"Truth is an icy mountain that must be climbed anew everyday."
-- John Fowles
Sometimes I wonder why I bother. Why do I write these short e-pistles to myself on an almost a daily basis? Because I forget. I forget all about the simple truths that I expound upon here, and I awake in the morning worrying about finances, or bitching about the weather, or ruminating about some crazy ass shit that has nothing to do with me, instead of being present, loving and strong.
It would be great if we could learn something once and then live it forever. But that's not how it works, at least not with anyone I know. Instead, each day we're slipping and sliding all over Truth Mountain, like some sick Disney one-person show, Sisyphus on Ice. Just when I think I've finally reached the pinnacle of truth, I find myself making really, stupid, unenlightened decisions again, sliding right back down to base camp.
And so it goes. Each day a new climb. And so I write myself reminders over and over again -- be here now, all you need is love, this too shall pass -- fortune cookie wisdom whose triteness does not diminish its truth. Certain themes emerge, and my challenge is to speak those perennial truths in new ways, ways that nudge me or jar me or give me a mini-satori, a lightning bolt across the dark sky of my mind.
And then I go on about my day. Forgetting, remembering, forgetting again. Slipping and sliding all over Truth Mountain. Climbing through familiar terrain, and yet, each day is new. Might as well smile. What else is there to do?
Let the Mystery Be
"Everybody is wondering what and where they all came from
Everybody is worrying where they're going to go when the whole thing's done.
No one knows for certain, and it's all the same to me
I think I'll just let the mystery be."
-- Iris Dement. From her song "Let the Mystery Be."
It's harder than it sounds to let the mystery be. Our minds crave certainty, even false certainty. And so, we're always making up stuff, like myths and theories and philosophies and religions. Nice, comforting stories to dull the mind back into its comfort zone.
The only problem is, we miss so much! We miss reality. For what is reality but perception and mystery? Cognition and all its byproducts are merely thoughts about reality, not reality itself. As humans we are wildly creative and endlessly inventive. We make up incredible stories about life before and after death. We forget the most important thing, though, -- they are just stories, fanciful creations, not direct, empirical reports.
Why is it so threatening to let the mystery be? Perhaps because without stories of before and after, all we have is here and now. And, for many people, nothing is more terrifying, more awe-full than the present. Unbuffered, unvarnished, unmediated reality is a whole new experience, a cold, Zen slap for someone who has been living in never never land. Without supporting and surrounding stories, life is oh so immediate, oh so in your face. No escape. Here we are. Now what?
"Now what" unfolds. No sophisticated theology or infantile belief systems required. One step after another. Seeing what needs to be done. Tapping into your capacity to do it. Breathing in, breathing out. Enjoying life and all its mysteries. Just that. And it's plenty.
Everybody is worrying where they're going to go when the whole thing's done.
No one knows for certain, and it's all the same to me
I think I'll just let the mystery be."
-- Iris Dement. From her song "Let the Mystery Be."
It's harder than it sounds to let the mystery be. Our minds crave certainty, even false certainty. And so, we're always making up stuff, like myths and theories and philosophies and religions. Nice, comforting stories to dull the mind back into its comfort zone.
The only problem is, we miss so much! We miss reality. For what is reality but perception and mystery? Cognition and all its byproducts are merely thoughts about reality, not reality itself. As humans we are wildly creative and endlessly inventive. We make up incredible stories about life before and after death. We forget the most important thing, though, -- they are just stories, fanciful creations, not direct, empirical reports.
Why is it so threatening to let the mystery be? Perhaps because without stories of before and after, all we have is here and now. And, for many people, nothing is more terrifying, more awe-full than the present. Unbuffered, unvarnished, unmediated reality is a whole new experience, a cold, Zen slap for someone who has been living in never never land. Without supporting and surrounding stories, life is oh so immediate, oh so in your face. No escape. Here we are. Now what?
"Now what" unfolds. No sophisticated theology or infantile belief systems required. One step after another. Seeing what needs to be done. Tapping into your capacity to do it. Breathing in, breathing out. Enjoying life and all its mysteries. Just that. And it's plenty.
A Healthy Kick in the Teeth
"You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you."
- Walt Disney
When struck with adversity, very few people respond with that immortal Animal House line, "Thank you sir, may I have another?" Usually the shock, pain and indignation overwhelm us, and our first response is outrage. How dare that person, or that company, or the economy, or the universe, attack little, old, innocent me! The problem is, there are very, very few times when we are indeed completely innocent.
A kick in the teeth is a wake-up call. A bit more jarring than a clock radio, for sure, but sometimes a low volume dose of NPR just doesn't cut it. Once the initial surprise and suffering subside, the true awakening can occur. You usually don't even have to think about it that much -- the error of your ways just pops to the surface of consciousness. It's as if the kick in the teeth has not-so-gently dislodged your insight from the muddy depths of your subconscious where it was so recently submerged.
I'm not saying you should go out there and stand real close up behind every jack ass you see, poke his hiney with a stick, and invite a good, solid mule kick. Life gives us plenty of kicks without us having to go out there and court them. What I am saying is that when a kick does happen, move beyond your initial reaction and see what you can learn from it.
Ann Landers, the Queen of Trite Advice, was known for saying, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade." Hell, any fool can make lemonade. When life gives you lemons, make Limoncello! Don't just survive adversity, thrive upon it! If you can learn to do that, what is there left to fear?
- Walt Disney
When struck with adversity, very few people respond with that immortal Animal House line, "Thank you sir, may I have another?" Usually the shock, pain and indignation overwhelm us, and our first response is outrage. How dare that person, or that company, or the economy, or the universe, attack little, old, innocent me! The problem is, there are very, very few times when we are indeed completely innocent.
A kick in the teeth is a wake-up call. A bit more jarring than a clock radio, for sure, but sometimes a low volume dose of NPR just doesn't cut it. Once the initial surprise and suffering subside, the true awakening can occur. You usually don't even have to think about it that much -- the error of your ways just pops to the surface of consciousness. It's as if the kick in the teeth has not-so-gently dislodged your insight from the muddy depths of your subconscious where it was so recently submerged.
