Tag: Be fully present

The question we ask ourselves

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The cold start here these last few mornings prompt this quote: We are called to bloom where we are planted, even if we would rather be elsewhere.

The approach of a man’s life out of the past is history, and the approach of time out of the future is mystery. Their meeting is the present, and it is consciousness, the only time life is alive.

The endless wonder of this meeting is what causes the mind, in its inward liberty of a frozen morning, to turn back and question and remember:

The world is full of places.

Why is it that I am here? 

Wendell Berry, The Long-Legged House

Sunday Quote: Part of something deeper

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No matter how small we feel in our daily situation,  we are always part of something  greater.

Even for the simple flight of a butterfly, 

all of the sky is necessary.

Paul Claudel,  1868 – 1955, French poet and dramatist. 

Même pour le simple envol d’un papillon, tout le ciel est nécessaire.

 

No permanence

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We cling to our own point of view, as if everything depended on it.

Yet our views have no permanence;

like autumn and winter, they gradually pass away.

Chuang Tzu,  4th century BC

The driving force

Karl Duffy5 Comments

 

Today, November 2nd, is traditionally the day that we remember those close to us who have died and gone before us

All men should strive to learn before they die,

what they are running from,

and to, and why.

James Thurber

In our darkest night

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No seed ever sees the flower.

Zen saying

 November is the beginning of Winter in the Celtic Calendar and so today signals the beginning of the “darker half” of the year. The balance between light and darkness continues to shift. In the northern hemisphere the earth becomes colder and nature more dormant. Similar processes can occur in our lives. For example, we can choose to go with the rhythm of nature and become more reflective in this period, slowing down and simplifying things. Or our lives can have parts that seem dormant and not going anywhere. Or maybe difficulties are occurring which can seem dark and we see no escape.  However, darkness does not mean that nothing is happening.  I really like this saying from the Zen tradition – things that are now hidden or buried will eventually be seen or bear fruit.  That what is now just germinating will be full of life in time. As humans we like to see immediate results. However, for now, all we can do is wait and trust. Peace comes from knowing the right way to let go. 

Hold what is happening lightly

Karl Duffy1 Comment

Just stay at the center of the circle,

and let all things take their course. 

Tao Te Ching