"To be a leader of men one must turn one's back on men."
-- Havelock Ellis
Leaders don't face you -- they face away from you. The leader's eyes are on the future, on the expanding vision, on the horizon. You don't want a leader who's walking backwards, looking at you with a goofy smile and tripping over stuff as he falls forward. You want a leader that you can follow.
But we can also view Havelock's statement from another perspective. The leader must go off on his own, "turn his back on men" in order to develop his leadership skills, vision and courage in the first place. Sort of a post modern version of Jesus forty days in the desert.
A leader can't just be hanging out at the bar all the time, or watching reality TV, or working away like a good, little worker bee in some God-awful cubicle somewhere. No, a leader has to step out, forge a new path, leave the company of others for a time to find and develop the new way. If you aspire to leadership at all, you must have the iron cojones to leave the warm, security of the herd and head down old Robert Frost Avenue to a road less traveled.
So, today, take some time alone. Look at the world, especially look at what you don't like about it. And then imagine a way to change it. Leadership begins in the imagination. Every leader is first and foremost an imagineer, a person who can see what's not yet there, and develop a path to make that vision a reality.
The spark of leadership burns within each of us. It's up to you whether you feed it and stoke it so that it becomes a fiery flame, or let it smolder and go cold. Spending all your time involved in mindless activities with others will smother the spark, guaranteed.
So, turn your back on men (and women, too), run lickety split, and head for the hills! Find a quiet place where you can settle into the quiet space within your mind, that space where the air is pure, the distractions are minimal, and the spark of leadership grows.
Sacred Laughter
"Laugh at what you hold sacred and still hold it sacred."
-- Abraham Maslow
Laughter is prayer. A joyous, boisterous, cosmically humorous form of prayer. It is appropriate for every subject upon every occasion. Laughter, not music, is the universal language because everyone can laugh, but not everyone can play music.
What do you hold sacred? Whatever it is, I hope you can see the humor in it. I hope you can laugh with Monte Python and Lenny Bruce and George Carlin and Sarah Silverman, and all the other comedians who poke fun at our most cherished beliefs. Nothing that is truly sacred can be threatened by laughter. It is only when we are unsure of our beliefs, unsure of ourselves, that laughter becomes offensive.
Personally, I think it's an all or nothing proposition -- either everything is sacred, or nothing is. I choose to go with everything, and laugh at it all. Life is too sacred to be taken seriously! Cosmic humor abounds! Why not enjoy it?
But in these politically correct times, people have become so goddam sensitive! What ever happened to "Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words can never hurt me"? Because it's true, you know. The words can't hurt you. It's only your interpretation of the words that hurts you. And it's through your interpretation of words that you lose your sense of humor.
If you hold nothing sacred, you're obviously free to make fun of everything. No problemo. If you hold everything sacred, then laughter becomes a universal mantra, the perfect response to life's sacred absurdity. It's only when you start splitting hairs, picking and choosing, saying "this is sacred, but that's not" that problems arise. It's only when you think that one patch of dirt in the desert is more sacred than another patch of dirt that you lose your sense of humor and are willing to fight for hundreds of years and kill and die all over a plot of land that looks like a giant Kitty Litter box!
God didn't stick little Post-It Notes on all the stuff in the universe that said either "Sacred" or "Not Sacred." Sacred is a human concept. It's a goddam game that we invented! Can't you see that? It has no Reality whatsoever, it's just judgement disguised as spirituality.
And that, if you think about it for a second, is really funny!
-- Abraham Maslow
Laughter is prayer. A joyous, boisterous, cosmically humorous form of prayer. It is appropriate for every subject upon every occasion. Laughter, not music, is the universal language because everyone can laugh, but not everyone can play music.
What do you hold sacred? Whatever it is, I hope you can see the humor in it. I hope you can laugh with Monte Python and Lenny Bruce and George Carlin and Sarah Silverman, and all the other comedians who poke fun at our most cherished beliefs. Nothing that is truly sacred can be threatened by laughter. It is only when we are unsure of our beliefs, unsure of ourselves, that laughter becomes offensive.
Personally, I think it's an all or nothing proposition -- either everything is sacred, or nothing is. I choose to go with everything, and laugh at it all. Life is too sacred to be taken seriously! Cosmic humor abounds! Why not enjoy it?
But in these politically correct times, people have become so goddam sensitive! What ever happened to "Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words can never hurt me"? Because it's true, you know. The words can't hurt you. It's only your interpretation of the words that hurts you. And it's through your interpretation of words that you lose your sense of humor.
If you hold nothing sacred, you're obviously free to make fun of everything. No problemo. If you hold everything sacred, then laughter becomes a universal mantra, the perfect response to life's sacred absurdity. It's only when you start splitting hairs, picking and choosing, saying "this is sacred, but that's not" that problems arise. It's only when you think that one patch of dirt in the desert is more sacred than another patch of dirt that you lose your sense of humor and are willing to fight for hundreds of years and kill and die all over a plot of land that looks like a giant Kitty Litter box!
God didn't stick little Post-It Notes on all the stuff in the universe that said either "Sacred" or "Not Sacred." Sacred is a human concept. It's a goddam game that we invented! Can't you see that? It has no Reality whatsoever, it's just judgement disguised as spirituality.
And that, if you think about it for a second, is really funny!
We Are Family!
"Family is not built on blood, it is built on a stream of consciousness that connects all humanity."
-- Barbara Condron. Spiritual Renaissance, p. 266
Whenever we make a division, a boundary, we've created a problem. That problem is called "other." If we define family as merely our blood relatives, even if we're a really prolific lot, we've got a very small in-crowd. If, on the other hand, we think of ourselves as part of the entire human family, our relations are innumerable, and we are connected to One and all.
Defining family by the stream of consciousness that runs within each of us, and between all of us, rather than by the blood we share with a few, means that there is no one who is not family. And you know how we treat family, right? Like shit! Just kidding. Family, at least for most of us, most of the time, has a special place in our hearts. Why not expand that special place to include your whole heart and the whole of humanity?
In that spirit, I'm thinking of starting the first all-inclusive church. Everyone is automatically a member. Have a belly button? You're a member! No divisions, no boundaries. None of that saved versus the damned crap. No saints versus sinners, nor orthodox versus infidels, either. One church, one family, one humanity. Welcome.
What is the spiritual practice of this church? Treat everyone as family. Treat everyone with love.
Simple. Also simply hard. That one admonition alone, can be an entire spiritual path -- love all. Start with the person in the mirror. Or, if that's too hard, start with the next person you see. I guarantee you that unless you're the secret love child of Barry White and Mother Teresa, you're going to fail at love more times than you succeed. No matter. Another opportunity, another person, will always come along.
To practice the path of love you need no spiritual accoutrements. No monastery or ashram. No fancy robes, or customized meditation cushions. No secret instructions or high falutin' initiations. A heart. A heart alone will do just fine. A heart connected, not by blood, but by that thin stream of consciousness, to each and everyone of us. Simply let that heart, your heart, love more and more each day. One of these days you'll even love that rascal in the mirror!
-- Barbara Condron. Spiritual Renaissance, p. 266
Whenever we make a division, a boundary, we've created a problem. That problem is called "other." If we define family as merely our blood relatives, even if we're a really prolific lot, we've got a very small in-crowd. If, on the other hand, we think of ourselves as part of the entire human family, our relations are innumerable, and we are connected to One and all.
Defining family by the stream of consciousness that runs within each of us, and between all of us, rather than by the blood we share with a few, means that there is no one who is not family. And you know how we treat family, right? Like shit! Just kidding. Family, at least for most of us, most of the time, has a special place in our hearts. Why not expand that special place to include your whole heart and the whole of humanity?
In that spirit, I'm thinking of starting the first all-inclusive church. Everyone is automatically a member. Have a belly button? You're a member! No divisions, no boundaries. None of that saved versus the damned crap. No saints versus sinners, nor orthodox versus infidels, either. One church, one family, one humanity. Welcome.
What is the spiritual practice of this church? Treat everyone as family. Treat everyone with love.
Simple. Also simply hard. That one admonition alone, can be an entire spiritual path -- love all. Start with the person in the mirror. Or, if that's too hard, start with the next person you see. I guarantee you that unless you're the secret love child of Barry White and Mother Teresa, you're going to fail at love more times than you succeed. No matter. Another opportunity, another person, will always come along.
To practice the path of love you need no spiritual accoutrements. No monastery or ashram. No fancy robes, or customized meditation cushions. No secret instructions or high falutin' initiations. A heart. A heart alone will do just fine. A heart connected, not by blood, but by that thin stream of consciousness, to each and everyone of us. Simply let that heart, your heart, love more and more each day. One of these days you'll even love that rascal in the mirror!
Letting Go of Resistance
"And incidentally, when you let go of your resistance, not only does suffering diminish, but your ability to change the situation dramatically improves."
-- Benjamin Langley. www.PeacefulProsperity.com
You've heard it a thousand times -- what you resists, persists. It's as simple as that. Resist that which you think is causing you to suffer, and you will just suffer more. The fact is, it is not the "thing" in and of itself (whether that thing be a person, condition, or thought) that is creating your suffering. It is your resistance to it that creates your suffering.
It's important, though to differentiate between suffering and pain. When I shattered my knee cap in a fall, I was in pain. There's no such thing as a painless broken knee, at least as far as I know. If after breaking it, I continually bemoaned the fact that I couldn't play tennis for awhile, if I beat myself up emotionally for being such a klutz, or if I bitterly blamed other people for my so-called misfortune, then, I''d have created untold suffering for myself. Sure, I'd start down those paths occasionally, but whenever I caught myself, I'd change course. What the broken knee taught me, among a slew of other things, is that pain is an inevitable part of life, but suffering is optional.
