Haiku Moment
By Don
snowflakes falling
rivers grow inside
the flow connects us
Monday, December 13, 2004
On second thought...
"Only those who will risk going too
far can possibly find out how far one
can go."
--T. S. Eliot
"Only those who will risk going too
far can possibly find out how far one
can go."
--T. S. Eliot
Monday Thought: Let Yourself Bloom
"And the day came when the risk it took
to remain tight inside the bud was more
painful than the risk it took to blossom."
--Anais Nin
"And the day came when the risk it took
to remain tight inside the bud was more
painful than the risk it took to blossom."
--Anais Nin
Sunday, December 12, 2004
On second thought...
We reap what we sow.
So, use this Sunday to
sow seeds of love, kindness,
and compassion in yourself.
It's remarkable what you
will reap.
--Don
We reap what we sow.
So, use this Sunday to
sow seeds of love, kindness,
and compassion in yourself.
It's remarkable what you
will reap.
--Don
Sunday Thought: Real Fullness
"Being full in terms of physical sensations
- sounds, smells, tastes, and feelings -
is to be full of worldly food; but being
filled with the highest joy - which comes
from a peaceful mind free from the
disturbance of sense-object - is to be
full of the food of the Dhamma."
"Being full in terms of physical sensations
- sounds, smells, tastes, and feelings -
is to be full of worldly food; but being
filled with the highest joy - which comes
from a peaceful mind free from the
disturbance of sense-object - is to be
full of the food of the Dhamma."
Saturday, December 11, 2004
Saturday Thought: In-tention
We are what we in-tend in our lives.
What does your heart in-tend for you
this day?
--Don
We are what we in-tend in our lives.
What does your heart in-tend for you
this day?
--Don
On second thought...
Nature's sacred places surround us
everywhere. Tap their special healing
energy. Allow them to touch you and
open your heart.
I discovered just such a place in Pennsylvania:
Cook Forest, which is located about 20 miles
north of Clarion. When you cross the Clarion
River you will see exactly what I mean.
--Don
Nature's sacred places surround us
everywhere. Tap their special healing
energy. Allow them to touch you and
open your heart.
I discovered just such a place in Pennsylvania:
Cook Forest, which is located about 20 miles
north of Clarion. When you cross the Clarion
River you will see exactly what I mean.
--Don
Friday, December 10, 2004
On second thought...
Look for the magical
circles in your life. They
exist everywhere. Each
seeks to connect you with
the powerful energy of
the Universe.
Look for the magical
circles in your life. They
exist everywhere. Each
seeks to connect you with
the powerful energy of
the Universe.
Friday Thought: Open Mind
Some times we fall prey to a
closed mind--our own and others.
We need to work constantly at
maintaining a truly open mind.
In that way, we are assured of
grasping the reality that presents
itself to us.
--Don
Some times we fall prey to a
closed mind--our own and others.
We need to work constantly at
maintaining a truly open mind.
In that way, we are assured of
grasping the reality that presents
itself to us.
--Don
Thursday, December 09, 2004
Why Morning Poems
By Don
Poems set me free,
They help me clearly see,
Poetic words shed new light,
Adding much needed insight,
Thinking with the heart,
From the very start,
Is surely what we need,
Each poem is a fertile seed.
By Don
Poems set me free,
They help me clearly see,
Poetic words shed new light,
Adding much needed insight,
Thinking with the heart,
From the very start,
Is surely what we need,
Each poem is a fertile seed.
Thursday Thought: Foresight
"Someone's sitting in the shade today
because someone planted a tree a long
time ago."
--Warren Buffett
"Someone's sitting in the shade today
because someone planted a tree a long
time ago."
--Warren Buffett
Wednesday, December 08, 2004
Tuesday, December 07, 2004
Mysteries of the Heart
By Don
Mysteries of the heart...
abound,
amaze,
and awake.
Seek the mystery
of your own spirit,
take it to heart.
By Don
Mysteries of the heart...
abound,
amaze,
and awake.
Seek the mystery
of your own spirit,
take it to heart.
On second thought...
"Winter is a reminder to each of us
to warm ourselves by our heart's fire."
--Don Iannone
"Winter is a reminder to each of us
to warm ourselves by our heart's fire."
--Don Iannone
Tuesday Thought: Believe in Yourself
"Buried somewhere deep inside of you
is something worth believing in with all
your heart. Guess what? When you truly
believe it, others will too."
--Don Iannone
"Buried somewhere deep inside of you
is something worth believing in with all
your heart. Guess what? When you truly
believe it, others will too."
--Don Iannone
Monday, December 06, 2004
On second thought...
"All of us need a snow day
in our busy lives...a day when
our usual schedule is halted, and
we allow Mother Nature to cover
us in her beauty and smother
us in her love."
--Don Iannone
"All of us need a snow day
in our busy lives...a day when
our usual schedule is halted, and
we allow Mother Nature to cover
us in her beauty and smother
us in her love."
--Don Iannone
Monday Thought: Love
"Trust the power of your love.
It will set you free of the fear
that binds your soul."
--Don Iannone
"Trust the power of your love.
It will set you free of the fear
that binds your soul."
--Don Iannone
Haiku Moment
By Don
Snowflake
--uniqueness takes form
----finding happiness in our crystalline structure
By Don
Snowflake
--uniqueness takes form
----finding happiness in our crystalline structure
Christmas Tree Magic
By Don
Behold the beauty of the Christmas tree,
A perfect evergreen triangle for you and me,
Painted with bright bows, tinsel, and lights,
Surrounded by presents and other delights,
In the corner of room she does stand,
Glowing cheerfully for all on hand,
With the fireplace crackling all orange and yellow,
Inside us we feel all warm and mellow,
Even the birds, the squirrels, and the deer,
Stop by the window with good cheer,
The stage is complete as a light snow begins to fall,
And Santa says Merry Christmas to one and all.
