I recently had one of those seminal moments that we often reflect on later: what was its meaning? As I was driving my scooter on my way to the gym, I noticed an enormous sign that said, “The Future is Now.” This distracted me for just a moment and I inadvertently crossed the street, my eye catching sight of a 7-11. I always stop for a banana and energy drink: I’m old, you see. I didn’t give enough attention to the traffic flow and was almost struck by a large lorry as I made the turn: the fault being totally my own. I had that somewhat sardonic feeling – that sign was right: my future is now. This only reinforced my concern with this idea that most of us live in the present or the past, not really in the present. What does that fully mean? It is a concept, in my estimation, that bears some reflection. If I maintain that all perception emanates from me: the power that I give my life is of my own making, then I must grasp that I need utilize the “tools” that are available to me: my powers on meditation. “Most humans are never fully present in the now, because unconsciously they believe that the next moment must be more important than this one. But then you miss your whole life, which is never not now. … Most people treat the present moment as if it were an obstacle that they need to overcome. Since the present moment is life itself, it is an insane way to live. … Always say ‘yes’ to the present moment… Surrender to what is. Say ‘yes’ to life – and see how life starts suddenly to start working for you rather than against you.” What Eckhart Tolle (b. 1948) is telling us is that I can give value to every moment of my life – every moment. The consequences are stunning. Potentially, life would not be a short, blurry statement of futility, but a lengthy and exciting adventure of personal discovery. This has major implications for young people. They loathe time for it is an endless continuum of stress and frustration: http://www. DBAWageslave.com. We listened to “21 Pilots” in class. They created the 4th most listened to song “in the world” last week. Their words are clear. It is worth listening to for it mirrors how our Y Generation (1) relates to the world: twenty one pilots: Stressed Out [OFFICIAL VIDEO].
Self Greatness
This concept of “greatness” is an interesting one. To aspire to its grandeur can result in one of two opposing consequences: the one leads to ill-placed self aggrandizement and, ultimately, despair and destruction; the other steers you to personal achievement, service, and benefit to the society. Which fascinating avenue would you choose?
You must be brave to succeed
Do not go gently…
It is not the size of the dog in the fight; it is the size of the fight in the dog.
The First Time
Did consciousness come to you like a sudden bolt from the heavens or did it ebb in like a rising tide? In my case, it slowly lapped at my feet, its cool water slowly awakening me. My first distinct image was when I was two years old: I had somehow mired my pedal car in what appeared to be an enormous lake of mud and was afraid to exit the vehicle, and step into the abyss. I imagined the murky water surrounding my tiny machine to be tens of meters deep and filled with exotic and carnivorous fish, and other marine creatures: foreboding. Not wanting to swim to the distant shore, I rocked my little metal steed back and forth, back and forth: all to no avail. What to do, what to do? In a young person, time and hunger are twins. The day began to diminish, and the call of my mother’s cooking overwhelming. I opened the door and tentatively stepped out. Suddenly I was like Christ walking on water. My imaginary Sea of Galilee (1) had only just covered the ground: my creation was an illusion. “But unless we are creators we are not fully alive. What do I mean by creators? Not only artists, whose acts of creation are the obvious ones of working with paint of clay or words. Creativity is a way of living life, no matter our vocation or how we earn our living. Creativity is not limited to the arts, or having some kind of important career.” (2) Thus I had learned my most valuable lesson of life: imagination is everything!
Brightness
Most colorful, interesting people have many positive qualities; you’ll find they usually have the following in common: “They are curious; they love to discover new ideas, places, people, and interests. They are expressive; they’re not scared to speak their minds and express themselves well. They take initiative; they don’t sit around waiting for permission to do what they want to do, and they like to try new things. They are inventive; they think outside of the box and constantly come up with original ideas and new ways of doing things. They are confident; they are not scared to make mistakes and act like they know what they are doing, even when they don’t.” (1)