The second part of Ben's statement is equally important -- let go of suffering and you immediately increase your potency as a change agent. Suffering ties up your energy and attention. All that oh-woe-is-me drama leaves very little space in which change can happen. Being locked down into suffering is a powerless feeling. But saying "I can let go of suffering" and actually doing it are worlds apart.
Here are two very different, but very effective, strategies for moving out of, and beyond, suffering. The first is to redirect your thoughts away from suffering by becoming positively, physically involved in the world. I couldn't play tennis, but I could still read, write, cook, eat, talk with friends, have sex (as long as I was on the bottom!), and do countless other enjoyable things. It's hard to suffer when you're having a great time!
The second strategy is also a redirection away from suffering, but this time you enter deeply into pain rather than deeply into pleasure. I can see most of you saying, "Thanks, anyway, Dave, but I think I'll just stick with strategy number one." But don't knock number two until you try it. The interesting thing is that when you enter deeply into the pain, the pain disappears! Not necessarily continuously and completely, but you can, at times, come out on the other side of pain without losing consciousness. Other times the pain remains, but you experience of it is so different that it becomes fascinating.
Once you've short circuited your automatic resistance response, and let go of suffering, change can happen. It's true, as Ben points out, that saying "Yes" to whatever is, empowers you to create change. But it's equally true that saying "Yes" transforms your experience immediately and non-volitionally. Say "Yes" to what is-- rather than no, I'm not sure, or maybe -- and you enter the flow of the Tao, and the Three E's kick in -- easy, effortless and enjoyable.
There is no struggle. Life is. You are. Your whole being sings "Yes!" And as far as that broken knee goes, nothing but gratitude.
-- Benjamin Langley. www.PeacefulProsperity.com
You've heard it a thousand times -- what you resists, persists. It's as simple as that. Resist that which you think is causing you to suffer, and you will just suffer more. The fact is, it is not the "thing" in and of itself (whether that thing be a person, condition, or thought) that is creating your suffering. It is your resistance to it that creates your suffering.
It's important, though to differentiate between suffering and pain. When I shattered my knee cap in a fall, I was in pain. There's no such thing as a painless broken knee, at least as far as I know. If after breaking it, I continually bemoaned the fact that I couldn't play tennis for awhile, if I beat myself up emotionally for being such a klutz, or if I bitterly blamed other people for my so-called misfortune, then, I''d have created untold suffering for myself. Sure, I'd start down those paths occasionally, but whenever I caught myself, I'd change course. What the broken knee taught me, among a slew of other things, is that pain is an inevitable part of life, but suffering is optional.
The second part of Ben's statement is equally important -- let go of suffering and you immediately increase your potency as a change agent. Suffering ties up your energy and attention. All that oh-woe-is-me drama leaves very little space in which change can happen. Being locked down into suffering is a powerless feeling. But saying "I can let go of suffering" and actually doing it are worlds apart.
Here are two very different, but very effective, strategies for moving out of, and beyond, suffering. The first is to redirect your thoughts away from suffering by becoming positively, physically involved in the world. I couldn't play tennis, but I could still read, write, cook, eat, talk with friends, have sex (as long as I was on the bottom!), and do countless other enjoyable things. It's hard to suffer when you're having a great time!
The second strategy is also a redirection away from suffering, but this time you enter deeply into pain rather than deeply into pleasure. I can see most of you saying, "Thanks, anyway, Dave, but I think I'll just stick with strategy number one." But don't knock number two until you try it. The interesting thing is that when you enter deeply into the pain, the pain disappears! Not necessarily continuously and completely, but you can, at times, come out on the other side of pain without losing consciousness. Other times the pain remains, but you experience of it is so different that it becomes fascinating.
Once you've short circuited your automatic resistance response, and let go of suffering, change can happen. It's true, as Ben points out, that saying "Yes" to whatever is, empowers you to create change. But it's equally true that saying "Yes" transforms your experience immediately and non-volitionally. Say "Yes" to what is-- rather than no, I'm not sure, or maybe -- and you enter the flow of the Tao, and the Three E's kick in -- easy, effortless and enjoyable.
There is no struggle. Life is. You are. Your whole being sings "Yes!" And as far as that broken knee goes, nothing but gratitude.
Gifts, Gifts Everywhere!
"Receive the gift and be thankful. Praise whatever is the giver. Be alert for the gift; most are never noticed."
-- Howard McCord. Walking to Extremes.
Gifts are offered to us daily, and we are completely unaware of their existence. We blindly move through life listening to our internal monologues, bemoaning what we don't have, wishing that reality would hurry up and match our wishes, and the gifts slide by us, neither recognized, accepted nor enjoyed.
What are the gifts? They can be as small as a cashier's slight smile, as all encompassing as a deep, blue sky, as warm as a kind word, as cold as a beer at the ball park. Gifts abound! We prefer to focus upon problems instead. Enjoyment, gratitude and praise all escape us when our attention is tied up in the knots of our ego's narrow games.
What to do? Relax. Let go of all your mighty dreams and schemes, and notice what life is offering. Sidewalk pennies, cool breezes, free music in the park, libraries stocked with books, friends you've yet to meet, ideas to explore, and laughter. All free, all given to you, no strings attached.
It's a big, beautiful, abundant world! Open your arms, open your eyes, and receive.
-- Howard McCord. Walking to Extremes.
Gifts are offered to us daily, and we are completely unaware of their existence. We blindly move through life listening to our internal monologues, bemoaning what we don't have, wishing that reality would hurry up and match our wishes, and the gifts slide by us, neither recognized, accepted nor enjoyed.
What are the gifts? They can be as small as a cashier's slight smile, as all encompassing as a deep, blue sky, as warm as a kind word, as cold as a beer at the ball park. Gifts abound! We prefer to focus upon problems instead. Enjoyment, gratitude and praise all escape us when our attention is tied up in the knots of our ego's narrow games.
What to do? Relax. Let go of all your mighty dreams and schemes, and notice what life is offering. Sidewalk pennies, cool breezes, free music in the park, libraries stocked with books, friends you've yet to meet, ideas to explore, and laughter. All free, all given to you, no strings attached.
It's a big, beautiful, abundant world! Open your arms, open your eyes, and receive.
The Webs We Weave
"Man is an animal suspended in webs of significance that he himself has spun."
-- Clifford Geertz
The only change I'd make to Cliff's bon mot of wisdom is to add the prefix "in" to the word "significance." Though we may believe that the webs we weave have some significance, they are, in the long term, highly insignificant. Their only real significance in the here and now may indeed be an unfortunate one -- we believe the webs to be real when they are mere gossamer illusions.
All the stories we tell, the self-images we create, the myths we bow down to, keep us from seeing the essential energy and reality of life. When we start to believe that the pitiful, piddlely little crap we do has objective significance, we are highly deluded. If we sit more and spin less, the webs begin to unravel, and life becomes clear and undisguised.
Then we will see that significance is just a made-up human construct. Our lives are to be enjoyed and shared, nourished and devoured, not judged as significant or insignificant. There is no way to figure out why we are here. There is no way to assign a meaning or significance to life. It just is. You just are.
We have no way of knowing where we came from; no way of knowing where we're going. Now is merely a parentheses in eternity. We are truly in a condition of Divine Ignorance. And that is fine. That is enough. In fact, it's plenty.
Give up the stories of significance. Surrender the search for meaning. Breathe in, breathe out. Watch. See what unfolds.
-- Clifford Geertz
The only change I'd make to Cliff's bon mot of wisdom is to add the prefix "in" to the word "significance." Though we may believe that the webs we weave have some significance, they are, in the long term, highly insignificant. Their only real significance in the here and now may indeed be an unfortunate one -- we believe the webs to be real when they are mere gossamer illusions.
All the stories we tell, the self-images we create, the myths we bow down to, keep us from seeing the essential energy and reality of life. When we start to believe that the pitiful, piddlely little crap we do has objective significance, we are highly deluded. If we sit more and spin less, the webs begin to unravel, and life becomes clear and undisguised.
Then we will see that significance is just a made-up human construct. Our lives are to be enjoyed and shared, nourished and devoured, not judged as significant or insignificant. There is no way to figure out why we are here. There is no way to assign a meaning or significance to life. It just is. You just are.
We have no way of knowing where we came from; no way of knowing where we're going. Now is merely a parentheses in eternity. We are truly in a condition of Divine Ignorance. And that is fine. That is enough. In fact, it's plenty.
Give up the stories of significance. Surrender the search for meaning. Breathe in, breathe out. Watch. See what unfolds.
Detachment Is the Flip Side of Love
"I love the man who hates not nor exalts, who mourns not nor desires... who is the same to friend or foe whether he be respected or despised, the same in heat and cold, in pleasure and in pain, who has put away attachments and remains unmoved by promise or blame... contented with whatever comes his way."
-- Krishna. The Bhagavad Gita.
Heads detachment, tails love. It's one coin. You can't have one side without the other.
Krishna knew that, but in out culture we tend to forget that we need both love and detachment, if we want to live a joyous life. Instead, we equate love with attachment. We exalt desire and mistake detachment for aloofness or lack of care.
Equanimity, not passion, is the most fertile ground in which true love can grow. Acceptance of, and contentment with, what is allows us to love it all! Such love does not discriminate. It is a natural phenomena, like the sun and the rain which shine, and fall, on all equally.
Both the soil of equanimity and the seeds of love can only be found within. That is where the Garden of the Soul takes root, until one day it bursts forth in all its incredible colors and blossoms as love.
