03
Our life is an end in itself. Life is an end in itself. We live to be alive-- fully, completely, wonderfully, fascinatingly, joyfully alive. We do not live to get anything, or anywhere. Where do we think we are going? The experience of living is all life has to offer. We think it is about being happy. Being happy is about being absorbed in what is meaningful. We do not ask if something is meaningful, we ask if it will make us happy. Only what is meaningful can do that-- and whether something is meaningful is up to us. No one can tell us what is or will be. We have to find it ourselves, by experiencing life to the fullest, and returning to the meaningful experiences again and again. There is no steady state of being happy. Happy comes and goes. Let come what's coming and let go what's going, and do what needs to be done about it, in response to it, while it is here, now. And don't keep score.
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02
Where do we draw the line between what we want and what we do? If getting our way and having what we want doesn't guide our actions, what does? Should/Ought/Must? Who says so? Should/Ought/Must is a great guide IF who says so dwells within! If who says so has some outer origin-- our parents, God, the Bible, culture/society... forget it. If you aren't doing what you know must be done because you know it must be done and to do otherwise would be to betray yourself and your deep sense of what is right, necessary and essential to being true to yourself and living in filial devotion and liege loyalty to your own center and grounding sense of direction and purpose, you are off track and wandering lost and alone in the wasteland of your own wishes and desires. There is only one thing to do: Sit down and be quiet. Seek the inner source of purpose and direction. And wait for the mud to settle and the water to clear. How long will that take? Longer than you want it to, but not as long as you are afraid it will. Your wants are preferences, vanilla or chocolate? You musts are your guide. What must you do without reasons, without explanations, without justification or comprehension? Do that! "It's the pirate's life for me, Gibbs. I have no say in the matter! Savvy?"
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01
Our wants and our way are leading us by the nose down roads we have no business traveling, into places we have no business being, into things we have no business doing. What is our business? Why aren't we about it? It is time we found out. It is time we took control of our life, and started doing things our life's way. Our life has a life of its own. Our life knows more than we do about what's what and what needs to be done about it. We need to sit down, shut-up, look and listen. What is it going to take for us to sit down, shut-up, look and listen? We have to look and listen until we see and hear. Our life has things to say, our body is trying to tell us what our life would like to say. We aren't listening. We are looking only for what is in it for us, for what we stand to gain, for how to maximize our opportunities, for how to squeeze each situation for its personal benefit and profit potential. All we want to know is where we are better off and how we can get there now. Meanwhile, our life is trying to get our attention, our body is telling us things we don't want to hear. What is it going to take?
