Peace joy and fear in the mirror

PEACE, JOY, AND FEAR IN THE MIRROR PART II

Well  to sum up so far (like in the previous entry)   Fear gets a bad rap when it comes to  most the self-help folks.  It seems  like fear is saomehow a fault  or a weakness.  Horse-hockey  I say...it’s  normal and  helpful and often a signal that  it’s time to reflect and change.  Besides, the argument that. Happiness or success comes  after or because. You will face. Your fear seems pretty odd given  it sets up a classic “if/then” sequence.  Or. A you’ll get x when y plot line.  You. Become afraid. In unclear circumstances when your perceived  control is shaken and possible. Futures don’t seem to  match up with current  values.  This   Happy after facing fears  set up flies in the face of  the argument that  the path to happiness or that feeling is is felt within and in the preasent.  

Okay let’s  start there...you know at the place where being afraid is not. A fault and you can recognize when you are afraid.  Let’s add in the element. Of being. Able to  ask yourself a few questions (see questions from yesterday) to identify just where you stand.  Next...what comes next?

Well...going back to yesterday (or whenever you may have. read the previous entry)....What fears do you try to face on on your own?  

Trick question.....easy answer.... and the answer will be a question.  

Do you think you are the only one who has. had this fear you are dealing with?  Are you the only one involved in the circumstances of your fear right now?  Will how you act  possibly impact the experiences of others now or in the future?  Will someone else being able to learn from your fear eventually help them?  You see it’s not that hard.  If you don’t. seek help you are likely cheating yourself and a bunch of other people too..... but if you  think the answer  lies in a cold dark lonely place go ahead and  look there.  We’ve been sold the  concept. of the Lone  Ranger, the lonesome gunslinger,the true hero...what a load of garbage.  

Try not towait till you feel comfortable  with. sharing your fear—-IT’S FEAR! you aren’t goping to becomfortablewithit—Do you hear me now.

Alright...Iknow I usually don’t getthis directive or preachy...but I have suffered the illusion that  I was alone with  a number of fears and nearly every time I have realized that this is not the case and that  a lot of folks were there to help me or help themselves  by helping me....just saying.  

We have fear. to inform us not to hurt us.   

So what. this couple of days boils down to is this...

Try. not to  buy into the  “If then or I’ll be happy/successful”. logic that often getsconnected with fear.  Find  a bunch of resources by  undersatanding that fear is  a close cousin of stress, anxiety, or pain, but the folks  who  write about them are afraid of saying that life. gets rather scary sometimes....they want to sya “I’m cool....I’ve got this.”  

Finally, as long as you own. your response to fear get  off your backside and  try to help others with your fear and thereby  help  yourself.  

Ask the questions that help you seek a few. answers and then have confident that working together. it won’t matter which way. you go to unstuck, you and your army will turn that decision into something positive.  

Finally remember you can have a lot of the answers nearly all of them, unfortunately. a wise. person also knows they  won’t always  know all the questions.  

One last entry about this  tomorrow or the next day. Oak is 

Peace, joy, and your fear in the mirror

PEACE, JOY, AND THE FEAR IN THE MIRROR

There’s a whole truckload of self-help folks who will stand and  tell you “success” or happiness lies just on the other side of “fear.”  They call on us to “embrace” or face our fear and thus conquer it.  In theory  the same people are. Spot on, hitting the  right targets, in the zone,brilliant,  and have touched upon the ultimate key.  In reality....”

This idea is full of crap.  That’s right I say... this notion that  fear is bad has to go.  Firsat bexcause it’s not that simple, and second, to ignore it is to ignore a  sound in the dark  that allows us to be human and spiritual beings.  Go on?  Okay

The door creeks openand you walk from the light of a summer day into  a dusty pitch black  cellar.  You reach for the tinychain that hangs down from  a solitary  dim bulb.  One more step and you should  feel it.  You take that step feel the chain and pull.  It clicks but no light Just then you hear the sound of breaking  glass.