Your work today, and everyday, is inner work. Finding that still center within, a place where you are unbuffeted by the winds of change. And from there seeing the world through the eyes of detached love.
You can love the world right here, right now, just as it is, perfect even in its imperfections. Why wait?
-- Krishna. The Bhagavad Gita.
Heads detachment, tails love. It's one coin. You can't have one side without the other.
Krishna knew that, but in out culture we tend to forget that we need both love and detachment, if we want to live a joyous life. Instead, we equate love with attachment. We exalt desire and mistake detachment for aloofness or lack of care.
Equanimity, not passion, is the most fertile ground in which true love can grow. Acceptance of, and contentment with, what is allows us to love it all! Such love does not discriminate. It is a natural phenomena, like the sun and the rain which shine, and fall, on all equally.
Both the soil of equanimity and the seeds of love can only be found within. That is where the Garden of the Soul takes root, until one day it bursts forth in all its incredible colors and blossoms as love.
Your work today, and everyday, is inner work. Finding that still center within, a place where you are unbuffeted by the winds of change. And from there seeing the world through the eyes of detached love.
You can love the world right here, right now, just as it is, perfect even in its imperfections. Why wait?
Karma, Anyone?
"A Dog starv'd at his Master's gate
Predicts the ruin of the State.
A Horse misus'd upon the Road
Calls to Heaven for Human blood."
-- William Blake
William Blake saw the inner workings of the world. He knew that how we treat others, even non-human others, influences our future. Sorry, there's no way to run a controlled, double blind experiment on karma. No way to prove that treating others cruelly will produce bad results. But I don't really think we need external proof.
All of us know, deep inside ourselves, that using and misusing others is a classic sin. And most of us don't starve dogs or beat horses. But how do we treat each other, how do we treat ourselves? Not well, my friends, not well.
Sure, I know you're passably civil most of the time. You don't spit on street people, or pinch babies. But just refraining from being a son-of-a-bitch is not going to get you nominated fro the Nobel Peace Prize. The ruin of our state can be predicted by the thousands of hungry and homeless in every American city. The shedding of our blood is called for because we started a war over oil.
What can you do? You can vote out of office any SOB who supports war. You can forgo the latest HD, flat screen TV and use that same money to help someone who is truly in need.
I know I'm getting old when I find myself thinking thoughts like "the world is going to hell in a hand basket." Even the phrase is from my grandmother's era! But just because I'm rapidly becoming an old fart, and speaking like a cantankerous old coot, doesn't mean the assessment isn't true. Cruelty seems to be growing not abating. We seem to be getting better and better at rationalizing non-loving behavior.
Because that's what it all boils down to -- love. Can we live with love in our hearts? Can we share that love with the world? Or are we going to continue to pretend like it doesn't matter until it's too late?
You can't legislate love. You can't force people to practice it. You can only love. Now and Now and Now. Each moment, choosing love. What else you got to do?
Predicts the ruin of the State.
A Horse misus'd upon the Road
Calls to Heaven for Human blood."
-- William Blake
William Blake saw the inner workings of the world. He knew that how we treat others, even non-human others, influences our future. Sorry, there's no way to run a controlled, double blind experiment on karma. No way to prove that treating others cruelly will produce bad results. But I don't really think we need external proof.
All of us know, deep inside ourselves, that using and misusing others is a classic sin. And most of us don't starve dogs or beat horses. But how do we treat each other, how do we treat ourselves? Not well, my friends, not well.
Sure, I know you're passably civil most of the time. You don't spit on street people, or pinch babies. But just refraining from being a son-of-a-bitch is not going to get you nominated fro the Nobel Peace Prize. The ruin of our state can be predicted by the thousands of hungry and homeless in every American city. The shedding of our blood is called for because we started a war over oil.
What can you do? You can vote out of office any SOB who supports war. You can forgo the latest HD, flat screen TV and use that same money to help someone who is truly in need.
I know I'm getting old when I find myself thinking thoughts like "the world is going to hell in a hand basket." Even the phrase is from my grandmother's era! But just because I'm rapidly becoming an old fart, and speaking like a cantankerous old coot, doesn't mean the assessment isn't true. Cruelty seems to be growing not abating. We seem to be getting better and better at rationalizing non-loving behavior.
Because that's what it all boils down to -- love. Can we live with love in our hearts? Can we share that love with the world? Or are we going to continue to pretend like it doesn't matter until it's too late?
You can't legislate love. You can't force people to practice it. You can only love. Now and Now and Now. Each moment, choosing love. What else you got to do?
Radical Self-Acceptance
"The most terrifying thing is to accept oneself completely."
-- C.G. Jung
Look at you! You're a damn mess! OK, depending on your age, you still may look pretty good, but you know what you're really like. You know all your own weaknesses, secrets, warts, and peccadillos. You know, as Paul Harvey is so fond of saying, "the rest of the story." And it ain't pretty.
Still, you're here. You've made it this far, so you must be doing something right. You must have some stellar qualities, some hidden strengths that offset all the pimples and wrinkles that you see in the fun house mirror of your mind.
But those, too, don't matter. It's not important whether you see yourself as a saint or a sinner -- in reality you're neither, and both. To get to the point of complete self-acceptance, the one crucial requirement is that you give up judging yourself altogether. You must become willing to see exactly what you do without thus inferring particular qualities upon yourself.
It's Saturday. You slept in until 10. You're not lazy, you just slept in until 10. The Sgt. Joe Friday approach to self-acceptance -- "just the facts, ma'am." You helped a little, old lady with her groceries. You're not the next Mother Teresa, you just helped a little, old lady with her groceries. Once you short circuit, the judging/labeling function of your brain, things become clear as the lips on Angelina Jolie's face.
You see, acceptance is not about coming to some tentative conclusion that you're OK, that you're more good than bad, at least, or that you're the best that you can be. Acceptance is simply coming to the realization "I am." Not I am this or I am that. Simply I am, not followed by any adjectives, descriptors or qualifiers. Once you accept yourself at the level of Being, the other levels of doing and having begin to fall into place. And judging yourself becomes completely irrelevant.
"Oh, Jesus Christ," you say. "Accept myself at the level of Being? What is this gobblygook? That sounds like an insurmountable task." It's not. It's simply an unfolding, a process. You can begin in two ways. One, by simply sitting with yourself. You don't have to call it meditation or contemplation or anything, just sit with yourself.
Second, whenever you find yourself evaluating and naming your own behavior, take your focus back to either the behavior itself, or the "I am" within. In other words, redirect your mind from judging and labeling to either what is actually happening in the external world or the quiet spaciousness of the world of Being within.
Don't worry about changing your behavior. Don't obsess about the release date for You 2.0. Let the terror that Jung mentioned come and go. Your behavior will change. You will grow. All of this will happen in a much quicker and smoother manner through acceptance than through judgement, discipline or trying.
Acceptance is a choice. And, hey, if you choose not to accept yourself, you can accept that, too! It's a start.
-- C.G. Jung
Look at you! You're a damn mess! OK, depending on your age, you still may look pretty good, but you know what you're really like. You know all your own weaknesses, secrets, warts, and peccadillos. You know, as Paul Harvey is so fond of saying, "the rest of the story." And it ain't pretty.
Still, you're here. You've made it this far, so you must be doing something right. You must have some stellar qualities, some hidden strengths that offset all the pimples and wrinkles that you see in the fun house mirror of your mind.
But those, too, don't matter. It's not important whether you see yourself as a saint or a sinner -- in reality you're neither, and both. To get to the point of complete self-acceptance, the one crucial requirement is that you give up judging yourself altogether. You must become willing to see exactly what you do without thus inferring particular qualities upon yourself.
It's Saturday. You slept in until 10. You're not lazy, you just slept in until 10. The Sgt. Joe Friday approach to self-acceptance -- "just the facts, ma'am." You helped a little, old lady with her groceries. You're not the next Mother Teresa, you just helped a little, old lady with her groceries. Once you short circuit, the judging/labeling function of your brain, things become clear as the lips on Angelina Jolie's face.
You see, acceptance is not about coming to some tentative conclusion that you're OK, that you're more good than bad, at least, or that you're the best that you can be. Acceptance is simply coming to the realization "I am." Not I am this or I am that. Simply I am, not followed by any adjectives, descriptors or qualifiers. Once you accept yourself at the level of Being, the other levels of doing and having begin to fall into place. And judging yourself becomes completely irrelevant.
"Oh, Jesus Christ," you say. "Accept myself at the level of Being? What is this gobblygook? That sounds like an insurmountable task." It's not. It's simply an unfolding, a process. You can begin in two ways. One, by simply sitting with yourself. You don't have to call it meditation or contemplation or anything, just sit with yourself.
Second, whenever you find yourself evaluating and naming your own behavior, take your focus back to either the behavior itself, or the "I am" within. In other words, redirect your mind from judging and labeling to either what is actually happening in the external world or the quiet spaciousness of the world of Being within.
Don't worry about changing your behavior. Don't obsess about the release date for You 2.0. Let the terror that Jung mentioned come and go. Your behavior will change. You will grow. All of this will happen in a much quicker and smoother manner through acceptance than through judgement, discipline or trying.
Acceptance is a choice. And, hey, if you choose not to accept yourself, you can accept that, too! It's a start.
Originality
"There is no such thing as imperfection, just originality."
-- Gina La Morte. Boho Magazine. Inaugural Issue. Fall 2008.
