Quest for Unseen Riches

 Eckhart teaches us that the full scope of life’s richness is ours to enjoy

when we learn to relate to the world from awareness

rather than only through conceptual thought.

Eckhart Tolle

Eckhart Tolle encourages us to discover the enjoyment of being and to create  appreciation for the extraordinary in the ordinary.  As we expand our awareness, taking in the larger picture around us, we can zero in on exceptional aspects within our lives.  It is in the slowing down, in taking the time and being observant that we embrace the sense of a full life.  Whether we are exploring the stars at night, a field of wheat or the backs of our hands, we will develop an insight that grows deeper than one would think possible at first glance.

When is the last time we looked at our lovely selves in a mirror?  No, not glancing, but truly pausing to deliberately take the image of ourselves seriously.  When we stand before our most favorite object whether child, framed art or a well manicured lawn, and look with new eyes, new vision, as though for the very first time, we fall in awe all over again.

Our entire lives we are asked what we think.  It is to our advantage when we learn to still the mind and relate to our life through all of the senses and beyond.  We do not have to travel to the moon to make discoveries as we are surrounded by unnoticed magic.

Life is a sacred mystery meant to be deeply experienced and enjoyed.  It is not meant to be difficult and painful all of the time.  We all have our challenges, but they can be balanced by full discovery of the goodness otherwise surrounding us. 

Stop thinking, and observe what the earth is showing to us.  Be silent and hear earth's natural song.  Taste the varying degrees of loveliness in the shade, moon light and water fall.  Feel the moisture in the grass upon bare feet or the veined structure within a leaf gently held between our fingers. 

If we are not successful in our quest for the richness of life, spend some time with a child.  The child has not yet forgotten the bountiful magic surrounding us all.  The young are still in tune with with all things seen and unseen.  Their thinking embraces all possibilities, not yet trained to think small.

Threads in Self-Portrait

"By seeking the spiritual thread, I saw the purpose contained

within the individual events and how each event

was built on top of the previous ones,

creating a pattern of oneness, wholeness."

Machaelle Small Wright

BEHAVING AS IF THE GOD IN ALL LIFE

MATTERED 

It is with the passing of time that we are  able to look back over past experiences and connect the dots.  What we once regarded as isolated instances suddenly present as stepping stones or a foundation for yet to come experiences.  At a given time, we may feel as though we got hood winked into doing a particular job we would have never agreed to do if we had been more aware. 

When I was hired as Director of LITTLE PEOPLES ARTS AND TALENTS day care center, it had not been made clear to me that I would be responsible for the bookkeeping.  Math is definitely not my long suit even though I am highly organized.  So it was an act of drudgery to learn how to balance the books.  I mastered it, but I sure did not like it.  Years passed and I found my self to be an entrepreneur and the owner of my own business, THE TOWN CRIER.   I was remarkably confident to be able to generate my own bookkeeping based on past experience which I had resented at the time. 

When piecing together a quilt, or using stitches to embroider, we become aware of how a pattern emerges and just how important our skill in creating a solid beginning has been important.  The same can be true on the negative side.  A college friend decided to continue her French rather than start a new language like Spanish.  Years later deep into her career, she occasionally mentioned how sorry she was that she had not learned Spanish, the second language of our country.

All of our experiences eventually connect.  We have a variety of decisions to make with our free will, but all efforts apply to the whole.  There is an old saying, "All roads lead to Rome."  We are not always aware of how our life is made up of many individual and often times random  pieces that  eventually form our unique self-portrait.