When making resolutions, we feel optimistic and energized. It seems as if we've focused our immediate future into a single powerful beam of clarity, and shaped it, given it real tangible form.
Indeed, it is exactly what happens.
In the creation of each new concrete goal we create the rest of our life.
Take this test:
Shape your lips into a kiss-pout. Go ahead, do it right now, regardless of whether you are alone or in a public place. Hold the pose for 5 seconds.
How did that make you feel?
Playful? Daring? Silly? Sexy? Empowered? Cool? Hot? Brazen? Wanting to whistle?
Whatever your reaction, take your pick.
And now, analyze what you chose. Because the result reflects your personal vulnerability.
Why is it that things become painfully important only when we find them gone?
While the sun shines, we pay no attention. While we see color, hear music, feel the softness of cotton, taste the tang of a ripe apple, we ignore them and take them for granted.
While those we love are with us, alive, we don't consider the profundity of it.
Don't allow loss to be your harsh teacher.
Open your eyes and look around you now, and see.
The story of your life and mine is told through words, but it is experienced through the senses.
So, how is it that words "dissolve" in the transformational barrier of our imagination and come out on the other end as smells, tastes, images, sounds and touches? What kind of mind magic is it that transports us from the perception of dead symbols to a participation in a vibrant living reality?
Well, it is not magic, but your own ability to connect to the rest of the world.
Without the willingness on our part to reach out and connect to others, stories would not exist. We would have no desire to participate in experiencing them, and hence in creating them.
We would not know them.
And you would not be reading this sentence.
Indeed, you would not be reading at all.
Terrifying, isn't it? Well, good thing you can imagine the scenario, because in the act of doing so you are negating it.
So relax, and read on.
The stories are all safe and waiting for you.
For many of us it is a quickly snatched hot cup of coffee or tea, and maybe a portable energy bar or a breakfast sandwich wrapped in foil and received from a fast food window.
As we consume it -- liquid or solid, hot or lukewarm or cold -- we pay it only a smidgeon of our attention. Maybe the heat briefly scalds the mouth as we rush to swallow, or the familiar flavor strikes the taste buds with "eggness," or "cerealness" or any number of other well-known things we consume all our lives.
The rest of our attention is on the world around us -- whether it is the road as we hold the wheel, or the work on the computer screen in our office. And thus we rush to swallow, to chew, to blandly fill ourselves.
The first nourishment of the day, the energy that will power and drive us, is taken in without awareness, or appreciation.
It is a pity. Because if we took the proper time to focus upon it, it would do us more tangible good.
The cold stands outside and beyond, but you are wrapped in a cocoon of warmth.
It is your home. No matter if it is only a home of the moment.
Cherish it.
What is the difference between "elegance" and "grace?" Both notions are rich with fine nuances of meaning.
Elegance suggests smooth secular style, while grace hints at spiritual, even religious finesse.
During the holidays, may your spirit be elegant and your state of grace be achieved in high style.
The feeling of security is one of the most underrated and unexplored emotional states out there. It is the vanquisher of stress, the bringer of inner peace, the enhancer of joy, the means to appreciating the transient wonder of the moment.
Security, when it comes, is like a soft warm glow, rising to envelop you from all directions, until you are bathed in the unconditional light of simply being.
And in case you disdain security and all that it entails, consider this -- those who strive for security are not merely wise, prudent, selfish, timid, or seeking the simplicity of childhood and the safety of the familiar.
They are the ones who truly understand how to provide it to others.
Worry is the secret weapon perpetrated upon us by the dark forces of the world that lurk in the shape of fear, uncertainty, confusion, and loss.
We, on the other hand, have our own secret weapon against these incorporeal fiends.
It is laughter.
Many of us get depressed during the holidays. We tend to look around at the seething overflow of cheer everywhere -- in the media, on the streets, under every social circumstance. If we are not personally caught up in the whirlwind joy, we feel inadequate, and the blue feeling intensifies and spirals.
Eventually we are like spots of gloom compared to the rest of the bubbling Happyland, when in fact we are merely the same -- exactly how we had been moments before someone decided to call in the holidays.
All of this might take place not because we are all Humbug Scrooges, but because any forced mood change somehow feels artificial, unreal, and most of us are able to tell.
Indeed, festive mood is like a bottled giddy perfume, and it gets liberally sprayed on the world around the early fall, so that all the focus tends to slip toward green fur tree boughs, red gift wrap, golden blurry lights, and various camera angles upon a laden feast table centerpiece. The festive fragrance also calls up people dressed in bright sweaters, smiling excessively and hugging each other, raising sparkling glasses to toast something intangible.
Sometimes this perfume works on us, and we are caught up in the glow (in which case, ignore the rest of this entry, go, shoo!).