Boho is a fashion magazine. Fashion mags aren't my usual source of wisdom, but Boho is different. It bills itself as "fashion's first eco magazine." There's even an article in the inaugural issue on the near and dear to my heart practice of thrift store shopping. Gina La Morte is the founder/publisher/editor, and she's not about to try and remold every woman on the planet into some sort of Barbie doll look alike. Instead she wants each woman to use her uniqueness as the basis for her style. And so....
It's not really such a giant leap from fashion style to lifestyle to personal style to your soul. You, whether you be woman, man or child, are also an original. Just like everybody else. It's the paradox of uniqueness and specialness -- you're unique and special, and so is everyone, so don't let it go to your head!
But, even more importantly, don't let external standards of perfection take root in your head. You don't have to look like, act like or be like anyone else. And if you try, you'll fail miserably. We don't need no stinkin' clones! We need you, in all your frizzy-haired, crooked-nosed, whiney-voiced, idiosyncratic glory!
Right across from my bed is a framed poster by an artist named Corita Kent, who is, or was, a nun. It's a print of a large, bright water color that just says "I love you very much." Now, I've never meant Corita Kent, but if she's a first rate nun, she probably does love me very much, just like she loves everybody else in the world.
But when I wake up and see the poster first thing every morning, I'm not usually thinking of the good sister; I'm reading the words to myself. "I love you very much," I say to myself right out loud. Sometimes I even add my name, "I love you very much, David" I say, so as not to confuse myself or anyone else within earshot. Oh, I know, it's so damn corny as to be downright embarrassing, but I do it anyway.
Sometimes I even add God into the mix. "I love you very much, God," I say. And then in my best James Earl Jones, God-like voice, "I love you very much, too, David," says God. Before I even get out of bed we've got a little, cosmic lovefest going, and I'm cracking myself up. It's a great way to start the day!
And what do my morning shenanigans have to do with you and originality and perfection? Just that there was a time in my life when I though the "perfect" way to start the day was with 45 minutes of straight-backed, oh-so serious meditation. I still love to meditate, but now I do it on the "as the Spirit moves me" schedule rather than on a rigid Zen schedule. How can I find my original face, if I can't even enjoy an original practice?
And so, today, is a great day for you, too, to give up your perfection obsession. Look in the mirror and laugh. Damn you're different! Ain't nobody like you. And that's a good thing, a wonderful thing. You, a 100% original. Perfect in your imperfection. WOW!
-- Gina La Morte. Boho Magazine. Inaugural Issue. Fall 2008.
Boho is a fashion magazine. Fashion mags aren't my usual source of wisdom, but Boho is different. It bills itself as "fashion's first eco magazine." There's even an article in the inaugural issue on the near and dear to my heart practice of thrift store shopping. Gina La Morte is the founder/publisher/editor, and she's not about to try and remold every woman on the planet into some sort of Barbie doll look alike. Instead she wants each woman to use her uniqueness as the basis for her style. And so....
It's not really such a giant leap from fashion style to lifestyle to personal style to your soul. You, whether you be woman, man or child, are also an original. Just like everybody else. It's the paradox of uniqueness and specialness -- you're unique and special, and so is everyone, so don't let it go to your head!
But, even more importantly, don't let external standards of perfection take root in your head. You don't have to look like, act like or be like anyone else. And if you try, you'll fail miserably. We don't need no stinkin' clones! We need you, in all your frizzy-haired, crooked-nosed, whiney-voiced, idiosyncratic glory!
Right across from my bed is a framed poster by an artist named Corita Kent, who is, or was, a nun. It's a print of a large, bright water color that just says "I love you very much." Now, I've never meant Corita Kent, but if she's a first rate nun, she probably does love me very much, just like she loves everybody else in the world.
But when I wake up and see the poster first thing every morning, I'm not usually thinking of the good sister; I'm reading the words to myself. "I love you very much," I say to myself right out loud. Sometimes I even add my name, "I love you very much, David" I say, so as not to confuse myself or anyone else within earshot. Oh, I know, it's so damn corny as to be downright embarrassing, but I do it anyway.
Sometimes I even add God into the mix. "I love you very much, God," I say. And then in my best James Earl Jones, God-like voice, "I love you very much, too, David," says God. Before I even get out of bed we've got a little, cosmic lovefest going, and I'm cracking myself up. It's a great way to start the day!
And what do my morning shenanigans have to do with you and originality and perfection? Just that there was a time in my life when I though the "perfect" way to start the day was with 45 minutes of straight-backed, oh-so serious meditation. I still love to meditate, but now I do it on the "as the Spirit moves me" schedule rather than on a rigid Zen schedule. How can I find my original face, if I can't even enjoy an original practice?
And so, today, is a great day for you, too, to give up your perfection obsession. Look in the mirror and laugh. Damn you're different! Ain't nobody like you. And that's a good thing, a wonderful thing. You, a 100% original. Perfect in your imperfection. WOW!
The Shelf Life of Emotions
"In a fully functional organism, an emotion has a very short life span."
-- Eckhart Tolle
Lots of people seem to think that there are only two options when it comes to emotions -- either wallow in them or repress them. We're all familiar with the emotionally indulgent individual who continues to generate and express an emotion, usually negative, long after the event that inspired it is kaput. We also have run into our share of emotionally constipated folks who walk around as stiff and brittle as the Tin Man because their emotions are dammed up inside them like a ten pound wheel of cheese.
But there's a third option -- experience the emotion fully, but quickly, and then let it pass. Emotions are a part of life; they just don't have to be the dominant part. Experiencing an emotion is very different from exploiting one. Experiencing is to a large part a bodily phenomena. You feell the emotion as it passes through your body like a bad burrito. You don't attempt to sustain it, analyze it, or justify it, you just feel it.
When emotions are felt, they move quickly, like clouds in a summer sky. They pass through the blue background of your consciousness and are gone. You natural spaciousness returns. It's a very short process, and it guarantees that you will neither be burdened with, nor act dysfunctionally from, that emotion. Your actions may then proceed from deeper levels of awareness, producing far superior results.
Emotions are the spices of life -- they are not the main course. Some people prefer a little spice, others like alot, but no one would sit down to a plate full of tumeric, garlic and cinnamon.
Let your emotions come, let them flow, let them go. You may be surprised by what you'll find.
-- Eckhart Tolle
Lots of people seem to think that there are only two options when it comes to emotions -- either wallow in them or repress them. We're all familiar with the emotionally indulgent individual who continues to generate and express an emotion, usually negative, long after the event that inspired it is kaput. We also have run into our share of emotionally constipated folks who walk around as stiff and brittle as the Tin Man because their emotions are dammed up inside them like a ten pound wheel of cheese.
But there's a third option -- experience the emotion fully, but quickly, and then let it pass. Emotions are a part of life; they just don't have to be the dominant part. Experiencing an emotion is very different from exploiting one. Experiencing is to a large part a bodily phenomena. You feell the emotion as it passes through your body like a bad burrito. You don't attempt to sustain it, analyze it, or justify it, you just feel it.
When emotions are felt, they move quickly, like clouds in a summer sky. They pass through the blue background of your consciousness and are gone. You natural spaciousness returns. It's a very short process, and it guarantees that you will neither be burdened with, nor act dysfunctionally from, that emotion. Your actions may then proceed from deeper levels of awareness, producing far superior results.
Emotions are the spices of life -- they are not the main course. Some people prefer a little spice, others like alot, but no one would sit down to a plate full of tumeric, garlic and cinnamon.
Let your emotions come, let them flow, let them go. You may be surprised by what you'll find.
Interpreting the World
"Events in the world affect us only through our interpretations of them, so if we can control our interpretations, we can control our world."
-- Jonathan Haidt. The Happiness Hypothesis, p.23.
The world holds no meaning in and of itself. Events happen not because of some grand scheme or in accordance with some cosmic plan, they just happen. We are the meaning-makers. Our stories and interpretations provide us with a running commentary that puts events in perspective and creates for each of us our own, individualized story line, our own personalized world.
That becomes obvious when we see two people experience the same event and come away with two very different interpretations. Assuming they both have the facts straight, the difference in their experiences, both present and ongoing, is how they interpret those facts.
First off, at least subconsciously, we each are the center of our own universe. Our interpretation of any event is to a large part based upon how we believe that event affects us. We are always the star of our own story. I'm a huge Cubs fan. The Cardinals beat the Cubs, so woe is me, bad event. If you're a Cards fan, though, the same event is cause to celebrate and imbibe many of St. Louis' famous and favorite Budweiser beverages.
Granted, that's a trivial example, but the point is that every event we experience is run through our own personal likes and dislikes, biases, prejudices, and filters. It is those filters, per se, that lead us to make our individualized interpretations. The stronger your attachment to those filters, the more likely you are to see your perspective on the world as the only, right perspective.
Now, I believe, Jonathan Haidt's point in The Happiness Hypothesis is that we can, by making more positive interpretations, experience a more positive world. And I agree. Why go around seeing everything through sludge-colored glasses? Rose-colored sure make the world look better.
But what if we took off the glasses altogether and just look at naked reality? What would we see? My bet is that we'd see a world with no stories, no interpretations whatsoever. We'd just see what is. Unadorned reality, minus our personal spin. To many of you that may sound a bit bleak. Stories are fun, stories are juicy. They not only provide meaning, they give us our bearings and provide us with a semblance of security and stability in an ever-changing world.
So, here's my recommendation: Continue to make stories, just don't believe a one of them! At the same time work towards seeing the world sans story. Granted, this approach is paradoxical, or at least two-pronged. Learn to make better, i.e., more positive stories, and also move towards transcending story altogether. It's all about experiencing, on a personal level, the two hallmarks of every true spiritual tradition, joy and detachment.