Why might  you feel fear?  

well .... let’s start with  the fact that your surroundings are unclear.  Let’s add in the fact that what you had expected to happen didn’t happen and is not likely to happen  moving forward.  Pile on  top of that the sound of breaking glass  (with the exception of some  ethnic celebrations) is not something that brings much comfort.  You didn’t  plan for this by bringing a flashlight because you knew the light was right there in reach every time you needed it.  Now it is not.  You wonder what happened and why?

So your best friend  gets into a car wreck—you get  sick for no aparent reason, Your  job disappears for. Any number of re3asons, Will you feel fear?  Yep unless you have no sense of empathy which makes us kind beings—unless you have no sense of purpose—and will not take responsibility for what has happened or will happen—-unless you have no need to bring  meaning to your experiences—in short unlesasa you  aren’t really a  genuine human/spiritual being.  

Fear is more than a mass of throbbing insecurity or a wall of uncertainty—though it can  be those things it is an instinct to preserve yourself long enough to  reset, reflect, and act.  It is a prompt to change because. What you were. Doing , the direction you were. Headed isn’t going to  last anymore.  fear  in other words can be quite valuable.  So should you celebratefear....not really but you can accept its invitation to reflect.  

So what of thisreflection?  How can this help. In seeking peace and/or joy?  Well every person is different so  the questions below are  just a few of the possible questions that might help folks seek peace and joy, or in other words these are  some that work for me most of the time.  

Do I feel fear because I am uncertain or is it  frustration and disappointment because I thought  I had control of this and now I do not?  Am I feeling fear because. I haven’t been here before and  add that control part from above?  Am I afraid  because none of the possible meanings of this. Fear prompting event allows  me to create a positive. Meaning, a meaning that aligns with the notions of I built  about my self or those around me?  In short is the. Question why unanswerable with  some  answer  you would have chosen?  Then I ask myself—what does the world expect of me?  Then Iscream at myself for asking. That because  I’m supposed to. Not worry about  that (especially when seeking my own peace and joy).  By the way the next question I ask is very important.... Do I ask what others think because I’m gathering  possible  building blocks for creating meaning or support or am I looking to  dismiss my responsibility for what happens  next?  Doesn’t this seem easy so far?  Well good...here comes the harder part... These questions  can be asked and answered,  however you will get  stuck in fear if you do one thing... Judge yourself or your answers.   These questions rate simply to  set the “you are here”. Spot.  You are not likely to get any traction in any direction  until you find that spot.  Your cannot create a map because. Unless. You know  where you are there is not place  to look forwards to and if you don’t know where you are going no map can get. You there, but any map is like to be the one you’ll reach for.  

Well that’s about enough street corner philosophy for one reading...tomorrow  my thoughts on facing your fears alone (usually not advisable but sometimes unavoidable). Or exposing your  fears to others and building  your toolbox for harnessing the power of ear.  

By the way that basement IS haunted in my opinion just. So that you know.  

Breathe.

Lessons from books?

LESSONS FROM BOOKS?

What might I learn about  the human/spiritual journey?

What  in the words the author uses reminds  me of me?  

What characters and their actions  seem like me or someone Iknow?

How did I feel when I was  reading/listening to this book?  

These are a few  of the questions to be. Asked when  engaged with any book.  It might be easier with  a work of fiction, but not always.  With non-fiction you can explore how the materials are. Presented.  Is it a narrative?  Is the outline of materials easy to. Understand for me?  If I had to write index cards or a PowerPoint is this book arranged in a way that. Would help/. 

Finally, how would. You explain this book (or teach)  the stuff inside) to somebody else.  

Well..those are the questions a book begs me to answer in order to  gather up the insights that  provide a learning space and thus for me provide  a treasure that leads to  further peace and joy.  

I know, I know, this has been a little deep (full of crap some might say) for some- and  yet  in order to build a compass for seeking peace and joy I have used books often and wanted to share.  There are. Other places where I’ve learned lessons for building a compass and the song in the video mentions some...