I'm not saying you should go out there and stand real close up behind every jack ass you see, poke his hiney with a stick, and invite a good, solid mule kick. Life gives us plenty of kicks without us having to go out there and court them. What I am saying is that when a kick does happen, move beyond your initial reaction and see what you can learn from it.
Ann Landers, the Queen of Trite Advice, was known for saying, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade." Hell, any fool can make lemonade. When life gives you lemons, make Limoncello! Don't just survive adversity, thrive upon it! If you can learn to do that, what is there left to fear?
The Last Iceman
"The last iceman always makes money."
--anonymous
Way back before your time and my time, sometime around the beginning of the last century, there were no refrigerators. People had "ice boxes" instead. Ice was placed in the bottom of an insulated container and that's how food was kept cold. Sort of like a really big cooler or giant ice chest.
Well, along came refrigeration, and universal electricity, and the ice men, who used to deliver ice to your door for your ice box, started dropping like flies. There was no longer any need for them, so they quickly went out of business.
All except one. He may have had foresight, but more likely he was just stubborn. He hung onto the ice business for dear life, and pretty soon, he was the only game in town. It's his grandkids and great grandkids who own the ice company that provides all that bagged ice for mini-marts, picnics, weddings, and other large events. They're doing quite well, thank you, and all because of the persistence of one old man.
And so, while society can no longer support tens of thousands of independent ice men, it can support a few. And the few are the ones who refuse to follow trends, jump on band wagons, or adapt to, or adopt, the latest and greatest. They are the contrarians who everyone laughs at, and who return the favor by laughing all the way to the bank. They are the blacksmiths and chimney sweeps and craftspeople and artisan bread bakers and micro brewers who refuse to give up old fashioned ways for the bigger, the newer, the flashier.
Not a day, hell not an hour, goes by without some pundit telling you what you have to do to be successful. How you have to use social media, or get more education, or be cross-trained, or become technologically savvy, or... the list just goes on and on. All these prognosticators are well meaning, and all are dead wrong.
You don't have to do any of that stuff. You just have to do what you really want to do with intelligence, passion and grace. You may be "the last iceman" of your field or profession. You may be the one who happily refuses to join the rat race because, frankly, you don't like running with rats. And by being a new millennium holdout, you may be one of the happiest, most successful people around.
The choice is yours. It always is. Don't get swept up in the frenzy to become the hippest kid on the block. Make your ice. Make your money. Enjoy the ride.
--anonymous
Way back before your time and my time, sometime around the beginning of the last century, there were no refrigerators. People had "ice boxes" instead. Ice was placed in the bottom of an insulated container and that's how food was kept cold. Sort of like a really big cooler or giant ice chest.
Well, along came refrigeration, and universal electricity, and the ice men, who used to deliver ice to your door for your ice box, started dropping like flies. There was no longer any need for them, so they quickly went out of business.
All except one. He may have had foresight, but more likely he was just stubborn. He hung onto the ice business for dear life, and pretty soon, he was the only game in town. It's his grandkids and great grandkids who own the ice company that provides all that bagged ice for mini-marts, picnics, weddings, and other large events. They're doing quite well, thank you, and all because of the persistence of one old man.
And so, while society can no longer support tens of thousands of independent ice men, it can support a few. And the few are the ones who refuse to follow trends, jump on band wagons, or adapt to, or adopt, the latest and greatest. They are the contrarians who everyone laughs at, and who return the favor by laughing all the way to the bank. They are the blacksmiths and chimney sweeps and craftspeople and artisan bread bakers and micro brewers who refuse to give up old fashioned ways for the bigger, the newer, the flashier.
Not a day, hell not an hour, goes by without some pundit telling you what you have to do to be successful. How you have to use social media, or get more education, or be cross-trained, or become technologically savvy, or... the list just goes on and on. All these prognosticators are well meaning, and all are dead wrong.
You don't have to do any of that stuff. You just have to do what you really want to do with intelligence, passion and grace. You may be "the last iceman" of your field or profession. You may be the one who happily refuses to join the rat race because, frankly, you don't like running with rats. And by being a new millennium holdout, you may be one of the happiest, most successful people around.
The choice is yours. It always is. Don't get swept up in the frenzy to become the hippest kid on the block. Make your ice. Make your money. Enjoy the ride.
The Philosophy of Minnie Pearl
"Jesus and Krishna and Buddha and Minnie Pearl knew
To do unto others as you'd have them do unto you."
- Rodney Crowell
All the greats say the same thing. There are only so many universal operating principles in this one horse universe, and they've all been enumerated time and time again by sages and teachers and musicians and poets from all cultures, traditions and walks of life. While Jesus, Krishna and Buddha may be the Ecumenical Holy Trinity when it comes to the religious sphere (no offense there Moses and Muhammad), countless others, including Minnie Pearl and Rodney Crowell have expressed the same basic spiritual approach to life.
In other words, teachers and prophets and gurus can be found everywhere! The Good Book or the Yellow Book, it doesn't matter -- wisdom is all around us! The exact teaching you need to hear next may come to you via an overheard conversation on the street, the sing-song poetry of a four year old child, a random song on the radio, or that little strip of paper inside the next fortune cookie you crack open. Don't confine yourself to the creme de la creme of the wisdom hierarchy; wisdom is ubiquitous.
And perhaps the most amazing and surprising place you'll find wisdom is right there inside of you! Your heart, your mind, your soul are chocked full of snippets, sayings, and scraps of pure, unadulterated wisdom. Hell, you knew the Golden Rule long before Rodney Crowell or Minnie Pearl sang about it. Indeed, you intuitively know every wise thing there is to know, already and always. It's just that sometimes we forget, ignore, or lose access to our vast internal storehouse of wisdom and then, literally, all hell breaks loose.
So, the challenge is two-fold. First, stay connected to wisdom. Access it right there inside you and pay attention to its myriad manifestations all around you. Second, live from that deep well of wisdom. Let your actions express the highest and deepest of what you know. Don't settle for less than wisdom-inspired action.
