Finding our way to The Way one situation at a time. I don't know how great it will be, but I expect it will be interesting, and I look forward to it going on past all reason because wonder is just that way. Are you coming or not?
Water Lilies 06/09/2015 Oil Paint Rendered — Pike Nursery, Charlotte, North Carolina
I wish people were transparent.
At least as transparent
as dogs and horses.
There is no lying with dogs and horses.
Or cats.
We know where we stand with plants and animals.
They all are like the Buddha,
as one "thus come,"
just as they are,
straight from the womb,
or the acorn.
We rarely ever are that way.
We kid ourselves.
Think about that.
Kidding ourselves
is what we do best.
Think about that.
We can't be transparent
even with ourselves.
With us NOTHING is as it
appears to be!
Ever!
Kidding ourselves about God
is our highest achievement
at self-deception.
But that applies only in the west.
The people in the east
don't kid themselves about God.
There is no Original Sin
in the east.
People aren't born guilty
of pissing God off,
so that God has to kid even himself
by offering up Jesus as a sacrifice
to himself
in order to say,
"Ah, never mind. Ya'll come on in."
In the west, self-deception
goes all the way to the top.
We are born into a culture
where God is assumed.
We are born into a God-milieu,
and everybody is awash
in some quasi-theology from birth,
and everybody knows it's all so
because that's all they have ever heard,
so of course it's so.
Even the people who don't believe in God
know exactly the God they don't believe in,
and carry that God around with them,
in a negative kind of way,
wherever they go.
We all are kidding ourselves.
And we are kidding ourselves
about not kidding ourselves.
How do we step away from the game
of self-deception
in order to be transparent?
Even to ourselves?
Especially to ourselves?
Ever?
We die not-knowing who we are.
Who we would be apart from the lies.
Who we would be if we stepped away
from the lies
in order to be who we are
straight-up.
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02
Red 04/22/2021 Oil Paint Rendered — Pike Nursery, Charlotte, North Carolina
Our original nature
is here to be realized,
in the sense of our realizing
what it is/who we are,
and in the sense of being made real,
brought forth,
exhibited and expressed
in our life.
We have to live in ways that
are true to ourselves.
When we don't,
there are symptoms,
and issues,
and indications
that something is amiss
all our life long.
We are off balance,
out of harmony,
out of tune,
off key,
and it shows.
It is time for a meeting
of the minds.
Our conscious mind
has to sit down
with our unconscious mind,
and reach agreement
about how we live together
going forward.
We have to integrate Logos
with Mythos.
Our logical, rational, intellectual, analytical mind
has to be integrated with our
instinctive, intuitive, imaginative, creative mind.
The work of growing up
is the work of maturation
is the work of dancing
to the music embedded in our bones,
and becoming "The Youthful Immortal"
(Benjamin Hoff) we are capable of being.
Sumac 91 10/19/2021 Oil Pant Rendered — 22-acre Woods, Indian Land, South Carolina
There is no god in the sky,
making weal and creating woe.
We are all we have.
All there is.
All we need.
We have made all the rest of it up
to comfort ourselves
in the uncertainty of our existence
through all those years
of being at the mercy
of everything.
The more we discovered about the world
around us,
and the more proficient we grew
in making it on our own,
the less important
the god above,
or the pantheon of the gods above,
became.
But.
We missed an important element.
The Two Worlds--
the Invisible and the Visible--
the world of our dreams and visions
and nightmares,
and the world of rocks and trees,
planting and harvesting,
"wars and rumors of wars,"
are the most real aspects of our existence,
and we dismissed the Invisible World,
and misused the Visible World
to serve ourselves.
The Other World is as real
as This World of here and now
present reality.
It is past time we acknowledged that,
and took our place
as the interface between worlds,
living in this world
in light of that world.
Aligning ourselves in this world
with the inner truth of that world.
Making our way in this world,
guided by,
and in full accord with,
the directions and leanings of that world.
Taking our cues from that world
and applying them to our life in this world.
Balancing the demands of both worlds.
Living in harmony with,
and acknowledging the place of, each.
We begin by giving that world its due.
Sitting still.
Being quiet.
Waiting.
Watching.
Listening to our nighttime dreams.
Learning to read the signals
of our body.
Knowing what we know,
and all that we don't know.
Alert to what arises unbidden
within.
Learning to know the inner world
as well as we know the outer world.
Integrating Mythos and Logos
by giving as much time and attention
to instinct, intuition,imagination
and the ineffable
as we give to logic, reason, analytics
and the facts
that have been the only facts
up until now.
Living with a foot in each world.
Walking two paths at the same time.
Being fully who we are,
where we are,
when we are,
how we are
at all times,
in all places...
What a world that would be.
