Words from the wizard sort of

 WHAT WOULD YOU DO WITH A SOUL IF YOU HAD ONE????

Okay let’s get this right out in the open  so we don’t go down the semantics sewer.  This entry is not about the “religious” soul.  That is to say what follows is not an argument for  some path to salvation as defined by any particular set of saints vs. sinners tug-of-war where  when this body you have quits and your good deeds and transgressions get  displayed on  a sacramental scoreboard to determine your eternal fate.  If as a reader you choose to interpret  t “the soul” in that manner. And in this entry that’s your  choice (maybe even free will).   

For now this entry is. About a “you” that goes beyond  biology.  We’re exploring an awareness of  a self that you are aware of “outside” the muscle, bone, Nero vascular, and biochemical.  We are talking about  the conscious  conscience  that you see inn the mirror and talk to yourself  about when you are talking about yourself to yourself either out loud or not.  

Okay having established that... let’s move ahead.  Get on down the road so to speak...which road... well..

Last night, on the television— not the streaming kind—you could have watched a classic that is one of the true American gems.  It’s not only good it’s lions and tigers and bears...oh my goodness good.  There are s dozens of lines that have made it into my conversations over time.  I have modified a few to suit my purposes.  When asked “where we should start something”  I almost always pull out the  classic “where do we begin? Well at the beginning of course.”  Oh and there’s  it’s not my fault  a house fell on your sister this morning.”  That brings us to my favorite “insult”—“what. Would you do with a brain if you had one?”  Yes  I use “we’re not in Kansas anymore” and “there’s no place  like home and the term ruby slippers as well.  For now let’s go back to the scarecrow and  his quest for a brain and the question what would you do?....

Let’s  assume most of the people  reading this. Believe they have a consciousness that is to say you check the box “I am not a  robot (biologically  speaking).  Then let’s  ask the question 

What do we do with this “soul” we have?  Well many of us spend a lot of time considering  how our soul compares to an ideal “soul” as defined by  our faith or religion (not necessarily the same thing).  Most of us spend  a good deal of time “judging our own soul and figuring out. How to “save” it On the other hand how much time do we  spend on understanding what our particular soul has to offer the collective, the community, the universal soul so to speak?  Do we search our  mind and spirit to discover what makes our  soul unique and strong?  Do we  assume everyone has a carbon copy of  a soul...if so why...what would make us unique if  we had a consciousness stamped out like  coins at the mint or cans  of Spam in Southern minnesota—Somewhere near Marshall or Austin I think.  The point is..how much energy do we sp;end growing our soul and determining how it fits in right here right now  in this lifetime and when connected to. Others who are also  here and now.  Do we  work out our soul...you know  some of you walk,jog, swim, bicycle etc  Some of you take pills everyday to prop up or enhance your body parts...so...

How many people  stop in the middle of the day and check in on the soul as often as they check their  step count?  How aware  are we when it comes to our awareness?  How  ofte3n do we ask others to share with regard to their awareness and how often do we recognize that each of us has. A unique perspective that can and maybe should  contribute to the collective universe?  In short, how much work do we do with our soul?  If we are doing this it goes beyond trying to think  about what someone else is thinking to at least. That plussearching our feelings to see if we can connect to how someone else is feeling—empathy that is.. Do we use our soul to understand or do we only pull it out  when we think it’s time to judge, predict, and control the world and it’s occupants?  

Now let’s go to the seeking peace and joy  portion of  the show... Seeking peace and joy is the process of  being courageous and supporting others (and yourself) to very frequently ask “what would you do with a soul if you had one?  Are you aware of your awareness?  When you are aware what do  you do with that?  Do you get afraid and compare your  soul to others or  an ideal or do you reach deeper and grow the strongest. Parts of  your soul and prepare to share those parts to help others become  aware of their awareness?  When you  let your soul shine are you shining  it at someone and  what do they do with that light?  Do they  become a mirror and shine it back...do they make it brighter....do they just swallow it up like a black hole?   No matter what. Someone else does are you aware of their soul and  how you connect with it knowing  that each soul to soul connection is a unique and in the moment  experience?  

to summarize... pay no attention to the man behind the curtain...however it may be helpful. To ask the question “what would I do with a soul if I had one?”  Even more how can. Using it help  those traveling the yellow brick road with. Me?  

