December 16, 2025

Cardinal 02-02 — Scenes from my hammock, 22-acre woods, Indian Land, South Carolina

This bird knows what it is doing, where it is, what is going on. This bird knows what its business is and is about it to the fullest extent of its being. Would that we could say the same things about ourselves. My associate pastor and I would ground ourselves by asking, whenever it was appropriate, meaning whenever we found ourselves in a vortex of colliding circumstances which knocked us off our routine and required us to take stock, take inventory and see where we needed to go from here, now, “Who am I? What am I about?” Grounding ourselves in this particular here now to remember where we were and what we were dealing with. And what our business was here, now.

What are we doing here, now? What does life mean for us? What is life asking of us? What does life need from us here, now? These are appropriate questions for orientation, direction, grounding ourselves in the moment and readying ourselves for what may be coming.

It is a practice whose time has come for everyone in the United States and in the world. Who are we? What’s what? What is going on? What is asked of us? What do we do about it?

Let’s start with: What is meaningful for us, here, now? What is our life about that has meaning for us? What do we do in a day that is most meaningful for us? These are grounding, directing, inquiries/realizations. What are we doing here, now? What are we about? How does that serve, reflect, exhibit what is meaningful for us?

What do we do that has meaning for us? My personal bias in this search for meaning inquiry is to say that four things are likely to be the most meaningful thing for a large portion of the world’s population: sex, drugs, alcohol, money. Beyond that, what? Partying and entertainment. How much of the world’s population live in the service of partying and entertainment? How much of the world’s population live lives going nowhere, doing nothing?

The short dialogue between Rocky Balboa and Mickey Goldmill in the movie “Rocky” captures our situation perfectly. “It’s a life,” says Rocky about how he makes a living, “It’s a waste of life,” retorts Mickey. How much of life worldwide amounts to “a waste of life”? And how do we turn things around? By finding what is meaningful for ourselves and serving it with our life. No?

December 15 -B, 2025

Black-and-White Warbler — Scenes from my hammock, 22-acre woods, Indian Land, South Carolina

I have just published on my “Jim Dollar’s Published Works” blog on Word Press, “Three Points on Prayer” as an excerpt from my eBook, A Handbook for the Spiritual Journey II, available from Amazon Kindle with an internet search for “Jim Dollar Kindle.”

December 15, 2025

Mourning Dove — Scenes From My Hammock, 22-Acre Woods, Indian Land, South Carolina

Jesus died at the hands of The Establishment embodied in the High Priest Joseph Caiaphas who saw Jesus as an enemy of the High Priestly way of doing things. The Buddha died from eating poorly cooked pork (How enlightened was that?). Both Buddha and Jesus were living their life as they thought their life needed to be lived–and would have lived out their lives without killing anyone they thought was interfering with them doing that. The Tao Te Ching precisely declares the destiny that awaits all of us: “Get in there and do your thing and don’t worry about the outcome!” (A paraphrase by Joseph Campbell).

Our truth is more important than our safety. How we see things is who we are. Regular retreats into the emptiness/stillness/silence enhance our chances at achieving clarity of vision. Being true to ourselves in serving that vision is “the secret cause” of our death according to James Joyce. Living in the service of clarity about who we are and what is ours to do in the time left for living is a cause worthy of us. With that in hand, we have what it takes to face every day all the way to the last one. May it be so said of all of us! A better epitaph I cannot imagine.

December 14, 2025

Fence in the Fog — Six-mile Creek Road, Indian Land, South Carolina

Finding and living out of our center, our core, our foundation is the essence of integrity and the guiding principle of our life. Is it Me, or is it Not-me? In what ways does this represent, reveal, exhibit, express who I am and aspire to be? In what ways does this deny, conceal, misrepresent who I am and aspire to be?

Parties, for instance are Not-me. Siting, looking out the window is Very Much Me. And the lists wind on from there.

