What does have a purpose...

By Vichara

We hold on to that one cup of water so tight in fear that we sometimes don’t realize that there is a whole ocean right behind us. We assume limitations when there is the contrary that is ever-present. We hang on to the “fear” because for some that has been the most tangible thing that has been present. With fear you will always have limitations and restrictions on how far your heart and mind will travel. I would venture a guess that you do not want these limitations. So let’s start with a basic premise. Your sheer existence here on this planet is not to just be here and disappear. Your presence here is to learn, discover, experience and to teach, share and unite all of this with others. If you focus on the fears and limitations you will miss out on all that you were entitled to experience. Yes entitled but not in the gimme, gimme, you owe me kind of way. You are not just a weed that springs up and disappears. Even a weed has a purpose to return the nutrients back to the soil that it was given.

The strength of being weak...

By Vichara

Perhaps within our frailties lies our strength. By acknowledging the weakness we can identify the hidden elements that will bolster our ability to gain more confidence in our actions and reactions. We will be dismissive in what would be perceived as weakness but perhaps it contains a lot more than we think. In nature we often see the animals that could be considered easy prey to the much more aggressive and larger. We are then amazed at the resourcefulness of these smaller beings in their ability to extradite themselves from their precarious situations. In similar ways when you find yourself in a situation that may seem hopeless you draw in and open a portal of information where suddenly the solutions appear. The thing is that it has always been there; we just need to tune in a little bit more to receive it. Don’t be fooled by weakness. There is great lessons and knowledge to be gained.

A new plan...

By Vichara

You get up, do what you need to do in the world to make a living, bring no harm to others and try to keep a compassionate heart tempered with love and patience. Seems simple enough right? And then you take a step forward and you find that there is a stone in your shoe. You are moving too quickly so you don’t get a chance to take it out so it stays there poking at your sole each step. You turn a corner and the wind gusts so hard that it pushes you backward. You grapple the wall until you make some headway. The wind recedes a bit but the little stone now feels like a rock and it hurts even more. You reach the entry door but it is locked. You try the opposite door – locked. So you go around to the other side and enter but the meeting has been moved 2 hours later and the stone has got bigger! Stop! Rewind and pause. The obvious solution is to take the stone out but the stone should have not been there at the start of the journey. Before you tie your laces up check for the little pebble and deal with it. Observe, review and extricate it from you day before it turns into a boulder and you become Sisyphus.

Happy...

By Vichara

The temporary letters placed on the illuminated marquee of this very old theater said only one thing “HAPPY”. Nothing else. There was no exclamation point or question mark or anything to set a tone just, “HAPPY”. What was it for? Was there a new show? Did it have any meaning or was it just someone’s playful attempt to elicit some reaction. Well by this entry in this forum I would say it was successful. So of course in my mind this playful posting of the word “HAPPY” tweaked the thought pistons in my head to ask you dear readers and myself is happy a state that exists for you? Are there things that are giving you happiness? Are there ways that you are projecting happiness? You could write them down or just make some mental notes. Use this “thought” as a catalyst as the marquee did for me to stop, reflect and appreciate a few things that make you happy on this sometimes-frenetic journey we are on. By the way when I passed by the marquee again it was blank. In my mind however I would have liked to see the following on the marquee in appreciation of the posting of that one word. “Thank You”.

Moving masterpiece...

By Vichara

As resilient as some hearts seem to be we all still need patience, love and compassion. The fight that we have internally over decisions that seem unsolvable can all be reconciled by recognizing that the answers are not completely “out there” but within and out there. They can be only found by recognizing the total interconnectedness of everything of every moment, every thought, every expression and every act of compassion not only to us but also to others at the same time. Even though we are all unique individuals we are still part of a much larger ever-changing canvas. We are part of a continuously moving masterpiece.

The blender of life...

By Vichara

Let’s crank up the blender of life and make us a cocktail. There are some people that believe that they only need one item in the ol’ blender, some ice and churn things up to have a good, happy and successful life. Well if that is what you think we need to send you back to the Life Bartender School. This hopefully long cool drink that is given to us needs several ingredients in order to make a tasty blend. In the beginning we may only have a couple of ingredients to start with but with an open heart, mind and spirit we’ll receive other ingredients to toss into the blender. Of course the essentials are needed like love, compassion, laughter, empathy and equanimity. But as years go by you will get things like disappointment, silliness, death, revelations, sadness, absurdity, music, arts, literature, resourcefulness, jealousy, happiness and many more. One by one toss them in and mix them up. By taste you will learn the right amount to balance and make your life full. One ingredient makes for a boring cocktail while many create a fiesta in which life should be. Drink up!

