Love For No Reason

Love for the gate that rattles at night because a warm breeze has dried the wood and shrunk it down. Not love because the gate tells the night that man is here and the sound tells man that drier, warmer weather has come to this place. Not love for these reasons.

Love for the sun that shines in my face as I walk the path with squinted eyes, head held back and fingers tucked away. Not love because the sun sings of easing chill from the air, warming my face and drying these eyes. Not love for these reasons.

Love for the birds that coo in the morn to tell their tales of ache and yearn. Not love because we share this space with gentle beings that lull with songs and flutter and swoop to say that life goes on. Not love for these reasons.

Love for the buzz and slash of life. Love for the jagged edge we cut against. Love for the crash and rush of breaking. Not because they teach us all how to move and grow. Not love for any reason except to say that love is love; and love is always good. So just love me, love you and love always.

Leaning In

It is only in leaning into our discomfort that we begin to discover worthwhile change.

Woebot

Entertaining

If you want to excel at something then choose something entertaining to excel at.

Thinking of You

How many people do you reckon are thinking of you right now? Would you like more of them? Would you like to be famous so that many people are thinking of you right now? Would you like to be so famous that millions of people all around the world are thinking of you?

If they were, do you think you would know about it? Would you feel the pressure of all that attention like air pressing against your skin? Do you believe that people’s attention is an energy that can touch and affect you?

Would you want that in your life? Would you want waves of attention lapping (or pounding) against the shores of you?

Or do you suppose that it depends on what they’re thinking about you? If they were thinking good things (whatever that means to you) then would you be okay with it? But what if you were famous for something nasty or unpleasant? Would you try to be nicer if you felt depressed as a result of the downward pressure from all those thoughts? Or would you even make that connection between being unpleasant and feeling down?

There were several directions I could have gone with this so how did I end up here, putting the responsibility for how you feel on your own head? It’s unkind. No wonder I feel so down. Quick, Robert – do something nice. No, not like taking a nap. And no, not like eating some chocolate. Yes, I know they are nice things, but that’s not what I meant. It has to be nice for someone else. No, it doesn’t really matter who. Yes, that would be nice. Okay, do that then. Yes, now. Okay. Good. Well done.

An End to Petty Squabbles

Strikes me that all I ever write about are accounts of the little disagreements I have with the world.

It’s crossed my mind more than once this week that I’ve not written anything on this blog.

During this week I’ve realised that I’m basically a peaceable kind of a guy. I tend towards patterns of thought that see the positive (whatever that means) side of things.

I’ve also been drinking a cup of strong tea, without milk, each day for the past couple of weeks.

I wonder if tea has a sedative effect. Not quite as ‘calming’ as the bromide they reportedly put in British servicemen’s tea during wartime, but that sort of thing.

Woebot has been looking at the things I say and has been suggesting helpful solutions to some of my rougher edges. Woebot has also encouraged me to keep a daily Gratitude Journal. I have lots of things to be gratitudinous (not a word) about.

So, yeah, I’ve stopped squabbling with the world over petty things. It’s not that something happens and I think ‘that’s petty, I’m not going to concern myself with it’. No, it’s more like I just don’t notice these things so much. They have blended into the background of the scenes before me. They have become less important than the positive things.

The teas I’ve tried are: Sencha, Russian Caravan, Ceylon, Jasmine, Spice Imperial, Assam, Earl Grey and (my favourite) Lapsong Souchong. Woebot is loose on the internet but if you can’t use a search engine then click here

Have a nice day..

New Beginnings

Well, Santa’s slunk off back to Lapland to brood moodily on whether kids will be good or bad in 2021; most of the christmas trees are either back in the attic or have been slung over the back fence; and the New Year Resolution train is hurtling down the track bound for stations unknown, little suspecting that, as per usual, it’ll be derailed a few miles down the track with the loss of all promises.

So what’s next?

Well, I just saw my first advert of the year for Easter courtesy of a certain cream-filled egg manufacturer so, although I’m not going to be visiting my local shops anytime soon to see if the shelves are stacked with chocolate eggs and bunnies, I’m confident that the consumer society is still in full swing, despite the efforts of Covid-19 to push us off it. Life might have been turned upside down for a great many of us, but some things never change, even if they are increasingly online.

But wait, is there any good news on the horizon for us in 2021?

I read that Elon Musk is now the richest man in the world and that he has pledged to use half of his wealth to make Earth into a better place to live (and the other half to move us all to Mars if things don’t work out here), so that’s good, right? But that aside, here’s what really cheers me up about the world today: you are reading this.

Why is this good? Well, it means that you’re actively looking for a new beginning and a better world. You’re not just sitting there and sulking; you’re looking for the love, life and happiness. And what could be better than this as the basis for a fine future? Well done you! Now let’s build on that and spread the love. Why not reach out to someone you haven’t talked to for a while and wish them a Happy New Year for 2021 and make it a new beginning for them too? Let’s connect up and make this year a good one and let’s start today – who’s with me?

Growth

I want to talk to you about growth.

When I was young I wanted to grow up. I wanted to be older and wiser and richer and more mature. Now that I’m older and wiser and richer and more mature I want a whole set of other things. Wanting never stops.

When I get all the things I want now and I sit down and look back I hope I am satisfied. I hope that I’ll have found an end to want. In other words, I hope I’ll have grown up.

Real growing up is nothing to do with height, age or even maturity. It’s about recognising the truth about things. And the truth is that we’re adrift in a world of endless possibility. We can be any one (or more) of a vast number of things. And we have choices. From here and now I can pick a direction and walk towards it. And it doesn’t have to be anywhere I was before. I’m not stuck. The world is open to me. I can move.

That’s all I need to say for now. Hope it makes sense and I hope it helps to release you from feeling tied to a situation you don’t like right now. Make wise choices. Be happy.

Blessing for Today – Be Yourself

Robert.

Blessing for Today – Being of Light

You have come into a body to play your part on the world stage … within you is the memory of your true original self … a radiant being of light.

Blessing for Today – Good Wishes

Those who come into contact with you experience that there is no-one in the world who has as many good wishes for them as you have.