Jesus taught in the temples and in the fields. Krishna danced with the gopis and instructed Arjuna on the battlefield. Buddha sat beneath the bodhi tree and wandered the country far and wide. And Minnie Pearl, she graced the stage of the Grand Old Opry with her price-tagged hat and homespun wisdom.
What will you do?
To do unto others as you'd have them do unto you."
- Rodney Crowell
All the greats say the same thing. There are only so many universal operating principles in this one horse universe, and they've all been enumerated time and time again by sages and teachers and musicians and poets from all cultures, traditions and walks of life. While Jesus, Krishna and Buddha may be the Ecumenical Holy Trinity when it comes to the religious sphere (no offense there Moses and Muhammad), countless others, including Minnie Pearl and Rodney Crowell have expressed the same basic spiritual approach to life.
In other words, teachers and prophets and gurus can be found everywhere! The Good Book or the Yellow Book, it doesn't matter -- wisdom is all around us! The exact teaching you need to hear next may come to you via an overheard conversation on the street, the sing-song poetry of a four year old child, a random song on the radio, or that little strip of paper inside the next fortune cookie you crack open. Don't confine yourself to the creme de la creme of the wisdom hierarchy; wisdom is ubiquitous.
And perhaps the most amazing and surprising place you'll find wisdom is right there inside of you! Your heart, your mind, your soul are chocked full of snippets, sayings, and scraps of pure, unadulterated wisdom. Hell, you knew the Golden Rule long before Rodney Crowell or Minnie Pearl sang about it. Indeed, you intuitively know every wise thing there is to know, already and always. It's just that sometimes we forget, ignore, or lose access to our vast internal storehouse of wisdom and then, literally, all hell breaks loose.
So, the challenge is two-fold. First, stay connected to wisdom. Access it right there inside you and pay attention to its myriad manifestations all around you. Second, live from that deep well of wisdom. Let your actions express the highest and deepest of what you know. Don't settle for less than wisdom-inspired action.
Jesus taught in the temples and in the fields. Krishna danced with the gopis and instructed Arjuna on the battlefield. Buddha sat beneath the bodhi tree and wandered the country far and wide. And Minnie Pearl, she graced the stage of the Grand Old Opry with her price-tagged hat and homespun wisdom.
What will you do?
The Power of Forgiveness
"By forgiving someone else, and forgiving yourself, you take back your power."
-- Leonard Willoughby. Every Day Tao, p.100.
I've done some stupid things in my time. Some unconscious, uncaring, dumb ass things. Some of them I can look back on and laugh. Most I can look squarely in the eye and work through and let go. And each and every time I do, I notice how right Leonard is -- my power returns. Sometimes it's almost a visceral jolt of energy re-entering my system. Other times it's a more mild reabsorption of power, power that I didn't even know I had given away.
And the same is true with forgiving other people. When I can find it in my heart to let go of my hurt, my anger, or my confusion and simply forgive, my power returns. No longer am I projecting negative energy out towards a person who I feel wronged me. Instead, I re-own the energy by realizing that we all do some really stupid shit in our lives, and we all need forgiving.
It's like most important things in life -- it's simple, but not easy. Anytime you catch yourself condemning -- either yourself or others -- you begin to work with it. You peel pack the onion-like layers of anger, hurt, mistrust and condemnation until you get to the heart of acceptance. Acceptance is, in and of itself, a re-owning of power because you are no longer at war with reality, you are harmonizing with what is. It takes alot less energy to flow with than to fight against. Power saved is power gained.
And so, forgiveness isn't just some nice, little moral rule of thumb -- it's a practical, useful universal operating principle. Forgiveness grows personal power. The kind of power that you can use to be more loving, to be more authentic, to play and grow and share and discover, and, most of all, to really, truly enjoy your life.
-- Leonard Willoughby. Every Day Tao, p.100.
I've done some stupid things in my time. Some unconscious, uncaring, dumb ass things. Some of them I can look back on and laugh. Most I can look squarely in the eye and work through and let go. And each and every time I do, I notice how right Leonard is -- my power returns. Sometimes it's almost a visceral jolt of energy re-entering my system. Other times it's a more mild reabsorption of power, power that I didn't even know I had given away.
And the same is true with forgiving other people. When I can find it in my heart to let go of my hurt, my anger, or my confusion and simply forgive, my power returns. No longer am I projecting negative energy out towards a person who I feel wronged me. Instead, I re-own the energy by realizing that we all do some really stupid shit in our lives, and we all need forgiving.
It's like most important things in life -- it's simple, but not easy. Anytime you catch yourself condemning -- either yourself or others -- you begin to work with it. You peel pack the onion-like layers of anger, hurt, mistrust and condemnation until you get to the heart of acceptance. Acceptance is, in and of itself, a re-owning of power because you are no longer at war with reality, you are harmonizing with what is. It takes alot less energy to flow with than to fight against. Power saved is power gained.
And so, forgiveness isn't just some nice, little moral rule of thumb -- it's a practical, useful universal operating principle. Forgiveness grows personal power. The kind of power that you can use to be more loving, to be more authentic, to play and grow and share and discover, and, most of all, to really, truly enjoy your life.
Celebrate the Recession!
"Real wealth is perishable: food, health, trees, flowers, herbs, healthy soil, clean water, fresh air, friends and art. Learn to value and appreciate those above all else."
-- Kevin & Donna Phillippe-Johnson
Economic downturns are not only inevitable, but also extremely useful. They are the perfect time to take stock of what is really important in life. Hint: It's not SUV's as big as Texas, jumbo, flat screen, high definition TV's, or overpriced dinners at those places that dribble little rivers of colorful sauce all over your plate.
Kevin & Donna have pretty much nailed what is important -- nature, health, friends and self-expression. Everything beyond that is at best gravy, at worst greedy consumerism that attempts to fill a hole in your soul with store-bought doodads.
Simplicity and serenity go hand in hand. They both produce and support each other. By valuing and appreciating the simple things, the real things, we not only experience joy and abundance, we insure that there are plenty of simple things, thus plenty of joy and abundance, to go around.
So celebrate the fact that our economy is in the crapper! Make your own wine, brew your own beer, and drink a toast to "market correction." It's going to get alot worse, folks, before it gets better, and, with any luck, "better" will not looking anything like we thought it did before.
