Reflecting On It All

March 10, 2010


Creative Commons License photo credit: Unfurled

"Only when the clamor of the outside world is silenced will you be able to hear the deeper vibration. Listen carefully." ~ Sarah Ban Breathnach

Sometimes…

Life and this journey I am on…really get me thinking more deeply about what this all means.

Megan Bord, from It's All About Joy, has invited me over to her wonderful space to share some of these thoughts.

Megan is a wonderful friend, and someone I have had the honor of really getting to know over this past year.  Her thoughts always touch upon something greater within, and all that is truly possible for each of us.  And true to the name of her site, she shines joy and love into every part of the world she touches. What a gift that is, for all those who visit her site and experience the beauty of her heart. 

Today, these thoughts I'm having touch upon life, and beyond.  Please join me on Megan's site, as I talk about Life, Death, and Reflection.

You can keep up with Megan by subscribing to her blog, and following her on Twitter.

Comments are closed.

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Special note:  This is a video created by the Postsecret project.  Postsecret is a ongoing project in which people can anonymously submit their secrets.   The concept behind this project is around the idea that sometimes when we are keeping a secret, it is really that secret that is keeping us.

I welcome your thoughts.

If you feel moved to share any secrets here, and would like to do that anonymously, you can use the following:

Name:  Anonymous
Email:  anonymous [at] jungleoflife.com


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RAOKA: Passion

March 3, 2010

RAOKA

 

Passion

 

“Never underestimate the power of passion.” ~ Eve Sawyer

Preface:  Random Acts of Kick Arse is a movement to bring more of {monthly theme} into our lives, and the lives of those around us. 

February Theme:  Passion.  Find ways to incorporate/see more passion in the world.

The Results:  Passion.  Today I am going to talk about me.  A look inside, and what it is that evokes that passion. 

Maybe for some of you, this is all very clear…this idea of what your passion is.  And for others, maybe it's a bit of a muddled, grey mess

I tend to lean a bit more toward the "muddled grey mess" side…

…although I kind of hope it's not always a grey mess, that maybe there are bits of a more technicolor mess, too. 

(am I really saying anything here, or am I mostly avoiding the subject?)

Ahem.

Group therapy time…and I'm on the sofa.

Have you ever been on the cusp?  Feeling like "this is it"…except, not quite.  Feeling like you are so close…and yet so far.

Writing helps.  It kind of clears my head.  And when it clears my head, that all makes way for me to see through to my heart.  They don't always speak the same languages…my head and my heart.  Logic.  Intuition.  It's easy to live daily from my head…logic says…  And it's easy to write from my heart…intuition speaks…  So, how is it, that I can focus more of my living from my heart?  Daily.  In all those moments.

Back to the writing.  The more I write, the more this all connects to my heart.  The more it feels real.  The more I believe.

Passion.

Is there a facade I put up?  Do what I say, and what I do differ?  Does all of this make me less authentic? 

Passion.

I draw my deepest passion from connections with the soul.  Me to my own soul.  My soul to yours.  Connections that strip away race, religion, sex, financial status, the past, personal possessions.  A meeting at that spot that touches upon the deeper meaning of existence.  Perhaps it is all much like nature.  That ebb and flow of nature, much like that ebb and flow of life.  There's a time for sowing, there's a time for growing, there's a time for reaping, and there's a time for rest.  This soul connection feels much that way. 

I also draw very deep passion for connecting with a feeling of light-heartedness.  This feeling of being free.  Perhaps it's in being free to live my days in seeing the good, seeing the "right", seeing the possibility.  I guess it's really about connecting with the moments of life, in a way that touches joy. 

And I have a passion for adventure.  The big and the small.  New discoveries.  Our world is filled with so much.  Around the whole world.  Right outside my backdoor.  Within.  Part of this journey is a discovery of what is out there, and in the process, what is within. 

So, back to that cusp.

In those moments when this all comes together – adventures down that path of joy and light-heartedness, all touching upon a deeper soul connection…this is like the coming together of it all. 

Passion.

Some days I hit that mark, and there's a complete feeling of being alive.  Some days, not so much.  Some days technicolor.  Some days grey. 

And I wonder…

In some grand scheme of things, in life's great meaning and purpose…do I really live this?  Is passion alive

I talk the talk….do I walk the walk?

Because it is easy to sit here and write words on a screen.  If you know me only here, though, is there some way to really know…if this is something more than just talk?  I don't know.  And perhaps it doesn't matter.  Perhaps it is less important in some grand scheme of things. Perhaps what is most important is what you believe in yourself…

Today I re-commit to living the passion that is there, within me.  And I'll re-commit to that every day. 