Anyway... that’s enough for today...I’m off to see the wizard. 

T’was  BY ANY OTHER NAME

So  roughly  197 years ago  this poem  appeared in a newspaper and no one claimed authorship and ever since but one single word needs to be spoken and probably 90% of Americans know at least the next 10 to follow.  

Well it’s the day before the day of the night before Christmas and this entry  is here to ask....do you  really know what you know?  That is...I’m willing to wager most of you think  the name ofthe poem is “The  Night Before Christmas right?  Well Google it and  see why that wouldn’t be a good thing to write down in Final Jeopardy.  

It would be fairly Grinch-like  to call people. Less than informed so close to  Christmas and yet ... what’s Newton’s  law concerning the conservation of  energy?   Hint it isn’t  “after eating all those cookies and a bigChristmas  dinner it’s okay to sit around and  make sure no one “shoots their  eye out.”  How about ...for every action there is...? Most of you know the end.  

The point is’t that we often don’t know the  name or “facts” about the thoughts that. Are burned into our head.... the point is that we have all kinds of these things in our heads, hearts, and souls to begins with.  These turn into automatic messages we tell ourselves and  say out loud  when engaged in conversations and problem  solving.  

Let’s try something...

Finish the following in your head and then read  the responses I was hoping for..

Jim is not a Republican he’s a...

Hail Mary...

Come and knock ...

Don’t  count your  

Okay Jim’s not a Republican he’s a guitar player, writer, and friend—oh you could  throw in husband, father, brother, son, and pain in the ass too if you please.  Yet most folks take one descriptor and plug  in the opposite without delay... how many possibilities.for seeking peace and joy. Do we cut off that way?

Hail Mary a taxi it’s a long way uptown... yes  Mary may be full of Grace for the most part if you are talking about  “that” Mary...yet there are lots of Marys  out there and only about 67.3% of them  are full of Grace while. Several  could be seeking  it and yet. Are still a little sketchy  around the edges.  

Come and knock...no not on our door...three is not company here...  Come and knock out  this wall to let some  more light. In.. or these  cupboards so we can  reconfigure  the kitchen...but no need to knock on our door we have a dog that will bark like  mad when most people approach.  

Don’t count your  toes before taking your shoes off... Oh what you were thinking chickens?  Well maybe instead we should take our shoes off and count our toes instead of making assumptions as several people have  extra toes and ozone don’t have  10.  

Okay I’m going to stop beating a dead ???? Penguin here... The reality is that seeking peace and joy often goes more smoothly for me when I disrupt  these built-in messages and open up the possible trains of emotion (or thought/ whatever).  

Well it’s nearly Christmas and time to open our  presents and our presence .  KIf we  can put aside the standard rowboat of thought  for a minute we can seek peace and joy in public and become a real gift to all in our environment.   And that’s about all to be said  for now...so..Merry Christmas to All and To All a good pair of underwear that doesn’t ride up or itch  and irritate  you as these posts often will... 

Sincerely...

Peace On Earth and Good Will  (a great place to take your extra stuff  next week). To All....

Joy to the World Says Jeremiah 

Special bonus entry family holiday letter edition

 https://whalensleblog.blogspot.com/

Are you getting Scrooged?

 GOD BLESS US EVERY ONE

These are the words of Tiny Tim in the Dickens classics “A Christmas Carol.”  You may know  it by another name such as Scrooge or Scrooged (an excellent  Bill Murray version).  The story. In a nutshell tells the tale of a cheap skated worldly business person  driven by profit and the thought that efficiency is the only path to satisfaction and a valuable life.  Now the main character Mr. Scrooge gets visited by three spirits  during Christmas night and undergoes a great transformation becoming the embodiment of a repentant Christmas enthusiast.  It’s a short book and a great movie in most of it’s versions.  

