Posts Tagged ‘Goals’

15 Apr

Politics have always been a battle between _______

Posted by Marty in Assorted. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , .

“Jaws” released by Universal Studios in 1975 directed by Steven Spielberg

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The year 1975, the place Amity Island, the battle is the same as now, profit (economy) versus safety. Who wins?

 

Indecision or greed costs lives then and now.

 

The masses rarely have insight into the real danger, the scope of their privileged decisions at our expense..

 

Maybe, why some think used car salesman have more integrity than politicians.

 

Hard to think a spiritual leader like the 14th Dalai Lama in Washington politics.

 

A human being who has devoted his life to having less “Ego” and more equanimity, would not waste his life in politics.

 

Greed, status and power have no foundation in his life.

 

Even my humble spiritual journey sees politics as a cesspool of ultimate power!

 

Politics attracts huge “Egos” competing for status, power and legacy.

 

Happiness seems rare in this backstabbing environment.

 

Mard Gras this year is an example:   https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/13/us/coronavirus-new-orleans-mardi-gras.html

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22 Feb

Purpose needs a plan

Posted by Marty in Assorted. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , .

https://pixabay.com/users/burrough-25900/

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When I get lost, caught up in my “Egos” personal upset at someone’s behavior, I have a plan.

When a trigger fired in the past, I had a plan?

Are you prepared when things turn bad?

My plan was based on my purpose.

As Matthew Ricard has opined, our purpose on this planet is to live a happy life (wellbeing).

That means establishing a long gratitude list. It takes time (action) to sit down and create a gratitude list. One bloggers has over 200 things she is grateful for. Special attention is given to the small, maybe minute things that we overlook.

Next my capacity to give is expanded, my awareness of those having less grows exponentially. When I am down, making an effort to give to another shifts my focus from my “Ego” to mindful concerns.

I realize happiness in not an isolated experience. I can not be happy owning a gold toilet as the masses starve outside my plush mansion.

Realize inside our plan, we are all on this journey together, not in competition, not in scarcity.

My plan always had actions, physical and mental actions to return to now, this moment. Doing nothing enhances suffering.

Running, avoiding our fight or flight mechanism is not a plan.

Our plan always involves letting go of the narrative. Followed by observation of our body sensations.

My plan always prioritized the wellbeing of my inner world, not the external 🌍 world.

Handle the small internal things and the external cabal will lose power.

Remember the basic building block of neuroscience, “What fires together wires together.”

Where we place our attention grows, and where we withhold attention withers and dies.

Let the noise flow on through, use the focus we have worked diligently to build to stay present.

It is the journey that is all important not the destination (goal).

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11 Feb

Forgetting about time, being late, in a hurry: time is not our friend

Posted by Marty in Assorted. Tagged: , , , , , , , .

Pixabay: nile

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I try to enter as many tasks as possible each day.

First we must eliminate time during the event.

A simple example for me is doing Laundry.

To eliminate time from this mundane chore, I search for my purpose.

Washing, then drying, folding, then hanging the clothes allows my grandkids to look as good as possible. This purpose makes me feel good, rates high with my mindfulness practice.

Next my focus stays with each shirt, paying attention to neatly adjust it on a hangar, then I move on to the next shirt.

In the past, this chore took to long, my main purpose was to get done as soon as possible.

The perfect formula for unawareness, wasting life.

If you check, most of our existence deals with mundane things.

Look at all the time we spend in lines, in traffic, in boring scenarios.

Unless you are a surgeon dealing with life and death or have a dangerous occupation, monotony kills awareness.

Mindfulness gives equal attention to the urgent and mundane.

For some adrenaline junkies, taking huge risks is the only way to feel alive.

I have felt alive, present, content hanging up laundry.

No, I do not wish for more laundry but I have found a way to enjoy the task.

A surgeon does not enjoy the surgery but he/she relishes the focus needed to perform such a complex and important task.

A great concert pianist, an outstanding athlete, or a talented painter enter their tasks without thought or narrative.

They sort of become one with their skill.

Our challenge is to create this space with our mundane activities each day.

Can you make time disappear inside a daily chore?

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22 Dec

Unworthiness turns into Self -Hate .

Posted by Marty in Assorted. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

https://pixabay.com/users/geralt-9301/

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Meditation for me was not about a spiritual journey, searching for enlightenment or an awakening. Whatever the hell enlightenment is, out there, achieved after two to three decades of daily practice.

Meditation was my last hope finding relief from childhood PTSD. My dads constant criticism and abuse created a big unworthy hole in me.

A parent demanding perfection from a child, damages that child beyond belief. Life becomes a struggle, unworthiness manifests as self hate.

We abandon reading what our bodies need and start trying to fulfill the needs of the parent. We become strangers to ourselves.

I had a therapist say, if your dad wrote your epitaph on a grave stone, it would be, never good enough.

That is damage at my core, not a flaw.

Enter meditation: It took enormous daily practice to see unworthiness as a mirage. It took ten times that effort to accept and be vulnerable in the face of an unworthy trigger erupting.

Unworthy started before my mind developed. It becomes stealthy, sabotaging everything we try to do.

Unworthiness seeks solitude, desires approval over all else, then runs from negativity or criticism.

Unworthiness brings so much self hate that some external approval is needed to survive. It consumes our existence.

I have seen self hate manifest in an outwardly happy go lucky man. The desire to appear normal or the need to gain approval at all costs springs from self hate.

