The Worlds Greatest Lie

By B. Stuart Noll All Rights Reserved
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In Paulo Coelho's "The Alchemist" there is a line that states, "The worlds greatest lie - that we all lose control of our own lives and must let them be controlled by fate." My sudden realization of living that lie haunted me for such a long time. Isn't it amazing how you can hear the same theme over and over again in different ways and still not get it?

(Photo By Debbie Phillips-Noll)
There was a man I admired for his business prowess who once told me that if I wanted to be successful I had to refrain from thinking I was controlled by my circumstances. I heard him, I understood him, but in retrospect, I did not heed him. I had heard instead, as many of us do, the world's greatest lie and believed it because it was so subtle and convenient and easy. I had to do nothing to make it apply to my life. All I had to do was accept it and voila, it manifested.

In my decision to be lazy about accepting the truth of my ability to choose life for myself and to explore the power of manifestation of my dreams through the development of my own imagination, I adopted the reality of "The Worlds Greatest Lie."

I have often heard and sometimes refuted that I am the captain of my fate. I placed the responsibility for my dreams and their associated actions outside of my own being. I allowed the fear of failure and other common obstacles of life to dictate the energy that attracted my reality.

At last, I am free of the bonds of those fears, for I can finally say I understand that I make the decisions; I choose what I think, how I feel, what my perceptions and perspectives are. I know that I develop the attitude which increases the odds or the opportunity to attract and manifest my own set of life circumstances. Is it perfect? No, that is not my expectation. My expectation is that I will choose to see myself and the world in which I live in the most positive light possible and with as little judgment, attachment, resistance and limitation as I can. In this way at least, I will not lie to myself. I accept the world as it is and yet, live as if I have a hand in the construction of my piece of it!

I now know that regardless of what is, with love, I am!

What I've Learned

By B. Stuart Noll All Rights Reserved


How many times have you been told, "you have a choice?" I ask you now, how did you respond? There have been so many times that I felt like I had no choice, that I was trapped in the place where there was only one way out and as terrible as that way out was, it was the only one that remained; the only one!

As I look back on this type of thinking I realize the worst part wasn't the feeling I felt. The worst part was inadvertently choosing to spend the only energy I had believing something that was absolutely ridiculous. My "choice," or lack of awareness of "choices" caused depression, sadness, lethargy and a rage associated with being trapped like a wounded animal with no way out except fight or flight. Worse yet, not only would I never regain the time I spent in that depression, I was unknowingly choosing to develop a neural pathway for thinking the same thing or types of things over and over again!

If I had had the awareness to see the consequence of choosing possible alternatives, I would have saved so much energy, stress, struggle, pain, unhappiness and discord, not to mention the irreplaceable resource of time. I had, quite frankly, lied to myself - and believed it! Who would have thought that so much adversity could emanate from one thought or one seemingly innocent series of thoughts. It was never my intention to hurt myself or others yet that was, in some cases, the outcome of not guarding my thoughts or my way of thinking. Is that true for you as well?

This brief article is not intended to be all doom and gloom. My intention is simply to emphasize the critical nature of being aware not only of what we think, but our thinking processes as well. I encourage all of us to be cognizant of what we are thinking and choosing as well as how we are thinking and choosing as I believe it has been proven they both have a profound impact, not only on our own lives but, on the lives of all those with whom we come into contact. We are connected!

I ask you not to take my word for it. I ask you to seek and discover for yourselves the ramifications of your thoughts. Has your way of thinking served you well? Are you content with the outcomes of your thoughts? Is what you are telling yourself in your idle chatter true? Examine your thoughts to know if what you believe causes you to make choices that contribute to what you want or if what you think is actually an impediment to your own happiness. It was for me.

Life is a fabulous journey, a voyage through charted territory that we have somehow forgotten. There is a destination to which we are desperately trying to return. The sea upon which we travel is vast, adventurous and largely unknown. The fragile vessel which carries us through this limited time of exploration is steered by our thoughts; the rudder of our direction. With all of this there is something else that no other creature on earth possesses. Of course, this is the power of choice!

It is my conclusion that our level of consciousness - our ability to carefully weigh, consider and examine the thoughts and thinking that feed our choices, is a force sufficiently powerful to demand our attention. Why? Because left unattended, our conditioning or subconscious thought becomes the power behind the rudder. We can be the captain of our fates, here anyway. It is of our choosing. I hope that after reading this short piece you will, at least, consider that you do have choices, often many more than originally apparent, and with some conscious thought you can guide your ship to the port you call home! Bon Voyage!