December 13, 2015

Sculptures of Life 02 — Ballantyne Town Center, Provincetown, Charlotte, North Carolina

Don’t have a plan! By all means, do not have to have a plan! All thought out from every angle, the brain child of reason and logic, carefully crafted and put into place. What does logic know of psyche? Do they ever talk shop and trade secrets over coffee and donuts? Nod in passing? Attend conventions? Live on the same street? What does day have to do with night, or high tide with low? Did we think our way to here, now, or was it magic at work in our life? “Darkness within darkness, the gateway to mystery!” That is the way at the world works, no? The way life goes? Who knows from one moment to another what’s now? What’s next? It is more on the order of “Here we are, now what?” Wait and see. Look for what is called for. See where it leads. The future is opening up all around us. Upon what choice does our fortune ride? What would logic determine? What would psyche say? “Columbus took a chance,” as the old saying goes. What did Columbus know that said, “This, now!”? What do we know, here, now? How do we know what we know? How do we know when to listen to what we know and when to let it go? Who do we listen to when we listen to what we know? Who knows what we need to know? Whom do we trust to know what, when, where, how? What guides our boat on its path through the sea? What brought us here, now? What do we trust with our next choice, our next step? When we listen what do we listen to? What, whom, directs our steps along the way? How do we know they, it, knows what they, it, are doing? What made Adam and Even think they knew what they were doing? Did they even stop to ask the question? Did they think to take it into the silence to see what might arise there? Come to light there? As a soft, small voice? A dim, flickering flame? Offering knowing, clarity to those who look, listen?

December 12, 2025

Sculptures of Life 01 — Ballantyne Town Center, Provincetown, Charlotte, North Carolina

I understand my role to be in the world as a witness–to see, hear, understand, know, what’s what, what’s happening, what is called for, and what is to be done about it, here, now, and to do it, when, where and how it needs to be done, in each situation as it arises, all my life long, with the gifts I have to work with from birth: My Original Nature, My Innate Virtues (The Things I Do Best And Enjoy Doing Most), My Intrinsic Intuition, and My Inherent Imagination, for the sheer joy of doing it, and the satisfaction of having done it.

I understand that to be your role as well. And when we join one another in doing the work that is ours to do as only we can do it, the world becomes a better place to be. Situation by situation. Day by day. Are you with me in this work that is ours to do?

December 11, 2025

Mossy Cascade — Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Chestnut Branch, Tennessee

Integrity is foundational. We live to be who we are and to do what is ours to do. We live to be true to ourselves in all we do. We live to discover who we are. To know what we are called to do and do it. What is “us”? What is “not us”? We live our way to knowing these two things. No one can tell us who we are and who we are not. We experience integrity. We do not think it up, make it up. We get there by knowing what we know and living accordingly.

Joseph Campbell said, “We know when we are on the beam and when we are off it.” Carl Jung said, ““Follow that will and that way which experience confirms to be your own.” And, “Trust that which gives you meaning and accept it as your guide.” Only we know what is meaningful, right, good, true to us. To know that and to do it is to be who we are. We live to know what we know and to do what is ours to do. We are our own guide through life. Living the life someone else would have us live is to betray ourselves and our sense of what is right for us.

When we fall off the beam, step away from the path, we only need to drop into the right kind of emptiness, stillness and silence and “wait for the mud to settle and the water to clear” (Old Taoist advice for finding the center and getting back onto the Way) to know what’s what, what’s happening, what is called for here, now, and do what needs to be done about it when, where and how it needs to be done. And do it. Integrity is the way, the truth and the life. The way of the Tao. And the way in which “The Father and I are one.” May it be so for all of us, here, now and always.

December 10, 2025

Brown Trasher 01 — Scenes From My Hammock, 22-acre Woods, Indian Land, South Carolina

The solution to being perennially happy is to stop wanting things to be different than they are. Or, better, to stop wanting. What did wanting ever do for us anyway? When we come out of the womb, we have everything we need to find what we need to do what needs to be done. What more do we need? Besides cooperation, I mean. Cooperation is the missing item in everyone’s life. I don’t know why that is so difficult to secure. What does it take to be a little bit helpful?

How to be cooperative–which could also be understood as “lovingly kind”–is the one thing that would be most helpful around the world throughout the Cosmos. No?

