The Wisdom Journals

Wise Mystic

"If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, 'thank you,' that would suffice."

~Meister Eckhart~

"What is the soul? It is the God-Force in the weakest of our brethren, in the lowest of our fellow man. And when we do an unkindness to another individual we do not hurt the individual but we hurt God and ourselves. When do we dishonor God? When we do an unkindness, say an unkind word about our fellow man! What will make us aware of the soul? When we become God-minded and conscious of the fact that we are our brother's keeper! What was the excuse of the first man who did a wrong to another? "Am I my brother's keeper?" Many of us try to hide behind something, to prevent our conscience from hurting, and say, "Well, I don't have to worry about that; that's his job." If he is a living being and wandering, disturbed, then it is our job, when we come in contact with him, if we want to know God at all!"

~Edgar Cayce~

Muere Lentamente

Dies slowly
he who transforms himself into the slave of habits,
repeating every day the same itineraries,
who does not change brand,
does not risk to wear a new color
and doesn't talk to whom he doesn't know.

Dies slowly
he who makes of television his guru.

Dies slowly
he who avoids a passion,
who prefers black to white
and the dots on the "i" to the whirlpool of emotions,
those ones that recover the gleam of the eye,
smiles from the yawns,
hearts from the stumbling and the feelings.

Dies slowly
he who does not overthrow the table when he is unhappy at work,
who does not risk the certain for the uncertain
to go toward that dream that has been keeping him awake.

Who does not allow, at least once in his life, to flee from sensible advice.

Dies slowly
he who does not travel,
does not read,
does not listen to music,
who does not find grace in himself.

Dies slowly
he who destroys his self love,
who does not accept somebody's help.

Dies slowly
he who passes his days complaining of his bad luck
or the incessant rain.

Dies slowly
he who abandons a project before starting it,
who does not ask over a subject that he does not know
or who does not answer when being asked about something he knows.

Dies slowly
he who does not share his emotions,
joys and sadness,
who does not trust,
who does not even try.

Dies slowly
he who does not re-live his memories
and continues getting emotional as if living them at that moment.

Dies slowly
he who does not intent on excelling,
who does not learn from the stones of the road of life,
who does not love and let somebody love.

Let's avoid death in small doses,
remembering always that to be alive demands an effort much bigger
than the simple fact of breathing
and only through perseverance do we conquer the splendid happiness.

~Pablo Neruda~

Good Advice

Parenting Hacks

Here are some fun tips and tricks I've collected from my Parents magazine subscription:

Stuff the bottom of an ice cream cone with a large marshmellow to keep it from getting soggy and leaking. It makes a nice bonus treat too!
Give your kid a pair of swim goggles to wear when you are rinsing the shampoo from her hair.
Make some edible playdough by using equal parts powdered milk, honey and smooth peanut butter (I think I learned this one from Jon & Kate actually!)

Love. Is. Simple.

"The amount of love and good feelings you have at the end of your life is equal to the love and good feelings you put out during your life. It is that simple."

~Dannion Brinkley~

Carlos Barrios' Wisdom

"Meditation and spiritual practice are good, but also action. It's very important to be clear about who you are, and also about your relation to the Earth.

Develop yourself according to your own tradition and the call of your heart. But remember to respect differences, and strive for unity. Eat wisely. A lot of food is corrupt in either subtle or gross ways. Pay attention to what you are taking into your body. Learn to preserve food, and to conserve energy.

Learn some good breathing techniques, so you have mastery of your breath.

Be clear. Follow a tradition with great roots. It is not important what tradition, your heart will tell you, but it must have great roots. We live in a world of energy. An important task at this time is to learn to sense or see the energy of everyone and everything: people, plants, animals. This becomes increasingly important as we draw close to the World of the Fifth Sun, for it is associated with the element ether - the realm where energy lives and weaves.

Go to the sacred places of the earth to pray for peace, and have respect for the Earth which gives us our food, clothing, and shelter. We need to reactivate the energy of these sacred places. That is our work.

One simple but effective prayer technique is to light a white or baby-blue colored candle. Think a moment in peace. Speak your intention to the flame and send the light of it on to the leaders who have the power to make war or peace.