You Lost Me

By B. Stuart Noll All Rights Reserved

I believe making statements publicly adds a little power to the statement; so here goes. Sit down my friends!

"Because the NFL owners and NFL players have decided to publicize their inability to agree on the abundance they already possess, I have decided to take a stand! After 50 plus years of devoting a portion of my avocational life to sport, especially identifying with the Philadelphia Eagles as a Pro Football Fan, I am cutting all ties with the NFL. For a Birds fan that's like cutting out his/her liver!

From this moment forward I won't go to their games, won't watch them on TV, won't buy or wear their jerseys, hats or memorabilia, or even support their causes because they just don't get it! They have what they have because they made what they do attractive to the masses. Well, it's time to send them to mass! They need to know one person thinks their selfishness has gone too far! I'm grateful, however, because now my time will go to those who are really in need!!! Signed - you lost me!!!"

I wrote the statement above several days ago, well after the earthquake in Japan spiraled into a very difficult situation. The havoc there hasn't caused the people of Japan to give up, they seem to be coming together. Simply remarkable! Out of catastrophe they look beyond their circumstances and stand together - whatever the foe! I cannot even begin to restate the incredible series of events that cause me to well up with emotion and positive feelings and a sense of belonging as a result of observing their mettle. Dire circumstances? Yes! Finger pointing, blame and a sense of entitlement? No! Just marching on to the next part of living, finding a way around the obstacle and doing it together for the betterment of all concerned. Giving of themselves - and this isn't the first time they have had to recover from devastation!

So, that brings me back to my statement above about the NFL - and now, the reasoning behind it! Sports were my life. In high school, in college, on the streets of Philadelphia and everywhere I've lived over the last fifty years. I identified with it. It was ingrained in me, as it is with most true Philadelphia sports fans! This isn't the first time the fans of professional sports in America have been subjected to a "work stoppage." (A rather ridiculous name for a "labor dispute" over "a game" people supposedly love to play, don't you think?)

I will admit up front that I may not be smart enough to understand all of the complexities and legalities of modern day professional football, or professional sport for that matter, but I know how I feel about the growing perception of greed attached to a game I considered a part of me and this recent disagreement between the owners of NFL "franchises" (another rather spurious name for NFL teams) and the NFLPA or players themselves. In my humble opinion, it is the straw that broke the camels back (and perhaps, though unintended the backs of many common working men and women whose hearts and minds are anatomically and spiritually attached to their favorite teams as well.)

The root of my statement is however, even deeper than that. In view of recent economic events I have come to the conclusion that the ever widening gap between the "haves" and the "have nots" has become a chasm more of consciousness than of conscience.

Yahoo sports writer Michael Silver recently characterized the owners as like an "Eastern Bloc Party," analogous to the communist practice of the caste type system that existed prior to the fall of the Berlin Wall where superior athletes were treated better than most but still quite separate from the Politburo it served. Thanks, Michael! That cracked me up! But it saddens me that the economic struggle and plight of much of the world's working class is overshadowed by pure, unadulterated greed and self absorbed egomania, not only by the NFL but by much of Corporate America as well.

Labor is not without culpability and that includes me! I can't blame them for allowing myself to be duped into believing that gaining stuff was more important than gaining wisdom and living within my means. That is not their fault, it's mine!

Granted, this is only my opinion and it, plus $.50 cents won't buy a decent cup of coffee, but I simply have had enough and therefore I have decided to take action. (And obviously to express the action I'm taking) And the reason? Hopefully to send the message that we do not have to live like this - divisively! Irrespective of the obstacles of life, we can, like the Japanese and many Americans in other notable situations , learn how to come together for the higher good of all concerned and share the resources we have left to enjoy a life of noble character.

You don't have to agree with me. It's just my opinion. So, to the owners and athletes who once garnered my childlike respect, admiration and ultimate fan allegiance; and to the game which has fascinated my imagination from the time I saw my first game at Franklin Field to the first Super Bowl and through all of the changes to date, I say sadly, goodbye - you lost me!
Not a threat - just a conscious choice to invest my time, effort and money more meaningfully!

A Birthday Gift

By B. Stuart Noll
All Rights Reserved

With each keystroke comes another stream of feelings that I find myself unable to express, except to say how much I appreciate the relationship among us. The flow of energy that courses through all of us at the same time is only interrupted when we focus on ourselves.

I wanted each of you to know how much it meant to me to hear from you on my birthday. I was once one who thought birthday’s were just another 24 hour period in which some series of events took place never to occur again and in a hundred years who would care that these events ever happened at all? Well, I can honestly say “I would!”