So  here are the  “rhymes—lyrics” that point. To. Some other sources of wisdom for me and what has resulted from my journey. Thus far.  Next Week since stores have Halloween things in them...maybe  I’ll take a look at  fears on the road to seeking peace and joy.

“Lessons”.  Lyrics

Pre-verse 

I’ve learned great lessons from professors and books

Graceful half-drunken women and burnedoutfry cooks

I thought it was time thatI passed them along

So I sat up one night and wrote down this song ...here it goes

Verse1 The wiser I get the more that I’ve found

Your body just carries your spirit around

There’s a new circus around every turn

And the best thing to do is pay attention and learn

And pass all these lessons to the next passers  by

try to enjoy life and understand why

But if why eludes you don’t  wallow in frets

don’t let your butterfly wings get weighed down with regrets and

Chorus 

Breathe and Stretch

And Dance your own dance

Laugh and  Smile when. Life gives you the chance

Verse 2 

You’ll rarely finish but. You’ll. Often restart

Take your. Brain with. You but follow your heart

And don’t compromise  on the things you might change

Understand  normal but celebrate strange

Don’t chase the chaos Nor worship control

Run it full throttle when you’re on a roll...and

Chorus

Verse 3

I’ve heard sermons in bar rooms and in churches learned “shoulds”

But some of the best prayers I’ve ever heard were whispered in. Woods

don’t be afraid to believe in forever

But be careful with words like always and never

Don’t shake your fist in the mirror when your patience wears thin

Every dream has it’s time don’t let apathy win ....and...

Chorus

You’ll try to help many

But you can’t  walk in their place

You can’t battle their demons

Especially ones they won’t face...

These are my lessons nearly all that I know

But if you learn half of these then you’ll find your glow and  you will have learned how to...

Chorus

Keep Learning!

Seeking peace and joy requires excepting change

ACCEPTANCE ON THE JOURNEY 

Today and tomorrow will be rhyme and song days.  The two  songs represent  themes in the books I described in the  earlier posts this week.  I’m pulling this  music video from  one of my YouTube channels and it is an oldie...but a goodie from. My perspective.   Anyway here is the rhyme (the lyrics) and Enjoy the shorter. Entry for today and tomorrow

Certainly seeking. Peace and joy requires understanding acceptance so here.goes...

acceptance 

By J. Whalen (with a big assist -borrowed. Some lyrics-from Mac)

My eyes are getting clearer...My feet are on the ground

I can feel this thing it’s turning around

There’s a channel of. Light thtat’s starting to glow

And it’s not the same as it was not long ago

When I was standing  here with my heart in my hand 

Not quite sure just who. Could understand

That gray  had stolen all my crayons

and a perfect storm hit my  perfect  plan

My. Map it now  has fuzzy lines

The road once  straight well now it winds.

One size fits all, but I’m not that size 

And I need those words ones from the  wise

Like scripturesa up upon the wall

Here are the words. That I recall

Chorus

 Life is a set of changes

From time to. Time they’ll rearrange us

Sweep us between safe and dangerousAs. The wheel of fortune spins to name us

Cracks our lenses then reframes us

Cracks our lenses then reframes us 

We can walk with saints but no one’s blameless

We can take the  rain drop and make the golden ray

Grab the magic from the moonlight and bring it to the lights of day

Find each and every promise lying  out there in the fray

But when we can’t  we must make peace with fact my friend that life is just that way

V2 

My Friend Bobby says “Ludes” 

Keep laughing from the  road less taken

Though midnight’s gone and you’re awake

Your body’s haunted by an an ache and 

The ground you swore you stand is quaking

Assumptions made they were mistaken

Your faith  holds on but it is shaken

The sages they sit quietly while the fools have much  to say

But you can find. An Isle of Hope in an ocean of  dismay because you know....

Chorus

V3

To you  more than most it will be known

Life’s what we share not what we own

Riches they’re not piles of gold

But the light in their eyes when their story is told

Surely  than can be progressing

Through the crying and confessing

Yes of course there’ll be some. Testing

And you’ll eat some salad without French dressing

But you’ll know each and every. Blessing... because. You know...