Value the real wealth, the shared wealth of life. Appreciate the natural, the unadulterated. We are rich beyond our wildest dreams! And it has nothing to with GDP, stock prices or 401K's.
-- Kevin & Donna Phillippe-Johnson
Economic downturns are not only inevitable, but also extremely useful. They are the perfect time to take stock of what is really important in life. Hint: It's not SUV's as big as Texas, jumbo, flat screen, high definition TV's, or overpriced dinners at those places that dribble little rivers of colorful sauce all over your plate.
Kevin & Donna have pretty much nailed what is important -- nature, health, friends and self-expression. Everything beyond that is at best gravy, at worst greedy consumerism that attempts to fill a hole in your soul with store-bought doodads.
Simplicity and serenity go hand in hand. They both produce and support each other. By valuing and appreciating the simple things, the real things, we not only experience joy and abundance, we insure that there are plenty of simple things, thus plenty of joy and abundance, to go around.
So celebrate the fact that our economy is in the crapper! Make your own wine, brew your own beer, and drink a toast to "market correction." It's going to get alot worse, folks, before it gets better, and, with any luck, "better" will not looking anything like we thought it did before.
Value the real wealth, the shared wealth of life. Appreciate the natural, the unadulterated. We are rich beyond our wildest dreams! And it has nothing to with GDP, stock prices or 401K's.
Just Rest
"Just sit there right now
Don't do anything. Just rest.
For your separation from God
Is the hardest work in the world."
-- Hafiz
Isn't amazing how advanced spiritual practitioners of all traditions basically say the same thing? Zen masters, Christian mystics, Hindu gurus, even Hafiz, of the Sufi school of Islamic mysticism, all recommend "just sitting." Why just sitting? Because if you just sit, and let your wild, monkey mind quiet down a bit, you will see that you are never really separate from God in the first place. Never, ever.
The illusion of separateness cannot be cured by doing more or trying harder. It is not a problem to be solved, but a condition to be dissolved. And the dissolution happens by dunking the thoughts of separation into the deep pool of Unity that can only be accessed through the quiet mind.
So, next time you find yourself doing "the hardest work in the world," i.e., maintaining your separate, egoic condition, just rest. Allow the Reality of Unity to arise within you. God didn't go anywhere, you did. And where you went was merely a fantasy world that you created in that grey matter between your ears.
Like awakening from a nightmare, like returning from a long, arduous business trip, it is time to feel the sun on your face and return to your place of origin. You are not destined for hard work but for rest, for bliss, for Oneness.
Welcome home.
Don't do anything. Just rest.
For your separation from God
Is the hardest work in the world."
-- Hafiz
Isn't amazing how advanced spiritual practitioners of all traditions basically say the same thing? Zen masters, Christian mystics, Hindu gurus, even Hafiz, of the Sufi school of Islamic mysticism, all recommend "just sitting." Why just sitting? Because if you just sit, and let your wild, monkey mind quiet down a bit, you will see that you are never really separate from God in the first place. Never, ever.
The illusion of separateness cannot be cured by doing more or trying harder. It is not a problem to be solved, but a condition to be dissolved. And the dissolution happens by dunking the thoughts of separation into the deep pool of Unity that can only be accessed through the quiet mind.
So, next time you find yourself doing "the hardest work in the world," i.e., maintaining your separate, egoic condition, just rest. Allow the Reality of Unity to arise within you. God didn't go anywhere, you did. And where you went was merely a fantasy world that you created in that grey matter between your ears.
Like awakening from a nightmare, like returning from a long, arduous business trip, it is time to feel the sun on your face and return to your place of origin. You are not destined for hard work but for rest, for bliss, for Oneness.
Welcome home.
Happiness Comes of Its Own Accord
"Just as you don't have to do anything to help make spring come, the winged happiness that the poets speak of will come on its own. It's coming . Earth will swing on its ellipse whatever you do, and crocuses will come up. The poets say happiness comes like this, though we cannot see the works. It is coming. This is an extremely encouraging insight, and I hope I will be able to remember it."
-- Jennifer Michael Hecht. The Myth of Happiness, p. 319
Spring is coming. Happiness is coming. Or, to paraphrase the Taoist sage Lao Tzu, the world operates perfectly without your interference or help.
So why then do we always feel like we have to do something?
It's the malaise of the modern Western mind. Do, do, do. Make it happen. Take the bull by the horns.
Well, it's all bull! Happiness happens. Life happens. We may be part of that happening, but by no stretch of the imagination do we create it, do we make it happen.
The inner working of happiness are at the same time too complex and too simple for our minds to grasp, for our willpower to control. The complexity is in all the many energies, forces, and elements that impact happiness. The simplicity is in the underlying Unity of it All.
Since you can't summon happiness at your beck and call, does that mean you just sit around with your thumb up your ass sliding deeper and deeper into existential angst and ennui? Of course not! You do what you do. You keep on keeping on. You do what you have to do, and you do what you want to do, and happiness finds you.
Once it finds you, it may not stay forever. Hell, sometimes it doesn't even stay the night! But it will always return. You can count on it, just like spring. Round and round, natural cycles, the happiness merry go round. Happiness is happening now and now and now. What else to do but enjoy the ride?
-- Jennifer Michael Hecht. The Myth of Happiness, p. 319
Spring is coming. Happiness is coming. Or, to paraphrase the Taoist sage Lao Tzu, the world operates perfectly without your interference or help.
So why then do we always feel like we have to do something?
It's the malaise of the modern Western mind. Do, do, do. Make it happen. Take the bull by the horns.
Well, it's all bull! Happiness happens. Life happens. We may be part of that happening, but by no stretch of the imagination do we create it, do we make it happen.
The inner working of happiness are at the same time too complex and too simple for our minds to grasp, for our willpower to control. The complexity is in all the many energies, forces, and elements that impact happiness. The simplicity is in the underlying Unity of it All.
Since you can't summon happiness at your beck and call, does that mean you just sit around with your thumb up your ass sliding deeper and deeper into existential angst and ennui? Of course not! You do what you do. You keep on keeping on. You do what you have to do, and you do what you want to do, and happiness finds you.
