Life Itself

It was a glorious walk this morning, earlier than normal. The sun was just peeking over the horizon, lighting the maple trees, the firs and cedars in a most spectacular display, mystically splashing their infinite shades of green against the backdrop of shadow and light. As I walked I found myself dipped in awe, in …

This Dark Beauty

The idea of death is for the living. Death has no meaning for the one no longer in form. Death is felt by the ones left behind, or it is glossed over with polite triteness, watchful escapism: It’s okay, she’s gone to a better place, he is flying with the angels, they’ve gone home to …

Maybe There is No Definition and No Way

Real or not real? That is the question, and it seems to be much discussed these days. What is enlightenment? Listen to me … this is what it is. No … it’s not that, it’s this. If we can’t even agree on a definition of what it is, how in the world would we ever …

The Reflection of Wholeness

Humans seem to want messages of love and light and quickly scroll past anything that speaks to the state in which we currently find ourselves. Reality is the totality. It is not just the yummy stuff, new modalities of healing, ways to soothe the savage beast, sitting on the meditation cushion while the world burns. …

This is Your Life

This world, and every experience in it, is the magic show. What one player sees as real, another dismisses. What one sees as the way, another sees as pure fiction. It offers a mystical magical quite ordinary cornucopia, an endless array of life options to explore. Every imaginable expedition across the outer world to unimaginable …

The Real Deal … We Want It; We Fear It

I was watching a program on television today and found myself smiling, appreciating the writers of the show. It was really well written, evoking smiles and compassion, love, and the simplicity of being part of a chosen family, one that chooses you back. What’s humorous, is that it wasn’t a feel-good series. It was a …

The Cost of Awakening … It’s Not What You Think

What Does Awakening Cost? It’s not what the seeker expects. Somewhere along the yellow brick road, the seeker’s path, the path that is supposed to make your life better, take away the discomfort, reveal the inherent abundance and recognize your true identity, it dawns on you that just perhaps, you’d have been better off on …

The Promise

When Kenny was ill, we had a joke. He used to say, “Where would I go? There’s only here. There’s only now.” I’d look at him, and his precocious grin, and smile back.

Stay and Play, or Run

“Why are you unhappy? Because 99.9 percent of everything you think, and of everything you do, is for yourself—and there isn’t one.” ― Wei Wu Wei   You want to be happy, to not feel foolish, to feel included and loved. It is only natural to feel that way. What isn’t organic is not feeling what …

Friendlies

Friendlies Watching Sophia today on our walk I wondered about inhibition and what stops humans from joining the fun like my little dog. She sees other dogs, other humans for that matter, and runs right up to them, wags her tail — hey, I’m friendly, are you? And the games begin. She is particularly fond …

Death Throes

Death is the material world’s boogey man and aging signals its approach. It’s not taken too seriously when you are your twenties unless you have illness struggles, but once you cross the threshold of the thirties the fear begins amping up. This is the sales pitch of cosmetics, plastic surgery, and most everything on the …

The Rope and the Snake

I responded to a dear friend who asked a question about the messy human experience and how I experience it. After I wrote my response it seemed it might be worthwhile sharing with a few edits. When the dream is known to be a dream — think of the rope and snake analogy* (see below) …

You Already Know

I’m going to tell you something you don’t want to hear. You already know it, but many of you have yet to fully accept it. Life isn’t fair. It will never be all roses and no thorns. Some people will appear to win in spite of seeming unworthy of any good fortune. Others will appear …

Trained Seal Mind

Be. Here. Now. Experience. Awareness. Consciousness. Knowing. Presence. Love. Isness. This. Same, same … no difference. No thing and all there is. Nothing but experiencing — no one to experience — no thing to experience — simple knowing awareness doing it’s thing — slang expression — not a true thingy. Haha. Not tens of thousands …