Chorus

Who moved my Peace And Joy?

WHO MOVED MY PEACE AND JOY?

Well between yesterday and today I went back and listened to “Hitchhiker’s Guide” and  Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance because it had been a while.  I also listened to  Abby Waumbach’s Wolfpack which  was based. On her  fairly famous commencement address.  I ran through a list of books I have on my phone and  ones I have read/listened to multiple times.  I was trying to end this  topic with the one book that has influenced me more than any other.  Well, after some deliberation I  have decided to admit I failed in choosing one.  After going back to listen. To a couple of my favorites this week it becomes pretty  evident that  my favorites have  held up over time, and yet they  have been important because  of the place and time I  have read or reread them.  Having said this, I did pick a “final” text to  talk about today.  

In a world where things  seem to change oh so quickly,  I thought  about “Who Moved My Cheese” by Spencer Johnson.  

It’s an. Old career development/organization change tale  about “little people and mice” who live in a che3ese maze and get comfortable with  the pile of cheese they have. Found at one cheese station and keep eating there until they. Have eaten all the cheese there.  They come to that old familiar. Spot one day and discover or at least think someone has moved their cheese.  The four inhabitants  of. This maze. Are  hem, haw, sniff, and scurry which described their  basic. Initial  reactions.  It’s a short story so.  I won’t give. You the whole spoiler  alert info, however, the bottom line is that 3 of the four eventually understand that they have to. Live with the change and explore in the maze to find new. Cheese and three of the four realize that  they need to always be  ready to seek out new cheese in unknown partsa of the maze.  

LSeeking peace and joy often includes understanding that something from  time to time in life will be taken  from you or slip away and that  you may face fear or go through a period of  being unaware.  After. Reading this again so  long ago I realized that for me seeking. Peace and joy requires  accepting change—whether I wanted it or not—and then I needed to or need to explore what is possible  at almost any given moment and in almost any place.  

To sum up this  book is about  the process of change and acceptance and in some ways about  learning to be hopeful about the “future” or more accurately about  the present in. Times after. Right now.  

So that wraps up the books I will  point to as important in my process as of learning about what I  have learned.  They all are sort of “quest” or journey works.  They all include  elements of loss or acceptance.  As I promised I will offer a “rhyme” in the form of lyrics and and a song....or two...because like the books one. Won’t quite  do it.  

So....here’s  a sneak peak at eh rhymes/lyrics for tomorrow and the next day.

“Acceptance”  verse two

My friend Bobby says Ludes...

Keep laughing from the road less taken

Though midnights gone and your awake and your body’s haunted by an aching 

The ground you swore you’d stand is. Quaking

Assumption made they were. Mistaken

Your faith’s not gone  but it is shaken

The sages they sit quietly While the fools have lots to say

But you can find an isle of hope in the ocean of dismay because........ (chorus—you’ll have to wait for it tomorrow..)

Lessons “pre-verse” 

I’ve learned  great lessons from professors and books

Graceful half-drunken women and burned. Out fry cooks

I thought it was time that I pass them along

So I sat up  one night and wrote down  this song ...here it goes

Mindfulness madness marketing and peace and joy

MINDFULNESS, MARKETING—PEACE AND JOY

Welcome back for third installment of my own “hitchhiker’s  Guide to the. Galaxy” of books that  have influenced my resources  for seeking peace and joy.  My journey with books has been a  very long and fruitful one, and Ifigure it will continue on, even though there are days when  I wish i would have learned a bit more about. “The  Art of  Motorcycle  Maintenance” to make the trip smoother.  

In the end, the more time I spend thinking, the more books compete for the last couple of reviews/comments.  

That being  statedI’m going to  highlight a couple works today that are good going solo and in my mind represent some  categories of  books that I have  explored in recent years.  

Mindfulness....