Once it finds you, it may not stay forever. Hell, sometimes it doesn't even stay the night! But it will always return. You can count on it, just like spring. Round and round, natural cycles, the happiness merry go round. Happiness is happening now and now and now. What else to do but enjoy the ride?
Say It, Just Say It!
"There are never enough 'I love you's."
-- Lenny Bruce
Never, ever, anytime, anyday enough. Nobody gets tired of hearing that they are loved. And many people hear it rarely, if at all.
I have a friend who once told me that during a particularly nasty fight his wife accused him of not having said "I love you" for at least ten years. "Is that true?" I asked him. "Probably," he said. "Amazing!" I said aloud. "It's easy for you, " he said. "You tell the waitress you love her after three beers! Any waitress!"
Guilty as charged. And the thing is, at that moment, I do. And while I tenaciously guard against becoming the drunk guy at the party who is putting all his buddies in headlocks and slobbering, "I love you, man," if I err in regards to love, it's by being pretty damn indiscriminate about it. Free love still sounds like a better deal to me than either free parking, free financing, or even the mythical free lunch.
But I'm not asking you to become me -- heave forbid! I'm just asking you to speak from the heart of the true you. And no matter who you are, where you are, the heart of the true you is always love.
So, say it loud, say it proud! Not just on Valentine's Day, but everyday. Not just to your partner or spouse, but to each and every person that tickles the inner cockles of your heart. Say it, just say it.
I love you.
-- Lenny Bruce
Never, ever, anytime, anyday enough. Nobody gets tired of hearing that they are loved. And many people hear it rarely, if at all.
I have a friend who once told me that during a particularly nasty fight his wife accused him of not having said "I love you" for at least ten years. "Is that true?" I asked him. "Probably," he said. "Amazing!" I said aloud. "It's easy for you, " he said. "You tell the waitress you love her after three beers! Any waitress!"
Guilty as charged. And the thing is, at that moment, I do. And while I tenaciously guard against becoming the drunk guy at the party who is putting all his buddies in headlocks and slobbering, "I love you, man," if I err in regards to love, it's by being pretty damn indiscriminate about it. Free love still sounds like a better deal to me than either free parking, free financing, or even the mythical free lunch.
But I'm not asking you to become me -- heave forbid! I'm just asking you to speak from the heart of the true you. And no matter who you are, where you are, the heart of the true you is always love.
So, say it loud, say it proud! Not just on Valentine's Day, but everyday. Not just to your partner or spouse, but to each and every person that tickles the inner cockles of your heart. Say it, just say it.
I love you.
A Slippery Slope
"All you have to do is decide that wherever you are is the best place there is. Once you start comparing one place to another there is no end to it."
-- Sodo Yokoyama
It seems like I spend half the winter complaining that it's winter. I'd rather be anguishing in Tahiti or swimming in Florida or baking in Arizona or snuggled deeply in the devils' jockstrap -- anywhere as long as it's warm! And yet, year after year, I spend most of my winter in the frozen tundra of the great Midwest.
Now it doesn't take a Zen master like Sodo Yokoyama to see that I'm wasting my time complaining, but you may have to be damn near a Zen master not to fall into the complaint trap yourself. For you, it may have nothing to do with winter. You may spend half your day at work wishing you were somewhere, anywhere, else. Or you may wish you lived not in the tiny crackerbox you now inhabit, but rather on a white-fenced horse farm, in a suburban McMansion, or in a penthouse with breathtaking views.
It doesn't matter what you're comparing -- all comparisons are odious. All comparisons, whether they are geographic in nature or not, are merely a refusal to accept reality. Each time you compare you are basically saying, "if I were God, if I were in charge of this here universe, you can bet your sweet ass things would be a damn sight different around here."
Here's a little secret -- nothing that you want to change really matters. Sure I could move to Florida, or find a way to "winter" there, but do you for one moment think that my new environment would stop me from comparing and complaining? Hell no! I've spent alot of time in Florida and the summers are too damn hot and humid, and there are way too many friggin' bugs, and in the nicest places there are almost more people than there are grains of sand, which reminds me that the beaches are really never as nice as I remember them... and on and on ad nauseum.
I'm not saying that you shouldn't try and improve or change your life. What I am saying is that the biggest improvement or change that you can make is to give up the judgmental comparing mind, give up your war with reality, and realize that this place is the best place, that now is the best time, and that joy comes not so much from achievement as from acceptance.
Comparison is indeed a slippery slope. Once you start, you're on a downward slide straight to Hades. Nothing is ever good enough. Not even you. Especially you.
So, let's take a stance. Right here, right now -- acceptance of what is, of where we are, of who we are. Instead of looking around in a fit of comparison, let's look God straight in the eye. Thanks, Big Guy.
-- Sodo Yokoyama
It seems like I spend half the winter complaining that it's winter. I'd rather be anguishing in Tahiti or swimming in Florida or baking in Arizona or snuggled deeply in the devils' jockstrap -- anywhere as long as it's warm! And yet, year after year, I spend most of my winter in the frozen tundra of the great Midwest.
Now it doesn't take a Zen master like Sodo Yokoyama to see that I'm wasting my time complaining, but you may have to be damn near a Zen master not to fall into the complaint trap yourself. For you, it may have nothing to do with winter. You may spend half your day at work wishing you were somewhere, anywhere, else. Or you may wish you lived not in the tiny crackerbox you now inhabit, but rather on a white-fenced horse farm, in a suburban McMansion, or in a penthouse with breathtaking views.
It doesn't matter what you're comparing -- all comparisons are odious. All comparisons, whether they are geographic in nature or not, are merely a refusal to accept reality. Each time you compare you are basically saying, "if I were God, if I were in charge of this here universe, you can bet your sweet ass things would be a damn sight different around here."
Here's a little secret -- nothing that you want to change really matters. Sure I could move to Florida, or find a way to "winter" there, but do you for one moment think that my new environment would stop me from comparing and complaining? Hell no! I've spent alot of time in Florida and the summers are too damn hot and humid, and there are way too many friggin' bugs, and in the nicest places there are almost more people than there are grains of sand, which reminds me that the beaches are really never as nice as I remember them... and on and on ad nauseum.
