne Williamson and Deepak Chopra, bestow really cool inspiration. The best part is it’s totally free. You can access it here. My interview on being on the Joy and Gratitude Frequency is available now.

2. My latest book, Art & Soul Reloaded, was chosen as an Amazon Book of the Month for May. So if you haven’t read it, you can score the Kindle version for a mere $2.49. Find it here.

Have an extraordinarily epic day, my friends.

Pam Grout is the author of 19 books including E-Squared, E-Cubed, Thank & Grow Rich and her new book, Art & Soul,Reloaded: A Year-Long Apprenticeship to Summon the Muses and Ignite Your Daring, Audacious, Creative Side.

Joy too deep to comprehend

May 4, 2018 13 Comments

“God is my boo.”— Maya Angelou

112 Our eyes, as remarkable as they are, can only “see” a tiny fraction of the frequencies in the electromagnetic spectrum. To be scientific, we humans can pick up wavelengths between 10^-4 and 10^-6 of the spectrum.

That’s a pittance of what’s out there. Radio waves, infrared waves, x-rays, terahertz waves, for example, are beyond my eye’s ability to pick up.

So for me to think I see “reality” with my wavelength-challenged eyeballs is ridiculous.

ACIM Lesson 124 encourages us to view the world from a frequency, that like UV rays, is largely invisible.

Today, we celebrate the invisible God frequency. We celebrate that it’s the warp and woof of our being, the underlying foundation of who we really are.

We celebrate that, when hooked in, we are safe, protected and can fail at nothing. We celebrate that anxieties are meaningless and that power and strength are available in all our undertakings.

When hooked into the God frequency (the Course calls it remembering we are one with God) we literally change energy fields because we “see” only the loving and the lovable. Everything we touch is blessed and healed.

We find, as this lesson promises, joy too deep to comprehend.

So, whether I “see” it or not, I will continue to celebrate the God frequency that has the power to dismantle the illusion that we are separate beings living a separate existence.

Have the best weekend of your life, my friends.

Get on the enlightenment fast track

April 10, 2018 32 Comments

“Re-examine all you have been told at school or church or in any book.”— WALT WHITMAN help-i-need-somebody1

A reader emailed me this morning to regretfully admit that, alas, she was unable to faithfully execute the hourly reminders requested in the Course workbook.

I had to chuckle because a) In 20 years of doing the Course, I have never once successfully completed the task myself and b) the only reason we’re asked to do that is to be reminded–our minds are like pinball machines. And we need help.

My favorite Course lesson is “I need do nothing.” I love this one so much because of my great aptitude at proving to myself over and over again that, despite my best intentions, my own efforts are futile. They simply don’t work.

But there is, as the Course tells us, a better way.

The better way is a four-letter word: HELP!!!

In ACIM Lesson 100, I learn the following:

1. God’s will for me is perfect happiness.

2. My joy is essential to the healing of the world.

3. And Super God itself is incomplete without my joy.

So anytime I don’t feel perfect happiness, I have to stop and realize that I made a decision that differs from my Source.

And since that decision was my best effort (again proof of my futile efforts), I just have to offer that magical four-letter plea: HELP!

More miracles from the annals of magic and enchantment

March 26, 2018 18 Comments

“One of the greatest paradoxes of your physical senses is that your eyes actually show you what you believe, not what you see.”—Mike Dooley 1ab

So I’m sitting in a French café in Mexico, having just finished a travel article on a Brazilian steakhouse I visited in the United States. What a small world!

ACIM Lesson 85 is yet another review, reminding us that when we give up our story, when we surrender our grievances, miracles begin happening.

And to prove it, here are a few stories that recently made a bow in my inbox:

1. I have received many blessings because I see the world differently and I now “see” the many gifts and blessings that easily flow to me. I want you to know that I too left $10 bills (10 of them) in random places in my small hometown. I attached positive messages to them. I can’t describe the feeling of pure Divine Bliss I felt each time I left a bill. My eyes filled with tears and my heart filled with so much love!!!

