single-focused on any one thing....as in, while you are in it, focus all you have, but in case that is taken away from you, allow your mind to broaden so as to take in something new....
Freelancing has taught me that. You are immersed in a project, and the client suddenly decides to put the Finis sign...then what? chances are you feel your world slowly collapsing around you....well, this one project may have collapsed, but there are other things to life....may not be paying in terms of hard cash, but may be paying in other ways..idea is to let the mind freewheel - not an easy task, but great when it gets going.
It's like the mandala (nothing explains the impermanence of life better). A mandala is a Buddhist (and ancient Hindu) symbol which represents the Universe - a very broad definition...The thing is that a huge amount of energy goes into making the mandala......energy and time and effort and will.....and then, after it is made, it is wiped out......and the place is made ready for another to be made......
28 June 2013
Dreams...
We all have dreams...
and, we all have broken dreams...
Life, I find is all about making new dreams with the broken pieces...
Not, NOT, trying to put the broken pieces back together,
but making new dreams with them...different designs and patterns, and different color combinations.
and, we all have broken dreams...
Life, I find is all about making new dreams with the broken pieces...
Not, NOT, trying to put the broken pieces back together,
but making new dreams with them...different designs and patterns, and different color combinations.
27 June 2013
Hundreds of years ago...
Socrates said: Beware the barrenness of a busy life.
We all think that we need to rush about and DO things...then, and only then will life be meaningful.
How wrong....how terribly wrong, and yet tell anyone to just take time off to do nothing and you are greeted with astonished stares, and the feeling that you must be mad to even think about such a thing in the first place....what will happen to industry? what will happen to work? what will happen to governments?
Reading 'In Arabian Nights' has more than clarified this view that we need to take lots and lots of time off....that we need to take time off to read and tell stories, to sit and dream and do nothing...
When Tahir Shah goes to the Sahara, he asks his Tuareg guide how the Tuareg spent their time doing nothing.
" We listen to the sounds," he said at length
" To the silence?"
" There is never silence."
And if life was too quiet, they talked, told stories, the Tuareg added.
And the importance of stories can never be stressed enough...but we have to have the time to shut out the world, and enter the world of stories....if for nothing else, but to be healed from the batterings of living...
We all think that we need to rush about and DO things...then, and only then will life be meaningful.
How wrong....how terribly wrong, and yet tell anyone to just take time off to do nothing and you are greeted with astonished stares, and the feeling that you must be mad to even think about such a thing in the first place....what will happen to industry? what will happen to work? what will happen to governments?
Reading 'In Arabian Nights' has more than clarified this view that we need to take lots and lots of time off....that we need to take time off to read and tell stories, to sit and dream and do nothing...
When Tahir Shah goes to the Sahara, he asks his Tuareg guide how the Tuareg spent their time doing nothing.
" We listen to the sounds," he said at length
" To the silence?"
" There is never silence."
And if life was too quiet, they talked, told stories, the Tuareg added.
And the importance of stories can never be stressed enough...but we have to have the time to shut out the world, and enter the world of stories....if for nothing else, but to be healed from the batterings of living...
23 June 2013
An ABSOLUTE must-read...
In Arabian Nights by Tahir Shah
None of us should ever have grown out of fairy tales...and if we have, this is the time to get back - right back - and promptly too, without any delay - into the land of fairy tales....
I don't think children need fairy tales....it's us adults who do.....for children live in a magic world and we need the magic to live...
None of us should ever have grown out of fairy tales...and if we have, this is the time to get back - right back - and promptly too, without any delay - into the land of fairy tales....
I don't think children need fairy tales....it's us adults who do.....for children live in a magic world and we need the magic to live...
I saw this...
incredibly beautiful sight this morning...
Sipping my hot morning drink and looking out on a cloudy day, a tree in the hedge caught my eye - it belongs to the Gul Mohur family I'm quite sure because the orange-gold flowers look similar though they were in small clusters on long and not-so-long- stems on this tree. The leaves were the same as those of the Gul Mohur.
