Can you face it?
Lurking in the Shadows
I’ve just finished watching The Shadow Effect by Debbie Ford.
Let me pause for a minute while I catch my breath.
Okay, now I think I can, hopefully, give some semblance of a cohesive review. First off, let me NOT recommend this powerful movie to the following people:
Those in denial
Those caught up in substance abuse
Those in difficult relationships
Those for whom “change” is a scary word
Okay, did we clear out the room?
Now let me invite in the following folks, as each would find something in this film of benefit. These folks include:
Those in denial
Those caught up in substance abuse
Those in difficult relationships
Those for whom “change” is a scary word
What just happened? It seems that this moving piece of art has something to offer to all of us; we are all on our unique life paths yet interconnected in so many ways and all of us are seeking one elusive thing.
Love.
For that’s what this film is ultimately about. Love of those around you, whether they be good to you or bad. Love of those whom you may never meet. Love of those passed on. Love of your family, biological faux pas as that may turn out to be. Love for the policeman issuing you a ticket for speeding. Love for the politicians who set policy and law whether or not you voted for them. Love for the lost, the abandoned, the addicted, the frightened, the imprisoned, the diseased, the forgotten. Love for yourself.
Why love when the title has to do with shadows?
Because it’s only through facing these shadows; these demons haunting all of us as individuals and as a society that we can emerge into the light of beauty, transcendence, and love.
Don’t get me wrong. This isn’t a woo-woo video that will make you run for your favorite metaphysics books. It has no pretty images of pastoral nature scenes. Black and white, stark and dusky, this film strips it down to one thing and one thing only.
Do you love yourself enough to face your shadows? It asks you, “What do you dislike most about yourself?”
Wow. Now for most of us that’s a hard thing to face. Then Debbie Ford goes on to suggest that some of the worst characteristics you see in others is a case of one finger pointing at the offending person and THREE fingers pointing back at you. Are you projecting your innermost failings onto others in order to make yourself feel better? Do you find it much easier to condemn others rather than change yourself?
It’s that gnawing tiny voice in the back of our minds that keeps us up in the wee hours. It’s true, as the film says,
WHAT WE CAN’T BE WITH WON’T LET US BE.
What does that mean and how can we finally BE in the moment and accept and LOVE ourselves? Debbie Ford and her incredible contributors remind us that it’s only when we face these shadows, drag them out into the light, accept them, and forgive them and ourselves that we can truly find love.
How many of us are yearning to find closure, to finally conquer those beasts rising up within us, yet embrace them too and learn from them and use them as a tool to move on and improve our lives?
In this incredible, beautiful, daunting picture, this question comes up again and again. Can we face our shadow and instead of hiding from it, try to gain something instead? This is an important tool for anyone seeking something better for themselves; to rise up and cleanse themselves of past errs and violations, to purge pain and instead clothe themselves in the arms of….
Love.
To purchase the DVD
http://store.debbieford.com/product_info.php?ref=59&products_id=16
To buy the online version:
http://store.debbieford.com/product_info.php?ref=59&products_id=18
Twitter: http://twitter.com/debbie_ford
Featuring as guests in The Shadow Effect
Deepak Chopra
Website: http://deepakchopra.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/deepakchopra
Marianne Williamson
Website: http://www.marianne.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/marwilliamson
James Van Praagh
Website: http://www.vanpraagh.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/JamesVanPraagh
Mark Victor Hansen
Website: http://www.markvictorhansen.com
For the two disc set
http://store.debbieford.com/product_info.php?ref=59&products_id=17
Second Hand Roses: Lessons from the Junktiquing Road 
The Shadow Effect, Volume 2
Can you face it?
Lurking in the Shadows
I’ve just finished watching The Shadow Effect by Debbie Ford.
Let me pause for a minute while I catch my breath.
Okay, now I think I can, hopefully, give some semblance of a cohesive review. First off, let me NOT recommend this powerful movie to the following people:
Those in denial
Those caught up in substance abuse
Those in difficult relationships
Those for whom “change” is a scary word
Okay, did we clear out the room?
Now let me invite in the following folks, as each would find something in this film of benefit. These folks include:
Those in denial
Those caught up in substance abuse
Those in difficult relationships
Those for whom “change” is a scary word
What just happened? It seems that this moving piece of art has something to offer to all of us; we are all on our unique life paths yet interconnected in so many ways and all of us are seeking one elusive thing.
Love.
For that’s what this film is ultimately about. Love of those around you, whether they be good to you or bad. Love of those whom you may never meet. Love of those passed on. Love of your family, biological faux pas as that may turn out to be. Love for the policeman issuing you a ticket for speeding. Love for the politicians who set policy and law whether or not you voted for them. Love for the lost, the abandoned, the addicted, the frightened, the imprisoned, the diseased, the forgotten. Love for yourself.
Why love when the title has to do with shadows?
Because it’s only through facing these shadows; these demons haunting all of us as individuals and as a society that we can emerge into the light of beauty, transcendence, and love.
Don’t get me wrong. This isn’t a woo-woo video that will make you run for your favorite metaphysics books. It has no pretty images of pastoral nature scenes. Black and white, stark and dusky, this film strips it down to one thing and one thing only.
Do you love yourself enough to face your shadows? It asks you, “What do you dislike most about yourself?”
Wow. Now for most of us that’s a hard thing to face. Then Debbie Ford goes on to suggest that some of the worst characteristics you see in others is a case of one finger pointing at the offending person and THREE fingers pointing back at you. Are you projecting your innermost failings onto others in order to make yourself feel better? Do you find it much easier to condemn others rather than change yourself?
It’s that gnawing tiny voice in the back of our minds that keeps us up in the wee hours. It’s true, as the film says,
WHAT WE CAN’T BE WITH WON’T LET US BE.
What does that mean and how can we finally BE in the moment and accept and LOVE ourselves? Debbie Ford and her incredible contributors remind us that it’s only when we face these shadows, drag them out into the light, accept them, and forgive them and ourselves that we can truly find love.
How many of us are yearning to find closure, to finally conquer those beasts rising up within us, yet embrace them too and learn from them and use them as a tool to move on and improve our lives?
In this incredible, beautiful, daunting picture, this question comes up again and again. Can we face our shadow and instead of hiding from it, try to gain something instead? This is an important tool for anyone seeking something better for themselves; to rise up and cleanse themselves of past errs and violations, to purge pain and instead clothe themselves in the arms of….
Love.
To purchase the DVD
http://store.debbieford.com/product_info.php?ref=59&products_id=16
To buy the online version:
http://store.debbieford.com/product_info.php?ref=59&products_id=18
Twitter: http://twitter.com/debbie_ford
Featuring as guests in The Shadow Effect
Deepak Chopra
Website: http://deepakchopra.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/deepakchopra
Marianne Williamson
Website: http://www.marianne.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/marwilliamson
James Van Praagh
Website: http://www.vanpraagh.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/JamesVanPraagh
Mark Victor Hansen
Website: http://www.markvictorhansen.com
For the two disc set
http://store.debbieford.com/product_info.php?ref=59&products_id=17
- Social Commentary
- Uncategorized
on 2009/08/09 at 12:40 am Comments (4)Tags: Debbie Ford, Deepak Chopra, James Van Praagh, Mark Victor Hansen, self-help, self-improvement, Shadow Effect, spirituality