Other times, we are not quite in synch with it. So we wave off the overbearing scent in annoyance, not to mention a minor allergic reaction. This is when the dissonance starts to grate, to exacerbate our irritation and our already different personal state. Or else, it increases the nostalgic longing for the illusory joy that seems out of reach.
Think -- how unfair it is to ask anyone to rejoice when they are breaking inside, for so many reasons.
And yet . . .
And yet, the Spirit of the Holidays has a strange healing power if we allow it to affect us. For it is the collective spirit of joy of humanity with all its rich time-brewed traditions and rituals and primeval wonder -- how can it not move us?
However, as with any proper application of scent, too much all at once is a mistake. Mood perfume must be so subtle that it enters you and me without notice, gradually, and starts to seduce with its inevitability.
One breath at a time.
Transforming us.
Then the warmth becomes real, the candles shine with a sacred light, the green boughs beckon, and the smiles touch the heart. Even if just for a moment, it is all genuine, all applicable to us, members of the human species.
It is only then that, drenched in the perfumed sweetness of verisimilitude, we can truly celebrate.
There's a familiar saying we've all heard before -- follow your dreams.
It is absolute nonsense.
If you follow a dream, you will be following it always, like the receding horizon, like a will-o-wisp. Under no circumstances should you follow your dreams, for dreams are only shadows.
Instead, consider what it is that you dream about, and come up with a practical, goal-driven plan of action that will get you -- or anyone -- there.
Then, follow your own step-by-step achievement instructions, as you would a recipe.
Even a child can do it.
Don’t ever be ashamed to cry.
The outpouring of pent-up emotion is as necessary and inevitable as rainfall.
And it allows you to take the next breath and plant the next step.
There is an empty spot inside all of us. Sometimes there is more than one.
The spot is like a tiny black hole. The nature of its vacuum is blacker than black, colder than cold, more hungry than a starving nation.
The spot-holes must all be filled, or you feel an empty heartache, ennui, a sense of waste, a lack of will to do anything with yourself, a loss of meaning, a general weakness of will.
If you do nothing about it, more "holes" develop, and with time you lose personal cohesiveness. Slowly, you diminish.
What to do?
Well, it's a bit of a trick to fill those empty spots.
It requires the Great Flood.
The Great Flood is an outpouring of life energy to generate a rising tide of selfhood.
What in the world does that mean?
Simple -- it is a redirection of energy.
Energy rises from your center to the outside, like a fountain, and fills in all empty spots of vacuum as it fills all of you.
Every hole is plugged. Every need is met. All hunger appeased. The fabric that is "you" is repaired and strengthened.
The life energy rushes outward like a supernova, brimming past the borders of your "self."
How to get that energy? Where does it come from?
One might say, "it comes out of nothing." It "comes" in answer to an effort you make to look for it.
Indeed, the moment you begin to wonder, to think of it, it is there, just welling at the edges of your being -- the life force.
So, go ahead . . . Invoke it and use it to make the Great Flood.
Then, Fill Yourself.
Have you ever seen the dawn?
Not a dawn groggy with lack of sleep or hectic with mindless obligations and you about to rush off on an early adventure or business, but full of deep silence and absolute clarity of perception?
A dawning which you truly observe, degree by degree.
It is the most amazing moment of birth.
And more than anything it can spur you to action.
Have a burning day.
Pick up a delicate fine-bone china teacup filled with the hot freshly boiled brew of tea leaves -- Darjeeling or Assam or your favorite black treasure.
First, lower your face, lips hovering just above the surface, allowing the subtle fragrant steam to wash over your skin, to bond with you and enter the pores. The warmth stands like a second skin.
Then, inhale the steam . . .
Fill your lungs with warm, soothing, vapor-drenched air.
Exhale slowly, in complete peace.
Put your lips to the edge of cup and linger. Feel its smoothness.
When the brew is no longer scalding but still hot enough to fill you with exultant living fire, take the first sip. Draw in and taste the light, life-affirming liquid.
You are home.
Everyone's always searching for something.
It's either stuff we want, or need, or admire, or miss, or plain find fascinating. Sometimes if we focus all our resources upon the object of the search, it becomes a violent obsession. But if we search the right way -- light, airy, carefree -- we indeed find wonder.
Searching is our human drive for fulfillment, completion, a life urge, a reaffirmation of the self.
In the searching lies joy.
Go look for something today!
Want to touch the upper atmosphere?
Next time it rains, leave a bucket outside and then come and dip your fingers in. There's a good chance that at least some of that water contains particles from on-high.
Want to know the highest wisdom?
Step outside into a crowded street and listen. There's a good chance you will hear a line or two of something that expounds upon profound, absolute truth.
The five senses are the only things standing between each one of us and the rest of the universe.
It is possible that there is another sense -- indeed, maybe an infinite number of other subtle senses -- which we know nothing about.
But these precious five that we do know, we must guard and treasure and never lose track of, and hone their sharpness with all that is within us.