By Don
Behold the beauty of the Christmas tree,
A perfect evergreen triangle for you and me,
Painted with bright bows, tinsel, and lights,
Surrounded by presents and other delights,
In the corner of room she does stand,
Glowing cheerfully for all on hand,
With the fireplace crackling all orange and yellow,
Inside us we feel all warm and mellow,
Even the birds, the squirrels, and the deer,
Stop by the window with good cheer,
The stage is complete as a light snow begins to fall,
And Santa says Merry Christmas to one and all.
Sunday, December 05, 2004
Winter's Night
By Don
Cold winter's night,
logs of passion burn on,
slumbering cat before the crackling fireplace,
snow-covered deer sleep in the forest,
blankets of fresh fallen snow bring silence...
to an overworked world,
excited heart beats...
thump like drums off in the frozen distance,
we relish a long winter's night with nowhere to go.
By Don
Cold winter's night,
logs of passion burn on,
slumbering cat before the crackling fireplace,
snow-covered deer sleep in the forest,
blankets of fresh fallen snow bring silence...
to an overworked world,
excited heart beats...
thump like drums off in the frozen distance,
we relish a long winter's night with nowhere to go.
On second thought...
"Dreams are renewable. No matter
what our age or condition, there are
still untapped possibilities within us
and new beauty waiting to be born."
-- Dale E. Turner
"Dreams are renewable. No matter
what our age or condition, there are
still untapped possibilities within us
and new beauty waiting to be born."
-- Dale E. Turner
Sunday Thought: Material Possessions
"One thing you’re never going to see is a
hearse with luggage racks.”
--Eric Atchison
"One thing you’re never going to see is a
hearse with luggage racks.”
--Eric Atchison
Saturday, December 04, 2004
Native Spirit Within
By Don
Before I was me,
I was much more free,
Off the land I did live,
Daily thanks I would give,
New trails I did blaze,
At the stars I did gaze,
Everything was alive back then,
But I don't recall just when,
Ancient echoes call out to me,
Now I truly can see,
Somewhere deep inside,
A native spirit does abide.
By Don
Before I was me,
I was much more free,
Off the land I did live,
Daily thanks I would give,
New trails I did blaze,
At the stars I did gaze,
Before each day I would start,
Direction I took from my heart,
Everything was alive back then,
But I don't recall just when,
Ancient echoes call out to me,
Now I truly can see,
Somewhere deep inside,
A native spirit does abide.
On second thought...
"We need people in our lives with
whom we can be as open as possible.
To have real conversation with people
may seem like such a simple, obvious
suggestion, but it involves courage
and risk."
--Thomas Moore (From: Embracing the
Everyday Life)
"We need people in our lives with
whom we can be as open as possible.
To have real conversation with people
may seem like such a simple, obvious
suggestion, but it involves courage
and risk."
--Thomas Moore (From: Embracing the
Everyday Life)
Saturday Thought: What You Get in Life
"Life's strict rule is this: You get more of
what you focus on. Ignoring this, we abandon
our healthiest, concentrative energies and
court emotional upheaval."
--Marsha Sinetar
"Life's strict rule is this: You get more of
what you focus on. Ignoring this, we abandon
our healthiest, concentrative energies and
court emotional upheaval."
--Marsha Sinetar
Friday, December 03, 2004
Friday Thought: Use Your All
"You must not only aim aright,
but draw the bow with all your might."
--Henry David Thoreau
"You must not only aim aright,
but draw the bow with all your might."
--Henry David Thoreau
Thursday, December 02, 2004
Thursday Thought: Your Sacred Space
"Your sacred space is where you can find
yourself again and again."
--Joseph Campbell
"Your sacred space is where you can find
yourself again and again."
--Joseph Campbell
Wednesday, December 01, 2004
On second thought...
"These days people seek knowledge,
not wisdom. Knowledge is of the past,
wisdom is of the future."
--Vernon Cooper
"These days people seek knowledge,
not wisdom. Knowledge is of the past,
wisdom is of the future."
--Vernon Cooper
Wednesday Thought: Learning
"In times of change, learners
inherit the Earth, while the
learned find themselves
beautifully equipped to
deal with a world that
no longer exists."
--Eric Hoffer
"In times of change, learners
inherit the Earth, while the
learned find themselves
beautifully equipped to
deal with a world that
no longer exists."
--Eric Hoffer
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
On second thought...
"Remember the past, plan for
the future, but live for today,
because yesterday is gone and
tomorrow may never come."
--Luke
"Remember the past, plan for
the future, but live for today,
because yesterday is gone and
tomorrow may never come."
--Luke
Tuesday Thought: First is Not Always Best
"The early bird gets the worm, but the
second mouse gets the cheese."
--Steven Wright
"The early bird gets the worm, but the
second mouse gets the cheese."
--Steven Wright
Monday, November 29, 2004
On second thought...
"A word of encouragement during
a failure is worth more than an
hour of praise after success."
--Anonymous
"A word of encouragement during
a failure is worth more than an
hour of praise after success."
--Anonymous
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Full Moon Meditation Walk
By Don
Under a chilly November full moon sky,
From the labyrinth we sought advice from on high,
We walked in silence, snaking our way through,
Not exactly sure what we should do,
Off in the shadows Runningwolf stood,
Watching over us as we did what we could,
In the eye of the sacred circle I left behind my fear,
Too long I've run scared just like a frightened deer,
In my return from the center an insight came to me,
Something I desperately needed to see,
A voice inside me whispered "trust your love,
Don't for a moment question the dove,"
Further it said "let your love lead you,
Let it touch everything in life you do,"
With both eyes closed I continued my walk,
I stumbled my way back where we sat to talk,
Inside the tepee we sat with our shaman master,
Who took us on a journey that made our hearts beat faster,
I shared what I learned that night under the full moon,
I knew within me something was about to change soon.
