"Evil" Acts Misunderstood

i came across a post on a facebook friend's wall that read:

Here is a question that not many of you will be brave enough to answer, especially the men. IF A MAN RAPES A WOMAN IS HE EVIL? I would really love your thoughts on this . xox

there were a great many responses that i expected: hate, anger, condemnation, exclusion, revenge, punishment.  i did not feel that i could move past this topic without sharing my response.  i felt that my way of viewing this was one that many people could benefit from.  beyond that small circle of friends on her page, i also wanted to share this with my readers and friends.


and my response was:

there is no source of evil... only a source of love.

as such, no, a man who commits ANY ACT that society does not agree with, be it rape, or murder, theft, or otherwise, he is not "evil."

he, like you, is just doing the best he can with what he knows. he is at a different place than you, of course, so you may not understand his decisions, but for a person to be in such a place indicates that he is at a LOW LOW place of powerLESSness and that he does such things in an effort to move up, to move towards a place where he has more power, more control. he may not make decisions that you would or that you agree with or that you even understand, but from his uniquely individual place, he is making decisions in an effort to feel better.

we cannot spout the statement "We are One" and "We are Connected" or play games like forgiveness and acceptance and then believe in the concept of "evil" and cast out those who make decisions that we do not agree with. remember, things are not in "right" or "wrong"... there is "your way" and there is "my way" and about 6 billion "other ways!" however, we have come collectively into societies and agreed upon a few things and we choose to enforce those agreements, but none of it makes us more "right" or makes them more "wrong."

does all of me saying this absolve said man from his acts? well, no. we live in sectors of society and to maintain order and structure, those agreements that we have made must be enforced. his punishment will be removal from society for a good chunk of his life (prison) and then be an outcast for the remainder of his life as long as people know his acts.

but will i condemn him? hell no. because for where he is in relationship to me is like where i am in relationship to the Angels and God. for me to condemn him for his decisions that are not aligned with my vibration would be like God condemning me for decisions that are not aligned with that Higher vibration. it would be like the Source of the Universe saying to me "no, you weren't *bad* in the eyes of your society, but you *did* make decisions i *never* would have, and thus i deem you EVIL!" that is not a scenario that i am prepared to believe in.

i believe in the ever present, ever flowing towards me, super amazing and constant Stream of Love into my life. you may call the Force by a different name: God, or Latinate Deus, Greek Θεός, Slavic Bog, Sanskrit Ishvara or Deva, or Arabic Allah... all the same, infinite source of Love and Acceptance and Forgiveness. but for me, i will be more like that Stream of Love and emanate that outwardly towards every person, every soul, regardless of their previous acts. i will join my society in enforcing out agreement to lock him up, but i will stand alone if i have to in forgiving him and loving him.

i hope that you may see why i would feel this way. ♥ love to all of you, regardless of your opinions. in fact, love to all of you BECAUSE of your opinions. ♥

Abraham Hicks: Beautiful Day Rampage!

Independence or Self Dependence

As an important day in the United Stated comes to an end, much thought and tribute has been given to Independence.  Moreover, celebration has been attributed to the very sought after state.  Is it worth it?

Independence is the freedom from control.  Self Dependence is reliance on one's self.  Is one better than the other?

Have we given so much focus to finding the absence of control from our lives that we have forgotten to be responsible for ourselves?  Was our misstep in life to assume that we wanted no control placed upon us?  Don't we submit to a myriad of control in our lives anyways and still paint the mask of independence?

Has the ability to rely on one's self taken a back burner to the other more buzz worthy word?  I hear all the time of children bucking the current to gain their own independence but never their guided efforts to earn self dependence.  I hear all the time of groups wanting to overthrow some opined oppressing government and gain their independence, but never any plans of establishing self dependence.

Has our thirst for and attention to control fogged the window on our ability to use our own Guidance to our goals?  Does the very attention to who has control instead of who is supporting skew our ability to thrive, survive and succeed?  Interesting points to ponder.