For, without our senses we are truly alone.
The wind blows with greater force through wide open spaces.
Open your mind wide and let the wind of thought range in freedom and clear out the stagnant detritus.
Imagine a world where lifestyle choices, belief, religion, moral values, and final judgment are all based on unconditional love and mercy.
Imagination is the greatest impetus.
The regular rhythm of your breath is the basis of everything you do. It is relentless and constant and reliable as clockwork.
And yet, if you stop to think about it for even one moment, you can "stumble" and lose the rhythm.
Such self-contemplation -- an act of stepping outside yourself -- can make you stumble in many other things.
Why not pretend for a moment that everything you do is like breathing?
We are all glorified motion sensors.
Some things only become visible to us when they undergo change.
We take for granted all the constant, fixed things, and eventually stop paying any attention to them. At the same time we observe and obsess over small, fast-moving, ephemeral things of little value.
The trick to rediscovering constants is to stop and focus on the greater panorama around us. While everything else flits abut, the important things remain in place.
Their stillness appears as reverse motion to our perspective, as relativity resets our motion sensors. It reboots us, allowing us once again to perceive.
And now that we do see, suddenly we realize that those still things are not so motionless after all. They are simply gliding with slow individualistic grace against the backdrop of the immense universe.
And it takes a more sensitive motion instrument to track this.
The difficulty in dealing with a maze or labyrinth lies not so much in navigating the convolutions to find the exit but in not entering the damn thing in the first place.
Or, at least not yet again.
As a creature of free will, do not be tempted into futility.
Camels and dromedaries store water in their bodies. They are naturally suited to life in the desert.
Human beings store memories and dreams in the vast caverns of their minds. They are naturally suited to life in prison cells.
Don't allow the limitations of your surroundings influence your life will, limit your joy, and curb your drive.
You already carry the universe inside you.
Tap into it.
Sometimes, being true to yourself means changing your mind.
Self changes, and you follow.
Why is it that so many proverbs, aphorisms, and utterances of wisdom are made about mountains?
Mountains are symbolic of struggles, high or insurmountable goals, head-spinning freedom, rising above the crowd, conquering the self, aiming high, reaching the pinnacle, achieving greatness, breathing the air of success, gaining a sense of superiority, being high above the clouds, feeling ecstasy.
Mountains are said to be divine, natural, eternal, sacred. Mountains can even be euphemisms for female breasts.
Indeed, mountains in all their purple majesty are nothing short of metaphoric heaven.
And yet, here is another simple thing.
If you sit on a mountain top too long, eventually you will have to come down.
Selfishness is a simple knee-jerk choice of the moment.
It is based on self-preservation, greed, fear, or simple hungry need -- for the most part, id-based impulse.
Whatever its basis, it is a short-term approach to things. Acting selfishly might benefit you now, but not so much in the long term.
Take an extra moment before making your self-based choice to visualize ahead to the greater chain of events that will ultimately affect you and those that matter to you. Look days, months, years into the future.
Then, be truly selfish and choose altruism.
A choir is made up of many voices, including yours and mine. If one by one all go silent then all that will be left are the soloists.
Don’t let a loud few determine the nature of the sound. It makes for poor harmony and diminishes the song.
Register.
Vote.
So often, in seeming injustice, beauty on the surface is the compensation for an empty heart, while the kind and deserving show a plain outward demeanor.
Only, there is nothing inequitable about it.
The universe is fair -- if the barren souls were not granted something to make them sweet to others, then they would be forsaken.
The more experience, the less fear.
At some midpoint, with the rising awareness of all possibilities the fear grows, but then again tapers off as the knowledge of how to cope exceeds it.
Once you scale the fear mountain, from there on begins a marvelous steady trend...
The less fear the more experience.
Serenity is a blissful healthy state of being and the result of inner balance.
It requires for so many things in our lives to be going "right" at the same time -- aspirations, finances, relationships, health, basic stability of daily routine. Even a clean attractive home environment and a comfortable bed may make a difference.
When something is out of whack -- and for almost all of us it is usually the case -- serenity is very difficult to achieve. You need to make a concerted effort to ignore that problematic thing before any kind of balance returns to you.
And when too many things are going wrong, attaining balance is almost a joke. Most of us are just holding on for dear life. Sounds familiar?
Now, it may be useful to tackle each problem one at a time -- and so we do. But when too many new problems pop up, we still find ourselves sinking in a quagmire. Our lives amount to a mess and we feel like failures, since we cannot seem to get anywhere.
What to do? Is serenity such an unreachable thing?
Not at all, my friend.
It is all a matter of priorities.
Here is something to keep in mind. Our life goals are not set in stone. They can be changed at will. And herein lies the key.
Try setting serenity as your life's goal.
Then, do whatever it takes to work to achieve it alone and nothing else.