Could this lead to moments where I feel exposed?  Most definitely. 

If this life, this one life that I am aware of, is to really be lived, though…what other way can I truly commit to?

This is it.  Now. 

To each of you, on this journey you are on…peace and light.


What is Random Acts of Kick Arse (RAOKA)?  With the idea that there are so many ways we can do small things to change the world for good, Sami, from Life, Laughs, and Lemmings took an idea she had and created this movement.  The movement:  A new theme to focus on each month, bringing a little more good to the world.  The movement started in October 2009, and has a core group of participants:

Lori from Jane Be Nimble
Dani from Positively Present
Gayze  from Gazehound's Animal Communication
Zeenat from Positive Provocations
Sami from Life, Laughs, and Lemmings
Jannie from Jannie Funster

Each month a topic will be chosen to focus on, and then at the start of the next month, the participants will write about their experiences from the previous month.

Interested in joining the movement?  Contact Sami for details.


March Theme:  Laughter (as chosen by Lori)


Logo courtesy of Melissa from Operation NICE

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Sunday Thought For The Day

February 28, 2010

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I Hope You Dance

I hope you never lose your sense of wonder
You get your fill to eat but always keep that hunger
May you never take one single breath for granted
God forbid love ever leave you empty handed

I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean
Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens
Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance
and when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
I hope you dance
I hope you dance

I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance
Never settle for the path of least resistance
Living might mean taking chances but they’re worth taking
Loving might be a mistake but it's worth making
Don't let some hell bent heart leave you bitter
When you come close to selling out reconsider
Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance

I hope you dance (time is a wheel in constant motion always)
I hope you dance (rolling us along)
I hope you dance (tell me who wants to look back on the years and wonder)
I hope you dance (where those years have gone)

I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean
Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens
Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance

Dance (time is wheel in constant motion always)
I hope you dance (rolling us along)
I hope you dance (tell me who wants to look back on the years and wonder)
I hope you dance (where those years have gone)

I hope you dance
I hope your dancing
I hope your dancing
I pray your dancing
I hope you dance


This post is dedicated to a dear friend, Amy Pratt, known here as Bella.  Amy was a regular visitor, and even more than that – someone who brought much joy and love to every place she touched, especially in my heart.  Amy, you had a beautiful gift of reaching out and seeing the good, and in touching on something deeper in all of that.   You will be deeply missed, wonderful friend.  Keep dancing in the heavens.

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What Is That Dance In You?

February 25, 2010

photo credit: ooberayhay

"We dance for laughter, we dance for tears, we dance for madness, we dance for fears, we dance for hopes, we dance for screams, we are the dancers, we create the dreams." ~ Anonymous

Preface

What is that dance in you?
Typical days.  Consumed by deadlines.  Commutes.  Bills.  Running errands.  Playing family chaueffer.
It's so easy [...]

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Peace, Love, Laughter, and More

February 22, 2010

We shall find peace. We shall hear angels.
We shall see the sky sparkling with diamonds.
~ Anton Pavlovich Chekhov

Today I have Evita Ochel, from Evolving Beings, here.  Evita is a wonderful and dear friend, and really a beautiful soul who touches other's hearts with her caring and compassionate love. 
Read along, as I sit down [...]

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Sunday Thought For The Day

February 21, 2010

photo credit: cláudia gabriela marques vieira

The Invitation
It doesn't interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for, and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing.
It doesn't interest me how old you are. I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool [...]

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The Energy Of Our Being

February 18, 2010

photo credit: laurenmarek

"Healing, Papa would tell me, is not a science, but the intuitive art of wooing nature." ~ W.H. Auden

We are energy.
Does this makes sense to you?  And what does that really mean?
We are all on some path, traveling through this life that is ours.  We breathe.  We move. 
My fingers bend to press [...]

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Those Challenging Relationships

February 16, 2010

Today it is an honor to have Betsy Wuebker, from Passing Thru, here to touch upon some of the challenging relationships we might have had (or currently are having) in our lives. 
I've known Betsy for quite some time.  Being she's a neighbor to the west of me (she claims Minnesota as her home) – our [...]

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Sunday Thought For The Day

February 14, 2010

photo credit: m750

The small man
Builds cages for everyone
He
Knows.
While the sage,
Who has to duck his head
When the moon is low,
Keeps dropping keys all night long
For the
Beautiful
Rowdy
Prisoners.
~ Hafiz

Special thanks to Chris Guillebeau from The Art of Non-Conformity, for sharing this.

My personal thoughts: This world we live in is filled with people – people just like you [...]

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