What's left to do?...

By Vichara

The sun is up, you’re breathing and you are probably one of the lucky ones that will have had some food this morning. What’s left to do? I’m not talking just in the figurative sense but in the literal sense as well. Is there what may seem an unreachable thing you can start to take a few steps forward with? Is there an extra ounce of forgiveness you can give to your self or someone else?

Death to boredom...

By Vichara

Death to boredom! If you are bored you have your eyes closed both literally and figuratively. The “tapestry” that unfolds everyday is so rich and dense that unless you see this someone has blinded you. Through the repetition of our daily actions, some of them quite mundane, we can loose track of the simple beauty that ordinary things have. In the shower the steady stream of water reflects in the morning light can be a shower of featherweight diamonds cascading all around. The coolness of the morning air can hold nuances of fragrances that could unlock memories. Observing a couple of people in a crosswalk ignites the imagination and you wonder what they are talking about. Watching a flock of pigeons sweeping repeatedly in a pattern only known to them. Open your senses up to the cavalcade. It’s worth the price of admission

The Truth...

By Vichara

What we need is a truth inspector. A new super hero for our day to reveal what truly is going on in the world. Now wouldn’t that be handy? You are at the mechanic with your car and this guy tells you need a whole bucket load of things to make your car run again. The truth inspector, let’s just call him Truth, zips in behind you, assesses the situation in a matter of seconds and declares that it is a single switch and some oil is all that is needed. Ok that may sound small but what if during some intense discussions between two countries that have been battling for years Truth makes an appearance. Suddenly the air shifts in the room and not only that these two leaders admit what truly is essential for peace but everybody else there admits what they can do and the waters become calm. I know this is a naïve thought but imagine the incredible opportunities and savings of time and frustration if the essential truth could be stated and acted upon with each breath in each moment of each day. Imagine…

The difference...

By Vichara

There is no automatic entitlement in this life. Even the act of or first breath is dependent on our sheer instinctual will to live and draw in the air that will initiate this life outside the womb. From that point on your developed skills, knowledge and tenacity will function as the catalyst for change and growth until your last breath. With every inhale there is an exhale and every thought there is a conscious decision made for each circumstance, unlike animals which act out of primarily from instinct and survival. Hopefully the decisions made each day by you are tempered by love and compassion.

The demarcation point...

By Vichara

If there is an acknowledgement within yourself for a desire to change, you are half way there. If your awareness of the world around is heightened, the seed has been planted. If you find yourself talking about social and moral values, the shift has already happened. Sooner or later (and hopefully sooner) awareness arises inside you and creates the catalyst for change and moves our dialogue from internal to external. From this point you will be drawn to other voices that will encourage your steps. Like kindred souls finally meeting you will set down the demarcation point for change not only for you but the world around you. But please remember to be kind to yourself and move forward with compassion.

Meet Mr. Day...

By Vichara

The Day just tumbled out of bed in a reluctant haphazard way. The slippers were not there it stubbed its right big toe on the post of the dresser. After the dance of “ouch” the Day groggily shuffled out in the kitchen to retrieve the morning cup of coffee. There to meet Day in the kitchen was all of us. I mean every one of us. The Day has a big kitchen. Some of us were grumpy with dread of the appearance of Day and teetered in our chairs poised either to run back to bed or cry. Others had a sense of compliance and greeted the Day with the resolve to do their best. At some of the tables there were those who wore big smiles excited with the appearance of the Day. Of course there was those who wanted to slap those cheery faces but some how knew better and just took another gulp of coffee. Did I mention that the Day has a big coffee pot? The Day will roll out regardless of whatever you are doing. It is up to you and what level of engagement you bring to the table. However justified you feel your aversion to the Day it will be up to you if you wish to waste it.

When?...

By Vichara

At what point do you just say “no”? At what level do you finally succumb to the weariness of trying to resolve issues that keep repeating and say “enough”? You want to believe and hope that you can stretch the basic understanding and patience but when you do you say, “stop”? It can be obvious and yet some around you will still be oblivious, so when you do you say, “wake up”? At what point does incompetence become acceptable and you loose your voice of basic reason in the din of apathy? At what point does chronic inability be so condoned that it elicits unwarranted sympathy? Tear the veil of enabling off and engage action with prompt results. A to B not A with a side trip that wanders to a diversion that labors and languishes with indecision. Move with determination and resolve tempered with heart that has conviction. You can do it and so can everyone else.

The bridges of understanding...

