tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81505288059418022092024-02-22T04:07:10.438-08:00the refrigerator oracleSEEKING ENLIGHTENMENT ONE STICKY NOTE AT A TIME...lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.comBlogger366125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-75936323914696392582012-03-06T06:14:00.001-08:002012-06-19T21:28:46.072-07:002 Years, 5 Months & 1 Day<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"Often when you think you're at the end of something, you're at the beginning of something else."</i> --<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Rogers">Fred Rogers</a></span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This will not be easy. For me, certainly; perhaps for some of you, but here goes....This is my last post to the Refrigerator Oracle.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I find it hard to resist adding, <i>for awhile</i> or <i>at least for now</i>, but that is not what I mean. What I mean is that I am done. This blog is done. In some way anyway. Nothing, of course, is ever really <i>done</i>, but it is as done as something can be in this world.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This has been coming for awhile, but I have had a hard time letting go. It has, after all, been<a href="http://refrigeratororacle.blogspot.com/2009/11/blog-post.html"> 2 years, 5 months, and 1 day</a> in the making. And it has been good. I think it has been good. It has been good for me. It has been <i>great</i> for me. It has been a labor of love for me and a gift of love to me. It has kept me going through some hard times and it has given me a voice in a way I have never had before. It has - in many ways - "made" me a writer.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">And now it is time to explore some other ways of being a writer. Some of those are clear to me and others are not, but my guidance is clear on this point.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">So I say "Goodbye" and wish you well. Thanks for stopping by. I will miss you.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>[BTW....I am still writing - just not as often - over at <a href="http://www.larasimmons.net/">www.larasimmons.net</a>. You can also find out about <a href="http://www.larasimmons.net/p/welcome.html">writing classes</a> and other projects I am working on. Hope to see you there!]</i> </span>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-90821458885074755772012-03-05T10:37:00.000-08:002012-06-19T21:25:51.793-07:00The Myth of Meditation<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"If it weren't for my mind, my meditation would be excellent." </i>--Pema Chodron </span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I think when most of us think about meditation we have this idea of a still mind, a quiet body, an idyllic experience. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The truth, for most of us, is far from this ideal. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I have had the chance lately to talk to a couple of people about meditation and the basic theme has been "I can't." </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"I can't because my mind won't stay still." </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"I can't because I don't have the time." </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"I can't because I don't know how."</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I laugh now when I see a flyer for a "meditation class," despite having taken at least five or six of these myself, and getting a lot out of each one. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The fact is, no one can teach you how to meditate because meditation is completely different for every person. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">But what it is not - for most of us anyway - is a blissful hour of complete silence and stillness. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">What it is for me is something like this: </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Wake up. Think about all of the things I need to get done today. Start to make a list. Remember my commitment to "meditate first" every morning. Get up and drag my ass to the kitchen. Pour a glass of water. Head into the living room. Queue up my meditation CD (Master Choa Kok Sui chanting OM). Lie down on the couch. (I often meditate lying down, despite learning in at least a couple of my classes that this is "wrong.") Cover myself with blankets and start to breathe deeply. Realize part of my body is sticking out and reorganize my blankets. Take another deep breath. Start to think about all of the things I need to do today. Think about the TV show I watched last night. Wonder if the main character is going to figure out that she has really blown it this time. Realize I am not meditating. Take a drink of water. Rearrange my blanket. Take another deep breath. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">You get the idea. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This goes on for 45 minutes to an hour - sometimes a lot less - and then I get up and start to make breakfast for the kids. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Maybe I felt complete bliss and the total love of the Universe and everything in it for a couple of minutes, maybe not. Usually I come away with at least three or four great ideas, many of which never see the light of day, but some that do. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The thing is it doesn't matter - not in the least - HOW it all goes. Just that it goes. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Last week I missed a day. By the end of the day I was so grumpy and angry and out of sorts that I sent myself to bed without any supper - to meditate. When I woke up the next morning, I headed for my spot without hesitation.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It doesn't matter WHAT you do or HOW you do it or WHERE or WHEN or even HOW MUCH you do - </span><span style="font-size: large;">a good friend of mine does "just" ten minutes a day and finds that even this small practice makes a big difference in her life - </span><span style="font-size: large;">it doesn't matter how it goes or even how you feel during your meditation. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">All that matters is THAT you do it. That you sit - preferably every day - and breathe and connect with that part of yourself that knows itself to be One with everything. However that looks for you and however it works for you. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">So don't get caught up in the myth of meditation, when you could be living the reality of its benefits, NOW.</span>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-73254171172861488292012-02-29T07:00:00.000-08:002012-02-29T11:48:07.507-08:00Happy Leap Day!<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">"Liz Lemon: 'I'm about to do something crazy.'</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-size: large;">Her boyfriend Chris: 'You should! Real life is for March.'"</span></i><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">--From the 30 Rock episode "<a href="http://www.nbc.com/30-rock/video/leap-day/1387030">Leap Day</a>"</span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Happy Leap day ya'll. I'm recovering from the flu (:p) and working hard on a blog entry for <a href="http://veritycu.org/">Verity Credit Union</a> (click <a href="http://blog.veritycu.com/2012/2/29/do-something-crazy">here</a> to view), but I just LOVE the idea of a "leap day" so I wanted to write something about it.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">“Leap and the net will appear.” (John Burroughs, American Naturalist and Essayist) has always been one of my favorite quotes. It's what we do all day every day. We wake up, trusting that
