Haiku Moment
By Don

Browning leaves,
crisp morning air,
book your seat for winter

Haiku Moment
By Don

Ensuring the sunrise
is not your job,
but enjoying it is

On second thought...

"How we spend our days, of course,
is how we spend our lives."

--Annie Dillard

Thursday Thought: Understanding Life

"Life can only be understood backwards,
but it must be lived forwards."

--Soren Kierkegaard

Haiku Moment
By Don

Twilight,
light to dark,
many shades of gray in life

Haiku Moment
By Don

Lost time,
not to worry,
always another today

Wednesday Thought: What's So Funny?

"Men show their character in nothing
more clearly than by what they think
laughable."

--Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

Haiku Moment
By Don

Soaring eagle,
simple heart,
rising above ourselves

Haiku Moment
By Don

Far off,
inside you,
truth is nested in your heart

Tuesday Thought: Leadership

"All of the great leaders have
had one characteristic in common:
it was the willingness to confront
unequivocally the major anxiety
of their people in their time.
This, and not much else, is the
essence of leadership."

--John Kenneth Galbraith

Fire Shadow Dancing
By Don

Roaring yellow fire,
burns brightly,
illuminating the cave's
dark inner depths,
shapeless shadows dance
on the ancient cave walls,
we watch and wonder,
we linger,
maybe longer...
than we should,
we sense our own hollowness,
just one empty layer upon another,
the sun will come...
tomorrow,
but for now,
we need the fire to dance
with the ancient cave shadows.

Haiku Moment
By Don

Early morning,
no birds,
only silence sings

On second thought ...

"Zen mind is not Zen mind.
That is, if you are attached to Zen mind,
then you have a problem, and your
way is very narrow. Throwing away
Zen mind is correct Zen mind.
Only keep the question, "What is the
best way of helping other people?"

--Seung Sahn (Essential Zen)

Monday Thought: Your Impact on Others

"People may forget what you said...
people may forget what you did...
but people never forget how you
made them feel!"

--Anonymous

Sunday Thought: Listen to the Fall Sounds

"A few days ago I walked along the edge of
the lake and was treated to the crunch and
rustle of leaves with each step I made.
The acoustics of this season are different
and all sounds, no matter how hushed, are
as crisp as autumn air."

--Eric Sloane

September

"But now in September the garden
has cooled, and with it my possessiveness.
The sun warms my back instead of beating
on my head ... The harvest has dwindled,
and I have grown apart from the intense
midsummer relationship that brought
it on."-

--Robert Finch

Shedding Our Leaves
By Don

Fall
paints
herself
on Life's
ever-changing
canvas,
Like trees,
we shed
what
we need
no more.

Haiku Moment
By Don

Simply appreciate,
letting go is then easy,
practice today

Haiku Moment
By Don

Slowly,
life comes into focus,
look beyond what you can see today

On Second Thought...

Your joy is your sorrow unmasked.
And the selfsame well from which
your laughter rises was oftentimes
filled with your tears.
And how else can it be?"

--Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet

Saturday Thought: Our Center of Balance

"He is the wise man who has by perfect
living gained the instinct of rightness by
which he guides himself, whether in
thought or action, who has found that
centre of balance which is always over
his point of contact with circumstances.
He is the man whom Nature pours the
riches of all her instincts."

--N. Sri Ram, Thoughts for Aspirants

Seeking Peace
By Don

Seek peace
in the soft
mid-morning sunlight,

seek peace

within yourself,

make peace

with yourself,

seek peace
wherever
you can
find it,
seek peace,
at any cost,
small price
to pay
for what
really matters.

Haiku Moment
By Don

Sunny Fall day,
a gold finch says good-bye,
as it turns its wings southward

Friday Thought: Seeking

"Do not seek to follow in
the footsteps of the wise;
seek what they sought."

--Baslo

Changes Ahead
By Don

Small wonders
cease to amaze,
seeds of change grow
in autumn's metamorphosing leaves,
the lingering orange-yellow sunrise
sparks faith in new possibilities,
that arrive like
hungry waves rhythmically lapping
the shoreline of our lives,
trust the changes that come.

Haiku Moment
By Don

Friendship,
unexpected paths through the forest,
star-filled nights that amaze the imagination

Thursday Thought: Life Goes On

"In three words I can sum up
everything I've learned about life:
It goes on."

-Robert Frost

Truth Flows
By Don

Truth,
like water,
finds the path
of least resistance,
eventually,
it comes out.

Haiku Moment
By Don

Autumn leaves,
a color manifesto,
change lies ahead

Wednesday Thought: Faith

"Every tomorrow has two handles.
We can take hold of it with the handle
of anxiety or the handle of faith."