By Vichara

Engage – disengage – engage – disengage – apathy – empathy – apathy – empathy. The line can be so thin and yet seem so vast. The perception we have of situations that cross our paths from moment to moment is of course determined by our resource of knowledge. If we have continued to fill the reservoir with enough variations and viewpoints we can hopefully evaluate and articulate a viewpoint based on moral values. Where we get into trouble is pure reaction. Reactionary decisions will be fraught with hues of miscommunication. Are we clear on this? I know, I know a little too wordy. Let’s make it real clear then. We are vessels of information calculated and disseminated by our brain. In order to engage the full spectrum of ideas we need to consume a field of information. While in prison Nelson Mandela observed, read and devoured information on the people that put him in that small cell of his. Not to seek revenge but to better understand his captors and find the bridges of understanding. Not to destroy the bridges but to meet them on unity on the bridge and shorten its length.

The tree...

By Vichara

While out for a walk yesterday I came across someone just staring at this rather impressive tree thick with these very large leaves. Not wanting to be intrusive but yet curious of what this person was looking at I slowly walked by and stated “what a lovely tree”. This person turned to me and with an easy smile said calmly “yes, but it has so many layers and stories it could tell”. Curious and yet not really knowing how to respond I just returned, “Yes, all the limbs seem to be reaching out to us”. His smile grew even more and he turned to me and said “quite right, indeed this tree is at least 100 year old and in this time there has been many wars, abundant change and joy. This deciduous friend has seen a cavalcade of generations and listened to all of their voices in pain and in happiness.” He pointed to the ground surrounding the tree and continued. “The soil is the knowledge, within the knowledge there is both hubris and reality. To retain its strong and solid integrity the tree, like a person, needs to filter through its system what is essential to fortify their existence and what to discard. The sun and rain, you could say are like love and encouragement, provides the needed elements to help in the growth forward and upward and from this comes the results and proceeds. For this tree it is the fruit and abundant growth. From us it is stories and knowledge. When both of these are imparted into the world they both go back to the soil, which of course again is knowledge and the cycle continues.” I asked this stranger his name and he said Mr. T. Ruth. I turned to leave and I said I hope to see you again. He smiled again and said as he walked away “I’m always around, you just need to look for me.”

A new book for all...

By Vichara

We have a very clever “universe”. At a certain time in our lives we all search for a bit of meaning of why we are “here”. In our faiths and religions we seek answers from the pages and voices that are around us from the past. One will tell you that their “path” is the one to follow. On will say that their knowledge is more direct and closer to the source than others. Another will ask you give up worldly possessions and others will advocate acquiring more. Each feels that they are right. What if…and I’m just thinking out loud here…that everyone is right. What if each branch, each faith, each doctrine, each path has the answers? What if each one was just a single page that fits into a much larger book? This book has never been put together before because each one has been holding on tightly to the single page of their faith. What if all of these could be bound together? I believe that if it could be done we would all find the key element that will bind all of these together is, Love. Yes that can sound a bit naïve and simple but you look at the faces of people when they are truly happy. No matter what the belief when Love is apparent all the walls and barriers of faiths and religions are transcended and love and compassion bind our hearts into on giant congregation.

Drink wisely...

By Vichara

Consider the minutes of the day like drops of water. Consider the day as a canteen that holds the minutes. Like a thirsty traveler who cannot afford to lose a single drop consider we should not want to waste a minute in devious and divisive conduct. Instead weigh the value of minutes given to you with the same measure of a dehydrated person. We are all under the delusion that there is an endless amount of minutes but like the water in a canteen they do run out. Drink wisely and attempt to make each minute count.

You and you alone...

By Vichara

There is astrology, numerology, phrenology but what about commonsenseology? We will sometimes seek answers from sources that we are led to believe will put us on the path to the right answer. The trouble is that this can be circuitous and vague paths that may lead only back to more speculation. Sometimes the most obvious can be the right answer but that is where we will need to do the hard work of trusting in our intuitive nature more and less what people are telling to think and feel. I know this may not be easy but it will produce results that will exceed all the charts and speculation others will give you and defiantly define the path that you walk more clearly. Sure try these other paths but I guarantee that coming back to yourself, your thoughts and your own path will be more fulfilling than trying to figure out if Mars is in retrograde with your sign or if that bump on your head will portent great fortune. Sometimes a bump is just a bump.

It comes back...