All aboard...

By Vichara

The wheels have already started rolling even before you opened your eyes. Which “cart” will you attach and which direction will you travel? If you listen very carefully you will hear what those around you are pulling. It will be subtle with some but within the subtext and mannerisms it will be revealed. For others it will blatant and obvious and you know which ones let pas by and which ones to invite in. Which brings us back to you. While seemingly untethered when you awake you may still retain the fragments of yesterday’s “carts”. Perhaps before you pull out of the station today you do an inventory of the “carts” still left latched on to your coupling. Which ones are you willing to drag around again and which ones serve no purpose. I think you know what I mean. Tooooot, tooooot (yes, train whistle). “All aboard, today is leaving the station…track 29….be on time.

New heroes...

By Vichara

I may run against the acceptance of most but we need new heroes for this generation. The athletes, singers and actors are flawed for the most part. Yes I know they are human and the elevation of their status through manipulation of the media makes their fall even more dramatic. I think t-shirts, web sites and hoopla should be created for those that actually contribute to the human condition, not chip it away with unhealthy indulgences and indiscretions. I don’t believe just because you can put an object in a net or hole or spray expletives in a gratuitous manner should give you solely the spotlight to influence others. We need to give the spotlight and attentions to those that create hope that will inspire others. There are of course the classics of Gandhi, King, Dalai Lama, Marie Curie and Desmond Tutu but there are others like Aung San Suu Kyi, John Pilger, Mary Robinson, Noam Chomsky and Bill Oddie. There is even someone that might live in your neighborhood that helps out in a small way. These are the true heroes. Let’s give them the spotlight to inspire the new generations.

The root...

By Vichara

So much time and energy is focused on the symptoms and the side effects but there is sometimes a failure to look at the “root” of the situations. Is there an inability to understand the importance, an emotional disconnect, a physical challenge, a reluctance that would expose the inefficiencies of particular systems? We all dance around the causes in an effort not to be drawn into turmoil but it is in the middle of the turmoil where the strong impetus will lay to initiate the change, the cure, the answers. If we do not address the “root(s)” of situations it will ultimately create more challenges that will compound on existing ones and like a flock of sheep run away on you. Round up these sheep and shear them of these situational causes and effects to get to the root.

Our personal legacy...

By Vichara

All our daily actions are tempered by knowledge and guidance given to us by others who have helped or hindered us and of course what we have read and see. All of our senses ingesting and digesting the best and the worst of humanity on a daily basis. If one were given only violence, one would only know violence. If one were only given compassion, one would only know compassion. Unfortunately and fortunately the world does not work that way. It is a collection of competing contrasts that present themselves to us and ask us to judge and act accordingly. How we act will be how the world sees us. How do we want to be seen and remembered? Our personal legacies may not be as large as people like Rosa Parks, Gandhi, Einstein and others but it is no less important. Each step, word and deed counts and will be counted. PLEASE NOTE: I thank you all so very much taking time to read these "thought". I am taking some personal time off from these daily postings and will return May 15, 2015.

A meeting with Time...

By Vichara

I was talking to Time earlier today and he said he needed a break. He shook his head and said no offence and I’m not trying to be difficult but he was stressed out. He complained that everybody was rushing him too much and he felt he was always late for something. Time turned to me with this exhausted look on his face, threw hi arms up and said “that’s it, I’m tired, people need to make some changes in their lives and stop blaming me for things”. Time said people are always whining and saying, “I just don’t have the time” or “time just got away from me”. He snapped – “there is always time and I didn’t run away from anybody”. He stood up, put on his Panama hat and said that they worked it out a long time ago. They set up 24 hours in one day with of course 60 minutes in an hour. There is plenty of time to get things done but people are thinking way too much about stuff that has already happened or are dreaming about having more time in the future. By doing that they miss out what is going on right then. He pulled the hat down and as he turned he said “figure it out people, I got all the time in the world”.