Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Rich As I Could Be

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HziUgo9qZM4

Emmy Lou Harris sings the lyrics of Dolly Parton. A remarkable life lesson made all the more so for being true.

Update 7-24-13 Original link was removed and I have replaced it with (alas) an inferior.

Monday, December 10, 2012

Joy to the World

T'is the season to be jolly?!? Personally, I have been running into negativity on a jaw dropping level. The "you can't be serious" level. And boy, do I have to watch the self-righteous aspect of my being! The irrational, entitled, or hypocritical behavior seems to beg a rebuttal. The hard lesson is; don't engage! Observe. Reserve judgement. Bite your tongue and try to watch how things play out. If further involvement is required, Life will let you know. Otherwise, let it be.

Difficult? Extremely so. But, without the utmost tact, we are drawn into a battle we cannot win. The inherent trait within most people is to be "right." Forget the facts; their right, you're wrong. Period. End of story. Engagement at that crucible simply leads to frustration. It also has a tendency of monopolizing our thoughts. We mentally work and rework the dynamics of how ignorant the other person is/was. We enlist "allies" as we share the experience through dialog. In a sense, we agree to waste our time on another person's delusion.

If I am deluded, then it's within a perception of Life being a Gift. This Gift begets Gratitude. The Gratitude seems to allow space for a Higher Self, a Cosmic Purpose. Under those conditions, I can see your actions as an opportunity to refine my ability to see the Gift anywhere and everywhere. The more outrageous your self-indulgence, denial, or conceit may be, the more skillful I become moving through it, past it, or around it. And that is a gift we can be joyful about.