It took me some 40 years, but I think I finally realized what John Lennon was saying in one of the last songs he wrote and sang with the Beatles.
Tag Archives: spirituality
Writing the old-fashioned way inspires me
Got inspired to write while working on my third cup of coffee. I wait the 90 minutes I’ve given to a meeting I scheduled at IKEA in Conshohocken, PA, for Highly Sensitive Persons (HSP).
Prolific is as Prolific Does.
Haven’t seen hide nor hair of one. An HSP-er, that is. Got the book by Elaine N. Aron, Ph.D. propped up at my table: “The Highly Sensitive Persons – How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You.“
Just noticed the author trained at the Jung Institute in San Francisco, CA. Did not know such an institution existed. It ties in nicely with Jung’s book on dreams that I read. Actually, I “studied” Jung as I began a 6-week daily dream-interpretation journal on Feb. 13, 2009. It was a Friday the 13th.
Still have all the writings. They’re buried somewhere in the house along with insurance papers, VA (Veterans Administration) documents, and a year’s worth of collected junk. Got to get them together and compiled like I recently have done with six months of Blog entries. Maybe add them to the 2-week, non-stop journal writing I pushed myself to do while at an in-patient program for veterans at the Coatesville (PA) VA Medical Center the summer of 2008.
Combat Veteran Problems Not Easily Shared
- When a veteran opened up to me, I wrote about their ailments, their suicide attempts and their bouts with alcoholism and drugs.
- Will have to change their names for confidentiality purposes, although the journalist inside of me cries out to keep those facts for posterity and history.
- But some people could be hurt if I mentioned names, particularly, that of one fellow, whose exploits on the battlefields of Vietnam and the streets of Philadelphia make for the most colorful recollections of any warrior I ever met.
- Has a nationally known and celebrated brother who might see such a story as an “exploitation” of secrets left better untold. At least until parties who could suffer were no longer with us to suffer.
Stay Tuned, but Don’t Expect Anything Too Soon.
Instead, enjoy the “post“ entries I composed today (March 24, 2010) while sitting here waiting. Dug pretty deep to come up with some good recollections, if I do say so myself. They included an “out-of-body experience,” a mystical realization that “there is no ‘there’ there,” a modern-day “miracle” involving the VA, my “greatest weekend” ever, the tale of “Dr. Roach,” and of course this minor offering.
Was I just “killing time” while simply “Waiting for Godot?” (Like in the play, no one showed up during my wait in real life.) Or did I open myself, allowing inspiration to visit and whisper, getting me to recall things the old-fashioned way, with a “long hand,” a pen, and a piece of paper?
Now is when path and goal merge as one
I entered the world of the Mystic while sitting on a bench at the foot of my bed in what seems a lifetime ago. It lasted only a moment. But the realization struck me like a bolt of lightning.
Remembering the Greatest Time of my Life
What does your first memorable kiss, and then scoring a break-away touchdown and opening to your Higher Self all have in common?
Acupuncture pitches ‘halvies’ to a Vet
Had an “Out-of-Body” Experience.
‘Yes’ you can ‘Whirl’ & ‘Close’ to a Jury
My “performance” complete, I drop to my chair, taking deep breaths, trying to avoid showing what the past action has cost me.
Dolphins display love as human escorts
Hung over. Tired. Hard to get out of bed.
Don’t let Love speed away; but yield slowly
Cont’d from Part I, Dolphins display love as human escorts
Opening up to a stranger is never easy. But when you feel trust and an open vulnerability offered to you, you can shed your safeguards and become the loving person I believe we were always meant to be. Just yield slowly.
Allison’s creating colors for life’s canvas
Allison,
Hold onto to it. (That feeling of bliss that you can find only in the quiet.)
‘I Wanna go Home’ Starts & Ends Within
On reading “I wanna go home,” I was moved to respond about Love Within:
Reach inside of yourself. Look for the Love. It’s there. Now, let it flow throughout your body, your system. Never mind thoughts trying to intrude onto this feeling. Your love is stronger and mightier than any thought — negative or otherwise.
All life needs is a Warm Touch to Survive
Words to Live By, Not to State Them By
“. . . Grow Spiritually and
Help Others to Do So . . .
It’s the Meaning of Life . . .”
— Leo Tolstoy
Governor destroyed in the dark of a dream
A judge destroyed the governor, while I survived an explosion before winning a civil rights case in court.
True Love can Quench Allison’s Desire #1
Your “Beloved,” is what you need. You yearn and long for Him, don’t you?
Always have, always will.
