It begins with the right attitude. And wanders, strolls and dawdles from there finding its way among the 10,000 things riding the wind that blows where it will on the adventure of life and being. The church, if it would, would have an automatic corner on the spiritual development market, fill the emptiest niche in any market, and survive far into any imaginable future. But. The church has squandered its opportunity and wasted away in a wasteland of its own making. Reaching and grabbing for market share in a market that has nothing to offer, never did, never will. Snake oil and carnival barkers are all it amounts to. The right attitude includes grace, kindness and compassion for oneself and everyone else (Until they prove themselves deserving of "Depart from me! I never knew you evildoers!"). The right attitude lays the groundwork for all that follows: Right relationship with oneself and others, believing and trusting in oneself to have and know what to do in rising to meet any occasion. Fealty, liege loyalty, filial devotion to our essential nature and the innate virtues tucked into our DNA. Emptiness, stillness and silence. Integrity, sincerity, spontaneity. No expectations, no plans, no agenda, no judgment, no opinions, no striving, no pushing, no forcing, no willing, no contriving, no conniving... just seeing/knowing/doing what needs to be done in each situation as it arises, for the joy of doing it and the satisfaction of having done it-- doing our work and stepping back, letting nature take its course, like a stream taking its time, finding its way on its path to the sea. (Who guides a steam on its path to the sea? Be the stream! Trust yourself to find your way on your path to, and through, the sea!)
–0–
Jim Dollar's Photography and Philosophy 