via Mary Ruffle via Yes, Please

Happy Valentine's Day

 

"Any Woodthrush shows it,

he sings not to fill the world,

but because he is filled."

-Jane Hirshfield

inspired by Jeff Carreira.  I wish I lived close enough to take his class. 

(even more) be who you are

I feel comfortably safe in the mainstream.  When I am pushing my shopping cart through the grocery store in my yoga pants and Uggs holding my Starbucks cup, I am very aware that I fit squarely within my demographic.  And the truth is, it's what I've always wanted.  But, I am always grateful for the lift, the delight, and the inspiration I get when I cross paths with a "character" - someone who is blatantly being who they are, seemingly without a care in the world for what the rest of us think. These people are demonstrating their freedom to be, the greatest freedom of all and it's ours for the taking. 

I love the "Character Project" from USA Network, celebrating America's characters with 11 photographers capturing people in a "stunning example of our country's diversity." It is worthwhile encouragement for each of us to question how we might be more uniquely ourselves. 

Top photo: Mary Ellen Mark

(more) be who you are

How do you remain peaceful when the world is demonstrating everything but peace? Loving, when the world is demonstrating everything but love? Forgiving, when the world is demonstrating everything but forgiveness?

You insist on being who you are no matter what the rest of the world is being.

-The New Revelations, Neale Donald Walsch

be who you are

I pledge allegiance to my self

I WILL be more, do less.

I WILL be and let be.

I WILL be who I am.

I WILL become what I want.

I WILL begin inside

Eat, Pray, Love and try to Relax

I love Elizabeth Gilbert and her book "Eat, Pray, Love."  I am super excited that her book is being made into a movie starring Julia Roberts and that she has a new book (out tomorrow) I will read soon.

So it is not a stretch that I am enamored with her in this video clip from an interview for a new 3 part PBS series called "This Emotional Life" which airs tonight.  She describes observing a man in New York who was moving quickly, walking his dog, talking on the phone, reading a paper and shoving a bagel in his mouth all at the same time.  We can probably relate to a similar type of multitasking.  She questions why we do this, but most strikingly she comments that it takes a "ferocious, committed stubbornness" to "push against the river of forces that tell you there is not time to think even for one minute about what might bring you joy."

This hits on a very interesting aspect of being.  For such a passive, easy, lazy sounding concept, it is actually one of the most challenging things we can take on.  The world we live in values speed, productivity and measurable deliverables often at the cost of feeling, experiencing and appreciating what is happening at the time.  It actually takes just as much, if not more, focus and motivation to be more than to do more.  Or as Elizabeth Gilbert says, a "ferocious, committed stubbornness" to be more in a world that tells you there's no time or reward for it.

I don't know if her clips will make it into the series, but you can watch here.  "This Emotional Life" is hosted by Dan Gilbert, the Harvard professor who has become well known for his studies on and teachings of happiness.  It explores the spectrum of human emotions and how and why there are so many obstacles to happiness.  And it was produced by my awesome friend Dyllan.

Happy New Year

What if we didn't resolve to DO anything this year other than BE more?  

Let this new year bring a soaking in of the moments while they're here, an appreciation for the little things, a releasing of the past and an accurate view of where you are right now - the beginning of the rest of your life.

"People come here 

and listen to my dharma words

when all I really want to do

is pour them a little tea."  -Adyashanti

All searching - for spiritual enlightenment, wealth and power, or the right diet - is really all of the same search for happiness.  Sometimes a break from the searching and striving can help us to realize that the happiness we want is patiently waiting for us to recognize it, in the little things, like a cup of tea (my be habit.)

Cafe Dharma offers audio/video/radio downloads of Adyashanti's teachings.  Most are for sale, but some are free and worth listening to.
photo from flickr

what's in a name?

It recently came up in a conversation about being (in a bar in Soho no less) that the translation of Yahweh, one of the many names of God, is "to be."

"By telling people his name, God intended to reveal his innermost character. As a word, Yahweh is related to the Hebrew verb ‘to be’. The verb goes beyond ‘to exist’; it means rather ‘to be actively present."

How beautiful is that?


Source: Eerdmans Handbook to the Bible, pg. 157. Eerdmans Publishing Company. Grand Rapids, MI.
Thanks Tony!