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02
American Holly 10/20/2021 Oil Paint Rendered — 22-acre Woods, Indian Land, South Carolina
In order for That World
to be recognized and treated
as being of value to This World,
it has to make a difference
in the life of This World
that can be quantified, weighed,
measured, counted, boxed-up,
fenced-in, owned, bought-and-sold,
and used in ways
that have tangible benefits
to those living here and now.
Barring that, it is useless.
Jesus said,
"The stone the builders reject
is the chief cornerstone."
And, here we are.
The assessment of value
depends upon our seeing
what we look at.
How often is that the case
with us?
If you want to change your life
in profound and immeasurable ways,
practice seeing what you look at.
And communing with the Invisible World.
The Invisible World
is the world of the Psyche,
of the Unconscious
(so-called because we
are not conscious of it)
Mind.
We have One Mind,
and it has conscious and unconscious
aspects.
The more conscious we can become
of what is unconscious,
the better able we are
to live in ways that balance
the "two worlds"
and unite them in harmony
with one another
in the One World of perceived reality.
And that makes all the difference.
Lake Martin Cypress 08 02/08/2014 Oil Paint Rendered — Beaux Bridge, Louisiana
The forces that keep from happening
any of the things that need to happen
are firmly in place
and nothing can happen
that ought to happen.
The Good always needs champions,
but none are currently available,
and all that might have taken the role
are complacent and compliant
servants of The Way Things Must Be Done,
which is a laughter
in times such as these,
with no guardrails,
and no oversight,
and no enforcement,
and nothing but reasons
for not doing anything
everywhere.
We need a hero
and we get people
who go out of their way
to play by the rules
that were written
for a different time,
when good faith could be assumed,
and cooperation could be counted on.
Which leaves the rest of us
at a loss as to what to do
about the mess we are in.
You have to answer for yourself,
but I am going to wait it out.
It may take a while,
but I can't think of anything better to do.
Things are well out of my hands,
which is what Jesus said,
when the Romans hauled him off,
and that was 2,000 years ago and counting,
and with climate change
about to take over,
with all that implies,
it may be a while
for the shipping backlog
to be sorted out,
the mail to be delivered,
the trains to run on schedule,
and the Good to come out of exile.
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02
Little Blue Heron 01 04/20/2014 Oil Paint Rendered — Audubon Swamp Garden, Magnolia Plantation, Charleston, South Carolina
When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor,
it was clear what needed to happen.
By the time we dropped atomic bombs
on Hiroshima and Nagasaki,
it was not at all clear that needed to happen.
and still is not.
Clarity is the essence of right action.
There is much too little of it in evidence
these days.
"Waiting for the mud to settle
and the water to clear,"
is the primary recommendation
of Taoism,
and its spinoff, Zen
(Zen is what happened when Buddhism met Taoism).
A similar recommendation goes,
"Wait for the door to open
before stepping through."
Waiting for anything
is anathema for most of us
most of the time.
Impatience is what we do best.
Even when we don't know what to do
it's "Let get this over with,
and worry about it later!"
Let's not, is a better choice.
Waiting for clarity.
being clear about what needs to happen,
is the proper foundation
for everything that follows.
Then doing what needs to be done,
when it needs to be done,
the way it needs to be done,
because it needs to be done,
can lead us into the next situation
without the need to undo/redo
what happened in the last situation.
And that is an open door
for every developing situation.
Graham Cabin 05 02-11-2014 Oil Paint Rendered — Anne Springs Close Greenway, Fort Mill, South Carolina
We rise and meet the day,
every day.
And do there what needs to be done.
When it needs to be done.
Where it needs to be done.
How it needs to be done.
Because it needs to be done.
Each day has its own rhythms,
and occasions,
and times.
Its own movement,
and motion,
and actions
that are called for
by the day.
Being aligned with the day,
in sync with the day,
attuned to the day,
is a large part
of our balance and harmony
throughout the day.
If we are not one-with-the-day,
we are out of sorts with our life,
and things do not go smoothly
or flow well.
Belonging to the day,
and doing what the day requires,
is quite different from
seizing the day
and willing what happens,
when, where and how.
You know how you feel
at the end of a day
you have forced into an agenda
in the service of a program
that is imposed on you
by Those Who Know Best And Must Be Pleased.
And you know how you feel
on a weekend that has its own pace
and direction,
with no schedule
and no set time for anything to happen.
We are built for days like that.
"Island time" allows things to happen
when they happen,
and to not happen if they don't happen.
Maybe the plumber comes on the island,
and maybe he goes fishing.
If he goes fishing,
maybe he will come tomorrow.
Work more Island Time into your weeks
and into portions of your days.
Your soul will like that,
and your body will benefit greatly.
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02
Catalooche Farmstead 02 03/02/2014 Oil Paint Rendered — Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Catalooche District, Cherokee, North Carolina
Our original nature
guides our boat
on its path through the sea.