For the “peace and joy” perspective it seems we may be tempted  to think the Dickens  tale is a bit far fetched (by the way is something  very  obvious “near-fetched?). Anyway from the beginning. To the end Scrooge doesn’t change physically.  He doesn’t

T loose or gain money.  He doesn’t move to a tropical island.  He doesn’t have plastic surgery and become  a stud muffin.... so what is this transformation?  It’s a sudden change in attitude.  So the question  becomes... “what attitude or conception can in our lives can we “pull aScrooge” on?  You see Scrooge just changed the meaning of things and reframed his experiences so that the lessons he learned provided new insights.  He let some experiences from his past touch his heart in a different way and he chose to accept that there may be multiple interpretations to almost any situation.  He also chose to make “mankind his business.”  How would things. Change if we all dedicated ourselves to  changing one aspect of life and  for even a day or three made mankind our business?    I’m wondering what might happen. If during the holiday season major retailers and discount stores provided us with 20% percent off....but instead of giving each shopper the 20% only gave each 15% and gave 5% to a local non-profit or humanitarian cause.  Maybe a business like Verizon could  take their savings and pass them along to rural schools or in-home care providers who need to stay in touch with medical  folks or community supports like family members.  What if Wal-mart was forced by law to give 5% to support  a group of small businesses in their community or to pay for free community education or physical fitness facilities, walking trails, or public news  and information services?  You know...what if we demanded that “mankind was our business” every year between Thanksgiving and  Christmas?  As a culture would we have a transformative experience?  

Well that’s just a thought... and thank you Mr. Dickens for suggesting it... I hope that some 177 years later a few people seeking peace and joy understand that  we cannot often change  what happens. And yet we can change our stance, our  meaning for the experiences, and thus change our response.  We can fully embrace. Our response-Ability so to speak and we can do so instantly even though we sometimes  hold onto  attitudes and assumptions for a long time.  We can flip the switch and change the world especially for ourselves and maybe millions of “tiny Tims”

Just give it some thought and  if you are visited by spirits either in the day or in the night...pay attention —new possibilities are  possible and “it can happen for you”.  

12 seconds to a better life?

 Welcome to the “friendly Skies”

So today marks the  anniversary of the first “successful” flight by Orville  wright  in 1903.  If you ever want to think about how we’ve progressed in history look at transportation.  after all  the first flight was  12 seconds long and if you ever get pulled aside for a special screening at airport. Security it seems they spend at least  that long running that wand around and feeling various body parts to make sure  you didn’t cram a grenade into your left nostril or some other  unlikely opening.  anyway we routinely  put people into a metal tube  fill. I full of explosive  liquid  and shoot it across the sky.  If  evolution splits off into a different path maybe we’ll develop a personal cannon system that musts loads a person in and fires them across  hundreds of miles to the exact spot they  are headed using Google  Earth satellite technology.   

Either that or if we want a real advance maybe we could spend a bunch of resources making great pedestrian options and  when the virus is under  control we could walk around, enjoy the world, say hello to each other, build up our immune systems with some fresh air and sunshine enhanced vitamin D and such.  

We save a lot of time going places faster and faster... yet I’ve never  heard tell of a tombstone that reads “I wish I would have done this faster”... Maybe  I’ll put that on my cremation  canister or urn or the folders Can they use because everyone wants to be “good to the last. Drop” and when they drop your remains into the ocean or into the river or off the mountain isn’t that really the last drop?   I digress... 

seeking Peace and joy means that we are aware and pay attention to stuff... The thing about air travel is that once you get buckled in and know  that you are supposed to  put your mask on before you worry about people around you —-good lord even in your last moments you are supposed to think “me first”—well after. That reminder flying is pretty much sitting in a small chair and if you want to really get the experience without the headaches of airport. Security you can put a small stack of pizza coupons under the front. Feet of a kitchen chair so that you are in the “reclined” position  of the plane and then have someone smack you in the elbow every 45 minutes or so to approximate the  moving of the beverage cart up and down the aisle.  

Oh well.... here’s the deal... if you are on a plane  and going really fast to somewhere don’t think about the  time you save  because you haven’t saved a something that was yours to control to begin with.  You see we use money to save time and what is money...well these days it’s little bits of electronic  data stored. On little pieces of designed sand stored in a box in an air-conditioned  room because storing. Money in little pieces of paper  was too inconvenient and so we had to digitize it.  The point is..Mooney isn’t money or isn’t anything we define and control either really... so we are using something that barely exists to save time that doesn’t really  exist beyond the experiences we have during it.  So yes there’s the p[oint... seeking peace and joy is seeking the experiences and meaning of being  where we are when we are there and not worrying about how fast we can be someone else being someone else.  We can change as people and that’s very cool because it means we are directing our experiences, realizing we can’t control some of them, and constructing  new meanings to be shared with others.  