I'm not saying that you shouldn't try and improve or change your life. What I am saying is that the biggest improvement or change that you can make is to give up the judgmental comparing mind, give up your war with reality, and realize that this place is the best place, that now is the best time, and that joy comes not so much from achievement as from acceptance.
Comparison is indeed a slippery slope. Once you start, you're on a downward slide straight to Hades. Nothing is ever good enough. Not even you. Especially you.
So, let's take a stance. Right here, right now -- acceptance of what is, of where we are, of who we are. Instead of looking around in a fit of comparison, let's look God straight in the eye. Thanks, Big Guy.
Opportunities to Love
"Once you're a certain age, the idea of wasting any opportunity -- particularly the opportunity to love -- is seen as the blasphemy it is. You might as well just spit at God as turn away from the chance to really love."
-- Marianne Williamson
I think it all comes down to a few simple equations, if I can just figure them out:
God=Love
You=God
You=Love
And my junior high guidance counselor said I had no aptitude for math, ha!
Love, God, you -- a divine menage a trois that transcends math, transforms both the giver and receiver, and maximizes life.
It seems so obvious. We have hundreds of chances everyday to be either loving or aloof, loving or rejecting, loving or angry, loving or indifferent. The entire spiritual path is simply about choosing love. Again and again, over and over, in the face of intense opposition, in the chasm of despair, in mundane moments and in awe-full times, the choice of love is always available to us.
And yet, we fail to make that choice time and time again. And so that is when we must first love ourselves. We must love ourselves in spite of the fact that we do not live up to the high standards we set, we must love ourselves even when it seems no on else does, we must especially love ourselves, when we seem to deserve love the least. Because then, and only then, can we really love others.
No one deserves love by their actions. Love is not a prize you win for 50 years of service, or for perfect attendance, or for being the MVP of your office, church, family, or Lions Club.
Everyone deserves love by their Being. How do you know that you deserve love? You're here ain't you? Then you deserve it. As does every other being on the planet. Love does not discriminate. -- ever.
It's an immense task to love One and All. A task at which we will no doubt fail daily. And yet, what else is there worth doing? Love ourselves, love each day, love everyone we meet, hell, even love our inability to always love! It's one giant, friggin' love fest! Life at its best -- nothing but opportunities to love.
-- Marianne Williamson
I think it all comes down to a few simple equations, if I can just figure them out:
God=Love
You=God
You=Love
And my junior high guidance counselor said I had no aptitude for math, ha!
Love, God, you -- a divine menage a trois that transcends math, transforms both the giver and receiver, and maximizes life.
It seems so obvious. We have hundreds of chances everyday to be either loving or aloof, loving or rejecting, loving or angry, loving or indifferent. The entire spiritual path is simply about choosing love. Again and again, over and over, in the face of intense opposition, in the chasm of despair, in mundane moments and in awe-full times, the choice of love is always available to us.
And yet, we fail to make that choice time and time again. And so that is when we must first love ourselves. We must love ourselves in spite of the fact that we do not live up to the high standards we set, we must love ourselves even when it seems no on else does, we must especially love ourselves, when we seem to deserve love the least. Because then, and only then, can we really love others.
No one deserves love by their actions. Love is not a prize you win for 50 years of service, or for perfect attendance, or for being the MVP of your office, church, family, or Lions Club.
Everyone deserves love by their Being. How do you know that you deserve love? You're here ain't you? Then you deserve it. As does every other being on the planet. Love does not discriminate. -- ever.
It's an immense task to love One and All. A task at which we will no doubt fail daily. And yet, what else is there worth doing? Love ourselves, love each day, love everyone we meet, hell, even love our inability to always love! It's one giant, friggin' love fest! Life at its best -- nothing but opportunities to love.
God Within
"We rely more on enthusiasm than on actual skill."
-- Chris Martin. Lead singer for the band Coldplay.
We've all yawned our way through a set played by competent, skillful musicians. We've all nodded off in class as a knowledgeable and skillful research professor droned on and on about Shakespeare or String Theory or some mind-numbing algebraic formula. Hell, I once sat through such a boring ninety minute lecture on female orgasm, a topic that is usually guaranteed to pique my interest, that when I emerged from the lecture hall I was on the verge of embracing celibacy!
Knowledge, or skill, in and of itself, is as dry as a popcorn fart. Competency alone leaves us cold.
Enter enthusiasm. Enthusiasm comes form the Greek word "theos" which literally means God. And "en" which equals in. Enthusiasm, then, is simply "God within." It is the energy of the Divine shining through us, and thus through all that we do.
If you've seen Coldplay, either live or on film, you know that Chris Martin brings a wild, manic, almost spastic, enthusiasm to their concerts. He is so excited and jazzed by their music, and by what he is doing, that audiences are swept up in a a wave of excitement and good vibes.
Imagine bringing that same vital energy to your work, whatever your work is. No, Im not suggesting that you need to adopt the Sgt. Pepper Thrift Store look, or that you must run through the halls of your workplace with wild abandon. Your enthusiasm may burn and smolder inside until just the right moment when it springs forth through your work, through your interaction with customers, or through your relations with your coworkers.
The thing about enthusiasm is that it's contagious. Your "God within" invites everyone else's God within to come out and play! Not formally, not through words or e-vites, but through resonance, through vibration. You vibrating at a higher frequency helps raise the vibrational rate of everyone around you, so bring it!
But to bring it, you first must find it. And you know where you find it? Within, of course. You must first tap the energy within to share it without. Through meditation, dance, yoga, running -- whatever works for you-- you attune yourself to the Divine and then shine It all the time.
Sure, you continue to build skill. It's like the old joke "How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice, practice, practice." But even practice can be done with joy and elan vital, as a dance rather than as drudgery.
Here's one simple, fun way to tap into your enthusiasm -- choose your theme song. You know how when NBA players run onto the court, or major league pitchers emerge from the bullpen, they play a snippet of a song? That's each player's individually chosen theme song. What's yours? As you enter work each day, what song do you want echoing through the halls, what anthem would you love to hear shaking the walls of every cubicle? Mine is "You May Be Right" by Billy Joel. You know, "You may be right; I may be crazy. But it just may be a lunatic you're looking for!"
