It’s the Little Things in Life
Everyone has those moments where they see, hear, smell, touch or simply experience something that makes them smile. I just wanted to share a quick story that may make some of you smile.
Commuting
The other day as I was sitting in the living room, ticking away on my computer, trying to figure out how in the world to convert my word documents to other formats so that my classmates could open my assignments online (grrr..) and I hear a low, gravelly rumbling outside the window. My boyfriend exclaims, “Dang! Is someone dragging their trashcan down the street?!? What the heck?” (Ok, that’s my interpretation of what he said…I don’t remember exactly. but he did wonder if it was a trashcan being dragged across pavement) We’re both peering out the window with intense curiosity, when the true culprit comes into view. . First, we see a boy, not more than 4 years old, driving one of those battery powered cars down the sidewalk, concentrating very hard on the route in front of him. Following closely behind was his father, carrying a backpack and walking at what looks to be a healthy pace. We both watch them make their way out of site, and just burst into laughter. Trashcan?? Pish posh. The best part is glancing out of the window 10 minutes later to see a car bobbing up and down behind the neighbor’s hedges. It was the dad carrying the commuting vehicle back to its resting place. 
The Lake the Exemplifies My Way of Explaining Life……long drawn out detail:)
Lake Chargoggagoggmanchuagguagoggchaubunagungamaugg
This is the Native American name of a lake that was a within the geologic area termed Avalonia; an area along the northeast coast where continental plates began piecing together what we see as New England today. The name means “You fish on your side of the lake, I fish on my side, nobody fishes in the middle-no trouble”*.
I have been reading like a mad-woman over the past two weeks and tend to enjoy the reading despite the volume, but I laughed until I cried after reading about this particular lake… who said reading couldn’t be fun!
** Raymo, Chet and Maureen E. ‘Written in Stone: A Geological History of the Northeastern United States’. The Globe Pequot Press: 1989. [71]
I wish you all lots of smiles.
Filed under On life in general | Comments (3)train wholeheartedly
This was the name of the chapter in a book that the meditation group here in town was discussing last night. (Pema Chodron- “Start Where you Are”) You can take it to mean whatever you would like, as your application is just as good as mine. As I delve into a new chapter of my life here in Keene, I’m absorbing as much from my experiences as possible, starting with, but definitely not limited to, meditation, classes at Antioch, conversations I have with folks in town, bike rides to the local parks, grocery shopping…you name it. My theory is that if I’m going to be an effective teacher, I need to become a student again; not just at school this fall, but with life as a whole. If you think back to being 2 or 3 years old, you may remember trying to get your hands into everything, experimenting with the unknown, asking LOTS of questions and ultimately being a curious being with no built-in concept of limits. The limits are generally set by parents, people around us, “the man”…either way, its time to revert back to that driving curiosity that makes learning so much fun. Try this out: as you go about your daily schedules, consciously think to learn from, respond to, interact with and experience your activities wholeheartedly. Feel as though your fully invested in everything you do, even if it seems like something you don’t want to be doing, and let me know what happens. Peace my friends
Filed under On life in general | Comment (1)The Four Agreements
A book by Don Miguel Ruiz: “A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom”1. Be impeccable with your word.2. Don’t take anything personally.3. Don’t make assumptions.4. Always do your best.If you’re anything like me in that you enjoy people watching and you like trying to figure out why YOU react the way you do to certain people, situations, etc, then it makes sense to learn more about yourself. I read this book sophomore year in college (’03) and am rereading it now. Don Miguel has some great perspectives on how to improve your perceptions of yourself, your relations with other people, and our physical existence as a whole. These guiding principles have put a lot of things into perspective for me that gave me grief for years. Its been nice finding a balance in life that sustains a peaceful state of mind.I recommend this book to anyone that is curious about life, about happiness, and about finding a lifestyle that is right for you.~namaste~check these out:http://www.miguelruiz.com/fouragreements.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Namaste
Filed under On life in general | Comments (2)Domesticating the ‘wild’
Domestic:
- of concern to or concerning the internal affairs of a nation
- of or relating to the home
- of or involving the home or family
- converted or adapted to domestic use
- a servant who is paid to perform menial tasks around the household
- produced in a particular country
Its funny to actually look up the [MANY] definitions of a word we hear in classes, passing conversation, or maybe just in our heads. For me anyway, the definition doesn’t always give me the meaning I am looking for. Or perhaps the meaning I have given the word has been derived from my own personal experience and has a creative twist on it so that the word revolves around my particular world. Independent thought is a wonderful thing. When I was growing up and tried conceptualizing where I saw myself in the future, it was always an unclear vision with no real parameters. I wasn’t sure where I wanted to go, what I wanted to do, but who doesn’t think that way? At least to some degree. Its funny that the thought of settling down in one place, especially somewhere in Virginia, never crossed my mind. Settling down meant that I would be passing up so many other opportunities, opportunities that may never be available again! (insert frantic irritability and biting of nails here)…the grass is always greener, right? After my 5800 mile drive with innumerable hours spent alone driving, I came to some new conclusions. I crave having a home base. Not just a friend that will offer up their couch with the option of making it my permanent home address(thanks to all of you anyway!!!!), or a free place to stay at a parent’s house, but a place to call my own. ‘Place’ is a liberal term. I would honestly be happy right now with a plot of land with trees, water and a place to set up a platform tent or hang my hammock. I don’t ask too much. If I could pay all of my bills on time because I receive the statements in the mail, or the automatic withdraw I set up works, I would probably lose a few gray hairs. So, where does this put me? It leaves me with the desire to hammer out a 5 year plan with this in mind and make this dream a reality. (very interesting concept, dreams vs. reality…we can talk about that later) For the time being, this may mean not traveling so much…boo!, possibly settling into a more full time job that will allow me so save a few duckets, and creating a positive mind set that isn’t just “sucking it up” to get through this period in my life but looking ahead to see what I could possibly learn next! I feel happy with the choices I’ve made thus far and am hoping that the facets of life I’ve been tapping into will lead me in the right direction. My wild nature may have settled down for the moment, but I will always remain wild at heart.
Filed under On life in general | Comments (3)