A+ha.

Holy Now.

Everything is holy now.

 

Bewitched.

I owe a lot of my childhood development to TV shows (I know--that explains A LOT). One of my favorites? "Bewitched." I always wanted to be Samantha. Actually, that's not quite true: I really liked Serena the best...

Anyway, here's some of life's great lessons learned from that classic, campy show:

• Pretending to be something you're not is a recipe for disaster. (Samantha was always trying to be a regular human instead of a witch in order to make Darrin happy--what kind of marriage is that, anyway??--which seemed to land her in trouble pretty much on a daily basis)
• Things aren't always as they seem. (thanks, Gladys Kravitz, for being so nosy and assuming the worst)
• Things sometimes are EXACTLY as they seem but we choose to ignore the facts. (ditto Gladys Kravitz)
• And there's no way we can do life alone (the Tates, Endora, Dr. Bombay and Aunt Clara were always popping in to help out).

Thanks, Samantha, for the reminders: be yourself, pay attention, and surround yourself with people who uncondtionally love you "as is." Seems like pretty good advice.

 

An invitation.

Come, come, whoever you are.
Wanderer, worshipper, lover of leaving.
It doesn't matter.
Ours is a caravan of despair.
Come, even if you have broken your vow
a hundred times.
Come, yet again, come, come.
--Rumi

Oops. Excuse me. I'm sorry. I'm a klutz.

“Gaining enlightenment is an accident. Spiritual practice simply makes us accident-prone.” Suzuki Roshi

I am one of the clumsiest people I know. Truly. The records in my doctor's office hold the proof: broken bones, torn ligaments, inflamed tendons...all of which happened while I was having fun (or attempting to, anyway).

I guess the way I look at it is this: if living full-out means risking injury every now and then, then I'll keep the crutches close by. What's the alternative: sitting on the couch? Watching the world go by? Living in fear that I might get hurt? (and I'm not just talking physical hurt here...)

That fear 'thing' is easy to give into, I know. After all, how many times do I worry about what others might think about me? (answer: waaaay too much). What if they think I look silly? What if they tell others that I'm making a fool of myself? What if they laugh at me? What if they don't like me the way I am?

Oh, wow. All of those "what if's..." are intended to keep me safe but after awhile they start to really add up and do a number on my heart and soul.

Not cool. 

So here's to living an accident-prone life. Practice living each and every day. Jump in there. Dare to step out. Try something that opens you up. Live fully. Wholeheartedly. You just never know when enlightenment will set in...

Breathe.

I was having a hard time focusing on my workout this morning. Not because I didn't want to. I did. Really. But sweat was dripping in my eyes. My feet felt like cement blocks. My abs felt as though they were being torn apart. It wasn't pretty. So when I heard a perky little voice from the front of the room say, "Only one more minute until we switch it up!!" my first thought was "#*$@!" quickly followed by "you've got to be freaking kidding me..." and a whole lot more swearing.

*Note: I believe those thoughts were all in my head. I apologize to those around me if they weren't. 

Anyway, just as the swearing in my mind was hitting a crescendo, the perky voice came back with: "And don't forget to breathe..." which prompted the voices in my head to laugh hysterically. "Breathe? Who can breathe? I'm trying too hard to do these crunches..." 

Oh. Yeah. I heard it. "I'm trying to hard..." Breathe. D'oh.

I could translate this gem of an insight into hundreds of different feel good "Aren't we all just trying too hard?" stories about work, family, relationships, government, religion or any other hot-button topic. But I'm not going to. Not right now, anyway. You get it. I get it. We all get it. It's the simple truth that makes life less painful, way more full and a whole lot more fun:

Stop trying so damn hard. And don't forget to breathe. 

More to come...

I guess it's time...

The blog is back. After a loooooong hiatus, it's time to start blogging again. You can check out old blog posts about youth ministry, family stuff, and who-knows-what-else on these pages. Along with these topics, I hope to be sharing thoughts on community, the Enneagram, coaching, Integral Life and who-knows-what-else. We'll see what comes up. Suggestions for topics are always welcome. Happy reading.