Choose yours and rock on! Rock on with enthusiasm! What better way to honor God within?
-- Chris Martin. Lead singer for the band Coldplay.
We've all yawned our way through a set played by competent, skillful musicians. We've all nodded off in class as a knowledgeable and skillful research professor droned on and on about Shakespeare or String Theory or some mind-numbing algebraic formula. Hell, I once sat through such a boring ninety minute lecture on female orgasm, a topic that is usually guaranteed to pique my interest, that when I emerged from the lecture hall I was on the verge of embracing celibacy!
Knowledge, or skill, in and of itself, is as dry as a popcorn fart. Competency alone leaves us cold.
Enter enthusiasm. Enthusiasm comes form the Greek word "theos" which literally means God. And "en" which equals in. Enthusiasm, then, is simply "God within." It is the energy of the Divine shining through us, and thus through all that we do.
If you've seen Coldplay, either live or on film, you know that Chris Martin brings a wild, manic, almost spastic, enthusiasm to their concerts. He is so excited and jazzed by their music, and by what he is doing, that audiences are swept up in a a wave of excitement and good vibes.
Imagine bringing that same vital energy to your work, whatever your work is. No, Im not suggesting that you need to adopt the Sgt. Pepper Thrift Store look, or that you must run through the halls of your workplace with wild abandon. Your enthusiasm may burn and smolder inside until just the right moment when it springs forth through your work, through your interaction with customers, or through your relations with your coworkers.
The thing about enthusiasm is that it's contagious. Your "God within" invites everyone else's God within to come out and play! Not formally, not through words or e-vites, but through resonance, through vibration. You vibrating at a higher frequency helps raise the vibrational rate of everyone around you, so bring it!
But to bring it, you first must find it. And you know where you find it? Within, of course. You must first tap the energy within to share it without. Through meditation, dance, yoga, running -- whatever works for you-- you attune yourself to the Divine and then shine It all the time.
Sure, you continue to build skill. It's like the old joke "How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice, practice, practice." But even practice can be done with joy and elan vital, as a dance rather than as drudgery.
Here's one simple, fun way to tap into your enthusiasm -- choose your theme song. You know how when NBA players run onto the court, or major league pitchers emerge from the bullpen, they play a snippet of a song? That's each player's individually chosen theme song. What's yours? As you enter work each day, what song do you want echoing through the halls, what anthem would you love to hear shaking the walls of every cubicle? Mine is "You May Be Right" by Billy Joel. You know, "You may be right; I may be crazy. But it just may be a lunatic you're looking for!"
Choose yours and rock on! Rock on with enthusiasm! What better way to honor God within?
Should You Be Committed?
"Without commitment, discipline is impossible. With commitment, discipline is inevitable."
-- Julie Isaac. WritingSpirit.com
The power of decision is mighty. And that's all commitment is really -- a whole-hearted decision. Out of that one decision, be it to run a marathon, get married, obtain a PhD, or write a book, thousands of actions spring forth. And each one is merely in support of that initial decision. Decision is the precursor of what we call discipline.
Many times, though, we have it all wrong. We commit to what we think discipline should look like. We make a New Year's Resolution to get up each morning at 5 AM and go to the gym. Don't make me laugh! :>) That's not going to happen. Not for more than a week or two, at least. Why? Because we've half-assedly committed to a picture of discipline rather than to our real goal.
What is your real goal? In the scenario above, it may be to be fit. If you commit to being fit, all sort of changes in behavior will transpire, and, most likely, none of them will require that you get up at 5 AM or do anything else that remotely looks like, or even feels like, our usual stereotypical Marine Corps image of discipline.
You see, true commitments grow out of love. In other words, the only real motivation, the only true inspiration for any commitment is love. If you don't love your body, you won't really keep it in top condition. You may make it look great, but if the image of so-called greatness is held together by tension or fear, rather than love, what have you really achieved?
Ray Bradbury loved writing so much, that not to write was deeply, psychologically painful to him. Not writing, as he said, put his sanity at risk. And so, it was easy for him to write for many hours everyday. To outsiders, it may have looked like an incredible act of discipline, for Ray it was a daily act of love.
And so it all comes down to one simple question: What do you love? When you know what you love, your decisions, your commitments flow freely. Discipline? Discipline is for losers! Discipline is a term made up by bystanders as they watch the lovers of life live it to its fullest. Out of love, flows decision, out of decision, action. It's as simple, and as beautiful, as that.
-- Julie Isaac. WritingSpirit.com
The power of decision is mighty. And that's all commitment is really -- a whole-hearted decision. Out of that one decision, be it to run a marathon, get married, obtain a PhD, or write a book, thousands of actions spring forth. And each one is merely in support of that initial decision. Decision is the precursor of what we call discipline.
Many times, though, we have it all wrong. We commit to what we think discipline should look like. We make a New Year's Resolution to get up each morning at 5 AM and go to the gym. Don't make me laugh! :>) That's not going to happen. Not for more than a week or two, at least. Why? Because we've half-assedly committed to a picture of discipline rather than to our real goal.
What is your real goal? In the scenario above, it may be to be fit. If you commit to being fit, all sort of changes in behavior will transpire, and, most likely, none of them will require that you get up at 5 AM or do anything else that remotely looks like, or even feels like, our usual stereotypical Marine Corps image of discipline.
You see, true commitments grow out of love. In other words, the only real motivation, the only true inspiration for any commitment is love. If you don't love your body, you won't really keep it in top condition. You may make it look great, but if the image of so-called greatness is held together by tension or fear, rather than love, what have you really achieved?
Ray Bradbury loved writing so much, that not to write was deeply, psychologically painful to him. Not writing, as he said, put his sanity at risk. And so, it was easy for him to write for many hours everyday. To outsiders, it may have looked like an incredible act of discipline, for Ray it was a daily act of love.