When you fly do so knowing you are skipping a lot of experiences in between and tha’t usually the case when we  view life in the “if -then” mentality so when you choose an “if then” frame of reference know you are possibly setting yourself.up to miss the best tenderloin in Johnson County or the goofiest. Looking water tower in Hamilton township or the guy with the most remarkable accent South of the Mason/Dixon line ( oh and who were Mason and Dixon...didn’t they fight a battle over who got to name those canning jars?—Because if so then  maybe Dixon should have targeted the lids  and then we would have had Mason-Dixon uniting to bring us canned green beans in late January?  

The point is... advances. Are cool and yet do they change the speed at which we can experience anything?   Maybe the pandemic bothers us the most because it changes the speed at which we can experience things?  Just a thought..

Maybe a `12 second flight was enough... how about we take the next 12 seconds thinking about what we can do for someone else today or about  the gifts we have been given to do what we did yesterday and then get our tray tables in the upright position and go out to seek some more peace and joy.   BTW the chorus to the song showed up...stay tuned  for it tomorrow.  

gotta Fly

30 seconds of thinking musical meandering

 Meandering Into a Monday Melody

Sometimes you  have to stand and shout  We don’t have to be sheep

Sometimes. You have to go to the edge smile and take the leap

Sometimes you should drop to your knees  and pray to the Lord your soul to keep

But whatever you do don’t let your friends go through life asleep

Sometimes you get to the end of things just to find. A new beginning 

Sometimes when every one  just stands still you  must gently  just start spinning

Sometimes when you’re handed a handful of frowns  it’s time to wink and walk in grinning

Be who you are let the rest of  the crowd fret about losing or winning

Sometimes my Irish soul sings. ‘Bout  whiskey in the Jar-oh!

Sometimes sweet songs  make me laugh while feeling sorrow

sometimes  I  have the grace to squeeze  out  the most from time I borrow

Try to find the grace to let the river flow be raise it may not flow tomorrow

—???— 

Maybe a chorus will visit  later today and  I’ll write it  down to share

For now ...have a great moment...

Gas do you know the real cost per gallon

 LET’S GET PUMPED UP...PEACE, JOY, AND THE PRICE OF  A GALLON OF GAS

This has been a strange year—understatement  Captain Obvious?—as we have had few places to go even though the price of gas has been reasonably steady and what most folks would  call “low.”  After asking around a bit  it seems that everybody has a pretty good idea what a gallon of gas costs most the time.  It also seems that we are.concerned about it, talk about it, tell each other when we find it very cheap or a little high in places.... In short, when it comes to gas we give it a lot of attention and share  knowledge which leads me to some questions—— big shocker right?

Let’s say  the price of gas within a dollar is $3.00  a gallon and let’s say being very  liberal with these estimates we buy 30 gallons a week—most people don’t — and we do that  52 times a year.  That mean  we will spend roughly $4,680 in a year. On gas and almost everybody has a ballpark idea  about what we spend for each gallon.  However, it you ask people what they spend  per year the answer will not be so fast.  

Let’s dive a little deeper....our  health care—namely a hospital stay.  Very few people can tell you what the average cost of one day in the hospital costs and what the average hospital stay is....so let’s go there.  A recent  national study shows that the average cost. For a 24 hour stay in the hospital is approaching $15,000.  That means we would have to spend $9.00 a gallon for gas for an entire year to equal the cost of one day in the hospital.  Now consider that the average hospital stay is 4.5 days and for one hospitalstay we are paying well over $30.00 per gallon.  In fact it’s probably  north of $35.    So why are we paying so much attention to the price of gas and not the efforts to keep each other healthy in body mind and soul?

Let’s dive a bit deeper still.  Two years ago  a nationwide study of nursing homes showed that a semi-private room runs on average  $245.00 per dayLet’s return to l the gallon of gas.  If the same figures are accurate—and some say they are low we are spending  over $89,000 a year for one person to be  in a nursing  home situation and that would be roughly 18 times  what we spend on gas so to get the equivalent  we are talking pulling up to the pump and shelling out $54.00 per gallon and that’s before you buy beef jerky and a lottery ticket and that cute panda key chain  up on the counter.  Who here has been checking the cost of nursing homes. On a weekly basis?  

