Our Lives Are Rivers

At first, I was ambivalent about posting this.

My river of choice is the river of goodness.

But then I realized this fits 

 as a companion to the river metaphor.

We are all our own special river

gliding within the river of goodness.

Moving with each other along the way

to the immense and immeasurable ocean of infinity.

"That unfathomed, boundless sea"...

however, and I mean no disrespect, but

yes, the grave is silent to us, but is it silent on the other side?

Who knows?  There may be music and dancing.

Namaste'

 

You Live Most Of Your Life

I've spent some time imagining the nicest place I'd like to live in.

Up until now, I've been alone, looking at it from outside

and feeling it from the inside.

(You have to begin somewhere.)

It's occurring to me now to ask who is there with me.

I know its vital to hear "nice" words from myself AND

it's worthwhile to notice the other "nice" voices

who are helping me make the space beautiful.

My list is long. And you are on it.

My heart swells in love and thanksgiving for your presence.

Namaste'

Attention Means Allowing

This brings to mind a recent conversation

 about how our neural pathways automatically

put a negative spin on events. 

We agreed that it takes considerable attention

and vigilance to catch yourself when this happens

and strength to shift the trajectory of the thoughts and expectations.

"Consideration, concentration and care"...

to change our inner landscape to one

friendlier, more inviting and supportive.

One that offers the potential for 

a duet between celebration and lamentation.

One that carries a constant reminder that we 

are stronger than the most devastating storm

and that storms are always followed by better weather.

We have what it takes to endure and grow and thrive.

Namaste'

 

All I Know

Let's talk about "being who you are, just as you are".

It occurs to me we're getting a plentiful dose of people

doing so right now and it isn't pretty.  Is that what we're looking for?

Is this what we're seeing or are we seeing the results of people

being looked down on who are clumsily fighting for their own dignity?

What I hear is a great deal of comparison and fear of defeat.

 If everyone felt free enough in being themselves, just as they are, 

they wouldn't be fearing defeat, or making comparisons 

between themselves and others, would they?

They wouldn't be tearing down others as a way to feel better about themselves.

I wish the opinions of others weren't such powerful detractors

from realizing and living our own self worth and dignity.

I just finished Kristen Hannah's new book, The Women;

which is a gut wrenching story of the Vietnam War era

and the devastating impact the opinions of others had on

our returning veterans and their loved ones.

We're still seeing the same thing in different forms today.

We need each other and we're in this together.

I'm thinking, treating each other kindly and with respect 

especially when we see things from a completely different perspective, 

might be the most powerful thing we can do to change things for the better?

Namaste'

 

Like The Moon

 

I appreciate this quote

even though its been around awhile.

First of all, I like that he uses 

empty instead of dark or shadow.

These words tend to be minimized

and reduced to something to be shunned, 

rejected, dismissed, denied.

(At least that's what my mind has done for years.)

I've come to realize, they are an invitation to explore.

As we approach tomorrow's full moon,

it's ironic to find my mood closer to a "new moon" phase. 

It's taken a long time but I've gotten to a place 

where I am willing to open the door 

to the dark and apparently empty visitors

 to anticipate their illumination.  

Namaste'

This Is What We Can Promise The Future

The pull toward cynicism is strong these days.

All the more reason for not giving up or giving in.

I believe, we, as individuals and as a community 

are quietly, (and wearily) standing silent and strong.

We are being the best we can at good stewardship.

We "recognize wild nature for what it is,

in all its magnificent and complex history."

We recognize the privilege we have inherited.

We do not lose sight of the power of imagination

and the daily, grueling work of standing against tyranny.

We are in this together. Goodness will prevail.

Namaste'

Become It First

Become It First

I'm landing on this thought today after numerous possibilities...

(including "The River Is Everywhere" Hermann Hesse)

Becoming what you long for is not a new concept 

but well worth a reminder, I'm thinking.

I especially like the one about gardens.

My list of longings is intense.  

I'm wondering about how feeling what you feel

fits in along the way to becoming what you hope for?

For example:

How can I become a Congress 

who models mutual respect and dignity?

Just joking. 

Sort of.

Actually, maybe "congress" exists inside of me?

(I've heard it referred to as an Internal Family System.)

"Day by day, inch by inch?"

I'm thinking of recent posts where we're encouraged to

"keep it small" and "take it slow" causing me to reduce

my expectations as to what's possible as my own

day's grow shorter.

Namaste'

 

Reasoning Is Important

If you've ever attempted to drive with ice or frost on your windshield,

you can appreciate what he's saying about intuition.