And so it all comes down to one simple question: What do you love? When you know what you love, your decisions, your commitments flow freely. Discipline? Discipline is for losers! Discipline is a term made up by bystanders as they watch the lovers of life live it to its fullest. Out of love, flows decision, out of decision, action. It's as simple, and as beautiful, as that.
You -- The One and Only
"There is no other, only you at war."
-- Alice Walker
Where is the seat of your identity? Is it in your body? Do you think, consciously or subconsciously, this body is who I am?
Or maybe you've narrowed your identity down even further. Maybe you're really smart, and so you believe that you are your brain. Sort of like a post modern Descartes -- you think therefore you am.
Or maybe your identity has to do with your beauty or your profession or your family or your possessions or your disease.
No matter. Anytime you have created a limited identity for yourself, you have also created the other. The other is whatever you aren't. The other is whatever is outside of your body, or not in your realm of thought, or in someway different from you as you define yourself.
The thing is, all definitions of the self are pure fiction, all demarcations between you and other are as unreal as lines on a map. The Universe is one body, one being. A simple, single song -- a true uni-verse. The Earth is one planet, though most of the time we identify with just one small portion of it -- my neighborhood, town, state, or nation. And you see how well limited identification works -- we are always at war with other limited territories.
Today is a great day to begin letting go of the concept of other. It ain't easy. The evidence of your senses, the conditioning of your mind, and the mores of your culture will conspire to keep you stuck in the self versus other dichotomy. But you have stronger ally on your side -- Truth, yeh, the BIG ONE, the one with the capital "T."
No other. Unity. You, the One and only. Welcome to Reality.
-- Alice Walker
Where is the seat of your identity? Is it in your body? Do you think, consciously or subconsciously, this body is who I am?
Or maybe you've narrowed your identity down even further. Maybe you're really smart, and so you believe that you are your brain. Sort of like a post modern Descartes -- you think therefore you am.
Or maybe your identity has to do with your beauty or your profession or your family or your possessions or your disease.
No matter. Anytime you have created a limited identity for yourself, you have also created the other. The other is whatever you aren't. The other is whatever is outside of your body, or not in your realm of thought, or in someway different from you as you define yourself.
The thing is, all definitions of the self are pure fiction, all demarcations between you and other are as unreal as lines on a map. The Universe is one body, one being. A simple, single song -- a true uni-verse. The Earth is one planet, though most of the time we identify with just one small portion of it -- my neighborhood, town, state, or nation. And you see how well limited identification works -- we are always at war with other limited territories.
Today is a great day to begin letting go of the concept of other. It ain't easy. The evidence of your senses, the conditioning of your mind, and the mores of your culture will conspire to keep you stuck in the self versus other dichotomy. But you have stronger ally on your side -- Truth, yeh, the BIG ONE, the one with the capital "T."
No other. Unity. You, the One and only. Welcome to Reality.
A Storytelling Problem
"We have, as human beings, a storytelling problem. We're a bit too quick to come up with explanations for things we don't really have an explanation for."
-- Malcolm Gladwell. Blink, p. 69.
I understand very little. I drive, and I have no idea how the car works. Everytime I fly, I marvel at the fact that 200 overweight people in a big metal cigar can get stay aloft at 33,000 feet for the time it takes to get from here to there. Hell, I don't even have an inkling how my body works, but that doesn't stop it from working just fine, most of the time.
And yet many times we are seduced, both by our own ego and by others questions, into explaining many things about which we really don't have a clue. We think we know, and that's half the problem. In the strictest sense, "knowing" is not even possible because much of what we're explaining to each other takes place on a non-cognitive level.
Why are you attracted to the people that you're attracted to? You think you know. You can give us a laundry list of reasons, and yet none of them get at the heart of the matter. The secret of attraction is hidden somewhere the rational mind can't reach, which, if you think about it, or especially if you don't think about it, is just fine.
Which is also what most people say when asked "How you doing?" "Fine," they say, whether that adjective matches their current emotional state or not. But what about those friend, those annoying, nosy, really caring friends, who aren't satisfied with a "fine," but really want to know how you're doing. For them we make up a story to justify whatever our assessment of our current emotional state is. Most of the time, we could, without too much effort, come up with stories justifying any adjective that we choose, from super to shitty. There's no right answer to the question "How you doing?" there are just alternative stories. Instead of participating in the story-as-truth subterfuge, my favorite answer these days is the honest, but semi-belligerent sounding, "How the hell should I know?"
Stories are great! Stories are entertaining. The only problem is that stories, many times, make bad explanations. Tell them, share them, laugh at them. Whatever you do, just don't believe them.
-- Malcolm Gladwell. Blink, p. 69.
I understand very little. I drive, and I have no idea how the car works. Everytime I fly, I marvel at the fact that 200 overweight people in a big metal cigar can get stay aloft at 33,000 feet for the time it takes to get from here to there. Hell, I don't even have an inkling how my body works, but that doesn't stop it from working just fine, most of the time.
And yet many times we are seduced, both by our own ego and by others questions, into explaining many things about which we really don't have a clue. We think we know, and that's half the problem. In the strictest sense, "knowing" is not even possible because much of what we're explaining to each other takes place on a non-cognitive level.
Why are you attracted to the people that you're attracted to? You think you know. You can give us a laundry list of reasons, and yet none of them get at the heart of the matter. The secret of attraction is hidden somewhere the rational mind can't reach, which, if you think about it, or especially if you don't think about it, is just fine.
Which is also what most people say when asked "How you doing?" "Fine," they say, whether that adjective matches their current emotional state or not. But what about those friend, those annoying, nosy, really caring friends, who aren't satisfied with a "fine," but really want to know how you're doing. For them we make up a story to justify whatever our assessment of our current emotional state is. Most of the time, we could, without too much effort, come up with stories justifying any adjective that we choose, from super to shitty. There's no right answer to the question "How you doing?" there are just alternative stories. Instead of participating in the story-as-truth subterfuge, my favorite answer these days is the honest, but semi-belligerent sounding, "How the hell should I know?"
Stories are great! Stories are entertaining. The only problem is that stories, many times, make bad explanations. Tell them, share them, laugh at them. Whatever you do, just don't believe them.
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