I have received an abundance of blessings. It’s like money and good things easily flow to me. My husband and I recently went on a cruise to beautiful and majestic islands. Every place we visited was filled with beautiful people and pure Divine Bliss! I woke up every morning and asked the Universe for a gift. I received many gifts. A positive message from a stranger, a seashell from a beautiful little girl, a jar of island bbq sauce from a new friend we made on the ship, an oragami dragon from a cruise ship waiter, and are you ready for this? I WON A FREE CRUISE in a raffle I spent $20 dollars on!!!! I’m a believer Pam! The more I have fun and feel good, the more good I receive!

Thank you Universe God! Thank you Pam for both books!

P.S. the button I asked the universe for showed up on a beautiful beach in the Bahamas!!!

2. After losing my expensive black sport sunglasses last week, I thought for experiment #2 which I started last evening, I would see how many people were wearing black sunglasses for the next 48hrs ( in hopes that I could channel my lost ones somehow).

Okay ready Pam? So I’m thinking to myself how am I going to find people wearing black sunglasses since I spend most of my day working from home? And even if I did get out it would be around evening time when most people wouldn’t be wearing their sunglasses, unless of course you’re Jay-Z. And then I heard tomorrows forecast was calling for rain ugh! So, I’m really thinking now I had better change experiment #2 to looking for the dull beige colored cars. Probably see more of them than people wearing black sunglasses right? But..

It happened today after giving up a weekends long search in my car the place I last remembered seeing them. Once I sent out to the universe my pursuit for black sunglass wearing people, I then took a quick work break and went out to do an errand. It wasn’t ten minutes into my car bopping around looking for these men in black( or ladies) when I heard a rattle and there came my black sunglasses flying out from somewhere landing on my floor mat! I’m telling you I looked everywhere is this car and they were not there!

I’m a slight skeptic when it comes to magical moments and I know it’s just sunglasses, but I’m a gonna be a believer in FP from now on:) Watch out universe!

3. I am a 4th grade teacher in Las Vegas, NV. I was so moved by your book E Squared that I felt compelled to share a few of the experiments with my students. My students were manifesting purple trucks, rainbow cars, and gold Lamborghinis! I was so amazed at their enthusiasms, and elated that they were witnessing the power of their intentions that I plan to take it out into the school system.

4. And maybe my favorite: Went to a Beach Boys concert last night and all these months reading your blog helped me unleash immense joy and gratitude in the form of all night dancing.

3 thought-twisters that slow down fun and joy

March 6, 2018 32 Comments

“Love is an act of heroic genius. Pleasure is our birthright. Chronic ecstasy is a learnable skill.” –Rob Brezsny

Merriam-Webster just announced the addition of 850 new words to their dictionary. My favorite, coined by a writer of The Simpsons, is embiggen (to make bigger or more expansive).

That’s what I think A Course in Miracles does. It embiggens my happiness.

In fact, ACIM Lesson 65 (My only function is the one God gave me.) encourages me to be single-minded in my pursuit of joy, to make this my one and only goal.

I know a lot of people can get hung up on the wording, but this lesson is very simple. It’s also very radical.

To believe that happiness, joy and fun is why we are here is a completely foreign concept to most people. As I said, it’s so radical that most people can’t even wrap their heads around it.

Which is why the Course suggests I set aside a time every day to reflect on how important my mission really is.

It also asks me to notice (and then eliminate) all thoughts, cultural paradigms and beliefs that interfere.

Here are 3 biggies that often get in my way:

1. It’s preposterous to believe you can be happy and have fun all the time. This is deeply-engrained cultural paradigm. It’s only true to the extent that I believe it.

2. I don’t really deserve to be happy and have fun. Otherwise, known as guilt, the belief that I’ve done something wrong and deserve to suffer. It often comes with the word “should.”

3. If I work really hard, I might deserve a little happiness and fun. Like on weekends. Or my birthday. Certainly not all the time.

So who’s with me? Who’s willing to take on the 24/7 mission of happiness and joy?