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Posts from the ‘Curiosity’ Category

Nov 2

Open Road, Wandering Trails

“The work of minding your mind is a skill most people aren’t taught. It takes awareness and attunement. It takes spaciousness and curiosity. It takes tenacity and intentionality. It takes prayer and rationality. But as you get good at it, the process of minding your own mind—of noticing and reflecting on your inner dialogue, thoughts, and emotions—becomes one of the most rewarding parts of being an image-of-God-bearing human.”― Alison Cook

Song of the Open Road, 1 by Walt Whitman

“Afoot and light-hearted I take to the open road,
Healthy, free, the world before me,
The long brown path before me leading wherever I choose.

Henceforth I ask not good-fortune, I myself am good-fortune,
Henceforth I whimper no more, postpone no more, need nothing,
Done with indoor complaints, libraries, querulous criticisms,
Strong and content I travel the open road.

The earth, that is sufficient,
I do not want the constellations any nearer,
I know they are very well where they are,
I know they suffice for those who belong to them.

(Still here I carry my old delicious burdens,
I carry them, men and women, I carry them with me wherever I go,
I swear it is impossible for me to get rid of them,
I am fill’d with them, and I will fill them in return.)”

Open road
Wandering trails
Abundant light
Color ablaze
Go off path today
Luggage of worries, burdens put down for a bit
Minding and mining your mind
A few minutes off and away
Deep breath
Fresh eyes
Cup of hope
Bucket of joy
Permission to laugh, sing, dance
To be made new, filled up, restored
Afoot and light-hearted
Re-enchantment under construction.

“The fate of our times is characterized by rationalization and intellectualization and, above all, by the disenchantment of the world.”― Max Weber

Jun 13

Hidden in Plain Sight

“And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.”― Roald Dahl

May I see what’s hidden
In plain sight
Beauty
Fun
Peace
Delight
Joy
In abundance
Rooted in hope and anticipation
Found with curiosity
Fresh eyes, open heart.

“In all things lies a hidden wonder, a transcendent force that eludes the ordinary gaze. Only the conscious soul—awakened and willing to seek, daring to dive where most fear to tread—will uncover it.”― Blade Seventh

Jun 4

Layers and Landscapes

“The question is not what you look at, but what you see.”― Henry David Thoreau

“Let go of certainty. The opposite isn’t uncertainty. It’s openness, curiosity and a willingness to embrace paradox, rather than choose up sides. The ultimate challenge is to accept ourselves exactly as we are, but never stop trying to learn and grow.”― Tony Schwartz

Curiosity
Interest
Inquiry
Seeking
Discovery
Surprise
Spaciousness
Playground, open field, horizons
Fresh eyes, new landscapes.

“It’s a transformative experience to simply pause instead of immediately fill up the space. By waiting, we begin to connect with fundamental restlessness as well as fundamental spaciousness.― Pema Chodron

Aug 16

1 Comment

Elevate

“I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestionable ability of man to elevate his life by conscious endeavor.” – Henry David Thoreau

“You get your intuition back when you make space for it, when you stop the chattering of the rational mind. The rational mind doesn’t nourish you. You assume that it gives you the truth, because the rational mind is the golden calf that this culture worships, but this is not true. Rationality squeezes out much that is rich and juicy and fascinating.”― Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird

Quiet to hear.
Pause to redirect.
Anchor to transcend.
Elevate with curiosity, exploration, iteration, emergence, unfamiliar, unfolding, mystery, awe and wonder.

“Meditation is to dive all the way within, beyond thought, to the source of thought and pure consciousness. It enlarges the container, every time you transcend. When you come out, you come out refreshed, filled with energy and enthusiasm for life.” – David Lynch

Jun 17

2 Comments

This Hour, This Day

“Peace is always beautiful.” ― Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass

“Happiness, not in another place but this place…not for another hour, but this hour.”― Walt Whitman

Life expands and deepens when we don’t put it in a small box to make us feel comfortable.
Assuming the best in others will certainly burn us once in a while.
Assuming the worst in others will certainly burn us all of the time.
Inquiry leads to discovery.
Ask, listen, learn.
Change your mind.
Curiosity, the key to unlock what resides beneath the surface.
Open the door. And window.
Cross the threshold.
Fresh open air.
Big, beautiful world here and now.

“Be curious, not judgmental.” – Walt Whitman