Wow... given how hot this  general concept has been. Lately it would have been  pretty difficult to wonder through much of a book selection without paying attention to, becoming aware of so to speak, a few books on mindfulness, neuroscience, and self-help.  Yes, I’m saying there is a mind-boggling mountain of mindfulness manifestos out there.  In fact Wherever You Go There You Are” able to find another  interesting  book.  So which  hit me with the most  force?  Well... several have provided insights on meditation. (Or prayer), yet in terms of actionable mindfulness to make a change I’m going a bit off the. Beaten path and highlighting  “make Your Bed” by William Harry  McRaven.  Why?  This book reminds me to focus on some of the little things every day and in the here and now.  It promotes mastery of some tasks and persistence.  The key principle of  taking personal responsibility for  yourself and making change that might help  others winds  throughout.  For. Me, it pretty much sums  up the ideas of paying attention to actual things and  being aware of things around you in such a way that you may impact the world in the current  time if you do that.  

Many purists would  claim that the book really isn’t the best example, however, I’mnot arguing that I’m a purist, nor. Are those people. Writing this—so ....  You can choose your own gurus.  In fact, I would argue you must do that after listening carefully with your soul.    That’s just me.  

In terms of seeking. Peace and joy this whole mindfulness   Category screams “pay attention to the gifts and challenges at hand.”  This book helps  me do that and it opens a space for peace and joy to become evident for me.  It’s time to move ahead...but before you read. More— breathe in and breathe out.

Marketing...

If there’s  one thing that’s hotter than  mindfulness—it’s marketing.   People  look to make more LinkedIn connections, have more facebook friends, more twitter followers, and and while the platforms change it is evident that social media  opportunities has changed. The way we  functionally get out our message to people close and far.  The book argues  “if you want  to make things better you have to make better things’—which to me means “try to do something of significant value and difference in relation to what’s in the public space now.  Godin argues that  each of us  can  make a unique contribution to the  market/world and it is. Our responsibility to go out and find the least number of people to make up our “tribe.”  If we want to give people  choices, we need to reach out to them and we have to find the parts of our. Message that will impact them in such a way that. They will work with us to bring about  changes.  In reading this it became evident. That  the expectation is on us to  share ideas and find the tribe, but then to  support the tribe as they promote what is now  your (and their) common choice.  

In short, this book promotes. The notions of being unique because you have gifts. That.  Enable you to be so.  It encourages the reader to infuse others with  a message or. With an action they already  want (to some degree). And argues that  this is really. The best way to  find  a collective  purpose.  I don’t apply it to. “Sellling”  so much as connecting and amplifying  ideas among peers.  It’s not about learning. Everything, but learning. A lot really well so that. You can share that.  Peace and joy are inner concepts, however they  often  happen in the context of a group and that is why the book has had an impact.

So today I offer books about being aware and unique.  The books are about becoming one with  yourself, your actions, and doing so in service to your purpose and those purposes you currently or hope to share with others.  Tomorrow I’ll offer one more book and  then I’ll turn the page on this topic for now.  

