Adventure

Well, I'm sitting here in the hostel in Flagstaff reflecting on the amazing day I've had. It has been so much fun going on an adventure. It's been so long. Well, since August anyways. I've realized that I want to live a more adventurous life. I don't think that necessarily even means traveling more. There is so much I don't even do in Utah. I vow to start being more adventurous in my own back yard!

Today, take a risk
Step out of your comfort zone
Come on, you want to.

Accomplished

Today, I finished my first sewing project since Home Ec in junior high. I sewed a shirt for my halloween costume. I discovered something interesting during this project. It is very meditative to be involved in artistic pursuits. I definitely think any activity that is repetitive or monotonous in our life can be turned into a meditation. That is my thought for the day!

Green green grass withers to brown
As leaves cover it like a blanket.
Sleep little grass, you'll soon awake.
When Spring comes singing again.

Busy days

Some days get a little busy, but it's a good reminder to just breathe and the universe will see to it that everything works out in a beautiful amazing way.

Simplicity.

Fall

It's a beautiful snowy day today. It reminds me of a truth: all seasons wax and wane and come and go. Such is life. I find myself casting off many old patterns at the moment. In a way, I feel like the tree shedding its leaves. The winter of my life is upon me. A stage of rest and reflection to lead to a new spring filled with an even greater abundance. The leaves would only rot on my branches if I chose to leave them where they are. No, I must shed the old ways of being and make room for the new. It is the message of autumn to me. I go thoughtfully and soberly into hibernation.

Fallen leaves of orange and red
Blow across a land chilled and dead
Do not weep for what is past
Look instead at what may come at last
New life fuller than the old
Happiness bigger, brighter, more bold.
Life will turn and turn again.
Unfolding to where? It's not known to men.

Giving things up...

Today I thought I would write about a topic that has come up a lot in several different conversations lately. It has been interesting to see other perspectives on it. That topic is releasing and letting go of things. Lately, I feel that I have been doing this quite a bit. I have heard several friends mention that they felt I was denying myself something. I find this really interesting because I don't feel like I've been denying myself anything. I feel quite the opposite. I feel that by letting go of old habits and ways of being that I've made room in my life for something new to take root and grow. I feel more spiritually in tune than I ever have. I feel truly happy and energetic for the first time since I was a child. Denying myself? Perhaps. I think what I've really been doing is denying myself connection. To participate in something that no longer serves is to deny oneself the chance of adventure and the unknown. I may be called weird or crazy for it, but I know that I have got to march to the beat of my own drum wherever that beat may lead me down this crazy path called life. That's all there is to it :)

I've got to run free neath the skies
I'm choosing to create my paradise.

Sexuality

Well, I'm getting ready for an afternoon run and then lots and lots of sewing. I got this. i got this. My thought for today is about sexuality and the dreaded s-word: sex! Lately, I've been wondering if we have been completely misled by our culture and prevailing dogma. Are we missing out on an intimacy so powerful that just several tastes of it could last a lifetime? I happened upon this idea recently in some reading. I've begun to wonder. We're told that we are sexual beings, that this is how we are. But is it? What if actually this was programming to lead us away from love and intimacy? I've been wondering. Perhaps even married couples are the same as unmarried. Maybe we're all marching down the wrong road. So, time to delve into and experiment with. Perhaps it is possible to transcend our baser nature and have intimacy that makes anything else we've experienced look like a joke. I think the possibility alone makes it worth the effort.

I love me,
I love me not,
But that's just life.

Discomfort

We all go through periods of relative ease and relative discomfort. I know that yesterday I had a moment of discomfort with the processes of my body. It's a lesson that there is not necessarily a cure all in life. Even if I was living my ideal circumstances, things would still come up. Meditation and yoga together have taught me that I can breathe through anything. What a tremendous gift that is! Words cannot describe how blessed I feel to have the knowledge that I may not control external circumstances yet I can still control my response to them. Another thing that came up for me yesterday was that I can choose to send love to those that irritate me. Nothing switches your vibration faster than that. Well, time to go for a run. Thank you God for this day!