Braving The Storm

you don't get to choose the emotions, you only get to choose the thoughts.  the emotions come as a result of the thoughts.  the emotions are your compass, guiding you towards those thoughts which feels better to your True Self and those thoughts that will inevitably attract your truly preferred existence to your physical self.

http://www.liveinyourlove.com/2010/04/emotions-are-your-compass.html

just as you cannot control the tides of the sea, the enormous undulations of momentum so natural to this physical plane, neither can you control the massive push and pull of these natural emotions...  you cannot control them by brute force, a thought paralyzing to many, imaging a task so hefty and incredible that they give up...  but you are not helpless.  you have been given the power of choice over your thoughts.

when you become "conscious" in society (that is to say you have reached the socially acceptable level of brainwashing by age 6-9) then you are alone in the sea, treading water, helplessly tossed around like driftwood...  but as you begin to choose more and more better feeling thoughts, it is like you are intentionally gathering more and more substance around you that allows you to build a makeshift raft.

weather some storms and you'll find yourself with enough flotsam and jetsam to fashion a large more stable boat, one that is not thrown around as much by the "emotional waves" crashing about you.  keep choosing, keep choosing.  find that thought that feels better.  get good at it and you'll have a cruise liner that almost doesn't even feel the smash and crash, no matter what is thrown at it.

but just know that if you have chosen not to find that better thought, you're just alone in the sea.  nothing to hold on to, nothing to stabilize.  at the mercy of the furious energy of nature.  no one to blame or curse at or throw things at...  because the sea doesn't care :)

its been a while...

i know, i know.  i haven't posted in a while.

but trust me, i'm coming up with something good :)

blog.divergence

i have found that the purpose for this blog has expanded beyond the constraints of the original name and has prompted the inception of a new entity:

Live In Your Love

please join me at the new collection of networking outlets:

http://www.liveinyourlove.com (all relevant posts have been transferred)

http://facebook.com/liveinyourlove

http://twitter.com/liveinyourlove

emotions are your compass

joy
    boredom
        love
            depression
                happiness

what a range... so varied and appropriate at various points...

but what's the purpose? what does it all mean?

simply, my friends... emotions are your compass. pure and simple.

you could have listened to countless recordings, watched youtube for days, attended seminars and read every book... and it all comes back to the point that emotions are your compass. nothing else.

what does one use a compass for? it is a navigational instrument for determining direction... as this physical device shows you relative to the world around you, exactly what direction you are pointed, the same process happens with your emotions...

as your thoughts become things, whether you want them or not, your emotions show you which path you really truly (at the core of your being) want to travel down

huh? how?

well, if your thoughts are the roads, then you have a wealth of choices around you. you encounter new ones all the time. as you turn to face one choice after another, you have a signaling beacon inside of you... for this road, you feel joy. turn to the next and you feel sadness. yet another brings anger and another shows depression. each choice asks of your Source to signal the best path to take.

but the choice is always yours. and it is never wrong. for as you may choose a path that causes pain, you learn. and in choosing a path that brings love, you learn.

so the most important question you could ever ask yourself is one simple question and it should be asked of yourself at every juncture, no matter its seeming importance:
how do i feel?

ever confused and need help? not really a need to ask friends and family (although their responses will resonate the same as asking the question)... just ask:
how do i feel?

but relax. there are no bad decisions. your compass is always right, but the user may choose a different path. love the freedom. love the journey.

remember that button that gets pushed? and the snap anger that floods your body? you've stared down the road and had a very important advice from your compass. "how do i feel?" you ask... good or bad? let that decide your next step instead of following old patterns, learned through the years... don't walk your father's path, who walked his father and his father and his father's path... ask the question and consciously choose

but relax. there is no right or wrong. its your compass and your choice.

just love the journey.


art: compass by ~GavinTung on deviantART

you cannot live for someone else

your life is your own and not one other person's life.  contrariwise, everyone else has their own existence that you cannot control.

so please do not live your life for someone else.  do not try to fulfill their dreams or desires.  do not figure their plot into your script.  do not write their ending into your play.

for to do so, is like filling your hands with the water of your life and then trying to hand it over to them while they have hands cupped, already full with their own water...  further, you can never get their temperature of water right, and you will always scold or freeze your hands with the temperature of their "dreams"

nothing you do is more important than what you want, what you love and desire.