By Don
Under a chilly November full moon sky,
From the labyrinth we sought advice from on high,
We walked in silence, snaking our way through,
Not exactly sure what we should do,
Off in the shadows Runningwolf stood,
Watching over us as we did what we could,
In the eye of the sacred circle I left behind my fear,
Too long I've run scared just like a frightened deer,
In my return from the center an insight came to me,
Something I desperately needed to see,
A voice inside me whispered "trust your love,
Don't for a moment question the dove,"
Further it said "let your love lead you,
Let it touch everything in life you do,"
With both eyes closed I continued my walk,
I stumbled my way back where we sat to talk,
Inside the tepee we sat with our shaman master,
Who took us on a journey that made our hearts beat faster,
I shared what I learned that night under the full moon,
I knew within me something was about to change soon.
On second thought...
"The Great Spirit is in all things,
he is in the air we breathe. The
Great Spirit is our Father, but the
Earth is our Mother. She nourishes
us, that which we put into the ground
she returns to us.... "
--Big Thunder (Bedagi),
Wabanaki Algonquin
"The Great Spirit is in all things,
he is in the air we breathe. The
Great Spirit is our Father, but the
Earth is our Mother. She nourishes
us, that which we put into the ground
she returns to us.... "
--Big Thunder (Bedagi),
Wabanaki Algonquin
Sunday Thought: Our Earth
"Treat the earth well: it was not
given to you by your parents,
it was loaned to you by your children.
We do not inherit the Earth from our
Ancestors, we borrow it from our
Children."
--Ancient Indian Proverb
"Treat the earth well: it was not
given to you by your parents,
it was loaned to you by your children.
We do not inherit the Earth from our
Ancestors, we borrow it from our
Children."
--Ancient Indian Proverb
Saturday, November 27, 2004
A Birthday Wish for Mary
By Don
Blessed are you with another year,
One filled with love and great cheer,
May you find all that you truly seek,
Climb sunset mountain to the peak,
Allow the little girl inside of you,
Be with you no matter what you do,
Use your ancient wisdom for some good,
Help animals and flowers as you should,
Hold those you love close to your heart,
Never forget them from the start,
And on this special day for you,
Under an Arizone sunset may we rendez-vous.
By Don
Blessed are you with another year,
One filled with love and great cheer,
May you find all that you truly seek,
Climb sunset mountain to the peak,
Allow the little girl inside of you,
Be with you no matter what you do,
Use your ancient wisdom for some good,
Help animals and flowers as you should,
Hold those you love close to your heart,
Never forget them from the start,
And on this special day for you,
Under an Arizone sunset may we rendez-vous.
Haiku Moment
By Don
Sunset point
--aglow in vibrant fleeting color
----tempting the heart to beam with love
By Don
Sunset point
--aglow in vibrant fleeting color
----tempting the heart to beam with love
One second thought...
"How far you go in life depends on
your being tender with the young,
compassionate with the aged, sympathetic
with the striving and tolerant of the weak
and strong. Because someday in life you will
have been all of these."
--George Washington Carver
"How far you go in life depends on
your being tender with the young,
compassionate with the aged, sympathetic
with the striving and tolerant of the weak
and strong. Because someday in life you will
have been all of these."
--George Washington Carver
Friday, November 26, 2004
Thanksgiving Sunset
By Don
Early signs a Thanksgiving sunset does make,
Away our thankful hearts it does take,
Through an Oriental garden we behold,
Magnificient beauty quite untold,
Streaks of orange, salmon, and red,
With each stroke our hearts are fed,
Through the dark outline of disappearing trees,
We watch the sunset move toward the seas,
Something inside us changes as we inhale its bloom,
Somewhere out there a new tomorrow looms,
An Arizona sunset is a promise to keep,
One that lives on even in our sleep.
By Don
Early signs a Thanksgiving sunset does make,
Away our thankful hearts it does take,
Through an Oriental garden we behold,
Magnificient beauty quite untold,
Streaks of orange, salmon, and red,
With each stroke our hearts are fed,
Through the dark outline of disappearing trees,
We watch the sunset move toward the seas,
Something inside us changes as we inhale its bloom,
Somewhere out there a new tomorrow looms,
An Arizona sunset is a promise to keep,
One that lives on even in our sleep.
Thursday, November 25, 2004
Thanksgiving Morning
By Don
Thanksgiving sunrise in Carefree,
Red boulders stretch toward a pale blue sky,
A morning fire paints yellow laughter on the casita walls,
Opaque shadows linger and dance across the room,
In the nearby junipers, the birds are awake,
Their sweet voices rise with the cherry orange sun,
In the distance, the mission church bells remind us...
To ring true to ourselves on this special day,
Deep inside we know...
Thanksgiving always blooms where grateful hearts abide.
By Don
Thanksgiving sunrise in Carefree,
Red boulders stretch toward a pale blue sky,
A morning fire paints yellow laughter on the casita walls,
Opaque shadows linger and dance across the room,
In the nearby junipers, the birds are awake,
Their sweet voices rise with the cherry orange sun,
In the distance, the mission church bells remind us...
To ring true to ourselves on this special day,
Deep inside we know...
Thanksgiving always blooms where grateful hearts abide.
Thursday Thought: Give Thanks for Important Stuff
"The ideals which have lighted my way,
and time after time have given me new
courage to face life cheerfully, have been
Kindness, Beauty, and Truth. The trite
subjects of human efforts, possessions,
outward success, luxury have always
seemed to me contemptible."
--Albert Einstein
"The ideals which have lighted my way,
and time after time have given me new
courage to face life cheerfully, have been
Kindness, Beauty, and Truth. The trite
subjects of human efforts, possessions,
outward success, luxury have always
seemed to me contemptible."