I am complete,
There's nothing missing.
I'm a masterpiece from birth.
It's only my own meddling
Over and over
That obscures my perfection.

Gratitude and focusing on the Positive

Today, I had a reminder that I can't change everything in my life at once. I can't expect to be living on 2.5 acres that make me a completely self-sufficient food grower tomorrow. That would be too much too soon anyways. I am going to continue living as I'm living and doing what I'm doing. The inevitable end is that one day soon I will end up in this situation. Another thing is I'm starting to believe in humanity again. Skepticism has been replaced by optimism. Resignation has been replaced by hope. I no longer doubt that we all have so much more potential than is being expressed. I'm starting to see everyone including myself as perfect beings that have forgotten their own innate perfection. I can't make everyone else remember, but I can start living in a way that will awaken my perfection again. We have all been given so much by the Great Mind.

Doubting only strengthens my paralyzation,
While the tiniest amount of hope stokes the embers.
Someday is too far away,
So today I'll take just a step forward in the storm
Knowing that step will lead to another and another.
Till one day I find myself home again.

What a beautiful fall...

I felt so blessed today as I cruised all over town on my bicycle. It truly was a magnificent day in Salt Lake City. My thoughts today center around what I have been learning from studying permaculture. Basically, permaculture is a theory of living that involves creating as close to natural systems as possible to alleviate the work required to maintain them. The idea is that nature maintains itself perfectly. In particular, they talk about passing on what you don't need and not hoarding an excess of anything. That really got me thinking. How quick am I like most people to throw things I feel I don't need away? I really want to start implementing this practice in my life. I was actually thinking how cool it would be if I got rid of my garbage can altogether. What if I started using only materials I could recycle? What if I composted all the remnants of my produce? Hey, I won't change the world just by this alone, but I will most surely change my world. So, I vow to start working my way towards zero impact on the environment. One thing that will be rough is the cat litter. I'll have to think how to go about phasing out that waste. Life is certainly beautiful! Let's keep the world beautiful!

I'm only a drop in ocean, but a drop can overflow the levy.
I'm only a needle in a hay stack, but that needle can tip the balance.
Why try to change what others do?
Why not start by changing you?

Thank you

Dear God,
Thank you for all you have given. I have nothing to ask of you who has given me everything from the start.

David

Thought for this Saturday

I think my thought for today is about authenticity. I had something come up today: a situation where I'm afraid of being honest because it might ruin a friendship. As I sat in meditation today, I was reminded that honesty is the best policy always. If the friendship cannot survive a little honesty, it's not a friendship at all. So, I guess it's time to buck up and be honest!

I am me, nothing more nothing less.
But isn't that just the best?

Peace and Joy

Today I re-discovered that in any moment I can choose to be in a space of love towards the world or an otherwise negative space. I watched today as everything went smoothly and effortlessly simply because I felt happy. I watched as people became friendly. I have never had more people smile and say hi to me ever. It's an interesting correlation. The world can sometimes seem like such an awful place. I've had the exact opposite kind of day. Same world. Different me. Make me think quite a bit. Also, one other thought I had today was that man is not fallen. Man is asleep. We never fell. We simply forgot. All of the knowledge that could enlighten the world is contained within each of us. So, instead of lamenting the nature of man, let's strive one by one to shift our own nature and thus reawaken to the true potential of man. Much better than complaining while doing nothing I think. (And too often I have found myself in the boat of complainers.)

Yesterday,
It's a perfume lingering in the air.
Yesterday tempts me to forget.
Like a seductive lady, and me the married man
Only that goddess, the present can fulfill.
Go back to the night yesterday.
I remember you no more.

You are amazing!

Look in the mirror and see the piece of divinity staring back at you. You are amazing! Don’t let anyone ever tell you otherwise. You are beautiful, powerful, passionate, kind, charismatic, and not too mention alluring. People would die just to get to know you better. There is a light within you that when you let it shines and lights up a room. Suddenly, you become that person that everyone stares at when he or she walks in. No one knows why, but they can’t help but notice the confidence radiating outwards from this man or woman. It makes them feel a little more confident themselves. Remember, you have the power. That’s something no one can ever take away from you. Walk around today with that knowledge and only good can come your way.