Once you're there -- and you will be -- then switch your set of goals back to your original, real track.
It is never too late.
Wisdom is profound only when understood.
Otherwise it is but the crashing sound of the distant ocean surf -- eternal and undeniable, but without relevance to you.
The most beautiful light in the darkness of night is one that shines to illuminate your way home.
Revolutions happen on any scale.
Revolution of a nation is traumatic and bloody, like the amputation of a limb. As such, it should come as a last resort.
Revolution of a single cell is minute and delicate and wrought with uncertainty as to the end result.
Revolution of one human being is cause for celebration.
What is fear? What is being alone?
Either a lack of trust or a lack of compromise.
The world is filled with so many wonderful others that none of us has the excuse to blame the lack of opportunity. If you cannot find what you need in your immediate vicinity, then move! Take the extra steps to expand your perspective and your panorama of choices.
And then…
Find the courage to trust someone and curb the pride that prevents you from flexibility.
Yawns are not the only infectious things out there besides germs.
Giggles can spread from person to person.
So can blushing.
But maybe the most powerful infectious thing is the act of speaking the truth.
Autumn is the season of introspection. A cool exterior and a warm orange middle, falling leaves and evenings before the glowing exposed heart of fire.
Nature slows down to think.
Receive its burning heart as offering, be receptive, and allow the warmth inside.
Philosophy is a religion.
Religion is a philosophy.
Everyone subscribes to at least one or the other, and hence, unwittingly, to both.
Don't tell them, or they might be upset.
There are so many things that make a hero.
Heroes sacrifice themselves for others and for the greater good. Heroes quietly do what is right and perform their duty against all odds. Heroes fight for truth and uphold justice. Heroes are larger than life.
Heroes give themselves up as tools unto the benefit of others, surrender their life, their fate, their being completely.
Heroes are all that's good and right with the world.
Heroes are also invisible until someone realizes who they are -- which sometimes never happens at all.
Good thing it completely doesn't matter.
Inspiration comes in a flash.
Or does it?
Earthquakes, tornadoes, lighting strikes, hurricanes, volcano eruptions, floods, and other natural disasters, are all preceded by some kind of natural warning, sometimes giving us enough time to prepare for the ordeal ahead, and to escape to safety. At some level, there are always signs of things to come. Signs as minute as a held breath -- a moment of silence before the storm.
We may not consider inspiration a disaster, but a rare valuable gift from who knows where. And yet, it too acts to throw us out of the ordinary moment of being, with a measure of violence.
Inspiration is dangerous.
Listen for its approach, smell it, taste it, feel the draft, see the change in the light.
Be prepared.
If you repeat things enough times, they somehow take root in reality. Proof of such is gossip, rumor, word of mouth, buzz, infamy, urban legend… story.
These are things that reside in the common consciousness -- the plane of common imagination -- shared images of our human race.
Unicorns and manticores, gryphons and dragons, mermaids and alien beings from the stars.
They are all somehow real.
Maybe that's the secret of being -- bestow a label or a name by putting something into words, repeat in earnest, and witness your creation take on a life of its own.
Is it folly to believe in something that is intangible? After all, some of the greatest intangibles are Love, Hope, and Wonder.
Another is Deity.
The choice to be a fool is yours.
The desert and the ocean are realms of desolation on the surface.
The desert is a place of bones, where the innards are turned out, to desiccate into dust.
The ocean is a place of skin, rich outer membranes hiding thick juicy insides, laden with the soup of being.
Inside out and outside in. These are worlds of things that implode or explode, and the only catalyst that determines the direction of eco-movement is the balance of water.
Both worlds are deceptive, dangerous. Both, seething with hidden life.
The only veil that stands between perception of what is underneath the desolate surface is your courage.
Dare to breach the surface and sink.
The fourth dimension is movement.
It generates space-time. It is the rate of progression.
The fourth dimension is the fourth ray of the compass rose, North, South, East, West.
Which one?
That is up to you to discover.
Having trouble concentrating and being easily distracted is a symptom of so many things -- issues, problems, distractions, wrong starts, aimlessness, indecision, worry, fear, insecurity, pain.
Take the time to figure out which one (or more) applies to you.
Only then can you begin to work on a real solution.
There are so many definitions.
The first one presents an image right out of a fairytale -- an old wise man in a long robe and pointy hat, wielding a wand with magical powers. Or, maybe a younger Harry Potter version.
Maybe the term "wizard" conjures the notion of someone who is particularly good at something -- technology, science, computers, math, etc.
Or maybe yet, you think of stage magic shows or parlor tricks -- smoke and mirrors.
Maybe you think of the occult.
Or racial prejudice.
Or maybe you are reminded of those wacky installation programs that load your software applications.
Halloween?
How about this definition, instead…
A wizard is one who has control of time -- personal and universal. A wizard plans each second of existence, knows all the variables, and therefore can anticipate events.