--Albert Einstein
Wednesday, November 24, 2004
On the other hand...
"A brief candle;
both ends burning
An endless mile;
a bus wheel turning
A friend to share the lonesome times
A handshake and a sip of wine
So say it loud and let it ring
We are all a part of everything
The future, present and the past
Fly on proud bird You're free at last.
--Charlie Daniels
Written en route to the funeral for his friend, Ronnie Van Zant of the band, Lynyrd Skynyrd.
"A brief candle;
both ends burning
An endless mile;
a bus wheel turning
A friend to share the lonesome times
A handshake and a sip of wine
So say it loud and let it ring
We are all a part of everything
The future, present and the past
Fly on proud bird You're free at last.
--Charlie Daniels
Written en route to the funeral for his friend, Ronnie Van Zant of the band, Lynyrd Skynyrd.
Wednesday Thought: The Future
"The best thing about the future is
that it only comes one day at a time."
--Abraham Lincoln
"The best thing about the future is
that it only comes one day at a time."
--Abraham Lincoln
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
Tuesday Thought: Gratitude
"At times our own light goes out and
is rekindled by a spark from another
person.Each of us has cause to think
with deep gratitude of those who have
lighted the flame within us."
--Albert Schweitzer
"At times our own light goes out and
is rekindled by a spark from another
person.Each of us has cause to think
with deep gratitude of those who have
lighted the flame within us."
--Albert Schweitzer
A little story passed along by my wife...
One day a father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the
country with the firm purpose of showing his son how poor people live.
They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be
considered a very poor family.
On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, "How was the
trip?"
"It was great, Dad."
"Did you see how poor people live?" the father asked.
"Oh yeah," said the son.
"So, tell me, what did you learn from the trip?" asked the father.
The son answered: "I saw that we have one dog and they had four.
We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a
creek that has no end.
We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night.
Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon.
We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go
beyond our sight.
We have servants who serve us, but they serve others.
We buy our food, but they grow theirs.
We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to
protect them."
The boy's father was speechless.
Then his son added, "Thanks, Dad, for showing me how poor we are."
Isn't perspective a wonderful thing? Makes you wonder what would happen
if we all gave thanks for everything we have, instead of worrying about
what we don't have.
Appreciate every single thing you have, especially your friends!
Happy Thanksgiving Friend!
One day a father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the
country with the firm purpose of showing his son how poor people live.
They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be
considered a very poor family.
On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, "How was the
trip?"
"It was great, Dad."
"Did you see how poor people live?" the father asked.
"Oh yeah," said the son.
"So, tell me, what did you learn from the trip?" asked the father.
The son answered: "I saw that we have one dog and they had four.
We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a
creek that has no end.
We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night.
Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon.
We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go
beyond our sight.
We have servants who serve us, but they serve others.
We buy our food, but they grow theirs.
We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to
protect them."
The boy's father was speechless.
Then his son added, "Thanks, Dad, for showing me how poor we are."
Isn't perspective a wonderful thing? Makes you wonder what would happen
if we all gave thanks for everything we have, instead of worrying about
what we don't have.
Appreciate every single thing you have, especially your friends!
Happy Thanksgiving Friend!
Monday, November 22, 2004
Monday Thought: Conscious Responsibility
"A man who becomes conscious
of the responsibility he bears
toward a human being who
affectionately waits for him,
or to an unfinished work, will
never be able to throw away
his life. He knows the "why" for
his existence, and will be able
to bear almost any "how."
--Victor Frankl
"A man who becomes conscious
of the responsibility he bears
toward a human being who
affectionately waits for him,
or to an unfinished work, will
never be able to throw away
his life. He knows the "why" for
his existence, and will be able
to bear almost any "how."
--Victor Frankl
Sunday, November 21, 2004
Saturday, November 20, 2004
On second thought...
"All that is gold does not glitter;
not all those that wander are lost."
--J. R. R. Tolkien
"All that is gold does not glitter;
not all those that wander are lost."
--J. R. R. Tolkien
Friday, November 19, 2004
On second thought...
"If you banish fear, nothing terribly
bad can happen to you."
--Margaret Bourke-White
"If you banish fear, nothing terribly
bad can happen to you."
--Margaret Bourke-White
Friday Thought: Learning from Fools
"Wise men learn more from fools
than fools from the wise."
--Marcus Porcius Cato
"Wise men learn more from fools
than fools from the wise."
--Marcus Porcius Cato
Thursday, November 18, 2004
Thursday Thought: Defining the Problem
"The greatest challenge to any
thinker is stating the problem
in a way that will allow a solution."
--Bertrand Russell
"The greatest challenge to any
thinker is stating the problem
in a way that will allow a solution."
--Bertrand Russell
Lessons from a Butterfly
Author Unknown
A man found a cocoon of a butterfly
One day a small opening appeared
He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours
It struggled to force its body through that little hole
Then it seemed to stop making any progress
It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could
And it could go no farther.
So the man decided to help the butterfly
He took a pair of scissors and snipped off
The remaining bit of the cocoon.
The butterfly then emerged easily, BUT,
It had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings
He continued to watch the butterfly
He expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge
And the body would contract
Neither happened!
In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling
Around with a swollen body and shriveled wings.
It was never able to fly.
The man acted with well-intentioned kindness
But he didn't understand the consequences.
The restricting cocoon and the struggle required to get
Through the tiny opening, were nature's way of forcing fluid
From the body of the butterfly once it achieved it's freedom
From the cocoon.
Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life.
If nature allowed us to go through life without any
Obstacles, it would cripple us.
We would not be as strong as we could have been
And we could never fly
Have a great day, great life, and struggle a little.
Then fly!
Author Unknown
A man found a cocoon of a butterfly
One day a small opening appeared
He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours
It struggled to force its body through that little hole
Then it seemed to stop making any progress
It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could
And it could go no farther.