I looked in a mirror and saw God staring back at me.
He smiled.

Honoring our bodies

I declare today to be revel in your body day! Seriously, we benefit from our amazing bodies almost every moment, yet do we ever stop to say thank you? I'm so glad that I've finally learned the value of taking care of this amazing space suit. Yessir! So, that's really all I wanted to say today! Go do something nice for your body today! Run, hike, get a massage. There are really a million possibilities. :)

Harmony and disharmony
Together make a symphony.

A beautiful day for a run

Today, I'm thinking about little. I mainly am basking in the moment. It's the perfect day for a run. My thought today is that joy is always available in each moment if we choose it. I wish love, light, joy, and grace to all today!

One

Meditation has been interesting lately. With the intense energies of 10/10/10 yesterday I found myself to be a bit all over the place. I think one of the greatest lessons meditation teaches us is to just let things be what they're going to be. It's a beautiful lesson, a hard lesson but still a good one to learn. Meditation teaches us to let go of the need to control how things develop and unfold. It imparts a sense of neutrality at the ups and downs of life. May I never forget my lessons learned sitting on a pillow with my eyes closed watching my breath. :)

I'll write a song so quiet,
You'll strain to hear.
Hoards will be stilled by it
Cupping their ears.

What is he saying?
What is that melody?
A haunting refrain
Tugs at me.
What is this song?
So unobtrusive and low?
It calls me.
Though I don't know why.

beautiful day again..

What a beautiful day! I feel blessed to be alive for it! So, my thoughts for today were about energy and well-being. What drains us? What makes us tired? Why are children so full of energy and a thirst for life? What if we could return to that childlike state? I've wondered a lot about this. I have had an incredible amount of energy lately actually. It has shocked me in some ways. I still have those difficult days where I feel drained though. What if every day could be wonderful? I wonder. I shall reflect and meditate on this and see what comes up! Already I feel a lot of it has to do with our artificial way of living. I will see what I learn though!

I'm bathed in light
Safe and sound at night.
I'm free to dream
Of ethereal things.

Thoughts for the day...

Ice cream castles in the air. I'm looking at the positive side of things today. I think life is better when I'm in that space. Ahhh. So, I'm going to keep this short today because I want to be out in nature and doing things. That and I want to go to Core yoga in 2 hours. So... My thoughts for today are that rather than protesting what we don't want, just put your vote for what you do want. This came up for me particularly around a certain religious issue lately. You know what? Let people believe what they want to believe, and I'll believe what I want to believe. It really isn't my business what anyone else thinks about me or about my sexuality. I'm not here to prove anything to anyone. That's the wonderful thing about this world: the variety of people and ideas. Why not celebrate that instead of getting upset?

Freedom is a choice in each moment.
What do you choose?

Thoughts for today...

I was thinking today about how magnificent my body is. It is a perfect functioning complex machine. Scientists are learning more and more everyday, but still it remains an enigma. I love this gift to me from the Universe, from God. What an experience. I was overcome today by the amazing beauty of my own body and how poorly I've treated it in the past. I actually looked in a mirror for the first time ever and thought: "Wow, I'm beautiful." Not in a vain way, not in an ego-driven way to compensate for any feelings of insecurity. I was just enjoying my own unique beauty. There has never been anyone on this planet that is exactly like me, nor will there be ever again. That is just incredible! How could I not recognize the beauty of that? How could I not see how beautiful and perfect I am?

There is perfection in every freckle, flaw, and bauble.
Look in the mirror and see it for what it is.
To do otherwise is to spit in the face of the greatest gift giver ever.

Exercise is a spiritual practice

I discovered today as I was doing my morning run that running is as spiritual as meditating or yoga. Actually, when I'm present to my breath while I'm running that's yoga! Ha. I think that the physical aspect of us is intrinsically linked to the spiritual. To claim to be one without the other is silly. I haven't taken good care of this wonderful body in the past. I've polluted it with unhealthy food and habits. That is now a thing of the past. I now see that by tending to my own temple, I don't need to go hunting a spiritual/sacred space. I actually take it with me wherever I go!