I've found that it's differentiating intuition 

from subliminal advertising and old programming 

that can get interesting.  

After reading a few chapters in The Righteous Mind,

there's plenty of evidence to question reasoning thoroughly.

So much lurks beneath and outside of our conscious thinking.

The unknown workings of our human's body-mind

is intricate, complex, and multidimensional territory,

unique to each one of us, isn't it?

It's amazing we function as well as we do

given these considerations.

Namaste'

It's Dark Because

 While I don't appreciate being called child; 

and even though I've come to believe darkness has

been maligned with a connotation of being something

entirely negative to be avoided at all times; 

the idea of going lightly appeals to me.

I'm keenly aware of the quicksands trying to 

 "suck me down into fear, self pity and despair."

For someone with a more serious nature,

going lightly seems inadequate but

I'm willing to experiment with it,

especially if it mean avoiding that torturous trinity.

Namaste'

Sacred Sexiness

I plead guilty on spending a significant part of my life

dividing things up between good or bad...

interesting or not interesting... 

based purely on snap judgments.

You might call it a survival mechanism...

a way to manage all the data coming in...

(especially from outside sources 

bidding for my attention);

way too much to absorb quickly;

It's been humbling to realize this.

Humbling and rewarding to discover a different way.

To let go of managing everything.

To let go of needing immediate clarity.

To allow things some time to permeate;

to trust in the unfolding.

To remember valuable things will circle back 

over and over until I recognize them.

To be ok with not knowing the next step

and being confident I'll know it when it appears.

To be ok with making mistakes and making messes.

To get the demanding overlord to stand down.

May we remember to live our 

"dynamic relationship with everything else."

Namaste'

 

Slowing Down

It annoys me when I find myself in a cranky mood.

Simply reading these words brought on a softening.

Now if I can get them to stick like crazy glue.

Getting them to do anything is not the trick.

Allowing them to have a front row seat is the ticket, I'm thinking.

Noticing that softening was a significant moment.

I actually felt the loosening up and falling away of the crank.

I "became aware of the presence of the present;"

and the present of presence.

This is why I'm dedicated to thoughts mattering.

They give me a boost when I'm stuck in the gloom.

They also remind me I am not alone.

Namaste'

 

To Be Fully Alive

I like her way of describing how we need

to braid together our temporal AND intangible worlds.

There was a short time in my life not long ago

when I practiced only the tangible, visible, 

evidence producing world.  

At first, it was great as I could dismiss

anything that wasn't evidence based but

it quickly became too tight and too narrow.

What a relief to encounter Sharon Blackie

who gave the imaginal world back to me

in a way that was not cloaked in religion.

Being human is such an extreme privilege.

Why wouldn't we want to embrace every bit of it?

The more I learn, the more incredible it becomes.

The possibilities are endless.

Namaste'

 

Human Life Is Rooted and Connected

"We are wise to align ourselves with this pulse,

its movements and pauses."

She speaks of slowing down as

the first of seven ways to bring more pleasure into your life.

It surprises me how tough this simple pleasure is!

I catch myself in the mode of rush frequently...

ironically even when I'm walking in the woods 

amidst hundreds of beings demonstrating the beauty of

"rooted in the earth" and"connected to the sky" in exquisite fashion!

May your day and your life have plenty of slow moments.

Namaste'

 

A Piece of Advice

Isn't this the truth?

As much as I want to focus on imagining and creating what I do want,

it continues to surprise me how challenging it can be

to clarify this in physical, concrete, tangible ways.

Clarifying what I don't want?

That's a walk in the park.

I'm guessing you know what I'm talking about?

I want to live in a world of mutual respect.

There.  That wasn't such a challenge after all, was it?

It's in the making it happen that the strenuous practice

of paying attention and shifting my automatic impulses

in the opposite direction becomes clear.

I'm forced to admit my own lack of it

(toward myself and others),

 especially when worn out mental pathways

trigger disrespectful thoughts and actions.

In that nanosecond of possibility, 

to pause long enough to shift into neutral

and as gently as possible, make a U turn.

My days may be growing shorter 

but, I'm determined 

to be the change I want to see.

Namaste'

 

Reminder From The Stars

There's something awe inspiring about star parts

thrumming inside my molecules.  

I wonder if somewhere in our Universe, someone 

 looks up at the sky and sees us as constellations?

Namaste'

 

How Could Anyone See Clearly

"Empathy is an antidote to righteousness, 

although it’s very difficult to empathize across a moral divide." Haidt

I was debating whether I wanted this to be the quote for today when my laptop failed on me.