My unworthiness fueled my professional baseball career. I could outwork everyone else without that much difficulty.

The need for approval was far greater than any amount physical exercise.

Life was dedicated to working out, the goal was to enjoy success, which brought approval.

I accomplished my goal, even enjoyed some adulation, sports fans are passionate.

Only one problem, approval has nothing to do with healing or happiness.

I had to change my goal.

The need for approval dissiapated the more I meditated.

It is always a battle, healing is not a point of time but a daily, moment by moment awareness.

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8 Dec

Do you welcome Adversity as a challenge or a punishment?

Posted by Marty in Assorted. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

e: Bob Beamon of the USA leaps a record-breaking 29ft 2.5in (8.9m) at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City © Tony Duffy/Getty Images

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Adversity uncovers strengths and weaknesses, character and character flaws.

 

Adversity brings fear to some, an opportunity to others.

 

Without adversity my life would be hollow.

 

Adversity has given me the greatest satisfaction and purpose in my life.

 

Athletically, it is my weekly anchor. Pushing this chronic pain filled body, four miles, to near exhaustion, invigorates my spirit.

 

It flushes poisons, gains accomplishment which is shared with my mind.

 

Pushing beyond wanting to quit, beyond pain, exerting great effort, is the most alive I feel.

 

I am in the moment, all focus on picking up one leg, followed by the other, thought has ceased, Worry and doubt have long left the building.

 

Challenge yourself, push beyond your perceived limits.

 

Without adversity how could you ever know what you are capable of.

 

Extend those false boundaries, push, risk, exert.

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11 Jul

Effort and Attitude

Posted by Marty in Assorted. Tagged: , , , , , , , .

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If we must judge ourselves, base your assessment on the effort you give.

Do you give all out effort, try to practice and live fully?

If so relax and enjoy the journey.

Results are external and out of our control.

We control our effort and attitude.

Be present, be positive and look for opportunity.

Let go of the rest.

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4 Dec

What do you do for your mental health, daily?

Posted by Marty in Assorted. Tagged: , , , , , , , .

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People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar.
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Thich Nhat Hanh
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Getting people to take action is the toughest thing a therapist or life coach faces.
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People want a pill to cure them or a therpast to heal them inside that hour session.
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We convince ourself to suffer what habit has taught us over and over.
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Do you work on your mental health?
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Why not?
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Our purpose in life is to be happy, says Matthew Ricard!
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What have you done to cultivate happiness?
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Possessions, approval, success, achievement are just impermanent possessions, surely not happiness.
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Maybe we need to explore our inner world to know what happiness is and where it hangs out.
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Is change so scary or the unknown so terrifying or are we lazy?
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2 Dec

Before we Meditate—-

Posted by Marty in Assorted. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , .

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We realize that thoughts are air, judgments mirages, control a fallacy.  Scan your body and breathe into tight spots or painful areas.

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Remember to focus on each breath then move on to the next one.

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Where we are headed has no:
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No right or wrong.
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No good or bad.
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No pleasure or pain.
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No decisions, bias or judgments.
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No emotions.
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No I, me, mine or Ego.
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No resistance, control or exertion of influence.
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No avoidance.
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There is specific focus on the breath, a slowing, a calming of the nervous system and heart rate.

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We do let go of thought and emotion, we do listen intently to our inner world.

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What’s left is awareness, acceptance, then surrender to all that arises.

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We are  an observer, watching ourselves in a rerun on imaginary TV.

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The scene we are watching is over with, so comment or influence is uneccesary.

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Relax, let go, enjoy the ride, you are safe.

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11 Sep

Impermanent, unsatisfactory, and not-self. . . . . . .Desire versus gratitude.

Posted by Marty in Assorted. Tagged: , , , , , , , , .

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Anything we can attain, accomplish or covet in the future, is impermanent, unsatisfactory and not self.
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Otherwise, affluence would equal happiness, riches would bring lasting joy, and power would shower us with peace of mind.
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None of these statements have any reality, permanence to them.
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All things whither and die or change, even rocks.
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Beauty succumbs to age, possessions fail to calm desire, and being important has a false center.
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Try letting go of needing so much!
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Try gratitude instead of desire for a day.
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Try giving to others without regard for reward.
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Try something different than feeding the “Ego”.
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14 Jul

Concentration: Excerpt From: Catherine, Shaila. “Focused and Fearless.”

Posted by Marty in Assorted. Tagged: , , , , , , , .

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“Concentration brings with it a natural joy that arises as the mind settles and is absent of distraction.
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A surgeon may love surgery, not because the operating room is a pleasant place to be, but because the task demands such complete attention that the mind is filled with the delight associated with concentration.
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Kayakers are often enveloped in rapture even though their bodies are cramped in little boats and splashed by frigid water.
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A concentrated mind is focused, unified, and stable, regardless of whether the conditions are uncomfortable or luxurious.
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In the Pali language of the early Buddhist scriptures, samadhi is the term that has most often been translated into English as “concentration,” yet samadhi describes something more than the narrow focus implied by “concentration.”
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It is a calm unification that occurs when the mind is profoundly undistracted.
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Samadhi is the beautiful state of an undistracted mind, described in the Pali texts as “internally steadied, composed, unified, and concentrated.
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These four qualities indicate that samadhi is not merely focused on a single object.
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It is a state of profound serenity that encompasses a balanced, joyful composure, expressing the natural settledness of undistracted awareness.
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