Every blessing that came to me seemed to come at just the right time. It was incredible. Each wish came with a unique and almost simultaneous memory of a connection I have had with you at some time or another. It didn’t matter if it was my cousins in the Philly area who I haven’t seen for over 30 years or the “children” and friends I recently left behind in Virginia.

I used to wonder what it was like to be overwhelmed with joy. With each email of a new face book comment, I received that joyfully overwhelming feeling when I had flashbacks of infinitesimally short moments with family and friends; moments that were between us and only for that time, never to be experienced again except in our minds at times just like this. They came to me as if they were real and happening just as they did in the past, but they shot through me in milliseconds.

For all of you who know me well, I haven’t taken any of those mind altering drugs of old and I really do want to be able to explain this eerie yet totally fabulous experience of emotion to you, but with each attempt to do so I fail to recreate them with the same intensity and depth as when we experienced them together the first time.

I don’t know if this even makes any sense to you, I’ve always been a bit obscure and more than a bit abstract. Sorry! Maybe it’s just me getting older and softer. But this I know; I would not trade one of those memories – the first time or the second time around for any other treasure on the face of this planet.

I’ll never see birthdays the same way again. I can only hope that you too, will be become aware of the power of a simple act of kindness, or a thought of love, however faint you may think it is. Please know that just as surely as the swoosh of a butterfly’s wings can be felt around the world, a simple act of love, a word of encouragement or the even the most casual of “Happy Birthday’s,” can bring to mind a warm connection that moves us with the power of the universe.

Thank you all for making this a very, very powerful day of celebration for me. I will never forget it!

Gratefully,

Bruce

Something I Need To Fix

By B. Stuart Noll All Rights Reserved

I wrote this letter to Jason Cole of Yahoo Sports in response to a request for questions or comments about an article he wrote about the death of Denver Broncos Kenny McKinley published on yahoo.

Hi Jason,

Thank you so much for this timely and necessary article. My sadness is that the end of a young man’s life is tied to its publishing.
Having followed you on Yahoo for many years I know you know the game and the business of this and other sports at many different levels. Having seen and covered events like this throughout your career with an up close and personal perspective must, at times, be difficult, especially when you are as familiar with the people as you may often be.

I was touched by this story in many ways; by its humanity, by its tragedy, and perhaps by its stark reality. I was moved to respond to you because of a comment in your article. Of all people, the comment made by Ricky Williams hit home when he said, ‘It’s not external, it’s me. There’s something I need to fix.’

My purpose is simply to highlight the need for “coaching” at a much younger age! I’m not referring to the “X’s and O’s,” I’m referring to the kind of life experience coaching and mentoring that our culture has chosen to overlook and avoid in favor of a false sense of security in the material world. As your article points out, this is not an isolated incident and there is a plethora of help available. Thank goodness there are some ears who are hearing and there is some help available. But would more Mr. McKinley’s and others like him be alive today and would the Mr. Robbins’ of our world be more productive on the other side of the prison walls if we made a significant effort to sell the acceptance of each other as humans and less as exploited products to be used, sold and discarded when the value of our seemingly identifiable talent begins to diminish?

Is this a pie in the sky thinking, an unrealistic perspective? Perhaps, but I choose to believe it’s possible and probable, when we begin to tire of the senseless loss of life not only in how we view the games we play but how we choose the life we live. I believe we must decide to see each other exactly as we are – human, and nothing more. Harvard Professor Tal Ben Shahar, PHD a professor of positive psychology suggests that one of the elements to happiness is giving ourselves and each other the “permission to be human.” It’s a permission to live and be happy based on unconditional acceptance of exactly what we are and not some external image propagated by those who wish something else for us.

I express my condolences to Kenny McKinley’s family and the scores of families who lives have been marred similarly. Recovery and healing is possible, if that is what we choose. I hope that this tragic event, as well as all of the other told and untold events, will bring us to a new light, a new era, one in which we realize that we are simply human, and as such, as frail as we are strong.

I enjoy the game of football, as I do all sport. As an ex jock, an Al Bundy type of long ago, and a man interested in the development of the human spirit, I want to see the game - and life - go on. But, if I had the choice (and we all do) between this magnificent game and becoming the change I want to see – as Mahatma Ghandi put it, I, like Ricky Williams, know “there’s something I need to fix.”

I hope Jason that you will continue to use your forum to be a positive influence on the young men and women of sport and to help them see within themselves an identity more valuable than "athlete."

Sincerely,
Bruce S. Noll