Lest we remark that these are costs for. The sick and old—I know  I could say “elderly but  that’s the same as saying Pre-owned instead of used.... let’s look at our  youth.  The U.S. Department. Of Education has determined  using census  and school district data that the  average cost per student. Per year is about $12,616.00 soback to the price of gas— would you raise an eyebrow if your gas was $7.75 per gallon?  When is the last time  we seriously looked at the structure and the cultural values in our schools/. 

Well we have  gone. Down this road to get to this place... the place where the question must be asked...

Why do we spend so much of our time and attention  on the price of gas?  Clearly other things  cost way more and have a much greater  economic and life  impact, yet we don’t look at the signs, we don’t  expect to see a sign hanging outside a hospital  noting the cost of one-day’s stay.  We don’t see any coupons for  “green Meadows  Nursing and Retirement  Village.  There  are no buy one get 10% off  you next Algebra course sales.  What’s stranger is that we don’t seem to be at all bothered by this... we don’t talk about it...we don’t tell each other  when we find a great deal.  So clearly  it seems we don’t pay enough attention to Some things—-which brings me to peace and joy.

When we’re sitting at the intersection and spot  the sign that says gas is $2.42 per gallon wouldn’t  it be awesome if we thought “what’s it cost in money and time to  tell a friend we care?  What  would it cost to change our. Daily conversation when meeting  someone to ask a few  different questions.  We often ask where someone. Is from—what they do for a living—how many kids they have—do you come here often?—and sometimes we pay attention to the answers.  We find out the cost of a gallon of gas when it comes to people and yet we could ask...

Have you had a good day?  How could we wiper together. On something  to make your. Life better?   We could ask what’s your favorite  exercise?  How about asking someone  “how do you learn new things best these days?”  How about ... “when’s the last time you felt your soul get stronger?  You. See these are peace and joy questions and if we all know the price of a gallon of gas maybe we could pay a bit more attention. To some other things...because  when we pay attention we pass along knowledge and stay connected.  

So Fill- er- up!

Some Sunday morning Santa satire and song

See video and hear song below click the link

 

 `Time for me to Fly... as created by Santa’s Little Helpers

I’ve decked the halls for you

built millions of dolls for  you

Every engine has its own fire chief

I’ve landed on roofs  for you 

dodged reindeer hoofs  for you

I can’t get any relief 

 I’ve had enough of the shopping malls  and the ho ho ho ing 

When we go outside here. It is always  snowing 

So just for once

I’d like a blue sky

I believe  it’s time for me to fly

The  Christmas spirit’s  gone 

You can order from Amazon

They deliver stuff right to your door

And I am getting pissed 

Reading the naughty list 

four Billion names maybe more

 I’ve had enough of the pointy shoes and Bright red pajamas

I’d rather spend Christmas  down in the Bahamas 

I think I’ll walk south and drink Canada Dry 

I believe. It’s time for me to fly

Oh I was. Your favorite elf

One bad day and I’m on the shelf 

Oh Santa why don’t you see?

It was the old reindeer 

Who got into your favorite Beer 

And  Prancer had to blame it on me

I’ve had enough of  cocoa  and the gingerbread cookies

I hate the Star Wars toys  

Except for the Wookees

You know old St. Nick I really did try

I believe it’s time for me to fly

Time for me to fly 

I’m gonna hijack the sleigh

time for me to fly

 head to New York or. LA

Tell Rudolph. He can Kiss my ass goodbye... 

I believe it’s time for me to fly https://youtu.be/wfxJ1dXk2aw

The Seeking Peace and joy dictionary Z

 THE SEEKING PEACE AND JOY DICTIONARY — — Z — — 

Writer’s Note:  Thanks for reading along .... what? This is your first read?  Well then thanks for reading along of course.  We have done this in alphabetic order for a bit and like Steven Wright the comedian says the person who  invented alphabetic order  rules everything.... When I entertained the idea of  this series there was a great temptation to  explain  that we would either go in reverse or randomly select the next letter day after day until the  alphabet had been completed.  Then... common sense  filtered in and I thought people reading at home could have a little fun figuring out what the entries for the next  blog might be.  A couple of people  offered their comments using words that may have been included  and a couple  did offer suggestions for other letters.  I found these  comments incredibly creative and am massively grateful to all who have shared from  A to Y... So here’s the caboose .... Thanks for climbing aboard for part or all of this journey through the letters.... 