I had just finished reading a Marginalian post* (with many thanks to the friend who called it to my attention,) on wilderness and solitude, which contained some descriptions of extremely dire circumstances, which were experienced by an artist named Kent who is accompanied by his young son for an extended period of time in the middle of winter in Alaska. That piece gave me hope that, in spite of extremely challenging circumstances, there is always hope, and always the possibility of an immensely rewarding outcome

birthed out of the hardships. I was going to say that the the feeling I have of our country being held hostage by one individual of dubious intent feels like a wilderness of sorts. However, this wilderness lacks the magnificence and grandeur that the wilderness our earth provides. so I’m going to retract that comparison. Perhaps it’s truer to call this the darkness of uncertainty which also carries the possibility and the potential for the triumph of goodness and justice born from the dread of tyranny?

*https://www.themarginalian.org/2022/02/15/rockwell-kent-wilderness/

To Go Into The Dark

". . .go dark, go without sight and find that the dark too, blooms and sings"

Finding a quote that sings has been unusually difficult this week.

You could say I've been traveling in the dark.

These quotes in a reread of Anam Cara by John O'Donohue echo the sentiment:

"Each thing creeps back into its own nature 

within the shelter of the dark. 

Darkness is the ancient womb."

and

"The darkness absolves everything; 

the struggle for identity and impression falls away. 

We rest in the night."

He refers to how we've lost our connection to the normal cycle of

light and darkness of our Earth.

Isn't it poetic that so many are feeling drawn to the natural world

and even, dare I say, into the ancient womb as an antidote

to what's happening in our world?

Has every generation experienced their own version of 

what we're experiencing today?  

We could say that uncertainty is the darkness, isn't it?

What revelation or transfiguration is coming to life

in the womb of this darkness?

Am I hearing music coming from somewhere I can't see?

Namaste'

 

When You Feel Powerless

I'm pretty sure its my heart that's been keeping me awake at night.

I'm taking yesterday's thought as a chain reaction to this.

I'm "holding it gently in my cold hands" and asking it to guide me.

I recently heard of a suggestion to leave cards around

giving folks the difference between one candidate and the other.

I'd like to suggest something a bit different.

This is what I want to say to all my fellow citizens.

This country, belongs to all of us.

We enjoy Democracy today because our brothers and sisters, husbands and wives, 

fathers and mothers, sons and daughters and loved ones gave their lives for it. 

How can we even consider turning our backs on it?  

Giving away the freedom to disagree publicly without fear?  

To debate openly and vigorously in order to reach a reasonable outcome? 

To live peacefully with our neighbors regardless of their politics?  

To be a leader of dignity and decency in the world?  

To be able to learn about every aspect history so we can work on 

improving things in the present for the future?  To have our privacy respected?  

To live by the rule of law and work to improve existing laws for the benefit of the many. 

We are all entitled to live on this planet at this time.   

Let’s not let the sacrifices of our ancestors be in vain.  

Let's address what is unfair and unjust together.  

Let's make the changes needed to bring dignity and decency to everyone.

What if we all leave cards with our own version of this wherever we go?

Just a thought.

Namaste'

 

A Few Days Into The New Year

I can identify with every stage of this...

impatience, cold shoulder, rage...

violent behavior...all of it.

Which is why I love, love, love

the ending.

May I always 

"hold it gently up to the sun in the cradle of my cold hands

and say nice things to it."

Which, I admit, will take some serious remembrance

and practicing...but oh the joy of being there

after the squall has dissipated and 

dignity and decency is restored.

Namaste'

 

Ideas Rise Out of The Night

 Man, oh, man* can I identify with "ideas

disappearing behind me like generations".

When I do look back, there are vistas of gravestones,

 the names faded and indecipherable.

(They seemed so full of potential at the time.)

"Don't look back" is premium grade advice.

I have found "beginning again" 

happens with amazing frequency...

I suspect another cemetery left behind me

will be full of unfinished projects.

Namaste'

*It's boy-oh-boy; or man-oh-man. Why don't we ever say girl-oh-girl or woman-oh-women? 

Every Poem I Didn't Write

This lengthy poem struck me in personal territory.

It may not be all that uplifting still;

I love the creativity of it...the truth of it.

It's depressing and inspiring at the same time.

Because the places she says her unwritten poems are 

matter as much as the poems.

We get so caught up in placing value on everything.

What if everything has equal value?

And whatever we choose is the right choice?

What if we trusted ourselves and our choices?

And treasured what we have instead of pining over we don't?

It's a thought.  

Namaste'