There were these two clusters, specifically, not on very long stems, which had their leaves, 2 sets each, leaning over the fence. To my astonishment and absolute disbelief, I saw them tap dancing as it were. Actually! There was a gentle wind, and while the clusters bent forwards and backwards and sideways on their stems, the leaves splayed out over the fence were actually going up and down, moving in perfect rhythm - I know it's hard to believe, but it really happened. I was mesmerized......the leaves and flower heads were keeping perfect time, and the leaves were actually tap dancing...
It was too far to get a pix but this one here will give you an idea...
The clusters of flowers that were on longer stems behind these two were gently swaying in the breeze, keeping time too....it was incredible.....
Sipping my hot morning drink and looking out on a cloudy day, a tree in the hedge caught my eye - it belongs to the Gul Mohur family I'm quite sure because the orange-gold flowers look similar though they were in small clusters on long and not-so-long- stems on this tree. The leaves were the same as those of the Gul Mohur.
There were these two clusters, specifically, not on very long stems, which had their leaves, 2 sets each, leaning over the fence. To my astonishment and absolute disbelief, I saw them tap dancing as it were. Actually! There was a gentle wind, and while the clusters bent forwards and backwards and sideways on their stems, the leaves splayed out over the fence were actually going up and down, moving in perfect rhythm - I know it's hard to believe, but it really happened. I was mesmerized......the leaves and flower heads were keeping perfect time, and the leaves were actually tap dancing...
It was too far to get a pix but this one here will give you an idea...
the pix I got from my window was like this...
the leaves were tap dancing on that fence...
The clusters of flowers that were on longer stems behind these two were gently swaying in the breeze, keeping time too....it was incredible.....
21 June 2013
As it is...
what we have comes with inbuilt baggage and hundreds of riders...
If we wish for something, it's sure to come with its own price tag...
Terrible things to think about......but so long as we know this, we can still make our lives a work of art...
If we wish for something, it's sure to come with its own price tag...
Terrible things to think about......but so long as we know this, we can still make our lives a work of art...
18 June 2013
All a baby needs...
is a warm loving environment to grow in, unconditional loving and caring her whole life through...
Yes, I'm prejudiced - For me it's girls all the way......baby, teen, older, wife, mother, grandmother.....they are still the most vulnerable section of human society....
Yes, I'm prejudiced - For me it's girls all the way......baby, teen, older, wife, mother, grandmother.....they are still the most vulnerable section of human society....
17 June 2013
Powerful words...
to chew on and digest and use...
Andrew Solomon in Far From the Tree: Parents, Children and the Search for Identity:
We blossom into who we are under the warming light of the love that surrounds us.
Labeling a child’s mind as diseased – whether with autism, intellectual disabilities, or transgenderism – may reflect the discomfort that mind gives parents more than any discomfort it causes their child.
From The Unpublished David Ogilvy:
From Maya Angelou:
Identity is something that you are constantly earning … a process that you must be active in.
You only are free when you realize you belong no place — you belong every place — no place at all. The price is high. The reward is great.
Being free is being able to accept people for what they are, and not try to understand all they are or be what they are. …
Andrew Solomon in Far From the Tree: Parents, Children and the Search for Identity:
We blossom into who we are under the warming light of the love that surrounds us.
Labeling a child’s mind as diseased – whether with autism, intellectual disabilities, or transgenderism – may reflect the discomfort that mind gives parents more than any discomfort it causes their child.
From The Unpublished David Ogilvy:
High standards of personal ethics.
Big people, without pettiness.
Guts under pressure, resilience in defeat.
Brilliant brains – not safe plodders.
A capacity for hard work and midnight oil.
Charisma – charm and persuasiveness.
A streak of unorthodoxy – creative innovators.
The courage to make tough decisions.
Inspiring enthusiasts – with trust and gusto.
A sense of humor.
Big people, without pettiness.
Guts under pressure, resilience in defeat.