My Love Longs For Love For Ever More
Some words, phrases, even entire messages look different through the lens of time. Take this feeling I expressed to a friend half-way around the world about the “yearning” I felt on reading Sufi poems for the first time.
Dance with Love where ever you find Him
I danced a Sufi “dervish whirling” at the Buddhist Center today.
New Worlds Open at the Turn of a Page
A door to the possible mysteries of life opened slightly yesterday. My friend, Joy, introduced me to the Kabbalah.
Cat’s Meow: ‘Thank you, I Love you too!’
I’m a “Cat Person.” Always been as far back as I can remember. Grew up with the felines rubbing up against the legs, “meowing” their concerns for the next meal or a friendly pat on the head and neck.
Let the sun shine with all our appreciation
(Cont’d from Sun shines to make up for snowed in winter)
Sun Shines Bright with Only One Eye Opened
Sun shines to make up for snowed in winter
Played “peek-a-boo” with the sun and shade this morning. On the road from Ambler to Conshohocken, PA, I engaged Old Sol in a game the Almighty must have created for mankind’s appreciation. Why else would God — who caused the sun to come into being from some huge cosmic explosion — have invented shadows? It’s all part of His Love for us humans!
‘Rock Star’ Lightens the Hold on this Life
I squeeze the malachite stone as if it was one of those “stress” balls used to relieve tension and exercise the forearm.
Malachite Rocks me & all of my Chakras
Con’td from Time travel a stone’s throw (or hold) away
Never thought I’d experience a vision of prehistoric times while attending a “stone reading,” but that’s exactly what happened Friday. Continue reading
Time Travel a Stone’s Throw (or hold) Away
A vision of prehistoric man appears as I meditate with a Malachite stone in my hand. I am that person, that man who is bare-chested and hairy in this meditative “dream.” So much hair growing at my chest and back I initially think I’m wearing a covering over my upper body. The hair on my head is long, tangled and unwashed. Don’t think I ever combed it, even with my fingers, let alone use some devise to run through the matted hair follicles.
Oh Lovers: Never, Never Abandon Love
I close my eyes and my Sufi teacher guides me.
When Spirit moves you, kneel & adore Him
Already kneeling while sweeping litter from the powder room floor where the cats spilled, I sat back on my haunches. A clean commode beckoned to me. Yeah, I felt a “calling“ from this white porcelain-based ancestor of the old “WC” (“water closet” to the Baby-Boomers who called it the “John” or simply the toilet).
Grass always greener on non-paved side
For a better over-all life, PLEASE STAY “ON” THE GRASS.
Sufi Love Fondly Remembered at a ‘Dhikr’
I focus on my hands clasped together in front of my lower chest, with one good eye barely open and the other hidden behind a black eye-patch.
Live life today in love for death tomorrow
- Disobey your expectations.
- Throw away the list of things to do.
- Live today as if there was no tomorrow.
- Better yet, live as if Death will greet you very soon.
Surprise! You’re HSP and Never Knew It
“Chef J” had no idea what she was getting herself into when she surfed the computer early Saturday morning. But, by the end of the day, she found more than a dozen people who were “just like her,” struggling to make sense of a world that seems cold to the sensitivity of others.
A Shower can Bless Me, if I but ‘Let Go’
Running water. Somebody designed a way to allow it to flow from a water way directly into our houses. And not just to one spot in my Conshohocken, PA, home, but at least four: the kitchen, two bathrooms and a spigot for hosing plants outdoors.
Tibetan Singing Bowl aids a Goddess & Me
Kneeling on my knees, I hold the bowl out with one hand, while placing the other hand on the wooden floor, crawling from one side of the chair to another.
Ring of truth played with bowls & forks
My shoulders have grown enormously since this afternoon. I feel they’re “indestructible.” That I have durable lightweight plastic pads all around the neck, the collarbone and the head, as well as my upper chest and back.
Buddha Guides Me thru VA PTSD Path
Possibly Cont’d from Trappist monk helps veteran ‘awaken’ me
Buddha came in the shape of a dark-haired, dark-skinned attractive yoga-practicing woman, smiling upon me in a dream.
Continue readingName-caller gets his butt kicked in the end
Originally Cont’d from Name-calling can get you kicked in the end 1-28-10
Calling a kid names could cause a lasting scar one may have to deal with later in life.
‘Letting Go’ Requires Faith and Hope
Cont’d from Seeing is believing in the ‘letting go’ process 1-30-10
“Letting go” is a process I thought I had completely bought into when I “gave up” trying to control things and had surgery done on my eye.
