The Committee Of Sleep

It is common experience that a problem, difficult at night, is resolved in the morning after the committee of sleep has worked on it.
(John Steinbeck in The Color Of Light, by Perry Tilleraas, 22 June)
31 May 2015

Growing Old

Growing old is one of the ways the soul nudges itself into attention to the spiritual aspect of life. The body's changes teach us about fate, time, nature, mortality, and character. Aging forces us to decide what is important in life.
(Thomas Moore, Care Of The Soul, p. 216)
30 May 2015

Letting Go

Done with awareness, life is
letting go of fears,
letting go of guilt,
letting go of limitations,
letting go of ideas that trap you in the patterns of habit and do not leave you free to be spontaneous in the moment.
(Bartholomew in The Color Of Light, by Perry Tilleraas, 14 December)
29 May 2015

Respect For Self

I have often wondered how it is that every man loves himself more than all the rest of men, but yet sets less value on his own opinion than on the opinion of others. For if a god or a wise teacher should present himself to a man and bid him to think of nothing and to design nothing which he would not express as soon as he conceived it, he could not endure it even for a single day. So much more respect have we for what our neighbors think of us than for what we think of ourselves.
(Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Chapter XII, 4)
28 May 2015

Limiting Beliefs

I let go of all limiting beliefs and allow fate to unfold moment by moment. What I thought were obstacles I now see are doorways to new possibilities and new beginnings.
(Perry Tilleraas, The Color Of Light, 24 August)
20 May 2015

Being Spontaneous

Backyard photo by Mr. Dickie

Being spontaneous means being present in the moment. It means accepting the chaos of life and not being afraid of it. It means knowing that behind the chaos is an orderliness that we aren't in charge of and we can't control. It means letting go and living now.
(Perry Tilleraas, The Color Of Light, 24 November)
19 May 2015

Detachment

Photo by: Mr. Dickie

Detaching doesn't mean we cut people out. It means we stay present and loving without thinking we have to fix or manage the people around us. It means we stop trying to save people from the consequences of their behavior. Best of all, when we detach, we stop taking ourselves so seriously and start having more fun.
(Perry Tilleraas, The Color Of Light, 11 November)
17 May 2015

Greed

Everyone wants to be successful. The question is: Successful at what? Successful at earning money, successful in marriage, successful in our own sight and in the eyes of our friends? None of these aspirations is necessarily wrong. But greed is an insidious trap that has the power to destroy those whose eager search for success becomes the driving force in their lives. Greed is the devious, sinister, evil influence that makes people say, "What I have is not enough, I must have more. And I will do whatever it takes to get it."
(Gordon B. Hinckley, Stand A Little Taller, 15 November)
16 May 2015

Marcus Aurelius

It is not men's acts which disturb us -- but our reaction to them. Take these away, and anger goes. No wrong act of another can bring shame on you.

(Marcus Aurelius in One Day At A Time In Al-Anon, 15 November)
15 May 2015

Troubles

I know that constant dwelling on my troubles lessens my ability to see them clearly and make wise decisions. I will not complicate the present by reviewing the past; nor will I dread what may happen tomorrow. One way to make detachment easier is to eliminate the past and future from my thoughts.

He who frees himself of hampering regrets for the past and worry about what lies ahead finds himself able to deal with the present.

(One Day At A Time In Al-Anon, 16 November)
14 May 2015

Feelings

Photo by somebody with patience and good timing.

No matter what the circumstances of the day, all the feelings I have are mine.
Today I can let go of the ones I don't want and hang onto those that feel good.
(Amy E. Dean, Night Light, 19 November)
13 May 2015

Friends

Panama - Pollera (dress)

Everybody wants friends. Everybody needs friends. No one wishes to be without them. But never lose sight of the fact that it you friends who will lead you along the paths that you will follow. While you should be friendly with all people, select with great care those whom you wish to have close to you. They will be your safeguards in situations where you may vacillate between choices, and you in turn may save them.
(Gordon B. Hinckley, Stand A Little Taller, 18 November)
12 May 2015

The Majority

Melva's Hometown

Volcan, Chiriqui, Republica de Panama

The majority is not always right. ...

Do you ever wonder if everything will turn out right as long as you do everything right?
Do you ever try to do something right and yet nothing seems to turn out like you planned?
Take heart -- when people do what is right, God remembers.
(Max Lucado, Grace For The Moment, Volume II, 16 November)

Right and wrong are not determined by polls and pundits, though many would have us believe otherwise.
(Gordon B. Hinckley, Stand A Little Taller, 17 November)
11 May 2015

Today

Panama Skyline

Photo by Melva

Yesterday is but a dream, tomorrow is but a vision.
But today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness and every tomorrow a vision of hope.
Look well, therefore, to this day.
(Sanskrit proverb in The Color Of Light by Perry Tilleraas, 13 November)
6 May 2015

Character Defects

Shopping for Molas in Panama

Photo by: Melva

Defects of Character have deep roots in habit.

(After One Day At A Time In Al-Anon, 20 June)

4 May 2015

Is This Working?

Photo by: Melva

Panama Flower

While reading one of my books this morning two questions came to mind.

Did the Founding Fathers really believe this? Is this working?

All men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights Governments are instituted ... deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.

Mr. Dickie
3 May 2015