Does that sound like you?
Silence is a state of mind.
It is a necessary resting point between each living moment.
Take the next moment to pause your complicated life and enjoy the brief sensation of relief.
Do this whenever you feel the need for peace.
Heal yourself with moments of silence.
Do you feel powerless to change the world?
After all, you an I are but a tiny cell in a huge cosmic body, an insignificant speck in a universe that stretches outward beyond all human scale. What can you or I do to affect the universe?
And yet…
All it takes is for one cell to become malignant with cancer, and the whole body is brought down and dies.
All it takes is for one cell to exhibit a beneficial mutation, and the whole body benefits and is eventually transformed into a new, better equipped species.
Such are the two extremes illustrating the power of the individual.
And yet, it is easy to forget that the greatest long-term power exists in the cell that maintains the body in its current state and quietly carries out its innate function. It is neither cancerous, nor wonderfully different.
It simply is.
There are more than two ways of changing the world.
We all want different things.
Our desire determines our individuality. And, very possibly, it defines our life.
Can a robot or artificial intelligence (AI) desire, truly? Can a living being cease desiring completely?
Considering that a lowly virus exhibits autonomy and has the ability to reproduce, could it be that the possession of desire is the better definition of sophisticated life?
Think about what you desire.
And live.
A sage is a former fool who has become tired of himself.
A foolish sage is one who forgets this.
Remember, or come full circle.
"What is Truth?" Pontius Pilate asked, and many others asked, and continue to ask throughout history.
The answers came and continue to come, as varied as there are forms of conviction.
Here is one roundabout response.
If repression and frustration can lead to illness, then so does the repression of truth and the frustrated expression of truth. Thus, when truth is not allowed to come out freely, illness sets in.
Truth is simply that what is natural.
Not everyone loves surprises, even when they are assumed to be pleasant.
That's because what seems like a good thing for one person is not always a good thing for another.
Surprise someone only with something they truly want. And if you are unsure, then simply don't.
Seems like one of the most underrated emotional states in our society is excitement.
When you are genuinely excited, people either think you are being silly or overly emotional. Excitement is considered to be a shallow emotional state -- the stuff of rollercoaster rides and summer blockbuster action movies, of ephemeral low-brow entertainment such as "tacky" genre fiction, and
Common perception has it that nothing serious or profoundly significant is ever achieved as a result of simple childish excitement and exuberance.
And yet, this is such a horrible fallacy.
Far from being an immature response, excitement is what drives the will to achieve. It is what elevates your emotional energy levels to the point which is necessary for creativity, and hence, for action.
Without excitement, no artist would paint, no writer would put down words on the page, no musician would play.
Without excitement, no scientist would pursue a track of thought, no athlete would struggle to compete, no businessman would succeed in their financial field.
Excitement carries us over the threshold of bland mechanical activity into the realm of directed, energized movement with a purpose.
Never underestimate the power of excitement over your life.
Feel it right now!
Virtue is, when you look at it very closely, that which is after all most expedient.
Often we manage to not merely justify our questionable actions but cloak them in a "moral" veneer.
It's seductive and easy to pretend that we are in the right. And it is very easy to come up with a gazillion justifications and excuses and then proceed to do what we wanted to do in the first place.
But, for once, let's not.
The right thing -- here and now -- is the one true alternative.
And self-delusion is only a postponement of responsibility.
Love filters the truth masterfully through the delicate sieve of its recipient's individuality.
Truth in its raw state is often unsuitable for consumption.
If truth were bitter ground coffee, then love would be the filter through which hot scalding water passes to mix with the concentrated grounds, and the end result is a palatable liquid drink that makes the world go round.
Drink up!
Before beginning any conversation and throwing around variously-loaded terms...
Be armed with the perfect definition.
Don't get caught up in relativity.
It is easy to start comparing yourself, your situation, your everything -- to others. All it takes is an aware, thoughtful mind, and down you go into that pit of relativistic despair.
However, our ruminations and cross-comparisons can lead to false insights -- a bottoming spiral of emotional dissatisfaction with ourselves -- simply because the more we seem to know, realize, and compare, the more we forget that there are just as many other things we are not taking into account.
Indeed, all relative comparisons, all relativity, is itself relative.
The only perfect assessment can come from a "perfect" viewpoint outside any and all relative points of the universe.
All you and I can do is periodically remind ourselves of this and try to keep our relativity-based self-criticism under check.
Heaven is delicious, restful peace.
Hell is intense, unresolved turbulence.
And earth? Earth, my friend, is a succession of both.
Which makes earth a kind of an entertaining place to be, if you're one of the living. Never an easy place to be, mind you. But then, whoever claimed that easy was fun?
Enjoy your stay.
Arguments are such wicked things.
They really are.
Arguments happen only at such times when we are unwilling to give each other a chance.