We work to balance and harmonize
our original nature
with the context and circumstances
of our life
in each situation as it arises--
always guided by who we are
and how that has to be negotiated
with the forces at work in our life.
Our context and circumstances
are here to grow us up.
Against our will.
Our original nature
grounds us,
centers us,
in the work to remain
true to ourselves
within the time and place
of our living.
To be too much who we are
is to remain immature
and undeveloped forever.
To be not enough who we are
is to be separated from ourselves
by the world in which we live
and lost to wander the wasteland forever.
It is our place,
our responsibility,
to strike a happy balance
by harmonizing ourselves
with our life.
We have to be true to ourselves
and true to our station/place in life.
This is the relationship between
the Original Mask (The mask the culture
requires us to wear)
and the Antithetical Mask (The mask
our original nature requires us to wear)--
Y.B. Yeats' terms for the work
that is ours to do
in getting back to
"the face that was ours before we were born."
We live in the service of balance and harmony,
and do our best to make it work,
living at the center of the bell-shaped curve.
How are you doing with that?
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03
Fall Woods 01 10-29-2014 Oil Paint Rendered — Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Gatlinburg, Tennessee
Our reason/motive/purpose/intention/goal/etc.
for living
has to be revised/transformed/corrected/altered/etc.
in light of A: How well/poorly it is working,
and B: What is going to happen if we don't.
Simply stated: We can't keep this up.
Look around.
This is what living in the service
of the good we call good is good for.
We keep thinking if we try harder
we will have a different outcome.
Working harder in pursuit of the wrong ends
is going to produce exactly
what we have been producing:
An ever increasing standard of living
and lives that aren't worth living.
We have developed the means
to get us where no one has any business being.
The best the wealthiest among us
have to show for their life
are fleets of yachts
and private jets
and a ride to the edge of space.
They have nothing better
to do with their money.
Time to re-think what we are doing
and why we are doing it.
We have to find our way
back to "the face that was ours
before we were born,"
and live in ways which
express/exhibit/bring forth/serve/
reveal/make manifest/etc.
our original nature.
Who are we?
What are we to be about?
What is ours to do
with the time that is our
upon the earth?
We have to bring Mythos
back into the conversation with Logos,
and integrate instinct/intuition/imagination
with logic/reason/intellect/analytics.
And see where we go with that!
Great Blue Heron 06 08/24/2019 Oil Paint Rendered — Swan Lake Iris Gardens, Sumter, South Carolina
Jesus raised the dead
and left the dead
to bury the dead.
Jesus cursed an innocent fig tree
for not having fruit out of season,
and forgave a woman guilty
of adultery.
Jesus said, "Come to me
all who are heavy-laden,
and I will give you rest."
And he said, "Depart from me!
I never knew you evildoers!"
Jesus said, "Blessed are you
if you know what you are doing,
but if you don't know what you are doing,
you are accursed and a transgressor
of the Law."
And he said, "Father, forgive them,
for they know not what they do!"
Jesus is like the spirit,
who is like the wind,
that blows where it will.
We never can tell what Jesus
will say, or do, next.
May it be so said of us all!
May we all be as free as Jesus was
to do what the situation requires,
never mind what we did in the
last situation,
or will do in the next one.
Consistency and predictability
are not required,
and are hindrances and restraints
when it comes to the wind blowing where it will!
To be what each situation needs
is to be open to what is happening there,
and to what is called for there,
and to act spontaneously,
compassionately,
to do what is called for,
exactly as called for,
regardless of what that is,
in season and out of season
throughout the time left for living!
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02
Blue Ridge Pastoral 04/03/2005 Oil Paint Rendered — Blue Ridge Parkway, Blowing Rock, North Carolina
What needs to be done here and now,
in this moment,
in this situation?
Start with that.
Do it as it needs to be done.
Then, move on to the next thing
that needs to be done.
And so on,
throughout the day.
Do it again tomorrow.
And the day after that.
For as long as there are days.
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03
Peach Orchard Road 01/14/2006 Oil Paint Rendered — Anne Springs Close Greenway, Fort Mill, South Carolina
"Turning the light around"
is an old Taoist phrase,
emphasizing the need to
stop looking outside,
"out there"
for what is found only inside,
"in here."
"The path that can be discerned
as a path,
is not a reliable path" (Martin Palmer).
"They shall not say, 'Lo here!'
or 'Lo, There!' for what you seek
lies within you" (Jesus of Nazareth).
"The darkness is the cradle of the light"
(Rumi).
"What you seek lies far in the back,
in the darkest corner,
of the cave you most don't want to enter"
(Joseph Campbell).
"The stone the builders reject
is the chief cornerstone" (Jesus of Nazareth).
"Why don't you judge for yourselves
what is right?" (Jesus of Nazareth).