You can teach Amanda fish but what can you learn from A Fish?PEACE, JOY, SCIENCE, AND SYMBOLISM So this is “by the book” part 2. Why did I choose to highlight a bunch of books? Well it’s my way of suggesting how I use that. Avenue to seek some peace and joy and maybe things like this. Will point to ways you can free your mind right where you are and do it without fear. Books are a way to open new doors and make new conceptual connections...or at least they are for me. So having said that here are the next couple books on my list. Science... Let’s get into our time machine and go back a couple centuries. How’s that for living in the here and now? Seriously, it is difficult for us to realize that modern science and “scientific method” have not always been the way to “know” things. Before the “enlightenment” people looked to other sources for explanations of the things in life we couldn’t understand. Science took the place of mythology, religion, and magic as a way of figuring out. What was going on. It became our way of. Finding the truth or even the TRUTH. Liking math and statistics (notably probability) I found myself buying into this method fully until..well until I read— Thomas Kuhn’s “The Nature of Scientific Revolutions.” This book points out that science. Relies on a theory based upon facts and the idea that. We can study. Smaller and smalle bits of things until we know it all. What Kuhn argues is that we hold on to a theory (a way of understanding) until we find enough anomalies or things that don’t fit the theory. At that point. We develop another theory or set of theories. To. Explain these. Facts if possible. He also argues that we may not be getting any closer to what is in reality going on in nature or in our minds because we replace one structure or theory with another. In other words, science, like mythology is no more or no less than an “as if” explanation for things we experience. So this book talks about “truth” and how difficult it is to come up with a stable definition of Truth with a T. Kuhn did not say to abandon the facts. He said be open to their interpretation because interpretations change. To me this meant two people could. Agree on what they “experienced” and yet assign different meanings to that experience. So is there a truth or something that is true? Yes and using the scientific method of testing the. Null hypothesis (trying to prove the opposite is true to eliminate the fact that something is probably true) one would ask What if nothing could be proven to be true? Well here is the beauty in asking that. If you could find nothing to be absolutely true you could propose the statement “There is. No such things as true.” Well That cannnot happen because if that statement is true then there is at least one truth. So we cannot. Prove there is. Not something. That is true. Anyway, here’s the bottom line on this book. It helped me to understand that people work with different theories to explain what they experience and these theories function for them until they don’t. I have my. Theories and you have yours and while a shared meaning for things depends upon understanding. Each other’s underlying. Notions we don’t need to judge each other because we believe our theory is right and all others are wrong. We can simply explain why. These principles work for us and hope others understand. Symbolism.... Hemmingway’s ‘The Old Man and the Sea” is the next book that has. Opened my horizon. This at the bare bones level is about a fisherman who catches the fish of. His dreams after a long. Dry spell and then in the processs of bringing this huge Gamefish in it gets desatroyed by sharks that pick up on the blood trail that happens as the fisherman captures the huge fish that he brought in. By the time the old man returned to shore the fish was completely gone and he had become injured and exhausted. There are a number of biblical images. In the story and some baseball references too. The In the process of landing the fish. The. Old man finds a good deal of respect for his catch, realizes that. He went out too far to get it and that in the end he would have to accept his loss of the prize. So for me this signaled that there will be gtimes when we put effort forth and reach our goal only to find out that we can’t hold on. To it or it wasn’t. What we thought it might bring in terms of a result. It serves as a reminder that sometimes I get all caught up in the idea that I will be happy “when....” There are some other themes in the book too—however that’s the one that sticks. For me. Okay to sum up today’s books... Facts are important. The usefulness of explanations depends upon getting as many of them as possible when forming a theory/belief about reality. We have to understand that enough facts may point to an other concept or exzplanation and the world might call that theory “true” when it isn’t more true than some other perspective. Second, we can pursue some things and even grasp them only to see that the destination did not fulfill our dreams. Sometimes we can overcome our enemies and our weaknessesa and sometimes we work through even a failure to gain acceptance. Sometimes the peace and joy is found in the process regardless of the result much as the old man can be proud of teaching the. Younger man how to fish. ” In. Short believe in what you know and stay. Open to what can be known and enjoy the pursuit of a dream, even if the reality associated in reaching that dream is not what. You imagined. Two more tomorrow and then I’ll close the book on this.