Z is for 

Zany 

Zany....adjective

Well zany is a bit comical and buzzard and  madcap.  Zany also seems  to mean “not to be taken seriously.”  When you describe  something. Or someone as zany it would seem. You are saying there is absolutely no harm intended and in seeking peace and joy and experimenting with experiences   And their meanings it seems reasonable  that from time to time you just have to say this was a zany event—there was no harm intended.  this event fell outside the “normal” range and could be seen as humorous  from 30,000 feet and the actors in the experiences reacted without reason....because it happens sometimes.  Maybe we will look at some things in 2020 that way when it’s 2040 much like we look at a lot of 1970’s  clothing.  

Also don’t be afraid to get your inner zany on from time to time.  Sometimes zany offers you and those around you a chance to let loose of old habits and ideas just long enough to find fresh perspectives with very little  sense of risk and in a world that serves retail uncertainty and wholesale prices.a little comedic relief from  things isn’t probably a bad deal....

So go out be brainy and zany

Zen 

Zen...noun (state of mind) 

 

This is going to get personal.  You see I interpret Zen  in my own way to some extent and I believe everyone  practicing  it does as well.  Zen is not a faith or a religion in the formal sense (IMO) it is a process of tiring your mind and body to your soul and paying attention.  Meditation is one way that people can use  this concept and is often confused with a zen state or as practicing Zen.   Athletes in a zone —another great z-word are experiencing “Zen” .  People praying. Are often experiencing Zen...because  you are letting your body, mind, and soul experience the here and now.  Can you practice. Zen—well some would say you can and if by practicing it  you mean giving it space to emerge then I’d agree, however, my thinking and feeling is that Zen the state of mind and, body, and soul is a constant and we at best experience it and recognize  it after  the fact.  We can eliminate some of the factors that “shadow” us so that our Zen is blocked but can we put the ingredients in apan and bake them  at 375 and hope to reach a Zen state on demand?  I’m not so sure... It works better for me if  I think of Zen states as the other side of this  balance.  When I pray (in whatever from that may be) Ian talking to god (by whatever name you might choose) and  when I meditate (in whatever form that takes like playing a sport at a high level, strumming the guitar, or breathing rhythm icky, I’m listening to god and when the process leads to an effortless  happening  in the world that impacts my body, mind, and soul... then that’s the ultimate  experience of grace and “zen.”    

So Zen and seeking peace and joy?  Since it is  hard and maybe not possible to reach a collective Zen it is important to understand that if you are going to meditate on the road to Zen...you are probably going alone.  Now that’s okay just as it is often faster to shop alone, however, it’s not the same as crusing the mall with your friends and going to tell jokes outside of Orange Julius (lost 80’s reference).  Seriously Zen. And meditation  are often solitary  enterprises and that’s okay but limited and sometime limited is what works, however. Understand that’s what it is going in.... Seeking Peace and Joy often works with others and. So  find the balance that works best with the gifts you have to offer the universe and  it will all be very radical dude.

Zephyr 

Zephyr...noun 

This entry refers specifically  to the “California Zephyr” this train runs from Chicago to the Pacific Ocean and is identifiable as it is a shining silver passenger train that still features  all the luxury  of past rail travel.... okay there are some things that have changed...but standing in a small town along the way and seeing the Zephyr was and is a reminder that you can go a great distance and still be connected to a wide variety of places.  Your dreams are often closer than you think and then move away but not so far that you won’t see them come into focus again.  You can imagine yourself on the Zephyr or you can imagine loading your troubles on the zephyr.to send them far away.  That’s how it is with seeking and joy—your dreams are often  far away but coming  right toward you and then they stop a minute for you to get aboard... but. You could also  miss the train or it might not be on schedule leaving you to deal with crazy details that you could not have  expected.  Just like the butterfly  effect sort of... a cow crossing the tracks 13 miles outside of Omaha  might throw off the timing  of your life and you might miss your connection to Kalamazoo where you might have met that special someone in line  at the corner  bar.  You may never know.....and yet tomorrow the Zephyr will come again and who knows?   the point is...as long as you keep the Zephyr running in your soul there are possibilities  and seeking peace and joy  you will be able to see them as they come, stop, move on and come again.

