Living The Pause

A Pause Un~Planned

Mary Lenihan

So Are you a planner? Planners seem organized and focused.
Good stuff. I am not much of a planner. Often, I wish I were,
because perhaps I would be more efficient with my time. On the
other hand, I enjoy my spontaneous nature, which leans into not
planning, which opens me up to INSPIRED POSSIBILITIES! Of
course, planning is essential for much of life . . . but we can still be
in the present moment and play with spontaneity!

I was super enthusiastic and energized to begin work on a
few Pause projects, so I planned specific days and times to do so.
BUT, each moment I tried to begin, life called with an unexpected
and important item needing my attention, including my trip to
Urgent Care for a possible brown recluse spider bite!

On the second day of what felt like the universe working
against me, suddenly, everything needing urgent care. Taxes,
finances, paperwork, home repairs, etc. In my frustration, I chose
to give in and let go of my plans. Occasionally, aware of a few
moments of downtime, I paused. In these pauses, I opened my
laptop to see if I could squeeze in some time on the plans I had
decided to let go of, and behold, Inspiration flowed. The pressure
of time was out of my mind. Creative expression was released.
I completed a few tasks and small projects, and it all came very
easily.

What I might normally have spent days on, in planned time, due to
having time for doing and redoing, analyzing, doubting, and
overthinking, only took a few hours! My mind was focused;
I experienced super clarity, all because I was open to
letting go of my plans.
IN A PAUSE UNPLANNED ~

I WAS WILLING TO RECEIVE MY INNER INSPIRATION ~

JOYFUL, EFFICIENT, and PRACTICAL.

I WAS STILL ABLE TO CARE FOR THE URGENT STUFF!

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How to Receive Love

Sharing by Mary Lenihan

So many of us seem to be running on empty these days. Do you
resonate? I am learning to ask myself, “Is this how I am being guided
to live my life?

I pause. I had been attempting to be giving, caring, and serving in
hopes of bringing joy, peace, and healing to people only to end up
burnt to a crisp!
Where did I go astray?
I was operating from my ego “good intentions mindset”.
My father was Irish and there’s a wise Irish saying,

THE ROAD TO HELL IS PAVED WITH
GOOD INTENTIONS!

THIS IS NOT THE WAY TO PROCEED

HOW TO PROCEED?

It is only when I truly Pause to RECEIVE LOVE, and LET LOVE
LOVE ME, and ALLOW LOVE to MOVE THROUGH ME, that
I AM LOVING MYSELF, and I AM LOVING OTHERS.

As I RECEIVE LOVE, I CAN NOW GIVE LOVE.
Exhaustion and judgements can be replaced WITH
ENTHUSIASM and HOPE.
LIFE CAN BECOME MORE MEANINGFUL.

I sat on the couch for my daily quiet time.

The Peace in my mind was shrouded by chaos, while also thinking,
“What can I do next?” Ordering myself to stay “productive”!
My self efforted to
make Peace of mind happen.
Nothing happened.

Then I heard in my mind,
“Mary, STOP. Just let LOVE, love you.”

Though I have had many wondrous healing experiences of LOVE’s
presence,
I had not realized how essential it was to
practice
letting LOVE love me.

So, I pause.
I pause to receive This LOVE.
I pause to let This LOVE, love me.
The result?
Peace the world cannot give consumes me.
Peace no amount of self-effort can make happen.
Peace no worldly success and approval can render.
Peace opens me as I am willing to receive This Unwavering LOVE.
I am rested as I Let LOVE, love me.

As I am willing to receive This LOVE,
I am willing to give This LOVE.

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Solutions for Healing

uncomplicated

Sharing by Mary

In the morning and evening, I give time and space for an extended
Pause. This way, I begin my day with a sense of stability and end my day
with a soft landing.

Midweek, I noticed that my mental well-being was not well. So, I
paused to ask for help and receive help from my Inner Wisdom. In my
pausing, I recognized three things:

1) Specific inner guidance came into my mind that truly caught me
off guard. I immediately knew it was the solution to a problem. I was so
excited and relieved and filled with JOY. Yet, though I had asked for help
and received it, I hesitated in my following because I was still considering
options that my cubicle mind was putting forth. What this did was weaken
and distract me from following the Wise solution I had received.

Solution: It’s not too late. I can still follow the Wisdom given and
receive HELP.

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2) I saw in my mind that as long as I keep focusing on myself, I will
be miserable. Yes, me, myself, and me again being my main focus always
brings dispiritedness. The cubicle mind, or me-character, wants to keep me
focused on my cubicle self, life, feelings, aches, pains, suffering, problems,
body – get the picture? Everything is me, me, me, me, me, along with a
refusal to pause for Inner Wisdom and follow the solution in that pause.

Solution: “I am so sick and tired of this me-character disturbing my
peace of mind, that’s it! I hand myself over to PEACE of MIND.” I
felt my whole being let go. A great burden was lifted off my
shoulders as I shifted my focus from myself and towards
PEACE of MIND ~ Something More than me!

RX: Repeat as needed for HEALING.

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3) I was shown that, yes, as a human being, I make mistakes. I kept
pulling myself down instead of following my inner voice telling me to look
at how I was seeing myself in this situation that upset me. I realized that I
saw myself as unworthy of anything better.

Solution: As I ask for help, my Inner Wisdom assures me that I am
not a bad person for making mistakes. I gain insight into why I said
what I said and did what I did. But I don’t stop there. I have
discovered that insight in and of itself does not bring full healing. I
am called to forgive myself, forgive another, and receive
forgiveness.

Now, I have HOPE because
My Inner Wisdom is waiting for me to ask for and receive help ~
always and all ways ~
in the Pause ~

Pause for One Another

Sharing by Mary

Lately it feels like we are living in the Land of Oz. Visions of
wicked witches, good witches, flying monkeys, munchkins, and a
Wizard hiding behind a wavering curtain pretending to be the ruler of
OZ. Some mornings, even after caffeine, I can embody any one of
these folks.

The world is spinning off into a tornado and we have the
entire cast of characters lost in a world of their own making.
Dorothy, dreaming she has forgotten who she is and is trying to find
her way home, the Scarecrow without a brain and a body constantly
falling apart, the Lion pretending to be fierce while looking for
courage, the Tin Man unaware of his sensitivity is seeking a heart, and
Toto too thinking about life in a more helpful direction.

Where are those ruby slippers when you need them?

Toto may be the sanest one of the bunch as he pulls the
curtain aside revealing that the Wizard is not a Wizard after all. Once
the Wizard tells the truth about his disguise, his mask falls away. Only
then does he Pause for Dorothy and the gang which opens his heart
and mind to see he has plenty to give all of them and receives plenty
in return.

We turn on the news to witness yet another sequel of the
Land of OZ. Didn’t I watch this exact news yesterday? Yes, I am
watching too much news. How about you?

What is one solution to the ongoing turmoil keeping our
minds spinning and hearts sinking?

Pause for One Another

“As I bless another,
I bless myself.”

It Was In Me All Along

Sharing by Mary

My father shared his Words of Wisdom with me throughout my life.

He was a man of few words, and maybe that is why when he spoke, I
listened. I knew they were Words of Wisdom because they led me to pause and
shift my way of seeing and thinking about life in a more helpful direction.

Whether raking leaves together as a little girl, doing the dishes, or on a road
trip, we seemed to both enjoy the same vibe. Visiting with him in his older
years, we did as we often did, simply being together in quiet.

From within the silence, he uttered the words,
“It was in me all along.”

Those words definitely landed.

Wisdom breaks through when I give my consent.

As I am aware of Inner Wisdom, and truly allow myself to receive, I experience
an inner shift in how I see myself, others, and relationships. It’s not a sacrifice
to let go of my way in favor of receiving a Wiser Way.

The challenge is letting Wisdom truly make a difference in my day-to-day life.