Seeking peace and joy by the book Seeking peace and joy “BY THE BOOK” According to Groucho—if you know more than one Groucho then you’ll have to decide which one said the following “Outside a dog, books are a manh’s best friend. Inside a dog it’s too dark to read.” I listen to a lot of books. How many a year? I would guess about a book a day these days. Why so many? “Why not?” Okay that’s a cop out deflection and while I could stick with that I won’t. This morning, and the rest of today, I will be listening to a book about pioneers. It always strikes me a little odd that we refer to United Sates. Pioneers moving west as pioneers and settlers. I won’t go on my Columbus discovered. America rant no matter how relevant it is. I mean all our “pioneers” encountered native tribes as they moved across the nation so how could they be pioneering in spaces where some other people had already established a culture and such? So-called pioneers weren’t so much settlers as disrupters, however like I said this is a discussion for a different day. So I am listening to this book and these people invading the land were being described allowing me to look at the facts from the side of. The immigrants (white folks). And the native folks (Indians who weren’t from India?). I. Imagined the same people chopping down trees and hauling supplies over dirt paths and crossing rivers and trying to figure out how to sustain a group of people in a place that was “new” to them. So it goes with all books for me. I try to climb inside the experiences being described and the mind of the authors describing them and then try to determine. How that connects with things I have learned or things I am curious about. I read. A lot of books because I’m curious about a lot of things. Books let me expand my exploring without fear. Seeking peace and joy becomes easier when you can do it without. So much fear I think? Well where is this leading? This post and the next. Couple are going to focus on a few books that I think have really influenced my experiences in life and help me to seek peace and joy I’ll talk about two. Today and Two a day for. The next three days—and will there be poetry and a song? Well of course LOL. I learned a lot from children’s books....I still learn from them today and want to start with. One of my favorites. Sure I love all the Dr. Seuss efforts my favorite being “Green Eggs and Ham.” My favorite children’s book is by Remy Charlis — FORTUNATELY/UNFORTUNATELY. I’m not going to recap the whole book here you can find a summary in. tons of places. The main theme is that a person is going through a journey and ncounters a series of fortunate and unfortunate possible and real. circumstances. you know it’s one of those “things are great/things are not too great/tthings ar4e. horrible and back again books....and I would argue most lives either have those tgypes of experiences or we (as in I) create them in our thoughts. Anyway—spoiler alert—watch out for the pitchfork in the haystack. Book Two—The Holy Bible What a shocker from a kid who attended Catholic schools right? I’m not getting. into the debate about the historical merits or “provability” of the texts we use today—this is about the stories in the Bible or the sgtory that is gthe bible and the people it influenced and thus influenced me....yes nuns. Like I said it’s about the stories and the meanings behind mostly the new testiment but also some of the psalms. I can’t quote. it chapter and verse. The messageis clear. If you believe there is something bigger thanyou—apresence, a purpose,a collective —and you aren’t out to screw your neighbor (or one might argue your neighbor’s wife/family)you are going to find somepeace and joy either wiventually—like when you leave this current existence. Now the Bible doesn’t promise 72 virgins—but let’s face. itthis was. pre-Viagra and tinder. The bottom line is a lot of people I know can seek peace and joy through. the Bible and I find the more I understand about life the more wisdom I see in that book and in some of the people who try to live according tothe basic princples inb it. Okay....there’s enough to read for today..I hope you’ve enjoyed thinking about green eggs pitchforks, nuns, and virgins not necessarily in that order.. More tomorrow

Finding a balance between the digital and physical world well maybe?

SHINING A LITTLE MORE LIGHT ON THE DIGITAL VS “REAL” WORLD

Sometimes I float.  The  previous couple of. Posts have been  related to finding. A comfortable  balance between the actual physical world. And the high tech digital world.  Part of. Me wants to say let’s draw a line so that we don’t lose the experiences of my youth that  led to so much growth and learning.  Oh and a lot. Of fun (some of which was. Healthy and some of which was  even legal).

Then I bounced forward to “now” and realized that I enjoy the technology that allows me to create and share ideas with people a long way from here.  I feel the joy of sending a photo or  putting out a blog to  a possible audience of  hundreds and saying “here’s what  this experience means to me....what does it mean to you?’  

So Isat down a few days ago to write this and found I needed to let a few ideas float around in my mind for a couple more days.  

For example, we’ve all seen  two or more people sitting together with  smart phones out  either texting. Each other from a couple feet away or texting people  who aren’t there when there is a person to talk to right in front of you.  My first. Instinct was to be a little annoyed by that and then I reconsidered.  Why?