We have to empty ourselves of all we
think we know,
in order to know all that is worth knowing.
The Silence is the source of all that is.
No one can tell you what you know.
You have to realize that for yourself.
Sit still.
Be quiet.
Pay attention
to what arises in the silence
that catches your eye,
that calls your name.
See what comes up
to guide your boat
on its path through the sea.
–0–
04
Cherry Blossoms 02 03/25/2016 Oil Paint Rendered — Indian Land, South Carolina
Sit still.
Be quiet.
Be present, here, now.
Be open.
Alert.
Aware.
Attentive.
Wait.
Watch.
Available for what needs
an audience with you.
Regularly.
Throughout each day.
For as much time
as you have available
to devote to the practice.
The Tree by the Road 02/11/2014 Oil Paint Rendered — Union County, South Carolina
Balance and harmony
form the um-welt for,
and are the offspring of,
sincerity, spontaneity and integrity.
Living out of sincerity,
spontaneity and integrity
in the service of balance and harmony,
is to have nothing at stake
in the outcome.
It is to live from emptiness
in the companionship of silence,
doing what needs to be done,
the way it needs to be done,
when it needs to be done,
and letting that be that.
No emotional investment.
Or involvement.
Nothing screws with balance and harmony
like emotional investment.
Like emotional involvement.
Like emotional reactivity.
Like having to have our way.
Doing what needs to be done
is not dependent upon the result
of our action.
It is itself the result
of our being called to action
by the situation which evokes
our response.
Doing what needs to be done
rests on us.
We have done our part
when we do that.
The outcome is beyond our control.
Or even our interest.
We do our work
and step back,
as Lao Tzu advised.
"And let nature take its course."
The recipe for balance and harmony.
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02
Dawn Down East 11/06/2006 Oil Paint Rendered — Down East, North Carolina
It isn't what we believe--
it is what we do,
in response to the situation
as it arises.
The Buddha is more like Jesus
than the people who rave about Jesus.
See what needs to be done
and do it.
Then, see what needs to be done
in response to what you did,
and do what needs to be done
about that...
For as long as situations arise.
It doesn't matter what you believe
as long as you do what needs to be done,
situation by situation.
If your beliefs assist that, fine.
If your beliefs interfere with that,
or prevent it,
you need to change your beliefs
and do what else needs to be done.
We know what needs to be done
by seeing the situation as it is,
and by knowing what is called for there,
without prejudice
or predisposition,
and without imposing our will
for the situation
upon the situation.
What needs to be done in any situation
is unique to the situation,
organic to the situation,
arising from the situation,
and evokes our response
in a spontaneous, sincere,
at-one-with-the-moment
kind of way.
The way a change in tempo
elicits a change in motion
from the dancers dancing
to the music.
–0–
Swan Lake 09/13/2019 Oil Paint Rendered — Swan Lake Iris Gardens, Sumter, South Carolina
It is easy to know right from wrong,
but greed and self-interest get in the way
and lead to bad judgment
in the service of unrestrained desire.
What we want to happen
can be confused with what needs to happen,
and the path can be obscured
by the noise of competing goods.
When we empty ourselves of preferences
and inclinations,
and see the situation as it is
"thus come,"
right action is evoked naturally
like the way of a stream
encountering an obstruction.
Emptiness is the way to the way,
and is, therefore, the way.
The water of life
flows from an empty well.
Drink deeply from the empty bucket,
and all will be well.
Around Bass Lake 03 10/16/2014 Oil Paint Rendered — Blue Ridge Parkway, Blowing Rock, North Carolina
The silence has to be filtered,
mined,
for its gold,
but if something is missed,
it cycles back around.
Waiting and watching
are all it takes
to see and hear,
realize and understand,
know and do
and be aligned
with the truth
of our life
at last.
We can speed things up
by having the right attitude
from the start.
Openness,
playfulness
and wonder
make all the difference.
We live on the playground
of magic
and miracle,
and are only one slight
perspective shift away
from the threshold
to laughter and amazement
and "singing and dancing
in the rain."
–0–
02
Pelican Silhouette 02 Oil Paint Rendered — Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Ocracoke Island, North Carolina, Everyday, All The Time
The Dalai Lama is the model
for how to do it.
For how to deal with our life.
When the Chinese invaded Tibet,
destroying Buddhist temples
and killing 1.2 million monks
and civilians,
the Dalai Lama escaped to Pakistan,
and has lived in exile there since 1950.
And he has always exhibited graciousness,
kindness and compassion in his way
through the world,
with no bitterness, rancor, or resentment
evident in his words or manner.
He continues to do now
what needs to be done now,
the way it needs to be done,
responding to each moment
in ways appropriate to that moment,
as though nothing is big enough
to cast a pall
over all that remains
of life and being.
Nothing is big enough
to cast a pall
over all that remains
of life and being.