Most of the time arguments are caused by the need of all sides to be contrary, to perversely pretend they don’t understand the exact, subtle -- or not so subtle -- meaning of the other person's words, when they really do understand if they would only choose to admit it. Why? In order to perpetuate the argument, of course.
And why, you might ask, would anyone want to do such a weird thing?
Well, often the act of arguing lets us vent a whole bunch of cooped up general irritation at the other person.
Thus, the need to argue is often a symptom of other unresolved issues.
Think about it the next time you argue -- you are not really discussing the point but are beating against the wall that is the other person.
Maybe it's time to stop and try another way?
There's a recommended daily allowance of "garden" that we don’t often hear about.
When was the last time you stepped inside a garden? Is there one in your back yard? In your neighborhood? Within reach?
No matter.
Go find a garden!
With all your being, with every pore, with every breath, you require it.
Where has all the energy gone? The same place where passion ran off to, and where stamina escaped, where purpose retreated....
Oh, and it’s also the exact same vacation spot where your hope is sneakily trying to slip away, even as we speak.
But hey -- hold on to the dratted thing! Never, ever let it go!
Hope must always be at your side.
The point at which you start "feeling old" comes suddenly upon you, out of the blue.
One moment you are young, and the next, you are on the downslope, it seems. And yet, it is not the true point from which you actually start becoming old.
It is merely the point at which you need to snap out of your rut, re-think your life and address your vital needs.
Life has just smacked you on the nose -- wake up!
Friendship is such a warm, clean, all-enduring, flexible, granite-hard, unbeatable, invulnerable, dependable, unconditional, mighty force.
And yet…
Friendship is such a delicate, precious, amazing, fragile, miraculous, impossible, one-of-a-kind, ethereal, vulnerable thing.
Please, don't ever break yours.
There is something that makes each one of us genuinely happy. And that something is a different thing for all.
Just a simple notion to keep in mind the next time we try to impose our own idea of happiness upon someone else.
Like a pair of nice pants in the wrong size, it may not fit.
Why is it that when there is no time, we burn to do so many things, and when we manage to have time, we seem to have no will to do them?
How can one get the timing right?
How can passion correspond with will? Isn't passion a form of will, that initial urge? What fiendish mystery of entropy is this?
Once thing is certain -- procrastination is not completely at fault.
Some of it is our instinct, causing the hum of uncertainty, telling us that something else might be going on underneath the surface.
Listening to others is not a fine art, but a learned craft.
You can hear what they say, but it does not mean you really hear what they are saying, but what you think they are saying.
How to know when you are only deluding yourself?
The answer is simple -- practice listening. With enough practice, you will be on your way to knowing.
Practice, practice, practice.
Now, what was it that I just said?
How brightly shine the Diamond of Truth and the Rhinestone of Falsehood…
On the other hand, it could all just be Cubic Zirconia, so just enjoy the pretty sparklies and don’t worry about truth, underlying worth, or hidden flaws.
Sometimes surfaces are enough.
To have no immediate goals is worse than having no toilet paper once you've sat down on the seat.
It's like sitting down when the seat has been left raised.
As you can see, the solution is not merely advanced planning, but paying close attention to the exact situation and the nature of the moment at hand.
Also, a full-body-and-mind ability to maneuver fast can really come in handy.
When you see no reason to go on, no purpose, stop and listen to the music of the world.
Okay, did you listen?
Good -- now tell me, what key is it in?
It takes a certain level of denseness, even stupidity, to be confident, relaxed, assured.
Those of us who are much more alert, cynical -- and yes, cautious, wary, careful -- we might sneer. And yet we envy such people their seeming ease of bearing and the facility with which they carry themselves through life.
Often, it is their innocence and naivete that gives then this peculiar advantage.
A lack of vision. Maybe, a lack of experience.
Because the moment you really stop and think, the moment you really break your living stride to take a close look around you with an intense, alert scrutiny, you come to realize that everything is dangerous. The next step you take, the next breath you inhale -- all can derail you, and everything is a potential cause of harm.
It is a miracle indeed that anything persists -- that we survive, that we can continue to live day to day.
Maybe being selectively blind is not such a bad thing. Enough with the details already -- look at the big picture, the great unified gestalt of the moving universe, the rhythm… Close your eyes partway and observe through narrow slits the changed, hazy world.
Pretty!
And suddenly it becomes an easy thing to walk the razor edge of a cliff many kilometers high.
There's a good reason some of us may be considered holy fools.
And there's a good reason that, when going to the beach, it pays to wear sunglasses.
Laughter and love both dispel fear. Laughter is quicker, yet love is surer.
Notice how both of these sensations or emotions generate a state of inner warmth.
So, does this mean that fear is a cold, icy thing?
The most difficult thing in the physical world is communicating precisely what you mean.