ZZZZZZ 

ZZZZ is a symbolic  word for sleep... and if this dictionary hasn’t put you to sleep by now I suggest you get some rest anyway....  and like I said above ... thanks for  coming along... the Peace and Joy Zephyr will be back again soon... 

Zoooooooommmm. 

See  you at the Zoo.

Y The seeking peace and joy dictionary for this is

 THE SEEKING PEACE AND JOY DICTIONARY  — — Y — — 

Y  is for...

Yelling

Yelling ...Gerund..verb that is used as a very loud noun.

We often mistake quiet for peace.  Then we cut off a whole path. For seeking. Peace by seeking quiet.  Well there are those who love the limelight, the lights, the crowds, and  constant motion and thus quiet is not the path.  Others head toward quiet by repressing  the scream.  this can work for some and for a while, yet we confuse external noise and internal noise.  What that means (what I believe it to mean) is that sometimes a healthy yell turned inside becomes  a cranked up disturbance with no outlet so it is like dragon fuel with nowhere to burn except in the inside where it does a great deal of damage and ultimately rarely offers assistance in seeking peace and joy because it uses  a lot of body, mind, and soul energy.  So while I’m not advocating going around yelling at people, maybe finding a place with a nice echo to go out and crank out  a few well targeted  vulgarities  might be just the lubricant your spirit needs.  If you  can’t  find a good canyon or abandoned  lot just go down to the local mall and give it a whirl—fewer and fewer people are going there and so what if a few of them know you...chances are they have some yelling to do and just haven’t figured out. How yet.   Oh there are  other places you can go once the. COVID  is over...any crowd will do... In the middle of a loud college game  you can yell out almost anything when the other 70,000  people are screaming about something go for it.  

Anyway yelling can be a way to let some stuff go and to give  other emotions some room... so don’t fear it...do it wisely.

Yes and...

Yes And ...noun 

“Yes and” is.is a valuable concept and one of the underlying principle behind improv.  The basic idea is to accept every  “offer”. Or event as. Something not to fight against or discard...but to view it as something to  build upon if possible.  How many times have we all walked out of meeting  thinking ...”well same old  issues...same old fights...same people saying the same thing?”  Well by using.the idea that we have to accept the ideas of others without rushing to battle them and. To spend our energy expanding. And refining  all ideas changes  the whole dynamic.  Everyone’s voice  is then valued and building. Newt works of connection happens organically.  It has often said that the best way to get great ideas. Is to have a lot of ideas and “yes and” is a great way to get an explosion of ideas and perspectives.  there can be many great roads to travel in seeking peace and joy if we can be less afraid and more curious about what will happen it we give some new ideas. A little breathing room.  

Yoda

Yoda ....Jedi  master

Seeking peace and joy is a journey and it is not primarily physical.  It includes searching  your inside while feeling connected and aware to all that surrounds us.  Our collective soul or spirit is “the force” sort to speak and we influence what’s we can access by  following. Our hope and love or choosing control and hate.  Yoda attempts to teach  young Master Luke the ways of the force.  As we understand what glows within and around us we too should try to teach those younger and having less spiritual  connection.  “There is no try...” isn’t to say not to experiment. And that you will not succeed—it is saying do something  fully and in the  upmost awareness.  Don’t let doubts and fears  block your  positive nature.  

Well I’ve nearly written enough for today so  we should seek the end and Yoda  says 

“The end? Take us to it I will”

Yo-Yo Ma

Yo-Yo Ma ... noun/person 

Yo-Yo is the world’s best cellist  hands down.. To those seeking peace and joy who hit stumbling blocks etc.d... It is good to know that he wanted to play the. Upright double  bass but it was too large and he was too small.... and look what happened.  Ma claims he wasn’t even the best musician in his household.  While famous he connects with. Many orchestras and performs with them with little practice.  Sure he is featured and yet he, like Paul or that Beatles ...Paul.. still wakes up thinking “hey I make my living  doing this?  What a joy.  Both Yo-Yo and Paul state that they get completely into the flow of their gifts when engaged in the process of learning and performing and yet this  means  setting up an alter -ego of sorts to deal with  the overwhelming. Way they are viewed as  performers  rather than human beings.  If these experts have to do this and seem  to be peaceful  it may be a good idea to sometimes separate your  work, home, spouse,  etc..roles... at regular stops in your journey just to check in  and if this requires putting on a mask do so..