So the man decided to help the butterfly
He took a pair of scissors and snipped off
The remaining bit of the cocoon.
The butterfly then emerged easily, BUT,
It had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings
He continued to watch the butterfly
He expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge
And the body would contract
Neither happened!
In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling
Around with a swollen body and shriveled wings.
It was never able to fly.
The man acted with well-intentioned kindness
But he didn't understand the consequences.
The restricting cocoon and the struggle required to get
Through the tiny opening, were nature's way of forcing fluid
From the body of the butterfly once it achieved it's freedom
From the cocoon.
Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life.
If nature allowed us to go through life without any
Obstacles, it would cripple us.
We would not be as strong as we could have been
And we could never fly
Have a great day, great life, and struggle a little.
Then fly!
A Relationship is like a Rose
A relationship is like a rose,
How long it lasts, no one knows;
Love can erase an awful past,
Love can be yours, you'll see at last;
To feel that love, it makes you sigh,
To have it leave, you'd rather die;
You hope you've found that special rose,
Cause you love and care for the one you chose.
By Rob Cella
A relationship is like a rose,
How long it lasts, no one knows;
Love can erase an awful past,
Love can be yours, you'll see at last;
To feel that love, it makes you sigh,
To have it leave, you'd rather die;
You hope you've found that special rose,
Cause you love and care for the one you chose.
Wednesday, November 17, 2004
On second thought...
"Whenever I draw a circle,
I immediately want to step
out of it."
--Buckminster Fuller
"Whenever I draw a circle,
I immediately want to step
out of it."
--Buckminster Fuller
Wednesday Thought: Unlearning
"The most useful piece of learning
for the uses of life is to unlearn
what is untrue."
--Antisthenes
"The most useful piece of learning
for the uses of life is to unlearn
what is untrue."
--Antisthenes
Tuesday, November 16, 2004
In Your Dreams
By Don
Lucid dreams of truth,
Linger long after the night,
Memories of who we are becoming,
Even before we get there,
Recollections of pasts we know
but have not experienced,
All this, and more,
in your dreams.
By Don
Lucid dreams of truth,
Linger long after the night,
Memories of who we are becoming,
Even before we get there,
Recollections of pasts we know
but have not experienced,
All this, and more,
in your dreams.
One for the road...
"When the sea was calm all
ships alike showed mastership
in floating."
--William Shakespeare
"When the sea was calm all
ships alike showed mastership
in floating."
--William Shakespeare
On second thought...
"One of the nice things about
problems is that a good many
of them do not exist except in
our imaginations."
--Steve Allen
"One of the nice things about
problems is that a good many
of them do not exist except in
our imaginations."
--Steve Allen
Tuesday Thought: Intelligence
"Intelligence is what we use when
we don't know what to do, when we
have to grope rather than using a
standard response."
--Jean Piaget
"Intelligence is what we use when
we don't know what to do, when we
have to grope rather than using a
standard response."
--Jean Piaget
Monday, November 15, 2004
One more...
"You may say I'm a dreamer,
but I'm not the only one, I hope
someday you will join us, and
the world will live as one"
--John Lennon
"You may say I'm a dreamer,
but I'm not the only one, I hope
someday you will join us, and
the world will live as one"
--John Lennon
On second thought...
"Ah! what a divine religion might
be found out if charity were really
made the principle of it instead of
faith."
--Shelley
"Ah! what a divine religion might
be found out if charity were really
made the principle of it instead of
faith."
--Shelley
Monday Thought: Look Within
"What lies behind us and what lies
before us are tiny matters compared
to what lies within."
--Ralph Waldo Emerson
"What lies behind us and what lies
before us are tiny matters compared
to what lies within."
--Ralph Waldo Emerson
Sunday, November 14, 2004
Spirituality in the Workplace
By Martin Rutte
(Reprinted from CEO Refresher)
The nature and meaning of work are undergoing a profound evolution. Two forces are helping to catalyze the momentum of this process — fear and the emergence of both a more personal and widespread spirituality.
The fear is about losing our job and having to do more with less. And the emergence of spirituality in the workplace points to the desire that there be more to work than just survival. We yearn for work to be a place in which we both experience and express our deep soul and spirit.
Fear in the Workplace
There are several factors causing an increase of fear in the workplace. The first is massive corporate downsizing. The benefit of downsizing is that it does increase profits. Moreover, it cuts the fat and the excess while streamlining the organization. But downsizing also has a downside. It causes pain and suffering. In addition to the pain felt by those people who have been let go, those who are still left are asked to increase production with less resources, in the same amount of time, and for the same pay.
They feel stressed out and bone-tired. They are anxious about the security of their job and often are resentful. And most painful of all, they don't see any light at the end of the tunnel.
Downsizing works in the short-term; in the long-term, what's lost is loyalty, engagement, experience, creativity and the full expression of spirit.
A second factor is that more work is moving offshore. Years ago, it was just manufacturing work. Now it's also service jobs. India and Israel, for example, are becoming key sites for the development of computer software. We thought that there were certain types of work that would always remain in the developed world — that these were "our jobs," like service and new technology development — it's just no longer so.
And what about successful companies laying people off? That's never happened before. The understanding used to be that when a company was in fiscal trouble it would lay off people and when the company was successful, it would keep and even hire people. But with re-engineering and new advanced technology, there is a need for less people, so successful companies are downsizing.
When you put all these factors together, you're taking the work contract — the implicit agreement that I would come to work for you for life, the belief in security of employment — and smashing it. The message is crystal clear, "You don't have a secure job anymore." And that causes insecurity, it causes anxiety, and it causes fear.
There is a growing sense of "dis-spiritedness" in individuals and in the overall workplace. The spirit has been shut down. It can't fully express itself. There is a sense of dis-engagement. It may not be completely quantifiable, but people can and do feel the lack of spirit in their workplace.
