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“You’re an interesting species. An interesting mix. You’re capable of such beautiful dreams, and such horrible nightmares. You feel so lost, so cut off, so alone, only you’re not. See, in all our searching, the only thing we’ve found that makes the emptiness bearable, is each other.”

- Carl Sagan

Number Two

I used to use an eraser to fix the mistakes on my homework. The lead would go away but the imprint would still be etched into the paper. Now, I use the delete button. It leaves no imprint; the mistake is completely gone. We need to remember to continue learning from our mistakes. It has beome too easy to just erase everything with a simple
Delete

Savings

Money can buy a hearse, not a lifetime. Time can't be measured by money.

T. S. Elliot - endless invention, endless experiment

Endless invention, endless experiment,
Brings knowledge of motion, but not of stillness;
Knowledge of speech, but not of silence;
Knowledge of words, and ignorance of the Word.
All our knowledge brings us nearer to death,
But nearness to death no nearer to God.
Where is the Life we have lost in living?
Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge?
Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?
The cycles of Heaven in twenty centuries
Brings us farther from God and nearer to the Dust.
                                     T. S. Elliot
                                                    Choruses From “The Rock”

Eleven lines of poetry from T. S. Elliot - suggestive of a deep understanding of our human predicament in an ever expanding age of technology. We are creatures of meaning, not just bodies of functioning.  ~ Americ ~

Teeter Totter

To get on our feet,

we had to crawl.

Learning to walk, 

we had to fall.

Feeling lost and alone,

we found life was our guide. 

Though it was frightening, 

we found the power inside.

Reception

it is Me.

this is the breakthrough
realizing over and over that
everyone is here to help you
those you feel are hurting you
are teachers themselves
some lesson there to learn for you

painful.

all there is to do is open yourself to see
as safely and as carefully as you can be
knowing that it is true
that love is abundant
this is your work

to Receive.

Lao Tzu's Recommendations

In Chapter 3 of the Tao Te Ching, Lao Tzu recommends that leaders should encourage the people to:

    Relax the mind
    Make belly firm
    Reduce the will
    Make physiques strong

A good recommendation, even 2,600 years later. 

Kindling

Destroy a shadow by casting a light; lingering in shadow lets darkness ignite.

Palettes

Awareness is always changing, influenced by growing older and the introduction of coloring in the lines. Soon, by believing that lines must be straight, boxes must be cubes, and colors cannot run, the world becomes black and white. Our paint brushes become pens and color palettes reduced to blue, black, and hopefully not red. Emotions are converted into faces on a "feelings" magnet attached to the fridge. Yet, it is so simple to shift; remember, it all began with a simple belief. Blink. What was once a geometrical problem which wasn't painted in all the way can become emotion dissected and connected by lines which fashion shapes full of water color to inspire reflection. So remember to rub your eyes when you awaken; stir up a world of color.

self integration

depression sinking
dark and deep
space falls infinitely
i am so small
frightened mind
this vision is not comfort

nowadays I focus
with positive momentum
I still my mind more and more
to see how strong
each present moment is

no more this struggle of selves
rest death and destruction in peace

me in my body
trees look upon us
to move

nothing changes
except my visual lens
one perspective to another
a constant realization practice
over and over in each moment
remembering how
I am in this space
right here and right now

Mother stretches out her soul to feed my little branches
She compassionately fills each twig
so sunlight pierces through my star pores
She allows me to fill myself in this space
so finally I feel myself here in body grounded

the art of happiness is found
I feel loved in this space
being held lovingly in Me
this is home
thank you

Photo Shop

The fact is that no person is perfect. We are given a universal idea of perfection which is contrived. Why spend time and money to become someone you are not. Your imperfections made you who you are though; you are literally one of a kind, like a snowflake. We struggle to look like someone we envy and fail due to the technology which enhances their looks. With the right amount of money or skilled designer, a terrible picture can come out looking perfect. Airbrush for flawless skin. Photo editing programs to enhance the exposure.

Sadly, society then takes it one step further and begins to alter the physical body. Too much weight? No need to work out, just get it removed with surgery. Excessive amount of wrinkles? Easy, use a chemical to look younger. Put it on your face every night.

Now you are getting closer to your dream...right?

planet self-protection

     ∆
   .
  .
 .
.
rhythmic moments
thought messages
wisely letting go
.
releasing is strength
presencing cuddler
love-hugging myself close
.
pieces of peace emitted by all
tiny-big dreamer gathering
i am whole!
 .
  .
   .
    .
      ∆

Embedded in a Society

Our parents, if we are fortunate, train us in “right and wrong”. They do it because they are embedded in a society - and they know that we, too, will be embedded in a society. We are not separate; we are in society. And, to be outside of society is not a good thing because we are evolved, designed to be social, to communicate, to think, and to learn. We come into this world with bodies programmed by millions, billions of years of evolution. We are born into human cultures with thousands of years of collective learning. That is our inheritance. Now to use it wisely. 

∆

New Beginnings

Second hands

Count second opportunities

Second hands

Count the seconds lost

Second hands

Count down the minutes

Second hands

Count the replacement cost

Flowing Out

flowing out
time's ocean 
emptying out
without limit 

Martin Luther King Jr. ~ Keep Moving Forward

If you can't fly, then run,

if you can't run, then walk,

if you can't walk, then crawl,

but whatever you do,

you have to keep moving forward.

~ Martin Luther King Jr. 

Game Face

Tears smeared her mascara and etched a script of an emotion she tried to hide from him. As he continued to berate her with words which pierced like knives, she tried to speak with words unbroken through broken breath. 

Never show weakness in the face of adversity her mother had taught her; these words were hollow if they could not prevent the wounds continuously opened by his rage. For years she allowed him to deteriorate her self esteem for fear of losing the man she loved by speaking against him. 

She looked back over the years and noticed that she had lost him years ago. As he grew more possessive and jealous, she pulled away from him. Once she began to grow distant, he turned away, causing her to return to him yet again. They played this game more and more frequently as time progressed until finally, he turned away all together. 

The once loving relationship which brought them together and helped them grow, now cast a shadow upon her heart. To reanimate herself, to bring life back into her dim eyes, she had to end this game tonight. 

A fire, while dim at first, began to grow. It was not anger or even resentment. It was a longing to be free; it was a light to guide herself home. She finally understood what her mother had told her so many years ago; do not hide your face in adversity, show your strength when all you want to do is hide. The tears which once smeared her mascara now became war paint; she found the power to fight again.

A Philosophy of Life

Real Life

"For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin - real life. But there was always some obstacle in the way, something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time still to be served, a debt to be paid. Then life would begin. At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life." 

~ Alfred d'Souza ~

Beyond Understanding

Deep reality is beyond our understanding. Physics may never be complete. Some mystery could always remain. Who are we? Why are we here? What is our destiny? Religions and philosophies struggle to satisfy us. Let's not get too optimistic. We're built for life with mystery.

Eleanor Roossevelt ~ Beautiful Young and Old People