Great Blue Heron 01 04/20/2014 Oil Paint Rendered, Black and White — Audubon Swamp Garden, Magnolia Plantation, Charleston, South Carolina
The way of integrity
is the way of being in tune
the way a harp
or a piano
is in tune,
and in character
the way Groucho Marx,
and Betty White,
were always in character.
Just being who we are,
when we are,
where we are,
how we are,
within the context
and circumstances
of our life--
being what the moment needs us to be
and remaining in tune
and staying in character
within the time and place of our living.
Without an eye on what's in it for us,
or caring about what we stand to gain
or lose,
or thinking about how to take advantage
of the situation,
or reaping benefits,
or making the most of our opportunity...
Just remaining in tune,
just staying in character,
and doing what is called for
in each moment
throughout each day.
Meeting the day
on the day's terms
in our way,
day by day.
Incredibly difficult.
Absolutely essential.
Completely dependent
upon mindful awareness
and a working relationship
with the Ten Guides:
Emptiness and Silence,
Balance and Harmony,
Sincerity, Spontaneity and Integrity,
Spirit, Energy, and Vitality.
Get all those in place
and keep them there
through regular observation
loyalty, devotion and adjustment,
and the Tao will be your Mother
throughout your days
upon the earth.
–0–
02
White Egret 02/08/2014 Oil Paint Rendered — Lake Martin Swamp, Beaux Bridge, Louisiana
Our balance and harmony
are the early warning signs
letting us know
that we have moved away
from living in accord
with the Tao of life and being.
(The reality of the Tao at work
throughout the cosmos
is easily experienced in the regularity
--and inconsistency!--
of the tides and seasons,
and in the steadiness of gravity.
It is the way things work together
for the good of the whole.
When we are minding our business
and doing what needs to be done,
things hum right along.
When we don't,
things don't.
And we need to bring ourselves back
into alignment/accord with
the Tao of life and being.)
Finding and maintaining our balance and harmony--
which is done in right relationship
with the Ten Guides--
is our responsibility,
and requires our loyalty and devotion
to regular routine maintenance practice
of awareness and adjustment
throughout our life.
We think it is about making lots of money,
socking it away
and coasting through our life
from one entertaining pastime to another
all our life long.
How's that balance and harmony?
Dunes 10/26/2009 Oil Paint Rendered — Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Outer Banks, Ocracoke Island, North Carolina
Everything depends upon
and flows from
emptiness and silence.
Until we can be empty
even of the desire to be empty,
we do not have what it takes
to live with balance and harmony.
And, without balance and harmony,
sincerity, spontaneity and integrity
have no entry point into our life.
And, without sincerity, spontaneity and integrity,
spirit, energy and vitality
are at such low levels within us
that we have to draw on our emotions
just to feel alive,
and to live from our emotions
is to live grounded
in noise, complexity, drama
and the force of will
in the service of what we want--
and it all goes to hell just like that
(snaps fingers).
Having an agenda and a plan,
or having one without the other,
is but a step away
from having an ulcer,
a drinking problem,
and a host of other symptoms
vying with one another
for control of our life.
And we are that close
(holds up Thumpkin and Pointer
squeezed together)
to being tossed about
by the heaving seas
and clashing rocks
of life without meaning,
purpose, point or direction.
And that is no place to be.
So.
Sit down.
Shut up.
Pay attention.
To what arises in the silence,
emerges from the silence,
occurs to you with the blessings
of the silence--
waiting for a particular quality
of movement within you
that indicates the stirring of interest
and attraction,
and amounts to a call
to look closer at what it might mean
for you
and be about.
Look closer.
Make inquiries.
See where The Gift Of The Silence leads.
Trusting yourself to Mythos
and moving Logos out of the center
of your life,
so that instinct, intuition and imagination
become as much a part of your life
as logic, reason, intellect and analytic.
Always returning to emptiness and silence
to provide what you need
to find what you need
to live in accord with The Way
and dance with your life,
knowing that "there is only the dance"
(T.S. Eliot).
–0–
02
Cheraw State Park 01 04/18/2014 Black and White Oil Paint Rendered — Cheraw, South Carolina
Our life is grounded in,
rests upon,
grows out of,
becomes what it is through,
chance.
It all hangs by a thread
and turns on a dime,
and nothing has to be what it is.
Everything depends on something else.
If this had not happened
exactly when it happened,
where it happened,
how it happened,
that would not have happened,
or that, or that, or that,
and we would be somewhere else entirely,
if at all.
If the plane hadn't been late,
we would never have been standing
in the coffee line,
behind the man,
in front of the woman,
who became our husband
or our wife...
Like that.
Forever.
It all hinges on chance.
It is all a matter of chance.
We all are just lucky to be here.
