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Words by Howard McQueen; Inspiration by Fred Lansford

I am slip-sliding, ever-shifting perspective and awareness,

 collapsing and expanding

 entirely outside of my control.

I am sometimes a tiny sliver,

 weak, frail, sometimes feeling desperately incomplete

 and sometimes connected to such a wholeness

 and profundity as to see

 mother earth as a pearl in the great Ocean.

I seek sometimes the reunion with the infinite totality,

 especially when the sensations of suffering are near.

A somethingness of me opens to an expanded all-togetherness

 opening time so the many slivers of me

 sense the Grand Harmony.

And, that feeling subsides

 and I soooo relish it’s return - to be again set free to roam,

 outside of the confines of any specific, limiting form.

© 2012 Howard McQueen

We seem to always be offered the same two choices when we encounter conflict:

            To enter into judgment

            <or>

            To enter into inquiry

One choice leads us on the journey towards a peaceful understanding.

The other choice continues to blind and bind us to our ignorance. 

© 2012 Howard McQueen

If something is not quite right with this moment;

Perhaps,

 you have yet to bring your full self into the moment.

Perhaps,

 You are remembering that its not all about what you think

 AND it is all about how you choose to interpret and respond.

© 2012 Howard McQueen

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To practice your artistry, your mission, your […],

i.e. your own unique vision for a richer, connected humanity.

Encourage yourself to be more and more fearlessly

 comfortable and alive within your own skin.

 And then, 

 go forth and occupy the richness of this imperfect,

 often conflicted, external world.

A nod of appreciation for the contributions of William Grace Frost today at lunch at the Crimson Moon – thank you brother.

© 2012 Howard McQueen

Our mind,

when faced with not knowing,

wants to fill in [ … ] for us.

What it tends to fill in, depends,

to a great extent,

upon what it chooses to fetch

dust off

and then make up.

If the mind expects a fearful future,

it may manufacture caution, avoidance

or [ ... ]

If the mind expects a pleasurable future,

it may throw caution to-the-wind,

or [ ... ]

With no effort from us,

the mind will work incessantly,

supposedly on our  behalf

to create a virtual reality

eventually encompassing literally - everything.

Where does this leave us?

What does this leave us?

Perhaps it is way past time

vesting our entire being

in the service of the mind.

What about the heart, the spleen,

the liver, the gut, the fine esophagus,

and the ever so wonderful, creative tongue.

Let the mind ponder all that [ … ]

We are all in this together.

Lend a hand to your fellow man

and your fellow woman

and through pulling together,

we can remind the mind

again and again and again and ~

to be at ease.   

Did you know the muscles in the face are the strongest muscles in the entire body?  I just made that up.  But it sounds good doesn’t it?  You may not be able to pick up a heavy object with your cheeks, but you sure can pick up a heavy spirit that way (which is often times much heavier).  It’s pretty amazing really.  The muscles in your face responsible for lifting the corners of your mouth to form a smile :-) actually have a psychological affect on you and the people around you.

There is a direct correlation between our body and our minds, and it works both ways.  For example, look what happens when you think about an embarrassing event in your past, or something coming up that you are really dreading.  If you sit with that scenario in mind for a moment, then check in with your body, you will probably find tension in certain muscles.  You may have to pay close attention in order to pick up on that, but our bodies can’t tell the difference between what’s real and our thoughts about what’s real.  It’s much more noticeable when you check in with your body while watching a suspenseful movie, but I digress.

I invite you to see what it’s like to manipulate the mind-body connection going in reverse (so to speak).  Close your eyes and check in with your body.  Just notice if there is any tension anywhere, and just allow it to be there.  Tension is okay. Now, with your eyes still closed, smile gently to yourself :-) Notice your breathing as you smile. See how your body feels when you smile.  Does it feel lighter? More relaxed? Take another deep breath while you smile and just feel what it’s like to have a smile on your face. It may make you smile more when you realize you are smiling for no reason.  The sense of silliness of this exercise may feed on itself and make your smile even broader.

When ever it occurs to me, which is often times when I’m driving or feeling a bit tense, I smile to myself.  I also find it helpful to smile at the little voice in the head when I notice it going round and round like a top that won’t stop spinning.  We take our thoughts so seriously, which is the root of all tension.  As Byron Katie likes to say, “Reality is always kinder than our story about it.” For example, can you be stressed out about something without thinking about it?  Is there ever a problem before we think one into existence? Our life situation is only as serious as we think it is, and it’s always less serious than we think. The simple act of smiling takes the seriousness out of our story and replaces it with a sense of ease.  

Eckhart Tolle suggests in his book, The Power of Now, that we not take our thoughts too seriously as part of learning to disidentify with the voice in the head. When we smile at the voice in the head, we take away its power over how we feel, which leaves room for us to relax.  Relaxation makes us smile, and smiling helps us to relax.  In the words of the famous Zen master, Thich Nhat Hanh, “Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.”

Say cheese :-)
Trey

© 2012 Howard McQueen

We are always full,

however, not always full of life-sustaining beliefs.

What we are filled with   

determines whether life bounces off  us

or penetrates deeply,

infusing us,  

radically altering us.

It may be a mid-life crisis,

or a broken partnership,

or a loss of income,

or the ending of a career,

or the untimely death of someone snatched away from you.

These are times when can open ourselves, 

empty out what no longer serves us

and create room within

for another verdant springtime.

~~~~

Yesterday Heart and I celebrated 748 days of knowing and loving on each other.