Early morning meditation

When we are beginning our day, especially if we know that it may be a stressful or intense one, we might consider taking a bit of time to reflect upon what really is upcoming; and reflect upon and internalize calm, contented feelings. It is easier to face stressful and hectic situations in a calm way by starting from a firm base of confidence and tranquility. Once we’ve grounded ourselves and taken on the idea of the responsibilities and tasks of the day we have them half-conquered already. Most surprises or unexpected twists and turns to the day can be dealt with prior to their happening if we hone our minds to sharpness by rising a touch earlier than usual to prepare oneself for almost any eventuality. When we’re running late and must hurriedly dress and run out the door we are thrown out of our usual routine and this can lead to disaster. Not only has our routine been hugely disturbed, we try to get back to it and usually fail by trying too hard to do so. Once one thing does not go our way we put ourselves in the path of mishap since we are no longer in places at times we are used to. Whether we meditate formally or stick to a set routine, we are better for both or either during our everyday lives. Doesn’t a calm, thoughtful beginning to the day lead to a more satisfying end to it?

To thrive

Humans are all of one species, we will thrive in very different climates, cultures, and mental environments.  But it can be seen that a person raised in one climate has difficulty in adjusting to another and may never do so; this inability applies also to culture and mental adaptation. Our environment is central to our well-being and the closer we come to living in an environment that matches our physical, cultural, and mental capacities, the happier and more well-adjusted we will be. When we are happy and well-adjusted we thrive and can grow and prosper. Unfortunately many of us cannot or are not willing to relocate to a place where they can thrive. One can look at this behavior as unreasonable if one is looking only at the well-being of one particular person, but one can never do that. Since we are social beings we must be in contact with our natural families as well as one or more other communities we belong to for support and pleasure. Everyone’s ideal environment is somewhat different so any given group of people will have some people contain some who are not in the best place for their physical and mental make-up. This confuses the issue, we may not know we could theoretically make a choice to find a place to thrive, and we may not want to if the others we feel close to might choose another place. Is it more important for us to thrive or is it more important to maintain our group identities?

Following a rainbow

I’ll be following a rainbow for the next few days; as rainbows are transitory, I’ll need to pause and return next week. Have a safe time and I hope you’ll enjoy all of it.

Distortion

Most of the time we think we’re seeing things exactly as they are, or we may think we are not seeing things exactly as they are, but both assumptions are quite likely incorrect. It is true, when we  look and things and try to see them dispassionately and accurately, we are seeing them exactly as they are to us. What we tend to forget is that everyone sees things just a little bit differently. What is pleasing to one person is anathema to another and vice versa. We could be denying what really is if we don’t want to see it for some reason, even though the consensus of the group we identify with shows us what most of our society believes. A consensus about perceptions, morals,  scientific ‘facts,’ and behaviors is what binds a society together. An action or belief held by one societal group is often perceived by another to be impossible to understand, offensive, and wrong. With tolerance of other societies’ ‘distortions’ we can forge a whole planet community where we could live without disagreements leading to war and atrocities. Then the trials and tribulations we need to deal with would be natural disasters, troubles that do not have to do with humans and their opinions. With acceptance of what we define as distorted world views we could focus on the health and well-being of the planet and the inhabitants on the planet. Is proving you are right more important than life?

Shelter

No matter how rudimentary it may be, we all want and need shelter of some kind as we move along through our lives. It may be shelter from the elements, shelter from others, or shelter from our own actions and the consequences of those actions, but we do require some relief. We may run for shelter and hide, we may anticipate shelter and embrace the comfort, or we may take our shelter for granted and neglect it. But we should remember that we are not sheltering ourselves, we are taking shelter within a physical object, leaky or whole, or we are taking advantage of another being to keep us from harm or contact with others. We should be wary of relying too much upon taking shelter at all, we should try to expose ourselves to the world beyond, take the consequences of our actions, or explore new horizons. Staying encapsulated in one space, large or small, stunts our growth and warps our perceptions. One can become too comfortable in a familiar and comforting place and forget the appeal of challenges and the opportunities for expansion in pursuing new mental and physical things. The allure of staying put and not even maintaining the shelter you already have can be overwhelming, but at the very least taking care of your escape from the outside world should be a priority, and that maintenance itself will get you out into the larger arena. Even though shelter is a necessary thing, isn’t it also necessary to leave your shelter at times?