And if purpose and control
are your things,
ask yourself,
which is the greater miracle:
A) That all of this is the result
of some intricately designed,
and carefully arranged
Eternal Plan,
or that,
B) None of it is?
That it all just happened this way?
What are the chances?
That's what I"m saying.
What are the chances that your mother
would go on a blind date,
at the last minute,
with the guy who became your father?
Etc., all the way to right here, right now?
It is all a matter of chance,
the luck of the draw,
and the roll of the dice.
Can we say "YES!" to it is the question.
Will we is the other question.
Do we is the other question.
Where do we go from here is the other question...
All awaiting our reply.
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01
Foggy Rocks in Jordon Pond 04/24/2004 Oil Paint Rendered — Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine
If you want to be happy,
give up being greedy.
Greed is fueling climate change
and enabling the corporate ownership
of Congress and the Supreme Court.
Everybody wants to be rich,
but being rich is just a phase
on the way to being richer.
Infinitely richer without end.
A life that is being lived
toward that end
is not a life that is being lived.
Lives that are lived
are lived in open, joyous,
participation in the moment
of our living
for the pure wonder of being alive.
How long has it been?
How long has it been since
you experienced a cup of coffee,
or a scoop of ice cream?
Or the joy of a conversation
with a child?
Or a quiet moment with your
heart's true love,
which might be a violin solo,
or a book?
Open, joyous, participation
in the moment of being alive
is a possibility every moment.
Why let another one go by
unnoticed?
Unlived?
Lake Martin Cypress 07-B 02/04/2014 Oil Paint Rendered–Beaux Bridge, Louisiana
It does not matter how we feel.
It matters what we do.
We are to do what needs to be done,
when it needs to be done,
where it needs to be done,
the way it needs to be done,
because it needs to be done,
regardless of how we feel.
"Feelings follow action,"
as the old therapy saw goes.
We cannot want what we do not want,
but we can do what we do not want to do.
The way it needs to be done, etc.
So do that
in each situation as it arises.
And stop bothering so much about
how we feel.
Don't allow our feelings
to impair our actions!
Feel any way we want to feel,
but do what is called for,
as it is called for, etc.
Step into each situation
as it presents itself,
and look around.
See what's happening
and what needs to be done
in response,
and do it.
All of our action
is situational,
elicited by what is going on
in the time and place of our living.
Live responsively,
and responsibly.
Feel however you feel like feeling.
But do what is asked of you
by the moment at hand.
Moment-by-moment-by-moment...
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02
Catalooche Farmstead 01 03/02/2014 Oil Paint Rendered — Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Cherokee, North Carolina
Those of you who deal
with a truly crazy person
know how easily they can
manipulate the truth
to tilt the Normal World
just a bit,
and transform it
into a place no one can live.
They seem balanced and sane,
and then say things like,
"I'm going to fly to San Francisco,
and ask the mayor to take me
on a tour of the city."
Republicans have this down to an art.
Their world is not the world
the rest of us live in.
They are drawn together
by their ability to see
things that are not there.
I don't know if they see the same things,
or just remarkably similar things,
but they are crazy as hell.
And they hold powerful positions
of leadership and responsibility.
The Cuckoo’s Nest is rapidly
taking over the world.
And the media-world is relating
to them as though they are normal human beings.
Which amplifies crazy
and creates an environment
in which civilization is devolving
as we watch.
If you have a fix for this situation,
I hope you apply it immediately.
Allowing it to play itself out
will be the end of the world as we know it.
Everybody thinks the way they see things
is the way things are.
Everybody thinks the way they think
things ought to be
is the way things ought to be.
Yet, hardly anybody sees things
the way anybody else sees things
(For instance, we talk about "Christianity"
as though there is common agreement
about what is and is not Christian.
When, in fact, there is wide-spread disagreement.
And getting consensus,
or even a majority,
on how things ought to be is very iffy.
And we walk around in a fog of assumed
eye-to-eye-ness that is totally fabricated,
and completely unreal.
The bough-ha-ha over masks and vaccines
is an example of how far apart we are
over many of the things that are essential
to our life together.
Racism is a problem because close to half
of this country are proud to be racist.
Etc. down a long list of other issues.
Community and commonality are rare indeed.
Because "the center fails to hold."
Civility, consideration and graciousness
are in short supply,
and people are all into
"My way is the ONLY WAY!"
I have no idea of how to fix the dichotomy
without the willing participation of all people.
And how we pull that off
when Fox News and talk show radicals,
QAnon and, well the list is forever,
of people pumping people up to be against everything,
looks to me to be hopeless.
It is a solitary commitment to the core
that remains the only viable alternative
to division and discord.
One made by individuals determined
to live from the center
in doing what needs to be done
from their heart
in situation after situation,
no matter what.
I hope you will join me in the cause.
