Once upon a time,
When I ran into
friends and acquaintances
who asked
what
I was up to,
I would reel off
a litany of activities.
Lately,
I have begun to reply,
“I am practicing not multitasking.”
Saying these words
out loud
reaffirms
my intentions
and seems
to give
the questioners pause.
I also
pause
before asking
the reflexive
“what have you been up to”
question.
Instead of
exchanging lists,
a conversation
might
take place.
Politics
in this democracy
rarely
follow
the
values
spelled out
in the U.S. Constitution.
This 2015-2016
Primary Scene
is full of
nightly news,
antics,
outrageous statements
and very little
about human rights.
We, the People,
in Order to form
a more perfect Union.
Is there anyplace
in the
Preamble
and 27 Amendments
that mentions
Central Park Horses?
New York’s Mayor,
who two years ago
expressed
serious ambitions
about improving society,
especially for
the poor,
recently proposed
a bill
to the City Council.
Recognizing that his early proposal
to eliminate
horses and carriages
from New York
was politically unwise,
he now proposes keeping
the horses and carriages
only
IN Central Park.
This feat would be accomplished
by building stables
in the Park
which would cost
an estimated $25 million dollars.
This public housing for the horses,
already warmly stabled,
would divert funds
from providing
shelter and housing
for
the more than 55,000
homeless.
In the wake
of a two foot blizzard,
making
such a proposal,
could draw our attention
to the platforms
in the contest
for our next president.
Is this the best
we can do
in the home of
the free and the brave?
Values and the choices
we make
are
about
Real People.
Some
need our help.
Once or twice a day
it is helpful to
lie down on the floor,
stretching
with awareness
and paying attention
to the places
that are tight,
needing more oxygen.
Breathe
into those areas
to release
the tension.
When you
stop
and pay attention
this way,
you will find
that your body
feels
different
each time.
Therefore,
each time
that you stretch,
ask yourself,
am I centered
in my body
now?
When I let
too much time
between
following
this advice,
my awareness
of my body
changes,
sometimes
very much so.
The contrast
reminds me
to be
more diligent
in my practice
of stretching,
breathing,
and centering.
New Year Resolutions.
Do you make them?
Does the thought
even run
vaguely
through
your mind?
For weeks
the word
“REBOOT”
has been
getting my attention.
Living in an
electronic world,
how often
do we need
to reboot a device.
That may mean
going back to the program
which
for some reason
needs to be
refreshed!
So,
I am adopting
that idea
for my new year.
I am going
to begin
by
becoming
more aware
of
being judgmental
of myself and others.
If I begin
to be aware
of being
less critical
of myself,
I hope
that
I can
catch
myself
being judgmental
of others.
Kindness
for myself.
Kindness
for others.
I
no longer
make a plan
for myself
but respond
to the people
and things
in my life
which are part
of a plan
or
pattern
I
cannot
see.
*The Cloud of Unknowing is an anonymous work of Christian mysticism in the 14th century.
We all need
to learn to
set limits.
Do you live in an
unnaturally
high setting
for normal?
Are you
expecting
too much of
yourself and others?
When is life or
our response to it,
just too much
or just enough?
Can you build in some
flexibility?
What if our lives are
right on
the edge,
and we don’t see
the precipice?
livinglinesreflections.com gift a book
We may judge
others’
outsides
from our own
insides.
Do we look
at others
as calm,
in control,
on top of things?
For many people,
it takes
a lot of
effort
to put
themselves
together.
What you see
is the result
of that effort,
not
the challenge
of
getting there.
When I have been
more willing
to reveal
some of my
inner feelings,
the
result can be
closer
relationships.
After decades
of trying
to be perfect,
to make things
perfect,
GOOD ENOUGH
is more comfortable
and
more realistic.
It makes me
more patient
with myself
and
with
others, too.
Perfection is
an impossible goal.
GOOD ENOUGH
isn’t
settling.
I am still
learning
that.
LivingLinesReflections
There are many
ways
to
lead
an Examined Life.
On your own
or
in a place
which gives you
space
and
silence
to contemplate,
observe
and
learn.
Moment by moment
awareness
examined
at the end
of each
day.
Maybe a day
or several days
to
Be
not
Do.
Do
you
have
a
way?
God guides us
on the
long way round.
And sometimes that
means
winding
through a dark wood.
It doesn’t mean
we’re lost,
however.
The darkness
is part
of the trip.
Too many of us
panic
in the dark.
We don’t understand
that it is
a holy dark
and that the
idea is
to surrender to it
and journey through
to real light.
When the Heart Waits: Spiritual Directions for Life’s Sacred Questions
Sue Monk Kidd
Living Lines Moment by Moment 