The language tools we have at our disposal -- words, sounds, patterns, tone, gestures, etc -- are simply inadequate. For the most part we communicate only a portion of our intent, like radios transmitting at an unreliable static-ridden frequency, or cell phones going in and out of range.
Assuming this, it makes good sense to be patient with the other person, and give them the benefit of the doubt when communication is problematic.
They may not be receiving and we may not be transmitting exactly what we all think.
There is no such thing as a "bad ending" -- it is just the low point of a sequence of events that hasn't yet played out to its completion.
And each sequence, like the proper swing of a pendulum, starts and stops on an upswing.
Try to remember this when you are at the lowest point.
That upswing is coming.
We all have something we consider personal space.
It is not just that immediate physical space of about three feet beyond which you don’t feel comfortable allowing strangers to encroach, such as when someone stands talking too close to your face -- you might call it the personal bubble -- but the greater living space that you consider home.
It’s your home turf, your haven, your refuge. The place that you occupy and organize according to your own needs, and the place you can lounge around in, relax, dream, be yourself, be safe.
It is also the place you clean, maintain to a certain level of personal comfort. And it is the place for which you are responsible and of which you are proud. (Now, if you don’t bother to take care of your surroundings, or don't feel that you have such a place, it simply means that you still haven't discovered your true home, and you are still life's wanderer. But don’t worry, your time of homecoming will come, as it inevitably does for all of us.)
So, what exactly is home, this personal space?
For some of us, it is just our room. For others, it is our whole house, even our whole property with its yard.
For others, it’s the block on which they live, or maybe even the whole street.
Maybe, for yet some lucky others, it’s the whole neighborhood, and even the whole community. And for yet others, it extends even beyond to city level, and then state and country level.
Then there are some of us who take it even further, and extend the sense of personal space to the whole continent, and just maybe, the whole surface of this living planet.
And why stop there? For some, personal space reaches out on the wings of thought into the solar system, and then our Milky Way galaxy, and then our… universe.
Now, considering the fluid extent of all this personal space, how can you and I stand to litter?
Would you like to know your future?
If your answer is yes, think again. Not knowing is the greatest life motivator.
So enjoy, endure, survive each moment as it comes to you in its proper sequence -- a surprise.
Science is an organized pursuit of triviality.
Art is a casual pursuit of significance.
Let's keep it in perspective.
Face it.
It is a most wonderful ability to be able -- at any time, and no matter what emotional condition your mind is in -- to break out of the rut of your own personal existence, and face a responsibility that has caught up with you from the past.
In fact, why not do it now?
Take this moment and acknowledge that something needs to be done, and that you owe it to yourself and someone else to do it.
Relief will follow.
Why do people watch reality shows? It's a strange abomination, and yet, addictive to so many of us.
The answer lies in a combination of expectations and control.
Many of us want to experience clean, refreshing, surprising honest "reality." And yet we want the surprises to be only the good kind, want it to be predictable, and under our ultimate control -- under anyone's control, as long as a hint of it is there.
What we really lust for is a series of plausible free-form events that are plotted like a genre story, with the "genre" determined beforehand by the thematic focus of the reality show. This way we get the best of both worlds, the danger and raw energy of real living and the safety and pleasant entertainment values of controlled meaningful art.
It is a comfortable illusion that straddles the edge between predestination and free will.
And in this complex world, it's the secret place we feel most comfortable being
The naive innocent and the cynic are both equally distant from the truth -- or, if you prefer not to use such an absolute term -- from what is real.
One has seen too much of good (or maybe seen not enough of anything), the other too much of evil (or too much of the same thing). One has become biased and jaded with the passage of events and experience, the other has not yet learned that bias is possible and is still unfamiliar with ennui. One expects too much, and the other expects nothing.
Neither one is able to properly evaluate things.
I suppose, they should marry each other.
Or maybe not. That would be just too cruel.
They can simply go out on a first date.
There are very few problems in this world that you and I cannot get a better handle on -- and sometimes even resolve -- after a simple good night's sleep. Sleep is like the refresh button on your browser. It clears the screen cache of your mind.
Try to get to bed early tonight. Just this once, okay?
You'll thank me tomorrow.
Desire creates the universe. Absence of desire negates the universe. Control of desire gives power over the universe.
So, what do you desire?
Are you sure?
Joy is all around you.
Even in the deepest moments of personal hell, in sorrow and greatest tragedy, in death, futility, endless night -- joy is all around you. Because joy is in the fabric of the world, in the fine nature of being.
Joy is a constant property of life. It is a permanent fixture that cannot be taken away.
Reach out with your hands -- when you again find it in yourself -- and feel joy.
To be alone with yourself is to be alone. To be in the company of others is to be alone together.
The only time you are not alone is when you forget yourself and reach out in love -- the lines of self blur, and just for a wild, flickering moment you experience the miracle of other.
And now you know the secret.