Well let’s. Crawl in to a time machine and. Imagine it’s. About 15 years ago maybe 20 and you walked. In front of a group of  kindergarten parents and told them.  By the time  your child graduates our school will get them to voluntarily write a couple of hundred statements or questions a day, develop an efficient  new abbreviation system for most common phrases, and create a fairly complex symbolic language to express emotions and express their identities.  Any number of these parents would  have looked at  you like you were flipping  nuts... Yet today youth and parents alike write thousands of words in hundreds  of texts and use emoji symbols very effectively  and frequently to send messages a few feet and around the world in seconds.  Testers have created  shared meaning and no one had to tell them these are the  requirements and no one had to say you will  need to write more than your parents ever have.  No one said you will produce more video tutorials and other presentations per year than all people have created in recorded history to this point combined before you graduate.  Yet it has been done and it will continue  to be done and all I can do is keep SMH and LOL.  

On the other hand show me the text that feels like a hug, smells like fresh bread coming out  of the oven, or shakes your body like the drums of a marching band—or a rock band for that matter.  

So what am Isaying here?  What conclusions have Ireached?  Well ...if anything it’s  not about how we interact with the world and each other as much as it is about why?  We’ve developed much of the digital world to reach out to places we can’t physically be. And sometimes that’s inside ourselves.  However it seems like the connection tools we need  are  a lot like light bulbs.  If we don’t have lot’s of kinds and sizes  there are going to be  lot’s of  places that remain in the dark.  

Mostly. It seems we have built digital spaces to. Change things on the one hand and to react to change on the other.  For me finding peace and joy means finding a balance of experiences and ways of. Expressing their meanings internally and externally.  Is there a magic formula for  keeping this balance...there probably is...or there might be and I might be able to make toast by throwing  bread at lightning.  

Each of us will have various skills. In using all the tools to gain and share  meaning from our  existence here.  If. The ones  you have don’t work right now learn some more or create some that let you find your glow and share it

A revision or a Requiem for teach your children and seeking peace and joy

 Thoughts on raising our children  and some apologies needed already

TEACH YOUR CHILDREN—A REVISION OR A REQUIEM

A while back-who am I  kidding it’s more like  in a lace far away in a time long ago—there was this great tune about how parents needed to teach children and  the reverse.  That tune seems somehow relevant  here. For if we can teach. Our  children a few of the “lessons” in this video then they can teach us why doing so will ensure our peace and joy

The  lyrics below the video are not an exact match there will somecxay a Versailles that  is, however, I wanted to  get this posted in one take of the song on the guitar.  

Tomorrow  there will be one final post on digital promises and digital. Disaster and then it is time to move forward.      

APOLOGIES  UNPLUGGED 

Ok caveat—I have my share of “digital disasters” and their are folks who I wouldn’t have had  high quality contact with unless  social media. Existed.  However, these great  tools require us to have great responsibility.  The responsibility is to attempt to  be present in the now as often as  we can function in that present.  

This song serves as a reminder ...not to all of you...but for myself...there needs to be a balance and we each. Can help ourselves and others  find and keep it.  

Song Lyrics

We’re the generation. Who brought you AOL 

Did we open up the world or just the gates of Hell?

The court is still in session it’s too early to tell

But to future generations I want to wish you well

We have  robots  that are sweepers so you can get rid of your brooms

We have high speed and flat screens in almost every room

Will Nintendo Switch or X-Boxes spell digital doom

Please let us stop before we’re streaming Netflix in the womb

(Repeat 

Chorus

We don’t. Need more information and we don’t  need it any faster

We are walking on the verge of a digital disaster

We’ve got so much data on so many screens

May our souls find the wisdom  to know what all this means

May from time to time we place our gadgets on our shelves

And find a lot of chances to help  each other  help ourselves

Let our children  run a bit outdoors and play ‘round in the dirt

Chase fire flies right after dark for they will not get hurt

A little more reality is. What this world requires

So stop and hear the guitars as they play by camp fires

And if there is a fiddler let them  start playing too

If you are  old enough open a cold brew

Tell  old stories and new jokes till the night is almost through

And take a moment to be quiet and find peace and joy.in you

Chorus