When one is forced into a new living situation, I believe it is important to nest early. What I mean by that specifically is to gather and begin setting up the things which make individuals feel the most like themselves. For me, it is a few decorations, office space, and my books. And after several days of lifting and shifting, things are finally coming together. Read More »
Now it’s time to bitch about exes.
Just kidding. I need to spend a little time explaining a large change in our lives. Ivy and I have decided to move after hearing that the neighborhood didn’t want us there anymore. “Why?” you may ask. Well, the short of it is the landlord’s desire for the landlord to raise the rent; the long of it is emotionally driven.Read More »
About six months ago someone said one of the most profound things anyone has ever said to me. The force with which this rocked me cannot be overstated. I mean, think around it. What could you say to someone when they notice that, “You like mean girls.”Read More »
I see again, the power of mirrors. This MM comes, once again, from a place of sadness. Sadness comes. Sadness goes. The reason for my sadness is a relationship ending. Not a particularly long one. A powerful one though. I suppose all the good ones will seem to be. I know many likely feel a sense of satisfaction, an “I knew she was crazy, told you so,” will be unavoidable in more than a couple of minds. That’s an easy feeling to justify. I sacrificed a few things, not too many, but a few. Anyone caught up in that mess may have their satisfaction, because she left more than a bruised ego and broken heart for me. The power of mirrors brings a deep solace, and when I am wrong, amazing things happen.Read More »
Hello again.
This is one of the longest writing breaks I’ve taken in several years. A number of reasons could be given: finishing up the last semester, a new relationship, and the holidays are all potential reasons. Maybe I’ve also been blocked. But, as I haven’t really sought a writing outlet recently, I don’t think the term blocked applies. Perhaps there has been a lack of inspiration. It seems unlikely. There was this whole presidential election thing and now, with tons of moral issues that could be addressed, I might ought to be very vocal concerning the new president-elect and his coming moves. I mean, I think it’s silly, Donald Trump as prez, but I admit that isn’t enough, in and of itself, to drive me to the keyboard daily. Read More »
No better time than the present to begin a meditation practice. All the misguided thoughts and feelings perpetuated by an unhealthy system has now bled into leadership in the most overt way anyone will witness. It isn’t just about the president-elect.
Well, I guess it kinda is, but I believe this is evidence of a far greater problem that carries beyond just race and extremism, elections and corruption. This is about a society of anxiety. Trump is only and expression of such a society. The numbers don’t lie. More people voted to prevent a president from happening, a process of elimination rather than a process of selection. Not new information, but the cause is based in fear and loathing. It isn’t just about the voters either.
The candidates from Jill Stein to Donald Trump were disliked by the clear majority. Not a single candidate trusted. This is true for me. I voted blue to prevent a Trump presidency. I wouldn’t have voted for any of the third-party candidates presented either. Like most, I was a Bernie voter. And would have been a proud American for the only time in my life other than a few Olympic moments and maybe while watching Deadwood (for the quality, not the history). This reveals an anxious government too. One that isn’t willing to break from the molds they’ve (we’ve?) made, which, from the evolutionary standpoint, will threaten via extinction event at some point. From the psychological perspective, a mentality unwilling to adapt to change will quickly loop-up with anxiety, making bad choices for sustainable living or making no choices at all. How could we not fall into this progress trap?
As a result, we flailed about and then acted out. We elected a cartoon character with an Ayatollah running mate.
Yes, things will change. But, our change is symptomatic. We have looped up and are now enacting a type of societal self-mutilation. We found the worst possible way to behave, and we are now in a process of doing it over and over and over again. We must stop.
I invite anybody that is now freaking out to do something about it. I don’t mean the typical taking to the streets in protest (we should be doing that to). Before even doing that, I believe we must first do by non-doing. When our minds are in a panic, choices like this get made. It becomes impossible to organize ourselves, never mind organizing with one another. When we obtain moments of inner silence, we are able to listen to ourselves.
We open communication lines for listening to our whole selves. Physically, emotionally, and intellectually. Choices can be made that more clearly resemble our true hopes and goals.
Those of you that have never meditated or those who have tried but find it difficult, I will help if I can. But, I would love nothing more than to teach others how to give themselves the gift of clarity, the gift of self-love, the gift of self-forgiveness. I understand being hesitant.
It is scary and will seem silly at times. The monkey mind will be chattering away, and may even start criticizing the very act of meditation while you are practicing. Yet, mindful meditation will allow you to hear the mind, feel the body, and then come back to silence, letting all that distraction go. You will get to practice this dozens of times in only a short meditation. There are literally hundreds of ways to find these spaces in a day. It won’t take all of that though. It’ll be tough, but not hundreds of times a day tough.
We’ll also be able to hear each other better from this state of mind, as powerful of a feature as listening to yourself. Meditation is doing through non-doing.
Nothing will be solved or healed during meditation.
Meditation will not fix anything.
Ever.
It only allows us to be more aware.
We’re going to have to live with our acting out. The Trump is on the wall now and not everything is going to be okay; we have to be aware of and accept the reality. It’ll take time to repair and paint over. But, as Mr. Miyagi taught us years ago, painting can be meditative as well.
I don’t know what to write about today. I just know that I want to write. It is just one of those mornings when I don’t feel inspired by any of my activities. Maybe it’s just the college and elementary school schedules settling in, slowly incubating into mundane, daily events— the quotidian. Although, as Richard Dawkins once pointed out, “mundane” derives from the Latin “mundus,” meaning of the world or world (apparently, is also used for “clean” in the language), and the process of being a part of the world is anything but mundane. Read More »
I couldn’t sleep last night. The old love was present. It’s so funny how a year later it can still be so painful. Brains are silly creatures, full of activity, giving rise to perception and the self. The very thought I am in pain, is already loaded with things we’re taking for granted and assuming. Think about how lucky we must be to even utter those words, and then enjoy how utterly nonsensical it is to think that thought.Read More »
“The Red-Tape-for-Money Blues” could be a song for millions. Not that I mind. As a single parent, I have chosen to be in a lot of state and federal programs to bring in resources. SNAP, Pre-K vouchers, and Arkansas Rehabilitation have all been a part of the strategy. As many of you know, in order to receive services one must have work of some kind. If you are a student, parent, or immigrant there are changes the nature of what someone might have to do or keep track of things during this process. I am an independent artist, as well as a student this year. So there is a lot of red tape to sort through. I’d say I’m at about 80% efficiency since being out of the university world for 15 months, but I believe the rate will increase quickly.Read More »
After writing the bubbling thoughts MM† a few days ago. Some really productive stuff has been coming through. The type of thoughts that you notice when you’re practicing, you take an especially good look at, and then let go after careful study. Whether it be a specific new way to try to compose fiction when the task of novel writing can seem daunting at times. Or perhaps it could be a new way to market my writing and the writing of others at The Free Thinking Press. Sometimes the thoughts are the fiction.Read More »