House Inspector: $495, Attorney Fees : $1,500...

Everyone should have someone in their life who makes them accountable to who they really are, and what they stand for, no matter what.  That person, for me, is my sister.

It has been difficult for me to muster up insightful words to write about being for the last week.  We are in the process of selling our house and buying another and it has been challenging to say the least.   It feels like one road block after another.  In addition to some crying and self-pity, I've tried doing all the right things...praying, finding compassion for all parties involved, writing my intentions, making gratitude lists, staying grounded in what's really important, etc.  And yet I was still physically, emotionally and mentally exhausted from the whole process.  I told my sister I was trying "to think the highest thought" and here is what she wrote:

Maybe instead of thinking the highest thought, you need to focus on the next better thought. Get yourself outta that space one rung at a time. I know you're trying to see what you can't see, but trying is counterproductive to being.

All will be revealed. As my friend David used to always (annoyingly) remind me...."not in your time."

Stop and look around you. Get present. Be thankful for what is, right now.

She should write this blog...I've told her that many times.  I love the idea that "trying is counterproductive to being."  I had abandoned everything I espouse and know to be true and allowed anxiety to take over, and her reminder has been a great kick in the pants.  We are taught to hammer away at problems until we find a solution, but real emotional sophistication calls for knowing when to let go and trust.  A reminder of that from your sister:  priceless

photo: mrs. french's flickr

be Happy be Thanks be Giving

what is the difference between saying what we're thankful for, doing things to show our appreciation and being thankful?   being gratitude?  being appreciation?

I often feel the undercurrent of guilt or desperation in my expressions of gratitude.  Today, I want to embody a state of gratitude, transplant any resentment or entitlement with appreciation, so if I were cracked open, all that would come pouring forth is "thank you."

less judgment, more love

less defense, more peace

less heavy, more light

less anger, more joy

less justifying, more freedom

less criticism, more brilliance

less confusion, more clarity

less struggle, more grace

less blaming, more power

less persuading, more allowing

less convincing, more accepting

less do, more be

it starts

It starts with a commitment: I will be more.  

I will live in the moment, as much as possible.  I want that.  I don't want this life to pass by.  I want to know that I felt it, witnessed it, accepted it, moved within it, smelled it, tasted it, and enjoyed it.  I want to know that even though it will be impossible for every moment, I was in more moments than I was out.  I want to get that even when it's not good, it's still good because it's my experience and an opportunity to feel the fullness of who I am, the whole picture of me.  I want to proceed knowing that I can't make this happen, but my commitment is enough for now.  My commitment is powerful and because of it I will begin to feel the absolute rightness of exactly where I am and I will know that my determination is paying off.  And I will think, yes, this is what I want to feel like, this is everything, and I want more of this. 

allow the happy moment

be ecstatic

I wrote the word ecstatic in the last post and it stayed inside of me, like an air hockey puck, knocking and floating at the same time - ecstatic,    ecstatic,    ecstatic...

and then I read this in an interview with Yasuhiko Kimura- "Ecstasy means being unstuck, ongoingly ex-static.  So you must commit yourself to an ecstatic life" . No wonder it feels so good to say the word to myself. Imagine being ecstatic, unstuck, flowing, enjoying the forward motion of life. Or maybe the more accurate interpretation is - when we are truly being, ecstasy is available.

Talk about aiming high.  Do we dare to go for a life of ecstasy?  Are you daring enough to "commit yourself to an ecstatic life?"

photo from Yes, Please
quote from a back copy of What is Enlightenment? Magazine

be ageless

If access to the ecstatic eruption of simultaneous joy and peace is not a compelling enough reason to live in the present moment, maybe this will be : look younger.  It works for me.

Deepak Chopra has a new book out that applies his expertise in the mind-body connection to the topic of aging.  His larger message is that we have the ability to alter our relationship to time, and when we do, we can reap many benefits, including maintaining physical vitality through a timeless awareness instead of giving into the idea of physical deterioration.

He says,  "Your body wants to be alive here and now. To give it that gift, bring your awareness to the here and now."

Does it matter what our motivation is for striving to live in the now?  Since we are so identified with our physical human attributes, maybe that is just the thing to get us turned in the direction of where the larger part of us wants to go. 

I read about this here.