Cool head, warm heart -- may you experience both.
-- Jonathan Haidt. The Happiness Hypothesis, p.23.
The world holds no meaning in and of itself. Events happen not because of some grand scheme or in accordance with some cosmic plan, they just happen. We are the meaning-makers. Our stories and interpretations provide us with a running commentary that puts events in perspective and creates for each of us our own, individualized story line, our own personalized world.
That becomes obvious when we see two people experience the same event and come away with two very different interpretations. Assuming they both have the facts straight, the difference in their experiences, both present and ongoing, is how they interpret those facts.
First off, at least subconsciously, we each are the center of our own universe. Our interpretation of any event is to a large part based upon how we believe that event affects us. We are always the star of our own story. I'm a huge Cubs fan. The Cardinals beat the Cubs, so woe is me, bad event. If you're a Cards fan, though, the same event is cause to celebrate and imbibe many of St. Louis' famous and favorite Budweiser beverages.
Granted, that's a trivial example, but the point is that every event we experience is run through our own personal likes and dislikes, biases, prejudices, and filters. It is those filters, per se, that lead us to make our individualized interpretations. The stronger your attachment to those filters, the more likely you are to see your perspective on the world as the only, right perspective.
Now, I believe, Jonathan Haidt's point in The Happiness Hypothesis is that we can, by making more positive interpretations, experience a more positive world. And I agree. Why go around seeing everything through sludge-colored glasses? Rose-colored sure make the world look better.
But what if we took off the glasses altogether and just look at naked reality? What would we see? My bet is that we'd see a world with no stories, no interpretations whatsoever. We'd just see what is. Unadorned reality, minus our personal spin. To many of you that may sound a bit bleak. Stories are fun, stories are juicy. They not only provide meaning, they give us our bearings and provide us with a semblance of security and stability in an ever-changing world.
So, here's my recommendation: Continue to make stories, just don't believe a one of them! At the same time work towards seeing the world sans story. Granted, this approach is paradoxical, or at least two-pronged. Learn to make better, i.e., more positive stories, and also move towards transcending story altogether. It's all about experiencing, on a personal level, the two hallmarks of every true spiritual tradition, joy and detachment.
Cool head, warm heart -- may you experience both.
Forsaken
"No man can ever be secure until he has been forsaken by fortune."
-- Boethius. The Consolation of Philosophy.
Why? Because as long as fortune is still your constant companion, you place your security in external things. Once fortune has taken a hike, and you're still alive, you know that whether you're fortunate or unfortunate is ultimately out of your control. You do your best and sometimes good things happen, other times shit happens. Either way, you still abide.
Once fortune abandons you, it becomes clear that who you are so much more than your successes or failures. Your identity, and thus your security, are no longer tied to the roller coaster ride called life. Any security you find is within -- both within yourself and within the Life Force, Itself.
Once you have tasted that inner security, fortune no longer matters. You do what you do as authentically as possible, and let the results take care of themselves. You enjoy the highs, you endure the lows, but you reside in a place where neither can truly impact your identity or your security.
You are. That is all that you can be sure of. But, strangely, that alone is enough.
-- Boethius. The Consolation of Philosophy.
Why? Because as long as fortune is still your constant companion, you place your security in external things. Once fortune has taken a hike, and you're still alive, you know that whether you're fortunate or unfortunate is ultimately out of your control. You do your best and sometimes good things happen, other times shit happens. Either way, you still abide.
Once fortune abandons you, it becomes clear that who you are so much more than your successes or failures. Your identity, and thus your security, are no longer tied to the roller coaster ride called life. Any security you find is within -- both within yourself and within the Life Force, Itself.
Once you have tasted that inner security, fortune no longer matters. You do what you do as authentically as possible, and let the results take care of themselves. You enjoy the highs, you endure the lows, but you reside in a place where neither can truly impact your identity or your security.
You are. That is all that you can be sure of. But, strangely, that alone is enough.
How to Spend Your Day?
"If a man walks in the woods for love of them half of each day, he is in danger of being regarded as a loafer. But if he spends his day as a speculator, shearing off those woods and making the earth bald before her time, he is deemed an industrious and enterprising citizen..."
-- Henry David Thoreau
Condos all along the shores of Walden Pond? Would that really be "progress?" It seems that we as a culture have a strong preference for doing over being. It's as if the entire society is yelling "Don't just sit there, do something!" at Thoreau, and anyone else who has the chutzpah to simply enjoy life, and nature, as it is. Words like "progress," "efficiency" and "productivity" have become part of our sacred lexicon. We glorify consuming over appreciating, and we disparage those who have no need or desire to play our Protestant Work Ethic games.
The antidote to all that nonsense is to go the way of Thoreau -- don't just do something, sit there. Much, dare I say most, of what we do has negative consequences that escape our limited powers of observation. Cutting down trees may seem like a good thing, but the unforeseen effects of deforestation are many and far reaching. And the same is true not just for tree cutting, but for nearly every act we undertake.
Then there are the psychological and social aspects of this cultural hyperactivity. We work too damn much! We don't spend enough time with family and friends. We don't take enough time to do the things that we really enjoy and that really nourish us. These are not just my random opinions. Time after time surveys and studies show that most people in industrialized nations feel the same.
Which leads us to one inescapable conclusion -- we need fewer enterprising and industrious citizens and more loafers! I don't know about you, but I'm ready to do my part. Loafer has always been my favorite shoe style, why not make it my favorite lifestyle, as well?
So, today, give yourself permission to loaf. Loaf as much as you can. Walk in the woods, listen to music, drink a little beer or wine, read for the fun of it, hang out and enjoy. Let Donald Trump play the productivity game. Free your inner Thoreau. Time's a wastin'. And that's oh so good.
-- Henry David Thoreau
Condos all along the shores of Walden Pond? Would that really be "progress?" It seems that we as a culture have a strong preference for doing over being. It's as if the entire society is yelling "Don't just sit there, do something!" at Thoreau, and anyone else who has the chutzpah to simply enjoy life, and nature, as it is. Words like "progress," "efficiency" and "productivity" have become part of our sacred lexicon. We glorify consuming over appreciating, and we disparage those who have no need or desire to play our Protestant Work Ethic games.
The antidote to all that nonsense is to go the way of Thoreau -- don't just do something, sit there. Much, dare I say most, of what we do has negative consequences that escape our limited powers of observation. Cutting down trees may seem like a good thing, but the unforeseen effects of deforestation are many and far reaching. And the same is true not just for tree cutting, but for nearly every act we undertake.
Then there are the psychological and social aspects of this cultural hyperactivity. We work too damn much! We don't spend enough time with family and friends. We don't take enough time to do the things that we really enjoy and that really nourish us. These are not just my random opinions. Time after time surveys and studies show that most people in industrialized nations feel the same.
Which leads us to one inescapable conclusion -- we need fewer enterprising and industrious citizens and more loafers! I don't know about you, but I'm ready to do my part. Loafer has always been my favorite shoe style, why not make it my favorite lifestyle, as well?
So, today, give yourself permission to loaf. Loaf as much as you can. Walk in the woods, listen to music, drink a little beer or wine, read for the fun of it, hang out and enjoy. Let Donald Trump play the productivity game. Free your inner Thoreau. Time's a wastin'. And that's oh so good.
Time to Get Rid of God?
"If the concept of God has any validity or can be of use, it can only be to make us larger, freer and more loving. If God cannot do this, then it is time we got rid of Him."
-- James Baldwin
God is love. Or so they say. Yet so many people use the concept of God not to unify but to divide. My God's better than your God. My God can beat up your God. Or, My God is the only God. It's all hogwash.
The question we might well ask ourselves is "Why do we need a God at all?" The myths and stories surrounding God, in each and every tradition, are second rate literature at best. The powers ascribed to Him are just as mythical. The toadying we must do to appease Him is downright disgusting. It seems that the only thing that the God idea really provides is a false sense of security paired with a bogus sense of superiority. Illusions that do nothing to "make us larger, freer and more loving."
Do we really need an "eye in the sky" to make us love our fellow human beings? Do we really need the carrot of heaven or the stick of hell to make us shape up and be better and bigger people? God, I hope not! If we really believe that we need an external agent to be on our best behavior, we're in hell already!
All the questions that God supposedly answers are unanswerable, anyway. How was the Universe created? Why is there suffering and evil? What is the right way to live? What happens after death? Be Honest: Nobody really knows the answers to these questions. All the answers we have are simply made up. Isn't it better, as Iris Dement sings, to "let the mystery be?" Mystery is surely the more existentially and spiritually honest choice, even though it fails to provide us with the false security of theology and dogma.
So today's Sunday -- a perfect day to tell the old fellow, God that is, to take a hike. Nice knowing you there Big G, but I really don't think we need you around here anymore. Yes, today is the day to downsize God! You can outsource, or in this case "insource", his duties to your own soul. Parsimony in action.
And now, (drum roll, please), it is totally your response-ability to become larger, freer and more loving. Conscious evolution at its finest. Enjoy!
-- James Baldwin
God is love. Or so they say. Yet so many people use the concept of God not to unify but to divide. My God's better than your God. My God can beat up your God. Or, My God is the only God. It's all hogwash.
The question we might well ask ourselves is "Why do we need a God at all?" The myths and stories surrounding God, in each and every tradition, are second rate literature at best. The powers ascribed to Him are just as mythical. The toadying we must do to appease Him is downright disgusting. It seems that the only thing that the God idea really provides is a false sense of security paired with a bogus sense of superiority. Illusions that do nothing to "make us larger, freer and more loving."
