Skip to content

Posts from the ‘Everyday’ Category

Feb 4

Open Water

“In oneself lies the whole world and if you know how to look and learn, the door is there and the key is in your hand. Nobody on earth can give you either the key or the door to open, except yourself.” – Jiddu Krishnamurti

Frozen by our resistance to change, we hold firm to our predictable world. And as we grasp to familiarity, change marches on, prompting us to move with it,  to become. When we worry less about change that is inevitable, we open up to being changed and growth ensues.

As we open to being transformed, the frozen surface we’ve built to protect us cracks under the current moving deep within, an unstoppable force. Release the need for control and let the water furl and float with a natural sacred ease grounded in faith and grace.

“Time is a sort of river of passing events, and strong is its current; no sooner is a thing brought to sight than it is swept by and another takes its place, and this too will be swept away.” – Marcus Aurelius

“Time is a sort of river of passing events, and strong is its current; no sooner is a thing brought to sight than it is swept by and another takes its place, and this too will be swept away.” – Marcus Aurelius

 

Jan 24

What’s Real and True

“To know yourself as the Being underneath the thinker, the stillness underneath the mental noise, the love and joy underneath the pain, is freedom, salvation, enlightenment.” – Eckhart Tolle

While the world measures “success” by distance, speed and status, our life is truly lived and measured by depth, connection and substance found in simple moments. Foster joy, depth and meaning each day. What’s real and true is right in front of you, right now.

“Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm and harmony.” – Thomas Merton

“Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm and harmony.” – Thomas Merton

Jan 21

But a Moment More

“We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures that we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open.” – Jawaharlal Nehru

“We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures that we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open.” – Jawaharlal Nehru

“I said to myself, I’m going to quit complaining! I’ll keep quiet especially when the ungodly are around me. But as I stood their silently the turmoil within me grew to the bursting point. The more I mused, the hotter the fires inside. Then at last I spoke and pled with God: Lord, help me realize how brief my time on earth will be. Help me to know that I am here but a moment more.” – Psalms 39:1-6

It is so easy and tempting to join in with the complainers, the “chirpers.” Those who criticize and choose to see nothing but shadow. But the chirping merely breeds more of the same, producing nothing of value. The higher road has plenty of room for all and often a hard one to take. But with one step at a time and an acute awareness that we are here but a moment, the high road is the only journey worth the trip. So when the choice arises, and it will several times a day, choose light. See the beauty, be the beauty.

Jan 15

2 Comments

Bouquet

“Any idiot can face a crisis – it’s day to day living that wears you out.” – Anton Chekhov

In a crisis-filled world, some chance and much self-inflicted, may we move into each day with intention, fortitude and utter gratefulness of our gifts. Blessings are rooted deeper than weeds, yet we often miss them as we lament the weeds. When we lighten up, laugh and let go, we awaken to our life that is planted and blooming in everyday, simple and profound moments.

May your senses be overwhelmed with the fragrance, boldness and beauty in each petal of the bouquet of this day.

Dec 27

9 Comments

Off Leash

“All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on.” – Havelock Ellis

To explore unhindered
To release the longing spirit
To wander into wonder
To discover adventure where you’ve walked before
To find what has always been in reach

Off leash of what binds and holds you back

Free from self-imposed limitations
Free from expectations
Free from the past and future
Free from maps, plans and time
Free to embrace and be embraced

Go off leash today and take it all in.

“The ground we walk on, the plants and creatures, the clouds above constantly dissolving into new formations - each gift of nature possessing its own radiant energy, bound together by cosmic harmony.” – Ruth Bernhard

“The ground we walk on, the plants and creatures, the clouds above constantly dissolving into new formations – each gift of nature possessing its own radiant energy, bound together by cosmic harmony.” – Ruth Bernhard

Dec 18

2 Comments

Stuck in the Mud

“There is an eagle in me that wants to soar, and there is a hippopotamus in me that wants to wallow in the mud.” – Carl Sandburg

We often get stuck in the mud of moments of turmoil and the dailyness of living, losing the 360 degree view. Whether longing for the past, worried about the future or thinking what’s happening now will last forever.

Surface over depth.

Being present in the moment gives us acute awareness of and appreciation for all that is, the entire three dimensional picture of blessings and challenges, vivid color and hues of gray, faith and doubt, light and dark.

Abundance over scarcity.

When stuck in the mud, keep moving, digging your way out so your world can come back into full height, width and depth of all that is in the now and the promise of all that is to come, little by little, step by step.

Delight over delusion.

