Simple Abundance

I'm reading Sarah Ban Breathnach's Simple Abundance again.  There are daily readings on lifestyle which were life changing at the time I first read them which was over 20 years ago.  I love her writing style plus there are 365 little essays with marvelous ideas. 

During the month of September she's writing essays about success.  Yesterday the essay was on ambition.  She said taking action on our goals is ambition in motion - there's no success without ambition because it drives action.  She also says that ambition has a bad reputation because of it's association with pride and greed.  "When the soul is impoverished, the ego is easily seduced.  Greed is a very effective pimp for the dark side."  I love it.  I can see this everywhere in our world and even sometimes in myself.  An impoverished soul = greed.  Love and light of the soul are the answers to greed. 

Today the reading was about fear.  All of us, I'm sure, are familiar with the voices inside our head that tell us we are going to fail, make a fool of ourselves, etc., etc., etc. if we take action on our heart's desires.  I was startled to read that she believes those voices come from the ego.  The ego wants to protect itself from embarrassment so it whispers to us that we are so tired and need to take care of ourselves instead of taking action.  Mindless TV, computer games, unneeded naps, "Relax," the ego says, "There's plenty of time.  Tomorrow will be soon enough."  I knew my ego was not my friend, but I've been listening to the "It's time to rest" thing because I often am REALLY tired.  Sometimes it's my ego, though.  Thanks, Sarah, for the heads up!