i fell into this pattern, as many many of us tend to, listening to our parents, wanting so much for love and affection, mistaking their guidance towards "the right" path as directions or instructions on how they can love you the most.

caution!  this path is a dangerous and treacherous one, filled with heartache and despair.  for you can never get another's dream perfect...  .::PAUSE::.  is it possible that someone else, someone who has never been inside your mind, someone who has never envisioned what makes your skin tickle, could know the exact details of your dreamy dreams?  then likewise, it would be a waste to expect you to truly know theirs.

and yet, many of us trudge along, resigned to the life long failing pursuit of pleasing someone else and their dreamy desires.  some so long that the dreamer has passed on and we have held on so long that we must "make it right."

how foolish...  remember the water?  so if you were to get the temperature just right and in the right way, exactly, perfectly... even IF (which you can't), but even IF...  well now they aren't even there anymore...  they don't even have HANDS for which you could drop their dreamy water in!!  how silly of us?!?!

so i promise you, you'll start feeling better once you let go...  stop living their life... stop living your lie...  start in this instant to live your love, just as you experience its ever unfolding and forever expanding intricacies...

don't worry about those other dreamers who would have you pause your dreams for theirs...  they may get angry for 5 minutes... or 5 days... or 5 years... but in the meantime, you'll exponentially increase your life's joyous loving experience...  and isn't that worth it?

i promise you'll love it...  open your cupped hands and let their scolding hot water drop.  grab the faucet and put your perfect temperature stream of dreams in your OWN hands!!

the glass half full... or is it?

so common is the saying "the glass half full."  implying that for the same exact object, there are two possible views, two possible observations that give way to the disposition of the observer:  half full from the positive viewpoint and half empty from the frowned upon negative stance.

a glass with half of its possible space containing presumably a liquid and the other half containing nothing.

or is it?

have we really been looking at this concept so poorly?  to simply break this image down to just two sides of the coin, quickly ushering all people to choose one side or the other?


have we really just not noticed what's really going on?  well, i don't blame us.  of course, so many for so long have pushed us to one side or the other, clearly (and sometimes hypocritically) trying to make the world a better place by choosing the "half full" option...  or at least wanting you to say you choose that option so we don't have to talk about it anymore!!


but clearly, we have missed the point.  i return to the description of the object in question... a glass with half of its possible space containing presumably water and the other half containing nothing.

"nothing."

indubitably, it is not "nothing."  it is air.  such a simple word used to describe a very complex mixture of several components, all intricately transfused in perfect fashion.  perfect enough to allow an internal combustion engine to propel our vehicles to work or across the world and perfect enough for every plant and animal to support life through its presence.

and just how complex?


well, 99.998% is comprised of Nitrogen (78.084%), Oxygen (20.947%), Argon (0.934%) and Carbon Dioxide (0.033%).  The remaining 0.002% is filled with Neon, Helium, Krypton, Sulfur Dioxide, Methane, Hydrogen, Nitrous Oxide, Xenon, Ozone, Nitrogen Dioxide, Iodine, Carbon Monoxide and Ammonia.


wow.  you can see that is a whole lot of not "nothing."


well, we didn't come here to have a science lesson, did we?  but the point is that while the simple observation is that the glass is half full and half empty...


...the glass is really completely full.


and so is the true observation of our lives that we miss.  oh, and we miss it so frequently and sometimes on such a grand scale that entire generations, entire lands of people, full cultures and societies are lost to some illusion that there was ever a choice between the half full or the half empty.


you never really had a choice.

your glass has always been completely full.

now, you may not have been able to see the other half, not with the naked eye.  it may have been completely invisible to everyone else as well; no taste, no touch, no smell or sound.  but it was there.  and in such a perplexedly precise fashion with all the right numbers and elements, waiting to be used correctly, waiting for you to notice it, to know of its existence and wholeheartedly keep faith that it is there.


so rest easy with your choices between the seemingly "bad" and the "good."  between the "positive" and the "negative."  because in the end (and in the beginning... and for everything in between) there is only you.  completely full.  and the materials and their percentages will change around a bit... you'll add in and tip out many things over the course of your stay in this existence, but it is always you, always completely full.


don't fret over finding this "missing piece."  there is no "other half" to complete you.  you always had it...  when you feel complete is when you have realized that you always had it.  that's when you can "see the air."

hopefully you will find it easier (even in the tiniest and almost immeasurable amount) to find acceptance of yourself in the here and now, completely for everything that you are.  a full cup, partly invisible to the world... the part that keeps us all alive and that is so powerful it can help rocket a Bugatti Veyron to 253mph...  wow!