All of this doesn't need to paint a completely bleak picture. We can look at these very same factors from another, more useful perspective — the spiritual. The security we thought we got from the corporation is a myth. Real security comes from a connection to that which is truly secure — the spirit. We are in the process of moving from "dependent children" at work, with the parental company looking after us, to really coming into our full, adult Selfhood. From this new reality we can begin exploring and expressing more of our true spiritual selves.
The Emergence of Spirituality
In addition to fear, there is a compelling inner longing for spiritual fulfillment. There are several factors present in society reflecting the emerging desire for personal and collective spirituality.
The baby boomer generation is now entering its 50's. People are reaching mid-life and looking at those issues that are characteristic for this age – issues such as: "What is my legacy?"; "What are the long-term values that I want to leave behind?"; "In what other arenas of life do I want to invest my energies now that I've reached the peak of my career?"; "What is really important to me as I begin to see my parents, aunts and uncles start to die?" These kinds of thoughts are usual for people in mid-life. What is unusual, however, is that the baby boomer generation is so large. When it begins to think about these issues, then society follows. As spirituality emerges for baby boomers, the whole of society is affected.
Concern and involvement with the bio-environment also reflect an emerging sense of the spiritual. The environment is both life supporting and gives us an awareness and consciousness of the whole. It reveals to us how we are interconnected and interdependent. And when you think about that, that's a very spiritual metaphor.
"When the concept of human spirit is understood as the mode of consciousness in which the individual feels connected to the Cosmos as a whole, it becomes clear that ecological awareness is spiritual in its deepest sense." — Fritjof Capra
Yet another factor is the maturing of the scientific paradigm. We thought we could solve all the world's problems with science. We thought we could eventually understand everything through science. But the more we know, the more we find out we don't know. Science has been divorcing itself from the spiritual for several hundred years. However, science without spirituality is like a wave without the ocean. A growing number of scientists realize this and are moving more into spiritual exploration.
These three factors are indicative of the overall emergence of spirituality in our time. Popular culture also reflects this in the growing number of books, movies, and TV programs about spirituality. And spirituality in the workplace is part of this phenomenon.
What Is Spirituality?
I've found that when people ask me the question, "What is spirituality?", what they're really concerned about is, “Will I have 'the Answer'”? or some other dogmatic response. They're afraid that I've already got spirituality defined and that they will disagree with my definition, which will then cause separation. People are afraid that I (or anyone else speaking about spirituality) will shove a particular point of view down their throats. This approach offers the listener no opportunity to search for his/her own truth.
The journey is not about spirituality as "the answer," but about spirituality as "the question." A question allows you to look more deeply. It allows you to search for what's true for you, and in so doing, deepen your own experience. But ultimately, what moving from answer to question does is make it safe and permissible to explore this territory in a way that is useful.
What is spirituality for you? Where is spirit or spirituality not showing up in your workplace? Where is it flourishing? Explore these kinds of questions, at work, for yourself, your relationships, your division and your company. And in this questioning, in this exploration, notice the deepening of your own experience of spirituality at work.
Spirituality in the Workplace
What would a more spiritual workplace mean for people? It would mean that work would move from merely being a place to get enough money to survive — from just earning our daily bread — to being a place of livelihood. By livelihood I mean a place where we both survive and are fully alive. We are alive in that our spirit fully expresses itself. And through our contribution, we allow other people's spirits to be nourished and to flourish. Livelihood has, at its core, three meanings for work: survival (you're alive), enlivening of the individual Self (you're aliveness), and enlivening of the collective Self (their aliveness).
What are the benefits of a more spiritual workplace? One of the primary benefits is that people are more in touch with the Source of creativity. As business people, we realize the value of creativity and innovation. Creativity is a cornerstone of business. It allows us to come out with new products and services that really are of service. It allows us to do more with less. In essence, creativity leads to more efficient contribution.
As we move more into a service and technological economy, we want to continually expand innovation and creativity. But you can't demand that of people. "Human capital" has to be treated differently than "financial capital." You have to create an atmosphere in which creativity and innovation flourish; and that is accomplished through the bountiful expression of spirit. When we are more in touch with the Source of creativity, there is also revitalization, renewal and resilience.
Another benefit is increased authenticity in communication. A lot of the work I do as a consultant is to create a "safe space" in which people feel permission to talk about their truth without fear of reprisal. Businesses aren't accustomed to doing this as a matter of normal everyday practice. However, when the truth is allowed to be safely and respectfully spoken, old problems clear up, new possibilities emerge, and people feel more aligned. They work together in a trusting team.
Increased ethical and moral behavior is yet another benefit. But who cares if a company is ethical? Isn't business just a place where you see how much you can get ahead? In a word, no. An important value of ethical behavior for a business is the development of trust. We trust people who operate in an ethical framework. Employees trust employers. Employers trust employees. And customers who trust a company stay customers longer.
Spirituality in the workplace also promotes the expression of talent, brilliance and genius — talent in the sense of our Divine gifts; brilliance in terms of our intellect and the intensity of the light we have to shine; and genius not as a scarce commodity, but as something that everyone has. Our true job is to connect with that genius. And moreover, spirituality in the workplace also leads to increased self-fulfillment, contentment and a deep sense of belonging.
In most businesses today, spirit and spirituality aren't talked about. The first thing that needs to happen is to make it safe and permissible to talk about it, as normally and as naturally as the many other conversations we have at work, such as: profitability, innovations and personnel issues.
We start this simply by beginning. Talk to those you trust, talk to others in business, talk to your colleagues, but begin to talk about it. There may be an initial fear, but after a while, the momentum will be unstoppable.
Managing in the New Spiritual Workplace
Today, we live in the transition period between the old definition of work as survival and the new definition of work as livelihood. New management techniques and new organizational structures are needed to handle this emerging context.