--Henry Ward Beecher

Tuesday Thought: Educated Life

"Education is not the piling on of
learning, information, data, facts,
skills, or abilities--that's training or
instruction--but is rather a making
visible what is hidden as a seed...To
be educated, a person doesn't have to
know much or be informed, but he or
she does have to have been exposed
vulnerably to the transformative events
of an engaged human life...One of the
greatest problems of our time is that
many are schooled but few are
educated." --Thomas Moore

Seek
By Don

Wonder often,
wonder wide,
wonder farther,
never hide,
never cease
to be amazed,
delve deeper,
delve wide,
plunge the depths
for there to find,
the truth you seek
to make you whole.

Haiku Moment
By Don

Navigate your heart
like a celestial terrain,
start with your North Star

Haiku Moment
By Don

Atop the Hancock Tower,
breathless view,
special moments with someone you love

Live Today
By Don

Live today,
worry not
about tomorrow,
lift a glass
in celebration,
toast a friend,
hug a child,
kiss your wife,
smile at strangers,
read the paper
from the back forward,
fly a kite in winter,
streak naked
down the street,
pretend you like spinach,
blow a bubble
the size of your head,
what can I say...
live today!

Monday Thought: Today is Only Today

"Finish each day and be done with it.
You have done what you could; some
blunders and absurdities have crept in;
forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow
is a new day; you shall begin it serenely
and with too high a spirit to be encumbered
with your oldnonsense."

--Ralph Waldo Emerson

A Chicago Moment
By Don

Ought we stop,
look and listen
to this magical city,
tell us secrets
about its past.

Ought we stroll
Michigan Avenue,
and catch other strollers
catch us glance at them
as they glance at us.

Ought we discover
the fire still burning
red hot passion
in the heart of this city
by the blue-green lake.

Ought we dare
stay an extra day,
to share another
Chicago moment
at a cozy hotel bar.

We ought to rejoice,
behold, savor,
revel, soak,
indulge, give thanks
for Chicago.

Sunday Thought: Chicago

Hog butcher for the world,
Tool maker, stacker of wheat,
Player with railroads and the nation's freight handler;
Stormy, husky, brawling,
City of big shoulders.

--Carl Sandburg, "Chicago," 1916

Haiku Moment
By Don

Happiness,
masquerading as sunshine,
warms all it touches

Images of Chicago
By Don

Early autumn Chicago,
blue skies,
sunshine,
lush parks,
wonderful food,
blue-green lake,
friendly people,
music and celebration,
stately skyscrapers,
world-class city,
undeniable presence,
a place easy to love.

Saturday Thought: It's Right In Front of Our Noses

Does this sound familiar to you? I can relate.

"A man travels the world over in search of
what he needs, and returns home to find it."

--George Moore

One More Song, One More Dance
By Don

One tiny heart opens,
flooding the world
with joy and love,
Heart lights shine from above,
melting old glaciers of hate,
that separated us for too long,
Captured by life,
we return to the dance floor
for one more song.

Haiku Moment
By Don

Beliefs over time fade
in the face of experience,
open to the reality beyond belief

Friday Thought: Self-Beliefs

"Your self-beliefs either support
or undermine you."

--Marsha Sinetar

Ain't that the truth!!!

Prayer for Help
By Don

Save me
from myself,
help me
see the light,
show me
what I miss,
take me,
to a higher level...
of self-understanding.

Haiku Moment
By Don

Selective memory,
forgotten promises,
broken trust

Thursday Thought: Success

"I have not failed. I've just found
10,000 ways that won't work."

--Thomas Edison

Haiku Moment
By Don

Crisp early morning air,
star-filled sky,
the heavens touch the earth

Wednesday Thought: Friendship

"We would rather be in the company
of somebody we like than in the company
of the most superior being of our
acquaintance." --Frank Swinnerton

Signs of Fall
By Don

September leaves
drift...aimlessly
to the ground,
the forest's trees
look less stately,
but savor their lightness,
a color extravaganza
has begun...
don't miss it.

Tuesday Thought: Another Take on Success

"Try not to become a man of success but a
man of value." --Albert Einstein

Old Pain
By Don

Within us cries
a desperate child,
lingering sadness
still abides,
painful memories
of sleepless nights,
and buried fear
we always felt,
relief we seek
and do not find,
eyes once full
of youthful joy,
grow old with tears,
we cannot hide.

Haiku Moment
By Don

Losing control,
a new reality is born,
one where control does not matter

Monday Thought: Tomorrow Depends Upon Today

This is one of my favorite Gandhi quotes;

"The future depends on what we do in the present."

--Mahatma Gandhi

Holding On
By Don

Tiny threads
hold us together,
faint images
reinforce who we are,
and who we aren't,
our flaws remind us
why we need each other,
in our love,
we find refuge
from what haunts us,
when all is still in the night.

Sunday Thought: Love

Love takes many forms.
Sometimes we forget that.
Love is our true essence--
a fact that escapes us at
times.

I like this quote about love
and how it defines who we
are.

"Tell me who you love, and
I'll tell you who you are."

--Creole proverb

Moving On
By Don

Life,
water under the bridge,
lost opportunity,
missed chances,
lingering feelings
that haunt,
pain that still stings,
life must go on,
get in the river and swim.