Brilliant brains – not safe plodders.
A capacity for hard work and midnight oil.
Charisma – charm and persuasiveness.
A streak of unorthodoxy – creative innovators.
The courage to make tough decisions.
Inspiring enthusiasts – with trust and gusto.
A sense of humor.
From Maya Angelou:
Identity is something that you are constantly earning … a process that you must be active in.
You only are free when you realize you belong no place — you belong every place — no place at all. The price is high. The reward is great.
Being free is being able to accept people for what they are, and not try to understand all they are or be what they are. …
15 June 2013
The worrrrrsssttttttttt possible thing...
is to look back and say...'I used to do this'......'I could do that'.....'I did that'.....
and then sigh and say.....'And now look at me....I can't'.....
THIS IS THE ABSOLUTE WORST THING EVER
I don't think anything could be worse...
For one thing no one really wants to know what you could do or did, or said, or thought....
They are more interested in what you are doing or saying or thinking RIGHT NOW...
For this moment is all that matters...
Experiences...
are all necessary and all good...
Good, happy, positive experiences we accept without a thought, sail through, and enjoy...
Sad, unhappy, bitter experiences we question - are even willing to put ourselves in the dock, and maybe even crucify - and we struggle against them, fight them, and lose against them and crucify ourselves some more.
These last few months have taught me the negative, ugly, bitter experiences are actually essential for us - not to crucify ourselves and say 'see, I knew I was all rubbish', but to see how we can overcome/get around/deal with/ learn from them - and the thing is that all of us have, deep down...the unconscious?, subconscious?, ...the desire not to let anything get the better of us....it's just that we have different staying powers - some hang in there till they come out, some give up after a bit, not trusting in themselves that they actually do have a great deal of inner strength and fortitude, and some just lie down and die...totally give up, without even trying. Why? because they underestimated themselves, because they did not believe in themselves, because they did not accord themselves any dignity.
Not only do our experiences leave their mark on us, but how we deal with them also leaves its mark. In fact, that is what gives our face and features and 'us' contours, and refines and sharpens our mental, physical, emotional, and psychological shape.
So, next time something good comes along, enjoy it with your whole heart and being, and....
when something horrible comes along, accept it with grace, recognize your innate dignity and abilities, and deal with it as best as you can - never mind if the outcome is not what you expected - it's worse.....terrible.....leave it as it is and go about the next moment forcing one step at a time---it works out in the end.....may take a long time, but it does and will work out - IF you don't cave in.....and that's one more significant mark on you making you one notch more beautiful.....and if your efforts paid off, those efforts too will leave their mark to assure you about the stuff you are made of...
Good, happy, positive experiences we accept without a thought, sail through, and enjoy...
Sad, unhappy, bitter experiences we question - are even willing to put ourselves in the dock, and maybe even crucify - and we struggle against them, fight them, and lose against them and crucify ourselves some more.
These last few months have taught me the negative, ugly, bitter experiences are actually essential for us - not to crucify ourselves and say 'see, I knew I was all rubbish', but to see how we can overcome/get around/deal with/ learn from them - and the thing is that all of us have, deep down...the unconscious?, subconscious?, ...the desire not to let anything get the better of us....it's just that we have different staying powers - some hang in there till they come out, some give up after a bit, not trusting in themselves that they actually do have a great deal of inner strength and fortitude, and some just lie down and die...totally give up, without even trying. Why? because they underestimated themselves, because they did not believe in themselves, because they did not accord themselves any dignity.
Not only do our experiences leave their mark on us, but how we deal with them also leaves its mark. In fact, that is what gives our face and features and 'us' contours, and refines and sharpens our mental, physical, emotional, and psychological shape.
So, next time something good comes along, enjoy it with your whole heart and being, and....
when something horrible comes along, accept it with grace, recognize your innate dignity and abilities, and deal with it as best as you can - never mind if the outcome is not what you expected - it's worse.....terrible.....leave it as it is and go about the next moment forcing one step at a time---it works out in the end.....may take a long time, but it does and will work out - IF you don't cave in.....and that's one more significant mark on you making you one notch more beautiful.....and if your efforts paid off, those efforts too will leave their mark to assure you about the stuff you are made of...