If I don’t apply the Wisdom I have received, if I go on about my day as if I don’t
know any better, I can feel like I have one foot in one world and one foot in
another. This becomes a brewing conflict, an inner divide that deepens over
time as I choose not to follow Wisdom.

I lose my inner peace, which then leads to losing outer peace.

For example, you haven’t heard from me in a while because I…

…chose to take a part-time sabbatical to rest. My Inner Wisdom has been urging
me for at least five years to take a break from work, but I kept ignoring it. I
relied upon a long list of excuses as to why I couldn’t possibly stop working. All
of these excuses were fear-based thoughts that cause exhaustion! My ego
barked at me that if I took a break, Pause for Inspiration (the nonprofit) would
fall apart. This is highly unlikely, as I have reliable people I can call upon for
backup. Thank you, Natalie, and John.

The Bottom Line

No one else can force me to follow the Wisdom I receive.
The choice is always mine.
Might I have some trepidation?
Yes, much of the time!
Will I regret it? Never.

In the midst of everyday life

Download the free “Pause For Inspiration”
mobile app in your app store!

Over The Rainbow
be uplifted

Sharing by Mary

Your Inspired Mind knows what you are experiencing in
your daily life and wants to lift you up! You can open to the
Wisdom, Inspiration, and Peace within. All you have to do is
Pause.
Now, Receive.

Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I would be a co-founder of a
nonprofit educational organization, which began because, in my
stress, strife, and lack of purpose in this world, I was willing to Pause
and Receive my Higher Mind. This Bigger Mind, not our ego me-
character, showed me the way of true vision ~ how to perceive,
think, communicate, act, be still, and enter into silence. This Inner
Present LOVE taught me that we have the potential to “Be a Living
Expression of Inspiration in the world.” Help comes to each of us in
various ways: our wise thoughts, an inner awareness of Peace, a heart
space, perhaps awareness of a bodily sensation or way of moving, and
even through another person or an
unexpected encounter.

Your Helpful Self awaits you! Pause in 2026.

We here at Pause are immensely grateful for all the
ways Pause was shared & practiced in 2025.

BJC Healthcare ~ Raising St. Louis Mom’s Group

Kids & Teens Summer Camp

St. Louis University Nursing Professor Invites
Pause to share with Nursing Students

LifeBridge Partnership

ArchWell Health

Tornado Recovery with Shaka

Forest Park Community College Scholars

Youth Empowerment Rally

College Church Retreat

Shared PAUSE with:

Namaste Village in Mexico

Saprea, supporting women survivors of childhood abuse

Neighborhood Healing Network ~ National Crime Victims

Rosé Day Festival ~ Empowering Women and Girls

Better Family Life Resource Tailgate

Bridge the Gap ~ Juneteenth

My Life In a Bag ~ Children in Foster Care and Group Homes

Grateful for Natalie & Myron

Eileen Teaches Pause with Sound Bowls,
Rainsticks!

Natalie Shooting Hoops ~ Mary On The Trail

A Truly JOYFUL, HEALING, and DEEPLY
PEACEFUL 2026 to us all.

Pause For Nourishment

Sharing by Mary

Are you perhaps feeling undernourished? I am not checking in on your
eating leafy greens, hydration, and popping supplements as if they were miracle
pills that will give you boundless energy, heal emotional wounds, and
revive your spirit!

I am asking you,

“Deep on the inside, do you feel malnourished?”

“Is something missing?”

“Are you sensing a gaping hole that nothing seems to fill?”

“Or, maybe you feel blank inside, bored, or lonely?”

“Are you seeking and not finding?”

Would you consider taking in a nourishing pause?

PAUSE

Step back from external noise as much as you can

Pause from who you think you should be and what you should be doing

For this moment, these moments

Begin to notice even a morsel of inner quiet

Ask for Help with letting the stillness deliver nourishment to you

With “Deep Willingness, ” open to receiving and being nourished

Absorb this nourishment, replacing the feeling of being malnourished

Allow a sense of being reassured and sustained

Experiencing what True nourishment provides.