...But Remember!

forgive... and forget..

     ...but remember!

am i losing my mind?  i just said to forget...  but now to remember as well?

yes.  giving forgiving...  and forgetting the emotion it brought up...  but always, always remembering the lesson learned...

i knowing that you are constantly attracting anything and everything you experience, you hold the title to responsibility for allowing this negative interaction into your existence...  and so it pushed you to a new perspective with which to view the world...  some lesson was learned (or at least you are now closer to the edge about to fall into the enlightenment of an idea)...  through the contrast of this experience, you have now expanded into a new beautiful shape and it cannot go backwards, you cannot stuff the exploding bomb back into the neat little casing...

and so you should remember where you were pushed...  how you acted and reacted...  and now how you forgave and forgot...  how you expanded, what you learned, how you now feel...

remember...  for the remembrance of the joy of forgiving will make it easier to hear your inspired connection call you softly away from those experiences again...  in this respect, remembering is a beautiful practice of allowing Source to move to you and through you...

Forgive... and Forget

we have all heard it from our elder and wiser ones... to forgive and to forget...  and just as we have generally tuned out their opinions on our music, our hairstyles and choices in friends, we also have kind of tossed this vital, peace-giving advice in the wastebasket.

but its worth reaching back in and un-crumpling the edges to take another read.

what seems just a few words to speak as easy advice to give is really a difficult and trying concept to receive, however.  forgiveness in our society feels more giving up or giving in than taking power and responsibility...  we are mostly taught or conditioned to feel that forgiveness is weakness and harboring negative emotions is powerful, which is almost as backwards as backwards can be.

remembering that our personal perspective is the only one we can control, forgiveness is taking back the reins of your life after a negative encounter.  without forgiveness, you are voluntarily relinquishing power to another, allowing their undesirable actions to dominate your thoughts, giving them an inordinate amount of presence in your energy...  and forgiveness calmly regains priorities like releasing a hot coal to fall swiftly into a well of cool water...

understanding that from our uniquely individual perspective that each person is really doing the best that they can with all that they have can really assist the process of forgiveness.  it is easier to forgive another when you begin to accept that you can almost never really understand their own unique view as you could agree that it would be virtually impossible for any other person to truly understand you and yours.  have you walked in their shoes through every one of their situations?  has your perspective expanded in the exact same shape and speed as theirs?  or is it possible that as different an orange from an elephant are you and every other person you have ever seen?

and so in comprehending that giving forgiving is not giving in or giving up but rather giving grace and accepting responsibility and letting go, with this knowledge you now have, it is easier now to find peace in yourself...  taking every opportunity to practice forgiving brings you closer and closer to that "hole in one" where you hardly think of the process of forgiveness and it purely, instinctively comes naturally and immediately to you...

and forgetting...  to release the past as just that...  an event forevermore gone to your touch... you cannot edit it, no changes, no fixing, no more...  so just release it...  you have forgiven and grasped back on to the reins of your part in this world, but at the same time it is imperative that you let go of the story...  sadly many can give forgiveness but cannot give up the image of the negative interaction...  and although they might have fixed their feelings on the original opponent, they transfix their gaze through broken glasses at others, using that oh so negative experience to justify new prejudices and injustices and lack of trusting and conspiracy theories-- "oh, the sky is falling!"

it does not do you any service to hold on to the feeling that whatever it was gave you.  if you can forgive, forget it happened in the sense that it will not skew the sunset you look forward for...


art - Infinity by Martin Graetz Photographie on deviantART

Snow...