Management in the survival mode has been based on command and control. The way you get people to produce is by telling them what to do and making sure it gets done. But in a spiritual workplace, productivity is achieved through nurturing the expression of the self and the spirit. Our job, as leaders, is to facilitate the discovery of spirit, to esteem it, to celebrate it, and to hold others accountable for their expression of it. Support your employees and colleagues in being clear that part of their job responsibility is to fully express their spirit, their life purpose, and their gifts.
A senior vice-president of a large utility company told me that one of the roles of companies in the future will be to help employees discover their life purpose and to make sure that their work is consistent with and demanding of that purpose. “Imagine what would happen," he said, "if you had a company in which all the people were doing their life's work. You would have more loyalty, more resilience, more creativity, more innovation, and a deeper sense of self-reliance, self-renewal and self-generation."
Another new management function will be helping people unleash and express their full, creative spirit. One of the ways to do this is to reconnect people with their artistry, whether that's music, painting, dancing, poetry or cooking. Poet, David Whyte, author of The Heart Aroused, goes into companies and reads poetry. Boeing Aircraft is one of his ongoing clients. The managers he works with begin to realize other aspects of themselves. Poetry helps them delve more deeply into their creative self, and it helps contribute to new insights, both personal and corporate. (Another great way for you and your employees to reconnect with your creativity is to read and do the exercises in The Artists Way, by Julia Cameron.)
An Invitation
The next phase of the evolution of work has begun. Spirituality is becoming more openly recognized as an integral part of work. If this is something that speaks to you, that you want more of in your workplace, I invite you to jump in!
#####
Martin Rutte is a speaker and consultant on spirituality in the workplace. He is committed to reconnecting business with its natural source of creativity, innovation and genius. As President of Livelihood®, a management consulting firm in Santa Fe, New Mexico, he explores the deeper meaning of work and its contribution to society. Visit http://www.martinrutte.com for additional information.
By Martin Rutte
(Reprinted from CEO Refresher)
The nature and meaning of work are undergoing a profound evolution. Two forces are helping to catalyze the momentum of this process — fear and the emergence of both a more personal and widespread spirituality.
The fear is about losing our job and having to do more with less. And the emergence of spirituality in the workplace points to the desire that there be more to work than just survival. We yearn for work to be a place in which we both experience and express our deep soul and spirit.
Fear in the Workplace
There are several factors causing an increase of fear in the workplace. The first is massive corporate downsizing. The benefit of downsizing is that it does increase profits. Moreover, it cuts the fat and the excess while streamlining the organization. But downsizing also has a downside. It causes pain and suffering. In addition to the pain felt by those people who have been let go, those who are still left are asked to increase production with less resources, in the same amount of time, and for the same pay.
They feel stressed out and bone-tired. They are anxious about the security of their job and often are resentful. And most painful of all, they don't see any light at the end of the tunnel.
Downsizing works in the short-term; in the long-term, what's lost is loyalty, engagement, experience, creativity and the full expression of spirit.
A second factor is that more work is moving offshore. Years ago, it was just manufacturing work. Now it's also service jobs. India and Israel, for example, are becoming key sites for the development of computer software. We thought that there were certain types of work that would always remain in the developed world — that these were "our jobs," like service and new technology development — it's just no longer so.
And what about successful companies laying people off? That's never happened before. The understanding used to be that when a company was in fiscal trouble it would lay off people and when the company was successful, it would keep and even hire people. But with re-engineering and new advanced technology, there is a need for less people, so successful companies are downsizing.
When you put all these factors together, you're taking the work contract — the implicit agreement that I would come to work for you for life, the belief in security of employment — and smashing it. The message is crystal clear, "You don't have a secure job anymore." And that causes insecurity, it causes anxiety, and it causes fear.
There is a growing sense of "dis-spiritedness" in individuals and in the overall workplace. The spirit has been shut down. It can't fully express itself. There is a sense of dis-engagement. It may not be completely quantifiable, but people can and do feel the lack of spirit in their workplace.
All of this doesn't need to paint a completely bleak picture. We can look at these very same factors from another, more useful perspective — the spiritual. The security we thought we got from the corporation is a myth. Real security comes from a connection to that which is truly secure — the spirit. We are in the process of moving from "dependent children" at work, with the parental company looking after us, to really coming into our full, adult Selfhood. From this new reality we can begin exploring and expressing more of our true spiritual selves.
The Emergence of Spirituality
In addition to fear, there is a compelling inner longing for spiritual fulfillment. There are several factors present in society reflecting the emerging desire for personal and collective spirituality.
The baby boomer generation is now entering its 50's. People are reaching mid-life and looking at those issues that are characteristic for this age – issues such as: "What is my legacy?"; "What are the long-term values that I want to leave behind?"; "In what other arenas of life do I want to invest my energies now that I've reached the peak of my career?"; "What is really important to me as I begin to see my parents, aunts and uncles start to die?" These kinds of thoughts are usual for people in mid-life. What is unusual, however, is that the baby boomer generation is so large. When it begins to think about these issues, then society follows. As spirituality emerges for baby boomers, the whole of society is affected.
Concern and involvement with the bio-environment also reflect an emerging sense of the spiritual. The environment is both life supporting and gives us an awareness and consciousness of the whole. It reveals to us how we are interconnected and interdependent. And when you think about that, that's a very spiritual metaphor.
"When the concept of human spirit is understood as the mode of consciousness in which the individual feels connected to the Cosmos as a whole, it becomes clear that ecological awareness is spiritual in its deepest sense." — Fritjof Capra
Yet another factor is the maturing of the scientific paradigm. We thought we could solve all the world's problems with science. We thought we could eventually understand everything through science. But the more we know, the more we find out we don't know. Science has been divorcing itself from the spiritual for several hundred years. However, science without spirituality is like a wave without the ocean. A growing number of scientists realize this and are moving more into spiritual exploration.