Saturday Thought: Burdens in Life

This is a hard one to accept at times,
but it is right on...

"Burdens become light when cheerfully
borne."

--Ovid

Watching and Grasping
By Don

September Arizona sunset,
pregnant moments in technicolor,
truth budding on the horizon,
giving birth to new dreams,
like those that walk with us
in our deepest sleep,
when we are really awake.

Haiku Moment
By Don

You know,
when the time is right,
until then stay the course

Friday Thought: How Hard is Life?

It is as hard as it is. Right? Here is
a great quote that speaks to this issue:

"If you would only recognize that life is
hard, things would be so much easier
for you." -- Louis D. Brandeis

On second thought...

Whatever it is in life that troubles you,
have faith in yourself. Assume responsibility
for yourself, and the rest of life has a way of
taking care of itself.

Haiku Moment
By Don

Paths cross,
lives change,
we grow

Haiku Moment
By Don

Walk silently,
listen to the birds sing,
they are telling us something important

Thursday Thought: Life Journeys

This quote sizes up what our real
travels are about in life:

"The trail is the thing, not the end
of the trail. Travel too fast and you
miss all you are traveling for."

--Louis L'Amour

And therefore...Happy trails to you!

Haiku Moment
By Don

Like ancient trees in the forest,
youth gives way,
to wisdom and empathy

Wednesday Thought: Hope

Is there hope for me? Yes!
And you as well.

"There is always hope for an
individual who stops to do
some serious thinking about
life." --Katherine Logan

Haiku Moment
By Don

Hope,
like the sun,
rises just when we need it

Tuesday Thought: Small Things Well

Many of us seem to have a tendency
to tackle the "big" things. I am learning
in my life that a series of "small" victories
can really make a difference. This little
quote seems to fit:

"Have confidence that if you have done a
little thing well, you can do a bigger thing
well, too." --Joseph Storey

Morning Words
By Don

Tall
moments
in time,

lasting
longer than
you can remember,

bridges appear...
just when
you need one,

fickle
fleeting
fantasies,

forgiven hopes
dashed
by doubt,

another day
in the life
of a silver-tongued poet.

Haiku Moment
By Don

Breathless beginnings,
hasty endings,
living somewhere in between

Monday Thought: Dreams

"Dream as if you'll live forever...
live as if you'll die today."

--James Dean

Do You Read Conscious Living Poetry?

Whether you come here daily to
see what I serve up, a misturn on
the information superhighway lands
you here, or a Google search fetches
you to this door, I would like to hear
from you.

What do you like most about CLP?

1. Poems
2. Haiku Moment
3. Thought for the Day

Please drop me an email and let me
know what brings you here. Your
thoughts help me in finding inside
the best to place upon this table
each morning.

Thank you.

Don
diannone@ix.netcom.com

Haiku Moment
By Don

Transitory pleasures,
thoughts of life and death,
both await us in any moment

Speaking of Life and Death
By Don

Of death,
we speak seldom,
but only
when we must.

Of life,
we speak harshly,
because it is
not ours to keep.

Of our time
between the two,
we spend wondering
when one ends and the other begins.

Sunday Thought: Death and Dying

Inevitable, but not eagerly awaited, processes
for all of us. Watching the Passion of the
Christ last night caused me to ponder
life's envitable.

This line from In Memoriam comes to
mind this morning after:

"Be near me when my light is low...
And all the wheels of Being slow."
--Alfred, Lord Tennyson

What Flows from the Inside
Don

Cry a tear
of tenderness,
cry a tear
of joy,
Reach inside
for happiness,
reach inside...
enjoy.

Now
By Don

For now,
there is now,
not yesterday,
not tomorrow,
only now.

Saturday Thought: The Roads We Travel

"We all take different paths in life, but no
matter where we go, we take a little of each
other everywhere." --Tim McGraw

Seeing clearly
By Don

Acrimoniously simple,
shimmering rain drops,
or tear drops,
in either case,
helping us to see...
with crystal clear vision,
ourselves,
unburdened by want,
for anything,
other than what we have.

Haiku Moment
By Don

Bright star,
sparkling diamond in the sky,
seeing the world through our heart

Haiku Moment
By Don

Sharing who we are,
showing what we are made of,
start by living the real you

Friday Thought: Teamwork

It's essential to to all of us,
no matter our role in life.

"Coming together is a beginning,
staying together is progress, and
working together is success."

--Henry Ford

Thursday Thought: A Complete Life

"Be a life long or short, its
completeness depends on
what it was lived for."

--David Starr Jordan

Wednesday Thought: Learn to Love

This quote just seems to hit the spot!

"You learn to speak by speaking, to study
by studying, to run by running, to work
by working; and just so you learn to love
God and man by loving. Begin as a mere
apprentice and the very power of love
will lead you on to become a master of
the art." --St. Francis De Sales