It all actually boils down to...
dignity...
Physically, dignity lies in accepting and making the best of our physical attributes - not in either hiding them or making excuses for them, or being ashamed of them. Wrinkles and warts are part of growing old and there's a beauty about the patina that having lived through so many experiences in life puts on our faces...
Ari Seth Cohen's blog: http://advancedstyle.blogspot.in/ is a wonderful source of inspiration...nothing gets these ladies and gentlemen of a certain age, or more than a certain age, down...they all LIVE!!
Physically, dignity lies in accepting and making the best of our physical attributes - not in either hiding them or making excuses for them, or being ashamed of them. Wrinkles and warts are part of growing old and there's a beauty about the patina that having lived through so many experiences in life puts on our faces...
Ari Seth Cohen's blog: http://advancedstyle.blogspot.in/ is a wonderful source of inspiration...nothing gets these ladies and gentlemen of a certain age, or more than a certain age, down...they all LIVE!!
10 June 2013
A line...
in an article caught my eye - it was about living life.
Day after day we go through so many motions, do so many things - some new, some old, some routine...
The routine ones are the most dangerous, because we do them mechanically, without thinking, and almost like robots programmed to perform that particular task at that particular time in that particular way. No change, not even in the pattern of blinking our eyes, or the movements of our hands and feet. Going a step further, these routine tasks actually have the power to make us guilty if we don't perform them, have you noticed? We can miss a meal, or sleep a little longer, or take time off to do something we like.......but miss a routine task, and the guilt feelings come piling on.
This is where we really need to take off....and here's something by my favorite writer, Maya Angelou:
My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style!
So tomorrow when one of those routine tasks come marching along at the usual time, i'm either not going to do it, or do it differently, and maybe do it with some style!!!! Certainly am not going to do it unconsciously.....
Day after day we go through so many motions, do so many things - some new, some old, some routine...
The routine ones are the most dangerous, because we do them mechanically, without thinking, and almost like robots programmed to perform that particular task at that particular time in that particular way. No change, not even in the pattern of blinking our eyes, or the movements of our hands and feet. Going a step further, these routine tasks actually have the power to make us guilty if we don't perform them, have you noticed? We can miss a meal, or sleep a little longer, or take time off to do something we like.......but miss a routine task, and the guilt feelings come piling on.
This is where we really need to take off....and here's something by my favorite writer, Maya Angelou:
My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style!
So tomorrow when one of those routine tasks come marching along at the usual time, i'm either not going to do it, or do it differently, and maybe do it with some style!!!! Certainly am not going to do it unconsciously.....
06 June 2013
Rationalizing...
doesn't diminish the pain
nor does finding excuses
nor does coming to terms with the problem/issue
The only thing that diminishes pain eventually is forgiveness----forgive yourself first for having made yourself go through senseless pain and then forgive the cause....
Not easy....
nor does finding excuses
nor does coming to terms with the problem/issue
The only thing that diminishes pain eventually is forgiveness----forgive yourself first for having made yourself go through senseless pain and then forgive the cause....
Not easy....
A thought...
from my Kabbalah meditation:
The grass isn’t greener on the other side. It’s greener on the lawn most cared for.
This does not mean that we should never leave our garden, it only means that we should not think that the patch that we see in another place is greener than ours, and so want/ pine/ argue with ourselves/ search for reasons..... to move there.
We have to strive first to make our lawn the greenest...and best....
The grass isn’t greener on the other side. It’s greener on the lawn most cared for.
This does not mean that we should never leave our garden, it only means that we should not think that the patch that we see in another place is greener than ours, and so want/ pine/ argue with ourselves/ search for reasons..... to move there.
We have to strive first to make our lawn the greenest...and best....
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