These three factors are indicative of the overall emergence of spirituality in our time. Popular culture also reflects this in the growing number of books, movies, and TV programs about spirituality. And spirituality in the workplace is part of this phenomenon.
What Is Spirituality?
I've found that when people ask me the question, "What is spirituality?", what they're really concerned about is, “Will I have 'the Answer'”? or some other dogmatic response. They're afraid that I've already got spirituality defined and that they will disagree with my definition, which will then cause separation. People are afraid that I (or anyone else speaking about spirituality) will shove a particular point of view down their throats. This approach offers the listener no opportunity to search for his/her own truth.
The journey is not about spirituality as "the answer," but about spirituality as "the question." A question allows you to look more deeply. It allows you to search for what's true for you, and in so doing, deepen your own experience. But ultimately, what moving from answer to question does is make it safe and permissible to explore this territory in a way that is useful.
What is spirituality for you? Where is spirit or spirituality not showing up in your workplace? Where is it flourishing? Explore these kinds of questions, at work, for yourself, your relationships, your division and your company. And in this questioning, in this exploration, notice the deepening of your own experience of spirituality at work.
Spirituality in the Workplace
What would a more spiritual workplace mean for people? It would mean that work would move from merely being a place to get enough money to survive — from just earning our daily bread — to being a place of livelihood. By livelihood I mean a place where we both survive and are fully alive. We are alive in that our spirit fully expresses itself. And through our contribution, we allow other people's spirits to be nourished and to flourish. Livelihood has, at its core, three meanings for work: survival (you're alive), enlivening of the individual Self (you're aliveness), and enlivening of the collective Self (their aliveness).
What are the benefits of a more spiritual workplace? One of the primary benefits is that people are more in touch with the Source of creativity. As business people, we realize the value of creativity and innovation. Creativity is a cornerstone of business. It allows us to come out with new products and services that really are of service. It allows us to do more with less. In essence, creativity leads to more efficient contribution.
As we move more into a service and technological economy, we want to continually expand innovation and creativity. But you can't demand that of people. "Human capital" has to be treated differently than "financial capital." You have to create an atmosphere in which creativity and innovation flourish; and that is accomplished through the bountiful expression of spirit. When we are more in touch with the Source of creativity, there is also revitalization, renewal and resilience.
Another benefit is increased authenticity in communication. A lot of the work I do as a consultant is to create a "safe space" in which people feel permission to talk about their truth without fear of reprisal. Businesses aren't accustomed to doing this as a matter of normal everyday practice. However, when the truth is allowed to be safely and respectfully spoken, old problems clear up, new possibilities emerge, and people feel more aligned. They work together in a trusting team.
Increased ethical and moral behavior is yet another benefit. But who cares if a company is ethical? Isn't business just a place where you see how much you can get ahead? In a word, no. An important value of ethical behavior for a business is the development of trust. We trust people who operate in an ethical framework. Employees trust employers. Employers trust employees. And customers who trust a company stay customers longer.
Spirituality in the workplace also promotes the expression of talent, brilliance and genius — talent in the sense of our Divine gifts; brilliance in terms of our intellect and the intensity of the light we have to shine; and genius not as a scarce commodity, but as something that everyone has. Our true job is to connect with that genius. And moreover, spirituality in the workplace also leads to increased self-fulfillment, contentment and a deep sense of belonging.
In most businesses today, spirit and spirituality aren't talked about. The first thing that needs to happen is to make it safe and permissible to talk about it, as normally and as naturally as the many other conversations we have at work, such as: profitability, innovations and personnel issues.
We start this simply by beginning. Talk to those you trust, talk to others in business, talk to your colleagues, but begin to talk about it. There may be an initial fear, but after a while, the momentum will be unstoppable.
Managing in the New Spiritual Workplace
Today, we live in the transition period between the old definition of work as survival and the new definition of work as livelihood. New management techniques and new organizational structures are needed to handle this emerging context.
Management in the survival mode has been based on command and control. The way you get people to produce is by telling them what to do and making sure it gets done. But in a spiritual workplace, productivity is achieved through nurturing the expression of the self and the spirit. Our job, as leaders, is to facilitate the discovery of spirit, to esteem it, to celebrate it, and to hold others accountable for their expression of it. Support your employees and colleagues in being clear that part of their job responsibility is to fully express their spirit, their life purpose, and their gifts.
A senior vice-president of a large utility company told me that one of the roles of companies in the future will be to help employees discover their life purpose and to make sure that their work is consistent with and demanding of that purpose. “Imagine what would happen," he said, "if you had a company in which all the people were doing their life's work. You would have more loyalty, more resilience, more creativity, more innovation, and a deeper sense of self-reliance, self-renewal and self-generation."
Another new management function will be helping people unleash and express their full, creative spirit. One of the ways to do this is to reconnect people with their artistry, whether that's music, painting, dancing, poetry or cooking. Poet, David Whyte, author of The Heart Aroused, goes into companies and reads poetry. Boeing Aircraft is one of his ongoing clients. The managers he works with begin to realize other aspects of themselves. Poetry helps them delve more deeply into their creative self, and it helps contribute to new insights, both personal and corporate. (Another great way for you and your employees to reconnect with your creativity is to read and do the exercises in The Artists Way, by Julia Cameron.)
An Invitation
The next phase of the evolution of work has begun. Spirituality is becoming more openly recognized as an integral part of work. If this is something that speaks to you, that you want more of in your workplace, I invite you to jump in!
#####
Martin Rutte is a speaker and consultant on spirituality in the workplace. He is committed to reconnecting business with its natural source of creativity, innovation and genius. As President of Livelihood®, a management consulting firm in Santa Fe, New Mexico, he explores the deeper meaning of work and its contribution to society. Visit http://www.martinrutte.com for additional information.
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