...love, like a blanket of snow, softly floats down from the heavens to touch our lives, thawing as it whispers on to our warm bodies like tingly, unique reminders of how the love of our universe comes to us, comes through us; how just the simple warmth that we are born with can evolve our environment if we can just look skyward and allow the flakes to melt on our nose...



art - ::Snow:: by *Ginsui-rin

Money like air...

money is like air

your bank account is like your lungs

whenever panicked about a lack of air, you quickly take a breath

whenever there is no stress, you breathe in and out easily, effortlessly

try to feel the same way about money

don't despair because your bank account is small today... some people are shallow breathers, others have larger lungs

when athletes or musicians train to become better in their craft, they practice breathing to increase the capacity of their lungs

you can too

so just relax. when you're ready, you'll start taking deeper breaths and you will wonder why you scrambled around for so long stressing about when there is so so much "air" around you to take in!!!

Everything Is Personal...

everything is personal... and nothing is interpersonal.

conventionally, we tend to think that the interactions that we have with other people in this physical existence as having to do with the motives that one person has towards another. this, however, is fundamentally incorrect.

when i say that everything is personal, i mean that every action that any person takes part in is a direct result of their own feelings and emotions. primarily, it has nothing to do with the interpersonal relationship on which the action affects.

think of a recent interaction you had where you might have been considered the "victim." maybe someone you regarded as a friend made a comment or did something where you felt diminished or hurt. maybe you were attacked. you were betrayed.

in each situation, the "aggressor" was not taking your feelings into account before jumping into action. this you may agree with, but not for the right reasons. simply put, they only thought about the way they would feel before starting that interaction. even if they knew how you would react, they only ever cared about how they would feel.

this same principal works equally on positive interactions. when i say "i love you" because i know the feeling that it inspires, i know how the other person will feel when i say it, and i might like that i can affect how that other person feels... and so i care primarily that i will feel better by giving a good feeling to someone else. i don't give charity because it helps, i give charity because it makes me feel good to help.

don't let anyone fool you (or try to fool yourself): we all work on selfish motives. we only ever do anything in the attempt to fulfill our own basic needs.

now, it could be argued that when i deliberately start a fight, that i am affecting another person, maybe even deliberately so... and how could this not be an interpersonal motive?? true, there may be some ancillary or auxiliary effect, but primarily i was feeling inadequate, frustrated or disconnected... primarily, i had a personal motive to release anger...

and yet in a positive sense, even when i pause a moment in traffic to allow another motorist in my lane, this is the same principle. yes, there is an interpersonal effect that benefits another, but in my deepest intention, i allowed them in to raise my personal feeling, reveling in my magnanimous act; a smile washes my face even if the other did not appreciate it (which wouldn't matter to me anyways!)

the point i am trying to make is one that will serve your positive personal motives to feel better more of the time: when you find yourself the "victim" of a negative situation, try to judge the other person less harshly now, knowing that they are inherently not really trying to knock you down, but instead lift themselves up (even if it seems a bit misguided in their execution).

try to understand that their action was an attempt (in the greater sense) to feel better for themselves. which only creates one option for you: you must now rein in your control over your own emotions. you are better served trying to understand the other person, to let them "off the hook" more often, to receive the gift graciously, to smile at the compliment, to release the itch to scream when you are cut off in traffic... because its really, simply, always had nothing to do with you.

an additional benefit to this knowledge now is that after reading this, you might be a little bit more responsible of how you feel. maybe if you want to start a fight, you can sit back one more second and rethink if this is the best detour to a better feeling. could you find a better avenue to travel that won't send shock waves in a butterfly effect around your region?

graffiti art

Is Peace or War the Action?

Recently, I had re-posted an earlier entry about Light... Space... and Resistance wherein I discussed how there really is no such thing as Dark, but instead just Light (or The Presence of Light) and The Absence of Light and then extrapolated to say there really is less of the concept of Allowing and more of the action of Resistance (or The Presence of Resistance) and The Absence of Resistance.

...and this got me to thinking if there were any more seemingly "ordinary" things that we think about on a daily basis that this concept could apply to.

Peace
Many people ask for Peace on Earth or World Peace as if there were some action required for it, and this immediately strikes me as weird, in the same way I approached my previous entry. Peace, whether it be by and for the masses, or between you and your husband or brother who teases you or neighbor who plays music too loudly too late at night, is not the action.