Do we really need an "eye in the sky" to make us love our fellow human beings? Do we really need the carrot of heaven or the stick of hell to make us shape up and be better and bigger people? God, I hope not! If we really believe that we need an external agent to be on our best behavior, we're in hell already!
All the questions that God supposedly answers are unanswerable, anyway. How was the Universe created? Why is there suffering and evil? What is the right way to live? What happens after death? Be Honest: Nobody really knows the answers to these questions. All the answers we have are simply made up. Isn't it better, as Iris Dement sings, to "let the mystery be?" Mystery is surely the more existentially and spiritually honest choice, even though it fails to provide us with the false security of theology and dogma.
So today's Sunday -- a perfect day to tell the old fellow, God that is, to take a hike. Nice knowing you there Big G, but I really don't think we need you around here anymore. Yes, today is the day to downsize God! You can outsource, or in this case "insource", his duties to your own soul. Parsimony in action.
And now, (drum roll, please), it is totally your response-ability to become larger, freer and more loving. Conscious evolution at its finest. Enjoy!
Don't Save the World
"Spirituality doesn't mean you have to save the world. The world is fine the way it is. But evolution never stops. You just have to move within its flow."
-- Leonard Willoughby. Everyday Tao, p. 32
Do gooders of the world, lighten up! If Jesus couldn't do the job, it's very unlikely that you will be able to do it either. The world cannot be saved. Mostly because it doesn't need to be. The world its what it is, in this moment. In the next moment it will be subtly different. Better to perceive the way in which it is changing and flowing than to impose your own ideas or vision upon it.
Why is the world the way it is? Who knows? That's part of the mystery of life. But when you don't like the way the world is, when you've judged it to be bad, wrong, unfair, or somehow less than ideal, it's easy to create overly simplistic reasons that superficially explain why what is, is. "The world's the way it is because people are not open and loving, " you say. And I agree. That seems to be part of the picture. But I'm not ready to start an Open & Loving Campaign. Or worse yet, enact laws that require us all to be open and loving.
You want a more open and loving world? Be more open and loving yourself. You won't save the world, but you'll surely improve your little corner of it.
Moving within the flow is the way of Tao. It is co-creation, co-evolution. Instead of trying to impose your well-intentioned, though ultimately ego-based, ideas upon the world, see and appreciate the world as it is. Embrace the paradox -- the world is fine the way it is, and yet it never stops evolving. Your role is to harmonize with the evolution, not to push the river. Or as James Taylor sings, "Gliding down, sliding down. Try not to try too hard. It's just a lovely ride."
Put down your crown of thorns. Slide into the evolutionary slipstream. The Tao is always now.
-- Leonard Willoughby. Everyday Tao, p. 32
Do gooders of the world, lighten up! If Jesus couldn't do the job, it's very unlikely that you will be able to do it either. The world cannot be saved. Mostly because it doesn't need to be. The world its what it is, in this moment. In the next moment it will be subtly different. Better to perceive the way in which it is changing and flowing than to impose your own ideas or vision upon it.
Why is the world the way it is? Who knows? That's part of the mystery of life. But when you don't like the way the world is, when you've judged it to be bad, wrong, unfair, or somehow less than ideal, it's easy to create overly simplistic reasons that superficially explain why what is, is. "The world's the way it is because people are not open and loving, " you say. And I agree. That seems to be part of the picture. But I'm not ready to start an Open & Loving Campaign. Or worse yet, enact laws that require us all to be open and loving.
You want a more open and loving world? Be more open and loving yourself. You won't save the world, but you'll surely improve your little corner of it.
Moving within the flow is the way of Tao. It is co-creation, co-evolution. Instead of trying to impose your well-intentioned, though ultimately ego-based, ideas upon the world, see and appreciate the world as it is. Embrace the paradox -- the world is fine the way it is, and yet it never stops evolving. Your role is to harmonize with the evolution, not to push the river. Or as James Taylor sings, "Gliding down, sliding down. Try not to try too hard. It's just a lovely ride."
Put down your crown of thorns. Slide into the evolutionary slipstream. The Tao is always now.
Stop Suffering!
"The hardest thing for a man to surrender is his own suffering."
-- P.D. Ouspensky
Suffering is so delicious! "Oh, woe is me. I'm a victim. Don't you feel sorry for me?" Many times the response we get is a resounding "Yes!" In a strange, perverse way, people respond to our suffering almost with glee. I've got a friend, one of my nearest and dearest, and whenever she asks how I'm doing, if I say I'm doing great, I swear I can hear the disappointment in her voice. If I start off into a litany of worries and woes, though, she perks right up, rises to the occasion, and is compassionate and helpful beyond belief.
So, yes, many times our suffering gets reinforced by both our friends and our culture. Nobody likes somebody who's too damn cheery all the time! Show me a little existential angst, some good old Buddhistic First Noble Truth type suffering, or at least a hangnail or broken cell phone. Suffering makes for a compelling story.
But how much of it is unnecessary? Alot. A whole, friggin' lot! We suffer out of habit, out of ignorance, out of a herd mentality, because we think we're supposed to, or, as John Mellencamp sang, sometimes because it just plain "hurts so good." Once we sit down, quiet down and look at our lives, though, damn near all of our suffering is self-inflicted, and much of it patently silly. Surrendering it seems like the only really intelligent thing to do.
I once listened to a tape of a lecture by Marianne Williamson where she talked of how people justify suffering by saying things like "You can learn so much through suffering." Marianne went on to say that she's learned plenty through suffering already, and now she's ready to learn some things through joy! Me too, me too!
So, today, let that silly, old suffering go. As Eckhart Tolle points out, there is never any suffering if you are completely in the present. All suffering is related, in one way or another, to either the past or the future. Be present and be free of suffering. Sacrifice it on the alter of joy. Let it go, let it flow clean out of you, and then just wait, and see what happens......
-- P.D. Ouspensky
Suffering is so delicious! "Oh, woe is me. I'm a victim. Don't you feel sorry for me?" Many times the response we get is a resounding "Yes!" In a strange, perverse way, people respond to our suffering almost with glee. I've got a friend, one of my nearest and dearest, and whenever she asks how I'm doing, if I say I'm doing great, I swear I can hear the disappointment in her voice. If I start off into a litany of worries and woes, though, she perks right up, rises to the occasion, and is compassionate and helpful beyond belief.
So, yes, many times our suffering gets reinforced by both our friends and our culture. Nobody likes somebody who's too damn cheery all the time! Show me a little existential angst, some good old Buddhistic First Noble Truth type suffering, or at least a hangnail or broken cell phone. Suffering makes for a compelling story.
But how much of it is unnecessary? Alot. A whole, friggin' lot! We suffer out of habit, out of ignorance, out of a herd mentality, because we think we're supposed to, or, as John Mellencamp sang, sometimes because it just plain "hurts so good." Once we sit down, quiet down and look at our lives, though, damn near all of our suffering is self-inflicted, and much of it patently silly. Surrendering it seems like the only really intelligent thing to do.
I once listened to a tape of a lecture by Marianne Williamson where she talked of how people justify suffering by saying things like "You can learn so much through suffering." Marianne went on to say that she's learned plenty through suffering already, and now she's ready to learn some things through joy! Me too, me too!
So, today, let that silly, old suffering go. As Eckhart Tolle points out, there is never any suffering if you are completely in the present. All suffering is related, in one way or another, to either the past or the future. Be present and be free of suffering. Sacrifice it on the alter of joy. Let it go, let it flow clean out of you, and then just wait, and see what happens......
Efficiency
"Efficiency has been oversold as a virtue."
-- Bill McKibben
Bill's right -- it has. But isn't it cool how he made his point so efficiently -- an entire thought captured in only seven words!
Efficiency is all about time and motion. Our culture has its own hidden value system which we hardly ever question, hardly even see. Efficiency is a prime virtue in that system. It is deemed virtuous to spend as little time and energy as possible on any one thing. Why? I guess so you can do more things. All easier and faster, of course.
But do we really want lives based on speed and ease? Do we just want to do more and more useless shit faster and easier? Both Wall Street and Silicon Valley are betting we do. That's what technology is all about. And some of it is great -- including this MacBook on which I write this blog. But way too much of technology is just another waste of resources.
Here's the cultural and economic heresy of the day: Efficiency is not always the best way. Sometimes it's more interesting, more exciting, or more fulfilling to take the scenic route rather than the Interstate. Some days are meant to be wasted. The fastest way to orgasm isn't usually the most pleasurable.
I could go on and on. My point is that efficiency is a mediocre virtue at best. Our attempts to be efficient are many times just ways to avoid being fully engaged in the task at hand. Efficiency of that ilk requires that we bring less consciousness to the present rather than more. Let the machines do it, and we can zone out into our fantasy lives, whether they be in our heads or online.
And then there's fun. The efficient way is rarely the "fun-est" way to do something. Think laughter, think quality of life, think joy. When was the last time that efficiency elicited from you a deep belly laugh?
I'd like to suggest that you try on a different standard, an alternative perspective to efficiency. This standard is sometimes called The Joy Filter. It works like this. For any significant act that you are about to undertake, instead of asking "Is this the most efficient way that I can do this?" ask "Will what I'm about to do bring me joy?" If the action gets a thumbs up from The Joy Filter, have at it. If, instead, it is deemed efficient but joyless, rethink your options.
Heretical statement of the day number two: Most things can be done joyfully! Today you are challenged to find joy. As efficiently as possible, of course!
-- Bill McKibben
Bill's right -- it has. But isn't it cool how he made his point so efficiently -- an entire thought captured in only seven words!