I am physical for a reason,
This body is a home.
It's the only home I have
I'll fill it with life and light
This temple will shine like a lighthouse
Guiding me out of the storm of my fears and doubts.

What I discovered for myself about sexual energies...

I wanted to share the insight I had a while back about why we are sexual beings. I'm not presenting this as universal truth, but rather truth for me gained through reflection and meditation. Why do we have the sexual impulse? We are different from animals in the sense that we can and do have sex for pleasure. In order to better understand these energies for myself, I completely abstained from anything sexual for 2 weeks. I had an incredible realization bubble up as a result. What I learned is that society tends to bombard us with unrealistic and unattainable images that cause us to find fault with our marvelous temples (bodies.) We begin to attach longing and self-loathing to the unattainable image. I haven't met very many people that are happy in their own skin. Everyone wants to be thinner, smoother, tanner, more symmetrical, etc. What if we all saw ourselves as beautiful, desirable, and perfect? It's an interesting thought. Now, how these images attach into sex has to do with the tendency of the mind to fantasize. What I learned while abstaining was that fantasy disconnects me from the real. It disconnects me from appreciating myself and my body as well as that of my lover. Suddenly, it became clear to me that sex was meant to be a way of showing appreciation and love to he/she whom we love. Sex can be an act that recognizes the divinity in another as well as ourself. How did we get railroaded off to the path we're on now? I'll leave that for another day... Knowing this has changed not only my relationship with me, but also my future relationship with him whom I will love. I'm very grateful that the Ringing Cedars series triggered this desire to reflect. The payoff has been tremendous.

If you cannot see God in everything upon the Earth, you have never and will never see God.

Let others make you wrong, let it be

Today is a beautiful day. I’m discovering that the more I can adhere to my practice of meditation, writing, and exercise, the better I feel. I have noticed a surge of creative productivity lately. I definitely partially credit my meditation practice and dietary change. It’s amazing to watch what unfolds and develops. I can’t believe that it has been a month since I’ve had any caffeine, any alcohol, and any unhealthy food period. Also, my running has been consistent and building. I’m setting the intention of training for a marathon. My thought for the day stems out of something that came up for me recently. I should say something that triggered me. I sometimes make it wrong that others make me wrong. Ha! It sounds silly written out, but there it is. It’s something I do a lot. Through meditation and reflection I want to be able to accept when others make me wrong and let that be right for them. Wow. What a radical thought! I can see how much happier it would make me though right off the bat. I would no longer need to work so hard trying to convince people that they are wrong to make me wrong. Let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be. Ahh. Words of wisdom!

Pushing against doesn’t move anything,
It only strengthens that which I don’t want.
Instead, let me learn to walk away.
Let it be alright.

Beautiful day...

So, I wanted to focus on gratitude today. I feel so blessed for everything I have in my life. I have a wonderful business that allows me to get paid doing what I love. I have had so many wonderful mentors and teachers in my path of growth and development. I feel like I have had more than my fair share of amazing people in my life. I have many wonderful friends that I love dearly and I know love me dearly. I'm grateful for the opportunity to learn and grow. I'm grateful for the challenges that life affords me. Ahhh. It really is so brilliant. Even the tough stuff is so worth it!

I love you world!

Well, well, well...

The wheel turns again upwards. I'm feeling much better today. Ahhh. What a beautiful day it truly is! I want to dance and sing and frolic through fields of wildflowers. :) Well, I'll be doing that soon enough with Emily and King. My thought for today was that we all must start creating spaces of love exactly where we are right now. I feel truly blessed to be aware enough to start this endeavor. I've been transforming my surroundings into a space that delights and seduces me. Life is about those little steps that taken together truly move the foundation of our life for the better.

Bliss is here in every moment,
Treasure it for sorrow is the other side of the coin.