The art of noticing.....

The art of noticing.....

And there it is a gain, that feeling like something is happening that is somehow just outside my field of vision, just outside of me perception.  That little nagging feeling that there is something here that I should notice, give my attention to, but it refuses to come into focus.  I might notice a little something in my jaw, a little feeling of tightness, my tell-tale sign that there is something afoot, but what is it. 

Are you listening...

Are you listening...

There is was again, the anger, arising from seemingly nowhere, red hot and ready for battle.  Why is it here again, and what can I do to help keep it at bay?  It would come up suddenly, and in that moment of recognition I would stop and look to see where this anger came from, why it arose once again.  What a frustrating process this was, each time I would look it seemed that I saw only blank walls with no path forward.  Again and again I would return to this quandary, looking for the way in, the path to understanding, knowing where this anger came from and why.....

Why I meditate.....

Why I meditate.....

The short Answer? Because I don't have the time not to.......

I know, it seems crazy, how can I devote time to something like meditation when my life is already crazy busy?  I do not have the time to do the things that are already on my plate, and you are telling me to add one more? Where will I possibly find the time to do this?  That is just crazy talk. This is just a small sampling of the voices in my head on a regular basis when I first started to meditate.  I wanted to sleep just a little longer, lay in bed just a moment more, and honestly, many times the bed won.  Yet, at this point in my life, I cannot imagine not meditating at least once a day, and many days I find time to meditate more often.

Changing your world...

Changing your world...

A phrase to change the world...

The most liberating thing I have learned in my life to date is the following phrase…..

Everyone is doing the best they can…if they could do better they would.

-       Matt Kahn

Thinking lightly about that phrase we often find ourselves viewing it with a degree of judgement, ‘I know Bob, and I have seen him do a lot better than he is giving me right now!’ or my personal favorite, the self-deprecating ‘Jeez you would think after so many years I would do that better than I did’.  However, both of these miss the mark of what is being said in that small phrase., so let me repeat it to make it fresh for us all…

Forgiveness....

Forgiveness....

t is interesting how life can take you by surprise.  Just when you feel like you have things figured out, and that you are finally moving forward and understanding yourself, life comes along and drops some stuff in your lap to review.  

Bang!

Wow, I thought I had worked through that stuff…..maybe not…..the fact that it is here means it is important to work on…..what is it asking me to do?!?

Expectations....

Expectations....

We often see what we are looking for, in fact, I would say that it is very hard to NOT see what you are looking for, it is what I call the Mazda Miata effect.  I rarely saw Miata’s on the road when I did not own one, but the minute I purchased one, they seemed to pop up all over the landscape.  It is not like Mazda suddenly imported a glut of Miata’s to fill the landscape, they were always there, I just did not see them. 

Focus and Attention

Focus and Attention

One of the many wonderful things about moving to a place that you were completely unfamiliar with is how it points out to you, behaviors and patterns of thought that may not be serving you well. In 2007, Nancy and I discovered that our thoughts, values, beliefs, and ideas really did not resonate with the majority of the population where we were living. This is neither good, nor bad, it simply was something we had noticed.

A Christmas Gift to You....

A Christmas Gift to You....

It is no secret that there have been big changes in my life in the last 9 months. For anyone who has seen me, there is clearly a transformation taking place.  There are two transformations taking place, one internal and one external.  The external transformation is very clear to everyone, but what is harder to see is the transformation that is occurring internally. And of the two transformations, the internal one has had a far greater impact upon my life, and through those internal changes, the lives of every person that I touch.

An Interesting Alternative...

An Interesting Alternative...

It is not uncommon for people to learn behaviours during their childhood that do not serve them well as they get older.  The tantrum that got you what you wanted at 2 is not really all that appropriate in the office at 22.  However, not all the behaviours are so easy to see, but they can be just as detrimental to your health and well being.  Let's talk a bit about it from a personal point of view.