Sometimes, it is when you are happiest that you have the least to say, and when you are saddest that you have the most to say. At other times, things reverse.
To add another layer of difficulty, most of us constantly cross the line from one to the other. In the process our words seem to betray us. We feel helpless, at the mercy of our mood-based verbal communication.
To regain control over your inner state… speak not a word.
Sing.
History does not repeat itself. It uses new terms each time -- new shapes, locations, principal actors.
It is our obligation to discern the running motif and recognize the same play, because we are its playwrights.
History is -- and has been always -- under our control.
If anything, may this one thought always empower you.
Don’t look for a soul mate.
Make one -- out of the complex fabric of the human being already with you.
Instructions are never included. They vary with the strength of your ability to see, the measure of your selective blindness, the limits of your mercy, and the intensity of your desire.
Behold -- the birds swim through the sparkling air, and the fish fly in the shimmering water -- all in the depths of this sky ocean.
Where are we?
When hope is fleeting, stop for a moment and visualize, in a sky of silver, the crescent of a lavender moon. Imagine it -- delicate, slim, precise, like a paper-thin slice from a cabochon jewel.
It may not be very useful, but it is beautiful.
And sometimes it is enough.
The Circle, the Spiral, and the Pendulum, all point to the cyclic nature of the universe, things returning on themselves.
There is no proof of course, only patterns. They seem to indicate eternal repetitive movement within the confines of the universal rules, the boundary.
If life is a great circle, then why not hold hands with the one who is closest to you and partake in a circle dance?
Passion and courtesy are two polar opposite traits that serve to balance each other into a full-blooded whole.
Without socialization, passion is a crude barbarian, and without passion, the elegant and polite are dead.
Allow both passion and courtesy into your life in equal measure, and be complete.
They say, "Give of yourself."
Who are they? Well, most everyone, it seems. This notion has become ingrained in many of our human societies -- a mixture of religious, moral, ethical, humanistic, and humanitarian sentiment.
And what does it mean, to give of yourself? Besides, why should you?
Maybe, just possibly, we are all made of the same thing. No matter how "good" or "bad," worthy or unworthy, it is the same living matter, the same building blocks, the same energy.
So when we give of ourselves, we simply add a little bit of this common "self" to the other person who might be in need of a little self-boost.
How do we do this? By communicating.
The neat trick is, no matter how many of our bits and pieces we dole out, we still end up complete and whole. We lose nothing.
Makes it very easy to be generous.
Wisdom is restating the obvious and commonplace in a novel way, so that it makes sudden pertinent sense.
Why do you think there are so many words out there? So many synonyms for the same thing? So many human languages?
It's because we all learn wisdom for ourselves, and in our own words.
And then we go on to teach others.
Life is but detail, the flow of data.
Conclusions based on this data are to be derived, and organized into the Rulebook of the Universe.
The coolest thing is, the Rulebook is an ongoing joint project and we are all freelance contributors.
And, as such, one of these days we are bound to get paid.
Persistence is an amazing thing.
It can be motivated by so many things, or even combinations of things inside you -- pride, competitiveness, desperation, urgency, duty, passion, need, love, hate, self-confidence, desire, curiosity, stubbornness, courage, expediency, money, status, patriotism, loyalty, intensity, job description, boredom…. The list does not end.However, persistence is impossible when the road ahead of you is obscured.
So, clear out that confusing debris and futile garbage and disappointing junk that is getting in the way of your goals, and you will suddenly find it is much easier to persist at your task indefinitely -- for as long as it takes.
There's nothing like a real life problem to take your mind off wallowing in your own self.
The sudden adrenaline rush, the sense of purpose, the focusing of energies to overcome the obstacle, and all your mental faculties sharpened and working hard to deal with the problem.
And the irony is, now is when you wish most that life was back to the boring empty state and you can get back to that existential navel gazing.
Well, there's got to be some middle ground. It does not have to be all laze-and-sleep or fight-or-flee.
A part of the solution is setting up a series of real life goals -- both short-term and long-term -- and not getting sidetracked.
Method acting is a great tool for becoming.
In method acting, an actor immerses himself or herself into the role to the point of living 24/7 as that person, and never stepping out of character.
You and I don’t need to be Laurence Olivier or Katherine Hepburn, but we can certainly try the method acting experiment to change ourselves by trying on another personality, and pretending to be what we are not… yet.
There is nothing stopping us -- think about it. A game of pretend is one of those things we've enjoyed and excelled at since our childhood.
When you come out of your Churches, o people, remember that God is present just as much in the open fields of morning, the wind, the mountains, and the sky, the expanse of the sea, the radiant sun, in the sad eyes of the old dog on the roadside, and in the gaze of your mother upon you, when she thought you were too young to see her love.
For those of us who do not look for religious interludes -- simply go outside and take a deep invigorating breath of air.
With or without faith, oxygen is always a good thing.