By Vichara

Things can be returned to you when you believed it would never happen. Circumstances and time may appear to have created a wedge that separates you from it but remarkably it did come back. You may have thought and ran it back and forth in your brain what happened to it, but at some point you gave up. It was done reluctantly and with a heavy sigh but there were no apparent clues to where it might have gone to initiate a decent search for it. You thought about it when certain things you see in passing remind you of it. Something someone said not even related to it reminds you of it and that brings mixed feelings about it. Was it really needed? Did it have a purpose? Did it truly have any value? Was it something you could not live without? It comes back and then you really find out.

Fair warning...

By Vichara

Don’t say I didn’t warn you that this day would come. All the indicators were there but for most of you there were an element of blind ignorance. I’m even sure that those around you reminded you but you forgot. In this great life quest that we are all on what is now making its presence known to you and me is really something special. Those of you out there that have had a general sense of how this will impact life around us all have anticipated this. For those close to you that were not aware you can gently inform them. It is at these times when the unification of spirit, brotherhood, and mankind needs to be reminded of what is finally here. So as you greet and commune with those you encounter today turn to them one by one and with a gregarious attitude say,”Happy Friday, the weekend is here – have some fun!”

In one great inhalation...

By Vichara

In one great inhalation a few hundred thousand are born and in one great exhalation a couple hundred thousand die in one day. In one breath an idea is formed and on exhalation the idea is gone. In one inhalation love is found and in one exhalation it is gone. What matters here is not so much the igniting or the extinguishing of any of these, this will happen regardless. What is important is the in-between part. In one moment your heart is awakened to another heart and the freefall of events and experiences catapult you into years of heartache and joy. In a flicker of the moment the idea that you needed turns the corner and it greets you with a smile. With the manifestation of this idea hopefully many will be inspired by yours and ignite their idea. In one great moment a cry of life starts a journey that will hopefully ignite both love and ideas and then on the other side of the world the last breath occurs and the baton is passed. The objective: when it is passed – just do your best.

No room for...

By Vichara

One day on this very sunny and pleasant afternoon a few friends were out for a picnic near a lovely lake. The lake wasn’t that big, in fact you could see the other shore quite clearly and you could almost yell to someone on the other shore if you chose to do so. Among these friends none would do so. Anyway everyone was having a wonderful time, telling stories, laughing, enjoying the flora and fauna and reveling in each other’s company. At one point as they were snacking on the wonderful strawberries one of them saw a boat full of friends having a great time and one said “oh let’s rent a boat and take this fun out on the water”. So in the rented boat they went. Enthusiasm carried the basket and helped Gratitude into the boast first. Then Frivolity reached out a hand for Sensibility. Fortitude had no trouble getting in but watched over Escapism as he gingerly balanced his way aboard. The boat sunk down a little more when Experience got on board which made everyone’s head turn and they all looked to the dock as the last friend was stepping forward. With a weary look Doubt looked to the eyes of his friends and stepped back. That is why when you are traveling Life’s waters and things could get rough; there is no room for Doubt.

A shift of focus...

By Vichara

There may be a need to stop asking about the meaning of life and instead think of us as those who are being questioned by life, daily and hourly. Our expectations and questions have a tendency to be directed outward. What if we re-directed some of this energy back to us in a way to challenge our perception of life and try not to expect things to be handed to us? What if we try to seamlessly direct the questions and expectations on us as they happen in a manner of self-sufficiency? Not in isolation but in cooperation and in unity with others. From our more unified and resilient positions the level of understanding within ourselves will be connected with others and in this unification we help everyone around us. A shift in focus can sometimes produce clarity and understanding.

The empirical boat...

By Vichara

We need empirical proof. As much as we romanticize about living or having faith we ultimately need to have empirical proof on many levels. We want to assume and believe that things will be done and entrust others with tasks and responsibilities but because things are interconnected we need proof. Most of the time on a physical level the empirical proof is relatively easy to produce but on the metaphysical level far greater. We need a meal to eat, so we gather the ingredients, cook them and a meal appears. Try to have a greater understanding and that there is meaning and guidance to all of “this” is much more difficult. It is not like you can purchase a GPS unit that leads you to the esoteric answers. Of course this presumes that you want answers but I would venture a guess you do. So were does this lead us? With the need of the empirical – painted in the corner with faith. However consider faith being a boat. You know that by trial and testing that the boat floats (for the most part). So you climb on board given that understanding and as you push off from the dock you ultimately realize that the boat is only as sturdy as you built it. You are the draftsman, carpenter and captain and sometimes that is all the empirical proof you will have.