To illustrate, pause for just one moment and think of YOU and ME. Think about our interaction at this moment. Are we doing anything to maintain Peace? The answer is: no. In fact, Peace is our natural state that requires no action at all, no thinking, no tip-toeing around to manage, careful not to upset the delicate scale that could throw each side into an all-out brawl.

War
Rather, War is the introduction of Resistance into the equation where Resistance is the action, is the hard part. When Peace begins as the natural state and one feels Resistance, there is an immediate discord that breeds pain, intolerance, hate and fear, radiating from the individual with a sort of penetrating quality that infuses into almost every action and interaction. War takes the appreciation of the contrasting opinions or desires and misinterprets, translates it into clashing sides, one against the other, feuding, rallying for position to win. War is the action of Resistance against the natural state of Peace that is always and forever available, present and flowing towards you.

The concept that we would even wish or hope or have to do any action for Peace is just plain bonkers because it requires no action whatsoever. Try to slow down right now and stop. Cease action, stop the mind-chatter thinking, halt the nervousness about stillness and just quiet the mind in a beautiful feeling-place of love. Isn't this Peace?? Isn't it, in this place of doing, saying, thinking, being, having nothing, ISN'T THIS PEACE??

So the next time I say Peace On You, know that what I really mean is Try to War a little less, Try to Resist a little less, Try to be a little Easier on yourself and those around you, Try to Relax and find the beautifully inherent point of Love that resides within us all in a really Easy place of not acting in War. I just didn't want to write all that! :-)

Attachment "Measures the Distance"

have you ever felt the more you want something, the more you notice that it isn't there?

there is a reason. this concept is simple when you can see it from the outside. the reason is 'attachment'

attachment "measures the distance" between where you are and where you want to be

and this encompasses attachment to things you want, experiences you desire, how you want to look, who you want to talk to, where you want to live or visit, lovers you want in your bed...

the more that you envision what you want from a place of not having, you count the ticks on the ruler between you and whatever it is. and the more intense your desire, the more skewed your perception of how far it is... the more acute the angle of your vision distorts the distance, making it seem so so far away

there is hope, however. find peace in the knowing that you can bring your perspective to a place less distorted. it may take some time, it may take some practice, but it is really easy.

the key is to detach.

lessen your hold on the "how" it will happen and focus more on "how it would feel to have it"

release your grasp on the "why it should happen" and focus more on the "why it would feel good to have it"

and find peace in the knowing that the way you used to do it (the so so tough way of wanting and not having and noticing so much of the not having) has brought you to read this that may have planted even the tiniest seed of understanding...

...can you feel the difference now? can you feel the shift?

Light... Space... and Resistance

(originally posted on July 5, 2009)

I believe I have come upon a revelation for myself... let's hope that you can share in the exuberance of my experience. Over the past few days I have toyed with the idea of sharing this idea I have stumbled across, but as I keep revisiting the notion of sharing, I have decided that is what I shall do.

A few days ago, I was in the shower... thinking... as I usually do... Something that I have been thinking for a long time, a singular idea, had transformed itself-- no, mutated-- and rolled into some recent knowledge.

Let me explain:

For years, I have understood the physics of light and heat... We use words like "Bright" and "Dark" or "Warm" and "Cold" but when you break it down... there really only is "Light" and "The Absence of Light" or "Heat" and "The Absence of Heat"

Well, let's think on this... In outer space, we can see Light coming from a star or sun, or reflecting off a planet or moon... but otherwise, there is The Absence of Light. "Darkness." "Space." Likewise, in outer space, there is no atmosphere to hold on to the radiation emitted from the Sun. So astronauts feel comfortable in their suits in the presence of this Heat... until they round to the back side of the moon where they are in The Absence of Heat.

So I came to this thought with the soapy water dribbling down my face one morning and it clicked into the idea of Resistance. Many people find things "hard" in their life because they are resisting something, anything, everything. And I have found the teachings of Abraham-Hicks and many, many others to explain that in the process of Allowing, you have found The Absence of Resistance. This is "The Secret." Allowing what you are Attracting.

And I use the words this way to convey the relative action involved... Resistance is the action... The Absence of Resistance is the goal... to Allow... and thats really the "easy" part..

To Resist is to see the distance from where you are to where you want to be... to Resist is to feel bad about not having your desires in the present...