Part III, Don’t “Squander Away” Your Life
Originally Cont’d from Don’t squander away your life 12-5-09
How can I deal with PTSD and prevent “squandering away” my life?
Englightenment Shines From the Heart
Originally Cont’d from Can’t A Guy Get A Break Around Here? 1-9-10
The throne we just put together at the Ethical Society of Philadelphia looks real! I bet folks here haven’t seen its likeness since King George ruled over the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1775, and Ben Franklin was trying to draw us closer as a “Royal Colony.”
Trappist Monk helps Veteran ‘Awaken’ me
Con’td from Schuylkill Expressway miracle paves road to VA
The first Buddha emerged in my dream as a muscular military-type, with short-cropped hair and engaging smile. Asian? No, Hispanic, but with a possible trace of someone from an exotic Asian island.
Visit with Disabled American Veterans (DAV)
Love Found ‘Idol-ing’ at Omega Institute
Some of my favorite “idols” appeared at the Omega Institute, upstate New York, (USA) while on a meditation retreat for veterans with PTSD in October 2009.
Are you the teacher I am yearning for?
Who will be my teacher?
Flowers Offer a Heart-Felt Home-Coming
Originally Cont’d from Flowers still brighten up my new ‘home’ 1-4-10
Flowers brighten up any room, and the right vase can add an extra touch, particularly, when the arranger puts a Lot of Love into the mix.
“Gotta give ’em a little ‘respect,’ that’s all”
Originally Cont’d from Humility helps love grow despite our Self12-20-09
There ain’t nothing humbling in what I adopted in trying to “get ahead” in my life . . . I can do anything I set my mind to had become my motto — it’s the type of superior attitude that we all admire, don’t we? Those who can’t adapt to this way of thinking ought to simply get out of the way. Look out world, here I come!
God’s Presence Realized at Breakfast Table
Schuylkill X-way Miracle Paves Road to VA
Cont’d from ‘Right’ path never obstructed long, Part II
The Buddha appeared in a dream. He took on the forms of a soldier, a counselor and then a computer printer. How could such an entity take shape in such different apparitions?
Dreamcatcher opens avenues for healing
Originally Cont’d from Pranic Healing Begets Mighty Meta Care 12-3-09
I don’t mind letting my feelings show in public. Especially here, in the “Dreamcatcher” building on Route 73, some 20 miles outside Philadelphia. It’s dark in this room.
Dream helps guide me back to Paradise
Originally Cont’d from Dream Reveals Key to Paradise 12-2-09
I Realized that I was in Paradise.
Jury Duty Requires Your ‘Just Reasoning’
(Originally Cont’d from 999 reasons why a Buddhist can sit on jury 1-31-10)
Read how a Jury can Judge Love and Compassion
While explaining his enlightening story to students, Tshering noted that a vicious attack ended, as the monster known as Angulimala fell to the ground and the Buddha consoled him offering loving kindness and compassion. This experience completely transformed this lowly criminal.
Modern Conclusion Bodhisattva Practices
Below are two versions of the “conclusion” for Thirty-Seven Bodhisattva Practices, starting with the modern first:
Rooster helps open path to miraculous day
The rooster crows outside my kitchen door. Not once, but several times. Wait a minute! It’s 7:30 in the morning. He’s supposed to be up the hill in the shed converted into a chicken coop. What happened?
A Cat & a Rooster Tend to Roam in My Yard
You forgot to lock the trap door, Michael J. Forgot to close it. Or simply forgot to round-up the four feathered critters and herd them into their warm wooden environment. That could mean they spent the night outdoors.
Name-calling can get you kicked in the end
Patty DeMarco made me cry. He called me names and wouldn’t stop as I tried to walk away, with him following me on the North Philadelphia street we lived. On and on he went, badmouthing me, until he saw my brother, who helped me into his little red wagon, and pulled it home, me sobbing all the while behind. I was four years old.
What Type of Personality is Your Type?
Here’s a series of traits from something called the Enneagram. You can search through in attempts to find what type of personality fits you. I found some interesting things about myself. And hope to bring them up at a meeting of HSPs (Highly Sensitive Persons), one of whom suggested the sites to me.
“Don’t like this love…(crap)” she told me!
“I don’t like this love shit,” a woman I was about to meditate with whispered to me while in the circle of our six-person meditation “community.”
Veterans find joy in their own backyards
You can’t know how much pleasure there is in feeding a squirrel until you open yourself to the wonders of nature . . . and of course . . . feed a squirrel . . . daily.
Contoveros 