Personal Meditation no. 201

“Your beliefs are your actions. What you say is just what you think.”

Embrace the Within.

I am always happy when someone is still optimistic about folks. I find very little to get optimistic about with people. That category is getting smaller after the last fourteen days.

I used to have a sort of conversion optimism that folks would figure it out if I preached the good word loud and long enough. That never worked on me BUT I figured it was worth a shot and gave that my all. I used to think that modeling a better way to live was going to bring in converts. I finally just focused on doing what I knew worked and forgot about most other folks. And I think that has worked out healthiest.

Ultimately I have to work on me first and let that be a model for change. I look back on these fourteen days and see a failure that is now making things happen. I couldn’t grow anything fourteen days ago and now I have seven raised beds, three green houses, three pear trees, a berry patch, rabbits, and chickens. I did what I planned to do and worked that plan.

I think a lot of folks have a plan to fail because they fail to plan. And if I learned nothing else from the past fourteen days, it is that no one else is making sure I eat. And eating is important. I can be without a home, without electricity, without a lot BUT food is not a thing I can without.

So, when folks are angry something they need isn’t at the store. I don’t get concerned anymore. I am rather sure I can make and grow whatever I need after the fourteen days. And self reliance is a great achievement in my book. I used to worry and that worry led to all this change. I was concerned I was gonna go hungry and so was my family. BUT that no longer worries me.

A lot of things no longer worry me now that I know I can live without leaving my ten mile zone. A lot of things fade away when I realized that soon I won’t need a car. A lot of things make a lot more sense now.

I am just glad I get to live in a world that makes that possible. Even though a lot of you are making weird choices.

Have the day you want. I hope you find whatever you’re looking for.

#ThinkBetter #BeBetter #NoGodsNoMasters #MyBodyMyChoice #MakeYourselfGreatAgain #EmbracetheWithin

Personal Meditation no. 200

“Can you smell the Friday?”

Embrace the Within.

I don’t know about your Mays BUT my Mays are always hectic and full of activities. Last night we got to celebrate the work of Logan and Sophia at an awards ceremony for the county and, with the school year winding down, there is always something on the calendar to celebrate. This year most of those celebrations focus on Sophia and her imminent graduation a few Fridays from now.

And with so much going on in our lives, especially in May, sometimes I can get too caught up in what is next and, like our welcome speaker addresses last night, forget about the now. And I get caught up in this all the time. I am a planner. If you looked around this keyboard and my study you would find many notes to myself. I google-chat myself. I email myself. I write myself notes on index cards and notepads. I am always talking to myself about the plan. And that can lead me to sometimes neglect the now.

And that is a struggle. I can get so involved in what I need to do tomorrow that I can forget about the importance of now. And that is a struggle I think a lot of us share. And as I go out and smell the Friday today, I am going to focus on embracing each part of my day. I am going to focus on right now and not tomorrow. I may write some notes. I may shoot myself a message. BUT I am going to strive to work in the present.

There are a lot of things we never get back. And if you don’t take the time to enjoy them right now there is no guarantee you will get the opportunity to remember how great they truly are. So take some time today and enjoy the Friday. Smell the Friday! Taste the Friday! Enjoy the Friday! You only get one.

Have the day you want. I hope you find whatever you’re looking for.

#ThinkBetter #BeBetter #NoGodsNoMasters #MyBodyMyChoice #MakeYourselfGreatAgain #EmbracetheWithin