But to find The Absence of Resistance is to see your desires and relax in knowing, having faith, that they are coming and on the way down the easiest path to you... to Allow is to sit back on this journey, this exhilarating ride of life and ENJOY...

To Resist is to wake up, already frustrated with your day before its started, to yell at people in traffic, mumble judgments about people and the world around you, spill the coffee on your shirt, get yelled at by the boss, smear mustard on your pants at the lunch that didn't taste good, get snickered at by coworkers, get a ticket on the way home and have the power be out on your street all night long...

and while the unfamiliar may look around and observe these as things that happen TO YOU, the familiar understand that your attitude, your action of Resistance is what started the whole process... your action brought you to the frustrations...

To Allow is to wake up, loving the sun on your face, the refreshing drops of water across your skin as you easily get ready in the perfect pace to be on time, driving effortlessly through the world to get where you want, finding the perfect music on the radio, seeing humorous advertisments, compliments at work, good food for lunch, and good television and books to read at home with a loving family to help keep you active and feeling loved.

You see, to RESIST is the hard part... it causes the pain... it is the action...
You see, to ALLOW is the easy part... it allows the joy... it is the non-action...

So... my advice today (and everyday) is to stop the hard action and relax into the easy non-action.

Allow yourself to love and see the loving nature of the world around you. Allow yourself to envision the world as you want it and have faith that its already on its way, piece by piece. And it now requires no more action. Not one bit.

Travel Down The Path So Worn

given the option, most will choose to walk the worn path...

many of you will choose the way already traveled by many others-- the foliage and debris already pushed to the side by the pioneers long passed and several more of their followers...

with loose dirt and snow packed down into the earth by footstep after footstep, the travel is readily made simple, almost effortless for the journey ahead...

no guessing where to turn or which direction to take-- the path is easily seen out for thousands of yards. almost no surprises arise. no complications. no imagination. no concern.

it is easy to expect that many young ones will follow the path, their little feet and quick steps on steady ground trailing behind well-traveled boots... not knowing much beyond the path with such a short focus on just small distance forward...

but is it really you? were you meant to follow the path of so many others? to stay in the line with the unquestioned direction of the masses, never straying into the cold, barren landscape?

having walked the path for so long, do you continue because of habit? because of comfort? because of fear?

know in comfort that but a handful venture off the path worn in the earth... and not many for long, returning shortly to the "easy" way...

no doubt, it is tougher to take those uncertain steps into the soft snow, unsure of the depth, unknowing of the hazards... blazing one's own trail requires faith, strength and direction...

but you are not alone... know that there are many, many people are waiting for a new path... waiting, dreaming of a new direction... make peace in the knowing that there are hundreds, no thousands (maybe more), that will change quickly to follow a new path, your new path...

once started, keep the passion... if you tire, turn around and see the long line of those behind you, in support, in peace, in love of your new path which you have made easy for them... look into the eyes of the young ones who could not have attempted such an enterprise and feel their gratitude for the steps you take before them that allow their little feet to touch the stable ground...

make peace in the knowing that you will get funny, disappointed stares (and shaking heads and foul words) from those who turn back to see you on your own way... (pay them no mind)... know that you are loved for straying from the worn path by those behind you that will get to experience ease for your struggle... love the knowing that you will inspire many new paths branched from your own...

try it today

right now

take that first step

no matter if you fall back into the worn path once or twice or thirty times... at this point, that worn trail is so wide and banked that many people and many times, most will fall back in line...

but take the step nonetheless

for each next one will feel easier, more invigorating

try it today

right here, right now

i'll see you when we cross in the bleak, hazy and uncharted wilderness... and i'll have my arms open with love for your perseverance...

push the limits to succeed? or just go with the flow?

a friend posted a quote by Bernard Edmonds:

“To dream anything that you want to dream. That's the beauty of the human mind. To do anything that you want to do. That is the strength of the human will. To trust yourself to test your limits. That is the courage to succeed.”

...to which I replied:

"nice... but i think i don't have to test my limits to succeed... i think success is on its way all the time, like standing in the middle of an endless shower of shooting stars, perfect burning embers, radiantly storming into our lives~~ I just have to have the courage to turn with the flow, hop on and enjoy the journey..."