Cabin in the Snow 03 02/11/2014 Oil Paint Rendered — Faires/Coltharp cabin, Anne Springs Close Greenway, Fort Mill, South Carolina
What is the present situation asking of us?
That is all we need to know.
And do.
We know it by being aware
of the time and place of our living.
We can do that by emptying ourselves
of our opinions,
our judgments/evaluations,
our expectations,
our disappointments,
our fear/anxiety/worry,
our wants/desires
(Even our desire to be empty),
our aspirations,
our frustrations,
our anger,
our drives and ambitions,
our motives and incentives,
our beliefs and assumptions,
our inferences and convictions,
our... (All that is in the way
of The Way)
And simply being here, now--
the place where we are
between breaths.
(Try that--
being in the place between breaths:
Breathe more slowly than normal,
deeper than normal,
taking a slow abdominal breath,
by pushing your stomach out
as you inhale
to fill your lungs
to their capacity,
and exhaling slowly
through your nose,
concentrating on the flow
of air as it leaves
your nostrils,
and pausing for a count of 5
before inhaling as you just did.
Do this for three breaths,
and on the third breath,
as you exhale and count,
notice how empty you are
of all the things that
normally drive you [crazy].
That is the place between breaths).
By doing this breathing-with-awareness
throughout your day,
you can empty yourself momentarily
of all the BS you carry with you
that keeps you from being where you are
when you are ever.
Being empty transports us to the silence,
and in the silence
we can be aware of the present moment,
and of what is called for there,
what is being asked of us there,
and respond to the moment
spontaneously/sincerely
with the gifts that are ours to give
in the service of the needs/requirements
of the moment.
Doing this moment to moment
moves us to living differently,
to changing/transforming
our relationship with our life--
and that makes all the difference.
And all you did
was live out of the place
between breaths,
without trying to impose
your will on anything.
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02
Black-crowned Night Heron 04-22-2014 Oil Paint Rendered — Audubon Swamp Garden, Magnolia Plantation, Charleston, South Carolina
Original Sin from a Taoist perspective
is The Profit Motive.
Always wanting more than we have.
Never being satisfied with anything as it is.
Wondering incessantly what's in it for us.
Being endlessly driven to have/get our way...
You know, like that.
That is the one thing
that separates us from
what matters most.
And What Matters Most
from a Taoist perspective
has nothing to do
with keeping some god happy with us,
but with integrating the opposites
at work in our life
moment-to-mnoment
in each situation as it arises.
Our conflicts and contradictions
keep us from being who we are,
where we are,
when we are,
how we are,
why we are,
ever.
We are always wrestling
with how things are,
striving to have this
and avoid that,
and serving our way now
at the expense of all other
possible ways ever.
We have an adversarial
relationship with our life,
or a totally submissive relationship,
or somewhere in between.
Our rage is evident
of things not going our way.
As is our depression.
And our anxiety.
And our addictions.
And our absent-mindedness.
The list is long
of maladaptive behaviors,
which are actually get-my-way behaviors,
or acting out because
we are not getting our way behaviors...
This is the profit motive
at work in our life.
Driving our life.
Preventing us from ever being alive.
Taoism nailed all of this 500 years,
or more,
before Jesus was born.
And Taoism has worked out
what to do about our conflicts of interest
and how to integrate our opposites/contradictions
in the service of doing what needs to be done,
when it needs to be done,
the way it needs to be done,
because it needs to be done,
with nothing in it for us
beyond the joy of doing it
and the satisfaction of having done it,
in each situation as it arises,
all our life long.
We do that by collaborating with
the Ten Guides
which lead us into/through
seeing/hearing/knowing/understanding/
doing/being who we are
in relation to what's what
in each situation as it arises,
walking two paths at the same time,
and being who we are--
true to our Original Nature
("The face that was ours
before we were born")--
AND doing what needs to be done here and now.
The Ten Guides are:
Emptiness and Silence,
Balance and Harmony,
Sincerity, Spontaneity and Integrity,
Spirit, Energy and Vitality.
Central to living in accord with Tao
is living in the presence of Silence.
Silence is the Source and Origin
of all that is.
Everything comes from the Silence
and returns to the Silence,
and we live best
when we live out of the Silence.
Sitting still
and being quiet
are the essence of Taoist practice,
and the path to The Path,
which, of course, is The Path.
Simple.
Essential.
Neglected.
Sigh.
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03
Great Blue Heron 02 04/22/2014 Oil Paint Rendered — Audubon Swamp Garden, Magnolia Plantation, Charleston, South Carolina
Meet the moment on the moment's terms,
and do what needs to be done.
Do not force your will on the situation.
Offer what is needed to the situation--
doing the right thing,
at the right time,
in the right way,
moment by moment,
situation by situation,
without looking for what's in it for you,
or seeking to manipulate your way
into being.