Efficiency is all about time and motion. Our culture has its own hidden value system which we hardly ever question, hardly even see. Efficiency is a prime virtue in that system. It is deemed virtuous to spend as little time and energy as possible on any one thing. Why? I guess so you can do more things. All easier and faster, of course.
But do we really want lives based on speed and ease? Do we just want to do more and more useless shit faster and easier? Both Wall Street and Silicon Valley are betting we do. That's what technology is all about. And some of it is great -- including this MacBook on which I write this blog. But way too much of technology is just another waste of resources.
Here's the cultural and economic heresy of the day: Efficiency is not always the best way. Sometimes it's more interesting, more exciting, or more fulfilling to take the scenic route rather than the Interstate. Some days are meant to be wasted. The fastest way to orgasm isn't usually the most pleasurable.
I could go on and on. My point is that efficiency is a mediocre virtue at best. Our attempts to be efficient are many times just ways to avoid being fully engaged in the task at hand. Efficiency of that ilk requires that we bring less consciousness to the present rather than more. Let the machines do it, and we can zone out into our fantasy lives, whether they be in our heads or online.
And then there's fun. The efficient way is rarely the "fun-est" way to do something. Think laughter, think quality of life, think joy. When was the last time that efficiency elicited from you a deep belly laugh?
I'd like to suggest that you try on a different standard, an alternative perspective to efficiency. This standard is sometimes called The Joy Filter. It works like this. For any significant act that you are about to undertake, instead of asking "Is this the most efficient way that I can do this?" ask "Will what I'm about to do bring me joy?" If the action gets a thumbs up from The Joy Filter, have at it. If, instead, it is deemed efficient but joyless, rethink your options.
Heretical statement of the day number two: Most things can be done joyfully! Today you are challenged to find joy. As efficiently as possible, of course!
No Weather Man Needed
"You don't need a weather man to know which way the wind blows."
-- Bob Dylan. Subterranean Homesick Blues.
We rely way too much on so-called experts. We've all got five senses, we've all got brains, let's just use them a little more fully and intelligently rather than basing our conduct on opinion polls, talking heads, Dr. Phil's advice and scientific studies.
If you're in touch with the workings of your body at all, you can tell over time which foods are good for you and which aren't. You don't need the Center for Science in the Public Interest to tell you that a 1200 calorie Mega Meal from your local McGreasys is not the healthiest thing you can eat. If you can't walk up a flight of stairs without sounding like an asthmatic sumo wrestler, then, hey, you probably need to get some more exercise.
We don't give ourselves credit for half of what we know. Sometimes we just need to quiet down and look inside for the answer, rather than chase it all over hell's half acre. At other times we just need to quit playing stupid, and "suck it up, Bucko," and do what we already know to be right.
And then there's the stuff that everybody knows is crazy, but we, as a society, just keep doing it anyway! Things like dragging the presidential election campaign out for months and months longer than necessary. Let's just vote tomorrow and get it over with! We don't need three more months of mudslinging, posturing and pontificating. Eveyrbody knows that, and yet...
So, starting today, forget the experts and tune into your own knowledge. Speak the truth as you know it; do what you know to be right. I know that sounds all facile and trite, but as happens so many times, the reason something becomes trite is because it's oh so true. Dare to be trite. Dare to be true to yourself. And just step outside if you want to know which way the wind blows.
-- Bob Dylan. Subterranean Homesick Blues.
We rely way too much on so-called experts. We've all got five senses, we've all got brains, let's just use them a little more fully and intelligently rather than basing our conduct on opinion polls, talking heads, Dr. Phil's advice and scientific studies.
If you're in touch with the workings of your body at all, you can tell over time which foods are good for you and which aren't. You don't need the Center for Science in the Public Interest to tell you that a 1200 calorie Mega Meal from your local McGreasys is not the healthiest thing you can eat. If you can't walk up a flight of stairs without sounding like an asthmatic sumo wrestler, then, hey, you probably need to get some more exercise.
We don't give ourselves credit for half of what we know. Sometimes we just need to quiet down and look inside for the answer, rather than chase it all over hell's half acre. At other times we just need to quit playing stupid, and "suck it up, Bucko," and do what we already know to be right.
And then there's the stuff that everybody knows is crazy, but we, as a society, just keep doing it anyway! Things like dragging the presidential election campaign out for months and months longer than necessary. Let's just vote tomorrow and get it over with! We don't need three more months of mudslinging, posturing and pontificating. Eveyrbody knows that, and yet...
So, starting today, forget the experts and tune into your own knowledge. Speak the truth as you know it; do what you know to be right. I know that sounds all facile and trite, but as happens so many times, the reason something becomes trite is because it's oh so true. Dare to be trite. Dare to be true to yourself. And just step outside if you want to know which way the wind blows.
Fear
"You're afraid? So what. Everybody's afraid. Fear is the common ground of humanity. The question you must wrestle to the ground is 'Will I allow my fear to bind me to mediocrity?'"
-- Andy Stanley. The Next Generation Leader.
Not all fear is bad fear. Being too scared to jump off that proverbial bridge with your friends may just be an intelligent act of self-preservation. And being scared to go bungee jumping may prevent you from having a great story to tell, but it will hardly bind you to mediocrity.
No, the type of fear that does that is irrational fear, fear of failure when failure does not mean life or death but just another life experience. Pop guru Wayne Dyer says fear is an acronym for False Expectations Appearing Real. That's the kind of fear that leads right down the road to Mediocreville.
Susan Jeffers offers a great piece of advice right there in the title of her book -- Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway! Don't suppress the fear, don't deny the fear, don't exploit the fear, just feel it. And then do what you set out to do.
And if you fail? Just begin again more intelligently. You now have one more scrap of knowledge -- you know one more thing that doesn't work. But my bet is that your fear has also been reduced. You tried something, it didn't work, but you survived. You failed. No big deal. There's nothing really to be afraid of. Try again.
Fear requires discernment. You must learn to tell the difference between intelligent fear and irrational fear. Let the first be your advisor. Let the latter be vanquished.
So, today, do a Fear Audit. Search your psyche for those irrational fears that have been holding you back, that have bound you to mediocrity and left you with a less fulfilling life and a smaller self. Feel the fear, honor it, and then move forward, move outside your current comfort zone, and beyond your self-imposed limits. See what the world looks like outside the limits of Mediocreville. It may not feel quite as safe, but I guarantee that it will be alot more exciting!
-- Andy Stanley. The Next Generation Leader.
Not all fear is bad fear. Being too scared to jump off that proverbial bridge with your friends may just be an intelligent act of self-preservation. And being scared to go bungee jumping may prevent you from having a great story to tell, but it will hardly bind you to mediocrity.
No, the type of fear that does that is irrational fear, fear of failure when failure does not mean life or death but just another life experience. Pop guru Wayne Dyer says fear is an acronym for False Expectations Appearing Real. That's the kind of fear that leads right down the road to Mediocreville.
Susan Jeffers offers a great piece of advice right there in the title of her book -- Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway! Don't suppress the fear, don't deny the fear, don't exploit the fear, just feel it. And then do what you set out to do.
And if you fail? Just begin again more intelligently. You now have one more scrap of knowledge -- you know one more thing that doesn't work. But my bet is that your fear has also been reduced. You tried something, it didn't work, but you survived. You failed. No big deal. There's nothing really to be afraid of. Try again.
Fear requires discernment. You must learn to tell the difference between intelligent fear and irrational fear. Let the first be your advisor. Let the latter be vanquished.
So, today, do a Fear Audit. Search your psyche for those irrational fears that have been holding you back, that have bound you to mediocrity and left you with a less fulfilling life and a smaller self. Feel the fear, honor it, and then move forward, move outside your current comfort zone, and beyond your self-imposed limits. See what the world looks like outside the limits of Mediocreville. It may not feel quite as safe, but I guarantee that it will be alot more exciting!
Improvised Myths
"One of the things that interests me most about sex is that it is a conspiracy of improvised myths."
-- Susanna Moore. In the Cut, p. 125
I've got to admit -- I don't know what the hell Susanna Moore is talking about, but I like it! The phrase "a conspiracy of improvised myths" seems both inscrutable and fragrant with meaning. But hey, not knowing what I'm talking about has never stopped me from speaking before, so here goes.
Sex takes place on so many levels. It's not just the mechanics of "insert part Part P into Slot V." On the psychological, and even behavioral, levels sex is all about our stories, our myths. And we make them up as we go. The powerful energies of sexuality, the shifting and melting of boundaries that come from relating intimately with another, change our very self-definition. We are different people after each intimate encounter, whether we know it or not.
The conspiracy is in pretending together that our stories are not stories. Hell, if we all just laid our worst qualities, warts and all, right out there upon first meeting, no one would ever have sex! And so we share our stories selectively. We read the other's responses and we make up our myths on the fly. And our would-be partner does the same. And we both wordlessly agree to pretend that we don't know that either of us is doing it! A neat and sweet little game.
And that little game produces the human race. Packs of lies produce progeny. And yes, Susanna Moore, it's all so interesting!
And, so what am I going to suggest that you do today? Go out there and tell some stupendous lies and have some super sex! Sure, go right ahead, but that's not actually what I had in mind. What I have in mind is looking for the other places in your life where you are involved in "a conspiracy of improvised myths." In what other areas of life do both you and another make it up as you go, massaging, stretching and inventing so-called truth while all along implicitly agreeing not to comment on the process?
Job interviews may be one example. Actually they're alot like dates -- each person tries to put their best foot forward and usually somebody get screwed in the end! The news, especially as reported on television, may be another. Politics, yet a third. Actually, the whole of what most people experience as life may be just a dance, an intense interplay between established myths, like religion, and improvised myths, like sex.