...and so i pose the question:

are you pushing your limits? are you pushing against the wall to see what you're made of? to see exactly how far the wall doesn't move when you push against it, to get more of the same with the struggle of always trying, trying, trying to do more, get more, see more, be more.

or are you slowing down to realize the stream of energy that effortlessly and continuously abounds around you? are you noticing the radiance and beauty of all that is, just ho-humming along in your direction waiting for you to notice it, to grab hold of the reins and blast off faster than you could have ever imagined?

don't worry which way you are moving... i write this and still i do not know where i am! but i am feeling that neither is right or wrong... but i can tell you which one is easier and will feel better.... :-)

...

calories

calories.

counted high. cut down low.

used to measure our self worthiness. judged how we care for ourselves.

frequently admonished against the pleasure when "out of bounds." rarely commended for the struggled accomplishment of "staying in line."

we denounce them as evil-doers, assistants to the demise of our heath. scarcely ever extolled as the life-force with which we survive.

and exceedingly, we attach doomsday proportions to such a neutral tool in our lives. perhaps there is more to this phenomenon than just the latest sweeping health craze. is it rather that we have come to accept despair, discouragement, trials and tribulations?

have we really lost hope in the good of life and resorted to wearing shaded glasses all the time, denying most of the light in our lives from reaching our eyes?

maybe the first step is to look around and notice that it is not all that bad. maybe the first action is to change the words. maybe we need to see calories as the beneficial energy source that they are.

today, i change what calories mean to me. today, calories become life-force. today, calories become god-source.

today, calories become good.

oh what exciting changes this will bring to other words in my life.

...

contrast

life is a curious thing, bringing much contrast to our daily senses

what will you choose when you are given something unwanted?

curse it...
........or.........
praise it...

tiger woods

i was reading the tiger woods article in vanity fair last night...

i must say, i am happy for him. it seems that for so long, he has felt he needed to hide himself from the public, to create a certain persona of what he thought everyone else thought he should be.

and now the curtain has fallen. what a relief this has probably been for him!

all the pressure from the fame, from the money, from the sponsors!

now tiger can be himself! so what about the money, it comes and goes. so many people in my time have fallen to the depths of public opinion and wealth only to rise again when we have chosen a new villain. he will be back.

but this time, he will be closer to his true self. and that i am happy for.

go tiger.

fair or right?

is it better to be fair or be right?
is it better to share or to fight?

many years ago, i would have chosen the latter option on both... but i feel now there are easier ways to deal with the world.
and i feel that the word "better" has changed meaning for me to "easier" in that "easy" is what i strive for.

many times, headstrong, i would form opinions and battle to defend-- to destroy opposition-- to win every fight. in fact, i sought out fights.

many mornings i would don my armor, preparing for a day of tumultuous arguments to win win win.

today, i rest.
now, feeling what i know is true, i can rest.
it is easier for me to see fairness... to feel the love in sharing... to know the peace of collaboration.
every interaction i have, i can feel my calm transfer and i no longer battle.
my energy assuages apprehension in ways unimaginable to the young soul. no need any longer for any battle, to attack or defend.
there is no right or wrong, only different, a contrast i welcome like the morning sun's kiss on my cheek after a restful slumber.
there is no requirement for my battle-worn armor to defend, for there is none that exists who can slay love.

tonight, i rest.
now, sitting in serenity, a lullaby of love wraps her arms around me.
all i can feel is the warm glow of peace in the word "easy"-- the choice i have made to see the less resistant path.
i choose not "better" in the way my younger confused and tortured self once did, but rather "easy." and i look back through the pages of life at a beautiful contrast that has swept me godspeed to where i currently lay.

peace for me. love for you.

learning a little bit about my self

today...

...while filling out an online application for a new job...

                i thought intently about the questions that were being asked of me...

     wondering why all these personal items and answers mattered so

                                 can they dissect me with this blunt little tool?

          how much of my personality is revealed by a collection of keystrokes....?

how could a string of consonants and vowels muddled together in answer to categorized and methodically structured questions give insight to me?

                                                           am i that easy?

                      maybe i am.    maybe i am not.