“I made all my generals out of mud.” – Napoleon Bonaparte

“I made all my generals out of mud.” – Napoleon Bonaparte

Nov 24

6 Comments

Chief Fun Officer

“Gratitude bestows reverence, allowing us to encounter everyday epiphanies, those transcendent moments of awe that change forever how we experience life and the world.” – John Milton

When the day’s demands weigh heavy, simple moments pull me back to the anchor of gratitude. And a sudden awareness of all that is most important fills the space. When I stray off course to the past or the future, my CFOs (Chief Fun Officers) Lily and Molly straighten me out and show me how to let it go and lighten up.

May you be anchored in gratitude and celebrate Thanksgiving each day. And by all means, take the advice of your CFOs. Better yet, become one.

“Joy is the simplest form of gratitude.” – Karl Barth

“Joy is the simplest form of gratitude.” – Karl Barth

Nov 22

A Drop

“Every particular in nature, a leaf, a drop, a crystal, a moment of time is related to the whole, and partakes of the perfection of the whole.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Depth and connection are found in each moment, a drop at a time. Meaning and understanding grow with time in the ocean of the drops of our days. In between, we find peace and contentment in trust and faith that it will all make sense and the story ends as it should.

In the present moment, a drop and day at a time, is where we are meant to remain awake and aware. For the past resides in the vast ocean and the future waits its turn to enter into the present, a drop at a time.

“A jug fills drop by drop.” – Buddha

“A jug fills drop by drop.” – Buddha

Nov 18

1 Comment

The Long Cut

“We choose our joys and sorrows long before we experience them.” – Khalil Gibran

The three day rain stopped this morning and clear blue skies holding up the sun replaced the clouds. I decided to go a different route to work. At the bottom of the hill, cars were backed up at a standstill. After waiting for a minute, many cars started to turn around to find another route. Normally, that would be my first instinct, find the short cut and rush to my destination. No time for delay. Instead, I stayed on the road, starting and stopping, moving slowly and looking around at all of the scenery that I normally race past. Turning the curve, the sun hovered over the lake beaming through the trees.

“There are no shortcuts to any place worth going.” – Beverly Sills

“There are no shortcuts to any place worth going.” – Beverly Sills

In grateful awe, I stopped and let it in. Taking the long cut set the course for the day. Calm, slow and steady. Had I found a short cut, I would have missed the beauty waiting to be noticed, longing to be embraced and held.

In a short cut, hurry up world, we are invited to take a new path, to change course and awaken to all that is right now. Slow down and I would highly recommend that you take the long cut. It’s a beautiful ride.

Nov 14

4 Comments

The Gift

“Reaching this agreement between what is human and what is spiritual is the practice of meeting the world with vulnerability and acceptance until who we are releases what we know. Clearly, we are both the flawed human being hacking through the brush and the hawk-like spirit gliding to what matters. We are the troubled apprentice, never sure what to do, nudged by our deep knowing spirit toward yes, even when we don’t know what we are saying yes to.” – Mark Nepo, The Endless Practice

Another week “hacking through the brush” at work was interrupted when a co-worker and friend Nicki stopped by to share the joy of her new baby boy and the delight of a proud spitfire sister in tow. The staff gathered around to soak it in. During the visit, she handed me a bag with my birthday gift. I put it in my office, rushed around a bit more and then finally sat down for a moment to open it.

She created a beautiful custom calendar with photos from the Cast Light blog and my quotes throughout. I sat quietly and my eyes welled up, instantly my “hacking” moved to “hawk-like spirit,” brought back to what matters, to what we know.

A true friend knows us and they hold up a mirror that only shows our best selves. Lately, I’ve been on auto-pilot of getting things done as quickly as possible because the “list” keeps growing. But we can never go fast enough for what the world throws at us and what we so readily accept as necessity. However, we can choose a different path, a different way.

“The practice of being human is the practice of coming awake, staying awake and returning to wakefulness when we go to sleep…This opening and closing is part of the human journey. Therefore the practice of being a spirit – in a body, in the world – is a practice of returning to our center where we can know the world fully. This return to center is a foundational form of saying yes to life.” – Mark Nepo, The Endless Practice

“The practice of being human is the practice of coming awake, staying awake and returning to wakefulness when we go to sleep…This opening and closing is part of the human journey. Therefore the practice of being a spirit – in a body, in the world – is a practice of returning to our center where we can know the world fully. This return to center is a foundational form of saying yes to life.” – Mark Nepo, The Endless Practice

The gift that she gave was much more than the calendar and the visit, which was plenty. It was a much needed reminder to slow down, enjoy each day and be ever so grateful. She generously shared her joy and delight, that glow that comes when you realize all of the blessings that are already present to us. And we can give that gift to one another as we see someone struggling, hacking. We can pull each other to our spirit, our purpose. The gift is now. Accept it and give it away.

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »