monkey
My creativity has been taking a visual twist lately, and so posting the newest monkey sketch of a stuffed toy seemed appropriate…
Enjoy!
Namaste.
Image copyright 2007, One Mystical Monkey. All rights reserved. Please do not take, alter or use this image without prior written consent. Thank you.
monkeyishness
Restless,
Unsettled,
Anxious and bored.
Looking this way
and that way
for some escape
from the ordinary
and mundane.
Monkey mind
constantly chattering
nonsense.
Monkey mind begets
monkey actions
begets monkey decisions
and monkey emotions.
Hoping for external solutions,
and searching for alternatives,
Escape is not an option.
Reality is what we make it.
Whether constantly waving in the wake of
emotions and mind
thoughts and actions
Or still, as the calm that overcomes a pool
in Winter.
The true peace comes from within.
Is known only within the depths
of the soul,
the spirit,
If one can only settle enough
to listen,
to hear,
to feel with the heart,
and to reap the benefits.
shades of a dream
What has become an occasional recurring dream, this time it appeared with a new twist. Instead of confusion and indecision, although a bit of that remained, the message on this newer version of the dream was clear: Collect and sort through old and as yet unseen notes and papers, then close the door to those bits of past, those shades of ideas, leaving the key to them behind. Shuffle through them, without giving them too much credit, for they are too old now to be truly relevant. Revisit them just for some sense of closure and then go on, without looking back again.
The message is to end that chapter, to clear the confusion and to make decisions, to finish any old unfinished business and to then go forward. Go forward, by going back. Go forward by revisiting places and aspects of ‘what was’ which have haunted a bit… haunted enough to inhibit moving forward even though the influence was subtle. To identify the influences which have acted as a limiter on what can be, of what is. In some ways, the starting anew is to start once more from the “ground up” although the task/occupation at hand is old and familiar. Part of the task at hand is to search for the location and the means to accomplish the goal, for there is some unfinished business from a fresh perspective that it is now time to take on, resolve, and to metamorphose.
And so to pursue the details of what I must now pursue with fresh mind and spirit, releasing any remnants of confusion or indecision or irrelevant history and leaving them behind…
Salutation of the Dawn…
Listen to the Exhortation of the Dawn!
Look to this Day!
For it is Life, the very Life of Life.
In its brief course lie all the
Verities and Realities of your Existence.
The Bliss of Growth,
The Glory of Action,
The Splendor of Beauty;
For Yesterday is but a Dream,
And To-morrow is only a Vision;
But To-day well lived makes
Every Yesterday a Dream of Happiness,
And every Tomorrow a Vision of Hope.
Look well therefore to this Day!
Such is the Salutation of the Dawn!– Kalidasa
* I am unsure of the correct name of this poem or whether it is merely an excerpt from a larger work…
** Photo of Sunrise at Portland Head Lighthouse, Cape Elizabeth, Maine courtesy of freephoto.com
What’s in a Name?
The innate human quest for meaning and the drive to define ourselves on this plane can be a powerful thing. Sometimes meaning in one’s life can appear in the strangest places or at the strangest times. Other times, it is provided by the culture in which one lives or by the belief-systems to which we subscribe, such as the natural passage to puberty, Baptism or Bar Mitzvah in one’s faith, marriage, the birth of a child, the undertaking of a Vision Quest or other cultural rites, ancient or modern.
Teabox Wisdom
“Simplicity is an acquired taste. Mankind, left free, instinctively complicates life.”
– Katharine Fullerton Gerould
… and such is the reminder that perhaps I’ve been complicating things and allowing “life” to distract from Living and from the Wisdom of what IS.
Namaste.
Peace, Love and Light … even in those complicated moments.
Observational Twists
“Man’s mind once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimension.”
– Oliver Wendell Holmes
After spending so much time delving into and evaluating the Inner world, I’m suddenly drawn to looking at the Outer one once more. This shift in attention is partly due to the changes being wrought in the physical World and the dissolution of the artificial boundary between the inner and outer realms. It is time to make changes in the way we do things and the way we interact with each other. And these changes are happening. As a whole, we are shifting -evolving- to a more responsible, compassionate and sympathetic species.
Free Hugs
Humanity. The great race. We’ve conquered each other and our surroundings, explored the microscopic realm, the Earth and even ventured into space. So why is simple human contact like a hug such a thing to be frightened of? Have we become so disconnected from others of our species, so apathetic to the most basic expression of unconditional love, or so cynical and distrustful that we suspect ulterior motives with such actions? Are we so wrapped up in our own world that even envisioning a thing given, free of charge and sincere in motive, is beyond our imaginings?
What would your initial reaction be? Why?
You have now been hugged. How do you feel?
Love, Light … and Hugs!
Namaste.
ideological wake
Personal agendas and intentions. Most people have them; Few are willing to admit them. These impressions and influences are all around us. They are found in our daily lives from the people with whom we associate, the companies at which we work, as well as in our books and the news, art, dance, and other media. But regardless of whether a specific agenda is acknowledged, widely admitted, or kept secreted away in some corner of our consciousness, it remains in the world and provides influence to those who happen to come in contact with that person, that media or situation.
Airborne Balls
I admit it – right now, I’m not witty or inspiring or much of anything other than tired, and a bit disappointed that my time to write has been so limited lately. There are so many ideas, so many things about which to write, but not enough time to put together cohesive blog posts! I simply have too many balls in the air! So we may as well enjoy it….
For those of you who have never juggled, it’s actually quite a good way to focus, relax, and to have some fun! (And it’s not as hard to learn as you might think! 😉 )
Enjoy.
Namaste.