The funny, sad thing is, we don't realize it's all myth! Your story, your partner's story, Barack Obama's story, John McCain's story, everybody's story, is just myth, not truth. As long as we understand that, we can enjoy the play. As soon as we get lost in the illusion, it all becomes way too serious, and the lightness, consciousness and fun drains out of life.
So, where was I? Ah, yes, right here, right now, today. Today simply notice that you are swimming in a large lake of myth. You don't have to change that, just notice it. You don't have to make better myths, or give up myth-making altogether, just notice. Consciousness alone produces real change. Strategic plans, the latest technology, and ball-busting effort are not needed. Awareness is. And enjoyment. Today consciously enjoy all myths, improvised and otherwise. Welcome to the play.
-- Susanna Moore. In the Cut, p. 125
I've got to admit -- I don't know what the hell Susanna Moore is talking about, but I like it! The phrase "a conspiracy of improvised myths" seems both inscrutable and fragrant with meaning. But hey, not knowing what I'm talking about has never stopped me from speaking before, so here goes.
Sex takes place on so many levels. It's not just the mechanics of "insert part Part P into Slot V." On the psychological, and even behavioral, levels sex is all about our stories, our myths. And we make them up as we go. The powerful energies of sexuality, the shifting and melting of boundaries that come from relating intimately with another, change our very self-definition. We are different people after each intimate encounter, whether we know it or not.
The conspiracy is in pretending together that our stories are not stories. Hell, if we all just laid our worst qualities, warts and all, right out there upon first meeting, no one would ever have sex! And so we share our stories selectively. We read the other's responses and we make up our myths on the fly. And our would-be partner does the same. And we both wordlessly agree to pretend that we don't know that either of us is doing it! A neat and sweet little game.
And that little game produces the human race. Packs of lies produce progeny. And yes, Susanna Moore, it's all so interesting!
And, so what am I going to suggest that you do today? Go out there and tell some stupendous lies and have some super sex! Sure, go right ahead, but that's not actually what I had in mind. What I have in mind is looking for the other places in your life where you are involved in "a conspiracy of improvised myths." In what other areas of life do both you and another make it up as you go, massaging, stretching and inventing so-called truth while all along implicitly agreeing not to comment on the process?
Job interviews may be one example. Actually they're alot like dates -- each person tries to put their best foot forward and usually somebody get screwed in the end! The news, especially as reported on television, may be another. Politics, yet a third. Actually, the whole of what most people experience as life may be just a dance, an intense interplay between established myths, like religion, and improvised myths, like sex.
The funny, sad thing is, we don't realize it's all myth! Your story, your partner's story, Barack Obama's story, John McCain's story, everybody's story, is just myth, not truth. As long as we understand that, we can enjoy the play. As soon as we get lost in the illusion, it all becomes way too serious, and the lightness, consciousness and fun drains out of life.
So, where was I? Ah, yes, right here, right now, today. Today simply notice that you are swimming in a large lake of myth. You don't have to change that, just notice it. You don't have to make better myths, or give up myth-making altogether, just notice. Consciousness alone produces real change. Strategic plans, the latest technology, and ball-busting effort are not needed. Awareness is. And enjoyment. Today consciously enjoy all myths, improvised and otherwise. Welcome to the play.
A Republic of One
"What you deny to others will be denied to you, for the plain reason that you are always legislating for yourself, all your words and actions define the world you want to live in."
-- Thaddeus Golas. The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment
Why don't most televangelists get surfeits of hot sex? Because what they're attempting to deny to others, they're really denying to themselves. It's as simple as that. You get to make up the rules for your world, but only your world. You're the legislative branch of a republic of one.
If you go around bellyaching "Those damn rich people shouldn't have so much money," you're basically guaranteeing that you will never be rich. If you wail against the fame and social cache of sports stars, rock stars, and movie stars, you can pretty much bet stardom of any kind is not on your horizon.
But there are things going on in the world that are downright unfair, you say. And I might even agree with you. But unfairness is in the eye of the beholder. You want to live in a fair world, be prepared for it to be fair to you and you only. Personally, I think I'd rather live in a forgiving world, an abundant world, a loving world and a serendipitous world, rather than a fair world.
Believe in the so-called Law of Karma, and you'll see it in action everywhere. Believe in grace and you will live a grace-full existence.
It' really a beautiful system -- you get to define your own world, but only your world. It keeps you're attention where it belongs -- on your own life and out of everybody else's business!
Yeah, but all our worlds overlap, you say. True. That's what makes it so interesting. That's how we influence each other; that's how change happens. It happens through living as a beacon, as a shining example for all to see of how you want the world to be.
Change doesn't happen through legislation, whether it be of the political, religious or personal type. People don't change because you say they should or must. People change because they are inspired to do so. You'll have much more success changing the world through inspiration than through legislation. And your most powerful means of inspiration is not your opinions, your beliefs, or even your words, but your life.
Today's a great day to resign from the Universal Legislature and refocus on your own life. Live as you wish the world would live. Live by the principles that make your heart sing. Don't worry about others. They're busy creating their own worlds, whether they know it or not.
And so, damn -- I better take my own advice! Time to shut up. And soar on the wings of grace.
-- Thaddeus Golas. The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment
Why don't most televangelists get surfeits of hot sex? Because what they're attempting to deny to others, they're really denying to themselves. It's as simple as that. You get to make up the rules for your world, but only your world. You're the legislative branch of a republic of one.
If you go around bellyaching "Those damn rich people shouldn't have so much money," you're basically guaranteeing that you will never be rich. If you wail against the fame and social cache of sports stars, rock stars, and movie stars, you can pretty much bet stardom of any kind is not on your horizon.
But there are things going on in the world that are downright unfair, you say. And I might even agree with you. But unfairness is in the eye of the beholder. You want to live in a fair world, be prepared for it to be fair to you and you only. Personally, I think I'd rather live in a forgiving world, an abundant world, a loving world and a serendipitous world, rather than a fair world.
Believe in the so-called Law of Karma, and you'll see it in action everywhere. Believe in grace and you will live a grace-full existence.
It' really a beautiful system -- you get to define your own world, but only your world. It keeps you're attention where it belongs -- on your own life and out of everybody else's business!
Yeah, but all our worlds overlap, you say. True. That's what makes it so interesting. That's how we influence each other; that's how change happens. It happens through living as a beacon, as a shining example for all to see of how you want the world to be.
Change doesn't happen through legislation, whether it be of the political, religious or personal type. People don't change because you say they should or must. People change because they are inspired to do so. You'll have much more success changing the world through inspiration than through legislation. And your most powerful means of inspiration is not your opinions, your beliefs, or even your words, but your life.
Today's a great day to resign from the Universal Legislature and refocus on your own life. Live as you wish the world would live. Live by the principles that make your heart sing. Don't worry about others. They're busy creating their own worlds, whether they know it or not.
And so, damn -- I better take my own advice! Time to shut up. And soar on the wings of grace.
Teachers in Disguise
"I have learned silence from the talkative, toleration from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind; yet strange I am ungrateful to these teachers."
-- Kahlil Gibran
Yes, our teachers are everywhere, clothed in the strangest disguises. Whenever I'm at a restaurant and see a grossly obese person I think twice about ordering desert. Skinny people don't inspire me to lose weight but fat asses sure do! And I'm sure my own bad habits and less than stellar behaviors have helped others see the light as well. Hey, I'm here to serve -- even if it's only as a bad example.
The thing is, when faced with verboseness, intolerance or unkindness, we rarely see it as a gift. Instead we bristle and fret and fume and complain about the unorthodox teacher that appears before us. It's time for us to see the world with new eyes.
Today, let's be on the lookout for Teachers in Disguise. It may be the stinky guy next to you on the train, or the loud mouthed woman behind you in line at the post office, or the surly server at a busy restaurant, or even (gasp!) a member of your own family. Teachers come in all guises and disguises, and very few of them even know they're teaching! That's the beauty of it -- we can learn from, and be fueled by, their unconsciousness! No tuition, no books, no student loans. Teachers everywhere just for the taking!
And when you get tired of learning. When your brain is just full up. Switch roles. Go out there and be a bad example for somebody else! I have faith in you; you can do it. Learn from bad examples. Teach by bad example. The circle of life is complete. And it's a beautiful thing.
-- Kahlil Gibran
Yes, our teachers are everywhere, clothed in the strangest disguises. Whenever I'm at a restaurant and see a grossly obese person I think twice about ordering desert. Skinny people don't inspire me to lose weight but fat asses sure do! And I'm sure my own bad habits and less than stellar behaviors have helped others see the light as well. Hey, I'm here to serve -- even if it's only as a bad example.
The thing is, when faced with verboseness, intolerance or unkindness, we rarely see it as a gift. Instead we bristle and fret and fume and complain about the unorthodox teacher that appears before us. It's time for us to see the world with new eyes.
Today, let's be on the lookout for Teachers in Disguise. It may be the stinky guy next to you on the train, or the loud mouthed woman behind you in line at the post office, or the surly server at a busy restaurant, or even (gasp!) a member of your own family. Teachers come in all guises and disguises, and very few of them even know they're teaching! That's the beauty of it -- we can learn from, and be fueled by, their unconsciousness! No tuition, no books, no student loans. Teachers everywhere just for the taking!
And when you get tired of learning. When your brain is just full up. Switch roles. Go out there and be a bad example for somebody else! I have faith in you; you can do it. Learn from bad examples. Teach by bad example. The circle of life is complete. And it's a beautiful thing.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