We Have Work to Do."

~Read the Full Article~

Alzheimer's Prevention Checklist

Drink a little red wine each day
Do 30 minutes of vigorous exercise at least 3 days a week
Enjoy friends; be social
Prevent head injuries
Keep your blood pressure and cholesterol in check
Stimulate your mind with mental tasks and games (like crosswords)
Eat a healthy diet rich in fruits and vegetables

~Some dude on CBC radio~

Let Go

"An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind."

~Mahatma Gandhi~

Twelve Positive Habits

Start the Day Right
Three-Minute Meditation
The Inner Witness: Practicing Self-Observation
The Pace of Life
Balanced Living
Self-Assertion and Healthy Will
Picture Yourself: Using Creative Visualization for Change
Tolerance: The Magic Ingredient in Human Relationships
The Sixth Sense in Sleep
Keeping Daily Rhythms
The Three-Step Body Tuneup
Wrapping Up the Day: Bedtime Imaginative Recall

~From the book "Twelve Positive Habits of Spiritually Centered People" by Mark Thurston and Sarah Thurston~

Eat Less Toxic Food

"Buy organic when the conventional choice tends to retain pesticide residue. Produce with high pesticide residues includes apples, cherries, grapes, peaches, strawberries, celery, green beans, lettuce and winter squash."

~Warren Leon~

Less is More

"The greatest wealth is to live content with little." (Plato)

"A rich person is not one who has the most, but is one who needs the least." (Interview with God)

"The more things you own, the more they own you." (Pat Jim)

Power Couples

Strawberries and Whole-Wheat Toast - The vitamin C in strawberries converts the iron in whole-wheat bread to a form that the cells can absorb.

Oatmeal and Milk - The magnesium in oats increases the amount of calcium absorbed by keeping it from binding to fiber and other nutrients.

Olive Oil and Veggies - Spritz spinach, green peppers, squash, and dark greens with olive oil. This healthy fat helps your child absorb the veggies' antioxidants.

Chicken and Carrots - Don't save chicken soup for sick days -and always include carrots. The zinc in chicken helps the body metabolize the carrots' vitamin A.

~Parents Magazine~

Eat More (Good) Fat

"A little fat in your diet can help you absorb as much as four times more cancer-fighting lycopene and almost three times the amount of the healthy antioxidant beta-carotene. Try adding avocados or full-fat dressings to your next salad."

~Sarah DeHeer~

Package Treats in Small Portions

"A simple partition (like tinfoil) forces you to pause and ask yourself, 'Do I really want this?' So divide munchies into containers you must open, like plastic bags or aluminum tins."

~Family Circle~

Jedi Master Wisdom

"Do, or do not. There is no try."

~Yoda~

Smarty Pants Wisdom

"Life is like a bicycle, to keep your balance you must keep on moving."

~Albert Einstein~

"I Saw What I Saw" by Sara Groves

On Writing Well

"When one reads any strongly individual piece of writing, one has the impression of seeing a face somewhere behind the page."

~George Orwell~

More than Meets the Eye

“I never question what to do, it tells me what to do. The photographs make themselves with my help."

“If you can't make the image bigger or more important than what you see, then don't push the button.”

"Never ever say the word shoot when you are taking a picture with a camera because a camera is not a violent weapon."

"Each time I make a photograph I celebrate the life I love and the beauty I know and the happiness I have experienced. All my photographs are made like that..."

~Ruth Bernhard~

Overcoming Shame

"Shame can't survive when empathy is present."

~Brene Brown~

Desiderata

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons,
they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs;
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself.
Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.

~Max Ehrmann~

The Paradoxical Commandments

People are often unreasonable, illogical and self-centered;
Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and true enemies;
Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest anyway.

What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you’ve got anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God;
It was never between you and them anyway.

~Dr. Kent M. Keith~

How to Meditate

"The key is simple: giving rather than getting. It's a matter of surrendering yourself. First surrendering your worries. Being willing to give up your expectations, and not expecting to get anything -not even peace. The whole purpose of this meditation session is to give."

~Mark Thurston and Sarah Thurston~

Declutter

“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.”

~simplemom~