Live for the moment--
to be what the moment needs you to be--
for the joy of doing what is called for,
and the satisfaction of having done it.
And let your life fall into place
around that.
Starting right now.
There is the way things are,
and there is the way
we want things to be.
And therein lies the rub.
How do we work out the conflict?
Manage the contradiction?
Denial seems to be the most popular choice.
How many ways are there
of disappearing the problem?
Which creates multiple spin-off problems,
until we are awash and drowning in
a tumultuous sea of difficulties--
replete with clashing rocks and heaving waves--
just because we refuse to face the fact
of facts that invalidate our preferences
and terminate our dreams and wishes
in mid-production.
Did someone just mention global warming
and the fossil fuel connection?
Amazing sense of timing on that one!
The old Tao recognition of the harmonization
of Yin and Yang
being at the heart of life and being
is brought into sharp focus
in every situation as it arises.
The integration of opposites
is where we come in--
and that includes bearing the pain
of the tension
produced by irreconciliable
and mutually exclusive
polarities.
We are often
"damned if we do
and damned if we don't."
And we live with that,
fully aware of the agony
of having to choose
the unchooseable choice,
yet again--
by choosing to be damned
and be done with it--
once again.
This is the path way
to maturity and grace,
and the catch is
that the prerequsite
for walking the path
is maturity and grace.
We grow up against our will,
one painful choice at a time.
Lake Louise 01 09/24/2009 Oil Paint Rendered — Banfff National Park, Alberta
Thin places are everywhere all the time.
The invisible world
is the foundation
of the visible world,
the grounding source
of all that is.
And doorways/thresholds/portkeys
from this world to that world
are as close
as sitting still,
being quiet.
Mythos predates logos
by ten million years.
Instinct.
Intuition.
Imagination.
Symbol.
Metaphor.
The Numen.
The ineffable.
The inexpressibly real.
The heart of life and being...
At our fingertips.
"Well within our reach,
yet, far exceeding our grasp."
Because we like it that way.
We like reason, logic and analytical thinking.
We don't like mystery and mystic
and things we can't nail down.
Sheldon Kopp puts us in our place
with his,
"Some things can be experienced,
but not understood.
And some things can be understood,
but not explained."
And mythos goes where logos dare not tread.
The thin places are accessible
to the companions of mythos.
The champions of logos,
not so much.
The way is clear to those with eyes to see,
and always has been.
The trouble is
that those who don't see,
don't want anybody seeing.
Or even looking.
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02
Cades Cove Methodist Church 02/28/2014 Oil Paint Rendered — Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Townsend, Tennessee
There is how things are,
and there is how things ought to be.
Who decides these things?
Who makes how things are
the way things are?
Who says things ought to be
some way other than how they are?
Who determines what is good
and what is not?
Who makes the rules
and enforces them?
Who enables or disables the enforcers?
And what part does Big Money play
in all of this?
Big Money says
"We are going to put
regular people in space."
And does it.
Big Money does not say,
"We are going to pay everyone
a livable wage."
And people work for poverty wages.
Big Money serves its values
at the expense of the entire world.
Big Money does not say,
"We are going to disappear dependence
on fossil fuels in ten years."
Big Money says,
"We are going to make as much money
as we can
for as long as we possibly can."
"Profit At Any Price Forever!"
is Capitalism's (Big Money's) mantra.
And Capitalism/Big Money runs the world.
Politics is the tool Capitalism/Big Money uses
to wield its will in the US
and around the world.
People will do anything for money.
Everything is for sale.
Nothing but money is sacred.
This is how things are.
How do you think things ought to be?
What means can you imagine
for making it happen?
I think it will take the complete
internal collapse of things as they are,
for anything to be different-enough
to make a difference,
because money is at the heart
of how things are,
and money is self-serving
at the expense of all things.
Greed cannot serve anything
beyond itself.
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03
Chimney Weather 02/11/2014 Oil Paint Rendered — Faires-Colthrap Cabin, Anne Springs Close Greenway, Fort Mill, South Carolina
Guidance and direction are internal affairs.
How do we know when to trust ourselves
to what someone tells us,
and when to say, "Nope. I'm not going there, doing that"?
We lead ourselves throughout our life,
saying "Yes," to this and "No," to that--
as though we know what we are doing.
But, how do we know
that this is yes and that is no?
Where do likes and dislikes come from?
Wants and don't-wants?
Good and bad?
Where do good and bad come from?
Why do we call good what we call good?
And not-good what we call not-good?
What pilots our boat on its path through the sea?
What picks our destinations,
and chooses our ports and our harbors?
How analytically to we actually live?
How intuitively, instinctively?
Where does our guidance come from?
How does it know what it is doing?
What makes us so sure our "right"
is really right?
And our "wrong" is all that wrong?
Jim Dollar's Photography and Philosophy 