It's truly inspiring when ordinary people--teenagers at that--speak up and be heard. And often out of such self-expressions, hope and optimism emerge. This video is about teens and their families facing difficulties and challenges from our current economic crisis.
Thought for the week of 03/22-03/28, 2009
Visited my sick mother in the hospital recently. She is 83 years old. Seeing her brought a flood of memories and emotions. My love for my mother has deepened in the last few years. Our relationship was very strained before. But illness has a way of bringing reconciliation and forgiveness.
I wondered what my mother is thinking and feeling as she lies there in the hospital bed, perhaps sensing the inevitable end of her life as she often talks about. Being there with her made me become aware again of what we often forget but is ever present - our death.
As I walked out of the hospital, I thought about that well-known quote by Jeremy Schwartz: “Live every day as if it were your last, because one of these days, it will be.”
How true...these powerful words demand our attention and action. I was faced with challenging questions directed at myself: "Am I living my life to the fullest? Am I content with who and where I am? Am I following the call to live in the moment fully engaged with acceptance and celebration?" I am not sure, but I am asking....
Thought for the week of 03/15-03/21, 2009
Sometimes I sits and thinks and sometimes I just sits.--Unknown
We all do the first part of this saying, that is, sit and think. But what about "just sits"? I wonder how many of us know how to just sit and be still. Are we even capable of it without feeling awkard or uncomfortable? I work alone and am used to solitude but I struggle with "just sits."
We deal with information overload everyday. There is constant internal chatter. And all that can be very draining...sapping our mental, emotional, and physical energy. So it's good to take time periodically to "just sits," to quietly sit and relax, to press "pause" button on everything around us. I know that some of us, myself included, may feel guilty because by doing nothing, we can be viewed as lazy or simply feel we can't afford to stop or slow down our pace. There is just too much to do!! I understand. But think of it this way: This time of just sitting and relaxing is necessary for me to recharge, renew, rejuvenate, regenerate, reinvigorate, reenergize, regroup... (well, you get my point) and be more productive, otherwise, my body will force me to slow down by getting sick.
If just sitting seems uncomfortable, watch this video while sitting and allow it to calm and relax your mind and body. You deserve it. Be well.
Thought for the week of 03/08-03/14, 2009
I am more appreciative of warm human touch than ever before. I come from a culture where any form of open display of physical affection is avoided as being inappropriate and ill-mannered (at least during the time I was growing up). And that's a shame because I personally experience the healing power of loving, caring human touch, as supported by medical studies. Rabindranath Tagore, a poet, once said, "I want my friends, their touch, with the earth's last love. I will take life's final offering. I will take the last human blessing." A supportive, warm, loving touch is exactly what you or someone in your life may need right now. And in that spirit, here is a lovely song by Beatles, perfectly expressing these two otters' affection for each other.
Thought for the week of 03/01-03/07, 2009
Continuing on the concept of "Being on the Right Path," let's hear what James Hollis, PhD, Jungian analyst and author, has to say about it:
We have tons of inner promptings--dreams, symptoms, feelings of satisfaction or dissatisfaction--that support or oppose our chosen course. But we have all learned to override those promptings. That is why people come to see me in therapy. Their "override" mechanisms are now causing them greater problems. So, typically, we have to try to disassemble our adaptations and recover relationship to whatever it is that excites, generates energy, fires the imagination--and then find courage to risk being the person we were meant to be.
Uncertainty brings fear but at the same it can become a catalyst to change the course from the status quo, that might bring more exciting, meaningful, and fulfilling life. Life involves risk--whether we choose to do or not do. As the existentialist philosophers say, "Life is a series of choices." I create my reality. I pray I choose wisely more often than choose foolishly.
Inspiration - March 2009