Well... maybe you are getting tired... so it’s time to go catch some. Z’s .... and there will be more to catch in the next  posting.  

The seeking peace and joy dictionary X

 THE SEEKING PEACE AND JOY DICTIONARY  — — X — — 

Well... it’s often been. Said. X marks the spot and often or at least once that’s true...X is the spot. We are in the dictionary!   We have rumbled, stumbled, mumbled, and bumbled through 23 letter and  we’re entering the holy trinity as in “holy cow” how  do we find  entries at this end of the alphabet?   Well  if X marks the spot then. Here are a couple of treasures. That begin  with XXX oh wait that would be poison or  porn and these aren’t that bad or that good... however here. We go..

X is for....

Xanadu 

Xanadu... noun Imaginary place

When  this entry was rolling out in the work completion  mode it kept  auto filling in  Xanax which is a medication that rounds off all the edges a and supposedly  makes the world taste  good like the candy man can.   However, Xanadu is a magical land full of brightness and light where  people find happiness and joy and it’s a perfect. Fictional place...of a dance club where. Olivia Newton John and John Travolta  also find some phony Nirvana.  So. Is this post making fun of Zanadu?  YYep probably  because seeking peace. And joy isn’t about some magical one stop  utopia where we are all perfect and sit smiling  as we eat Lucky Charms and  crap rainbows.  Seeking peace and joy will not. Mean searching for the bright sparkling lights and the perfect. Rhythm of  the synthesized  drum machine.  In fact it will be a process of sitting quietly in the dark or  walking down a dusty road and being silent  enough to let in new ideas and providing space to attach new emotions and meanings to the sensations of the real world.  Seeking peace and joy doesn’t  ask you to land upon perfection but if you want to try.... find Marty McFly or Doc Brown and set the time machine to a time when  it was time to get physical and see what you find... Good Luck when you hit 88 miles an hour...

Xerox

Xerox...noun a company or a generic  term for making a copy....

Entry. Two on this post is strikingly similar. To entry one—why so?  Seeking peace and joy probably doesn’t  happen if we overvalue  Xanadu or Xerox.... after all when it comes to your body, heart, and soul yeveryone has a special set of  gifts and copying someone else’s is producing something that. Already  exists and probably in a form that is slightly less clear and in the case of money making copies and trying to benefit  might get you free lodging at the Iron Cage Inn.  Anywaydon’t worry about  copying anything exactly and don’t look around and compare to see if you are a perfect copy...that’s an o”x”ymoron.  

Xylem

Xylemnoun..rhymes with Phylum and asylums ... what is it ...well it’s critical in the structure of plants as they grow.  It’s not the  colorful budding  part that everyone sees and praises , however, without. This component the rest falls apart because the plant wouldn’t have structure and nutrition wouldn’t get to the other parts of the plant.  Since X in the Webster’s  doesn’t have  many entries either ... go look this up and  see  how cool and important this would be for a plant to prosper and find its unique place...don’t be afraid to be someone else’s xylem or to value. Those who might serve as yours or support. Your xylem...

And  of course no self respecting. (And most days I respect myself ) musician could leave without including 

Xylophone

Xylophone....Noun

This is an instrument made up of “plates” or slats or tubes of varying lengths that have been designed to make certain tones when struck  with another object.  The xylophone in all its forms makes a unique addition to almost. Any composition.  Notice however this sound doesn’t come out unless  it’s hammered...much like bad Karaoke  singers... The difference is the xylophone. Often makes a  soothing sound whereas Karaoke. Singers often bring on the sound of you ordering another Jell-O  shot.  Oh wait... back. To the mellow  sound of the xylophone.... it has high energy and yet it’s designed to bring calm and s movement. To a melody.  It often appears in the bridge  and serves as the connecting. Tones  for two parts of the song... So. Bringing energy  while seeming calm and conne3cting things seems like something. That happens when we are doing okay at seeking peace and joy...

Go go out..be the xylophone and occasionally get hammered.   

Well enough is enough and  we as Yoday might remark

Head to Y Tomorrow we  will... We won’t try to do it of course. Because there is no try.