December 09, 2025

Swan Lake Black Austrailian Swans — Swan Lake, Iris Gardens, Sumter, South Carolina

We tend to go where the job takes us and income is the directing factor in our life most often. Jesus and the Buddha cared nothing about money. The Buddha walked away from certain King-ship and Jesus was of the opinion that “The love of money is the root of all evil,” and “It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of the needle (A narrow passage way in Jerusalem) than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.” And that has evolved into the Prosperity Gospel. Go, as they say, figure. And prayer has evolved into getting what we want from something called “God” which is a collection of opinions about hearsay called “doctrine.” Somebody hears somebody say something is so, so it must be so, and everybody must believe it is so or go to hell, which is also something somebody said is so.

Jesus said, “You have heard it said, but I say unto you” and he talked to people out of his own experience, saying what he knew to be was so. The Buddha did the same thing, even telling his listeners, “Don’t take my word for any of this! Make up your own mind about what you say is so! Don’t listen to me! Listen to YOU!”

My position regarding money is to recognize its importance in paying the right bills and serving as a cushion to continue paying the right bills into our future, and to be right about what the right bills are. Living to be right about what we say is so was the way Jesus and the Buddha did it and I take it to be good guidance for the way we do it. If you think you have a better idea, the Buddha, Jesus and I aren’t going to try to talk you out of it. We are all on our own when it comes to saying what we think is so.

December 08, 2025

Lake Haigler 03 — 11/24 Anne Springs Close Greenway, Fort Mill, South Carolina

There is always something to come to terms with. It is relentless and unending, our being asked/required to grow up some more again today. It appears to be a plot against us until we look closer and see that the trend can be linked directly to our addiction to wanting, desiring, having to have. It is a proven reality over time, the less we want, the happier we are. Supreme happiness is reserved for those who want nothing ever any time. We can stop being miserable the minute we stop wanting anything. The economy will crash, but we won’t care.

December 07 – B, 2025

Lake Hagiler 02 11/2024 — Anne Springs Close Greenway, Fort Mill, South Carolina

This is #160 in my “Zen Thoughts” on my other WordPress Blog, “Jim Dollar’s Published Works.”

There is wanting, and there is guessing, and there is thinking, and there is knowing. Knowing how to know what’s what, what’s happening, what’s called for, what needs to be done, where, when and how is the Philosopher’s Stone. The Way of living aligned with, in accord with in tune with, the Way, the Tao of Life and Being.

But. There is a catch. Knowing is not the way to getting what we want. Knowing is the way of doing what is called for and needs to be done.

Letting the Force be with us is submitting to the requirements of the Force for rhythm and flow, drift and direction. The Way is THE Way, not just any way. Not every way. Not OUR way. Can we surrender OUR way in service of THE Way? Can we acquiesce to–give our ascent to–concur with–say YES to–comply with–embrace whole heartedly–yield to– submit to–declare our allegiance to–serve and adore–THE Way to the exclusion of all other ways, always and forever, no matter what, Amen?

This is The Way of the Christ, the Buddha, the Tao. Do we have what it takes to lay OUR Way aside in declaring our liege loyalty and filial devotion to THE WAY always and forever, no matter what, Amen?

Doing so is what Jesus had in mind when he said, “If you want to be one with me, you have to pick up your cross daily and follow me.” And, it is what he ment when he said, “Pray always.” Being aligned with the Force is dying to ourselves and our idea of how things ought to be in knowing/praying OUR way into eternal oneness with THE WAY, now and forever no matter what, Amen. 

That is the catch.

December 07, 2025

Glade Creek Mill — Babcock State Park, Clifftop, West Virginia

Being there is being here, now–which, with the right kind of emptiness, stillness and silence, is highly preferable to what passes for life most days.

Stepping into this scene in your imagination, and staying a while, provides us with a refuge from horrors of the latest headline and the absurdity/insanity Donald Trump and his idea of how things ought to be. Empty of Donald and the MAGA madness, we are prepared to receive the Buddha’s idea of how life needs to be lived: “Peaceful abiding here, now,” with an openness to “That, too, that, too” without losing our attachment to the rhythm and flow of the right thing, done in the right way, in the right place, at the right time, sitting with the creek and the wonder of “This, too. This, too.”