the earth will still be spinning on its axis. We take a step,
trusting that gravity is still the law of our land. We step outside,
trusting that the air we breathe will fill our lungs with oxygen and
sustain us for another day.</span>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Every day is a leap of faith, but today
is an extra special day. An extra day. “A day to do the things you
wouldn't ordinarily do. A day to take chances.” (also from the 30 Rock
episode “Leap Day”)</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: large;">The other day I read an article about doing something different every day. Just to shake things up, to knock yourself out of your comfort zone, to take a leap of faith. I love this idea and I am going to try it, starting today. </span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: large;">I have the idea to do it for a year, but perhaps I'll start with a month and see how it goes. I don't think this is going to be easy for me, but who knows? </span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: large;">So Happy Leap Day to you! Now go out and TAKE A FLYING LEAP. The net WILL appear! </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>[Leap Day Update: My "thing" for the day is to use my left hand instead of my right. For writing, for mousing, for brushing my teeth....whenever I remember for whatever I can. What's yours?]</i> </span></div>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-51096412174048693522012-02-21T12:10:00.002-08:002012-02-21T12:10:36.347-08:00The Misery and Joy of a Staycation<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"Misery and joy have the same shape in this world: You may call the rose an open heart or a broken heart."</i> --Rumi</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">My kids are off of school this week and my husband is home too, taking some vacation time so we can work around the house.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The week got off to a great start. We were all just so happy and in sync and the first couple of days were full of joy. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Yesterday afternoon, however, the tide turned. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">My husband reminded me that he did have some work to do this week and it triggered something old and angry inside of me. I was miserable and I could not rest until everyone around me was miserable as well. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This morning, I succeeded. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"Where do we go from here?" I found myself wailing inside as I tried to imagine what came next. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">And what I got was similar to this quote from Rumi. "Just do what comes next. What you were going to do anyway. Do it with a heavy heart and it will gradually get lighter." </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Don't let misery stop you in other words. Misery is just another name for joy. And if you step forward in misery, you just might find joy again. </span>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-31802330071862498752012-02-16T17:21:00.000-08:002012-02-16T17:21:19.956-08:00Loving What IS<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"The problem, if you love it, is as beautiful as the sunset."</i> --Jiddu Krishnamurti</span></blockquote>
<br />lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-52109341777526647272012-02-14T10:31:00.000-08:002012-02-14T10:31:33.861-08:00L♥VE<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"Love is freedom. To look for it by placing yourself in bondage is to separate yourself from it. For the love of God, no longer seek for union in separation, nor freedom in bondage! As you release, so will you be released. "</i> --<a href="http://www.acim.org/">A Course in Miracles</a></span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: large;">Happy Valentine's Day to you all! I L♥VE</span><span style="font-size: large;"> the idea of </span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: large;">L♥VE as freedom, I always have. In the meantime, I show my </span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: large;">L♥VE through control. :p What's that about? </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: large;">But, as a very wise man once said to me, "We are all doing the very best we can in any given moment." </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: large;">So, control was the best I could do at the time and today I am trying to do better. I am trying to release and </span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: large;">L♥VE and offer freedom to everyone as a gift of </span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: large;">L♥VE. I offer it to you. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: large;">Do not place yourself in bondage to </span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: large;">L♥VE, nor anyone else you </span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: large;">L♥VE. And, when in doubt <a href="http://blog.veritycu.com/2012/2/14/sweets-for-the-sweet?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+VerityOurVoices+%28Verity+-+Our+Voices%29">offer chocolate</a>. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: large;">I </span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-size: large;">L♥VE you - have a fabulous V-day!</span>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-42495307378160179952012-02-13T08:23:00.000-08:002012-02-16T17:18:11.958-08:00Shooting Stars<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"Thinking with our brains is like shooting blanks now, whereby thinking with our hearts will be like shooting stars."</i> --<a href="http://www.thinkwithyourheart.net/">Lauren G Gorgo</a> in her <a href="http://www.thinkwithyourheart.net/2012/01/10/2012-think-with-your-heart/">energy alert from January 10, 2012</a> </span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I love getting the latest scoop on what is going on energetically in the world and I love it even more when it affirms my experience or my own intuition. More and more these days I find myself second-guessing what I am thinking in my head. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">For me this is revolutionary. I have been a "thinker" all of my life. Thoughts spinning and churning all day - and sometimes all night - long. Plotting, planning, figuring, designing....It's exhausting! </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">And the great news is - I don't have to do it anymore! </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The time for thinking with our heads is over. It's our hearts that are leading the way now and thinking with my heart is so much less work than thinking with my head. A LOT less exhausting, a lot more clear and a lot more full of LOVE and KINDNESS and BLESSINGS and BLISS and all good things than my head ever was. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It truly does feel like I'm shooting stars!</span>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-29805259431403973602012-02-10T08:10:00.000-08:002012-02-16T17:18:34.446-08:00Pick the Flowers<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"Pick the flowers, despite the thorns."</i> --<a href="http://inthehandsofgrace.com/index.html">Grace Waters, Intuitive Bodyworker</a> </span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I had a session with Grace this week. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Grace means "gift of God" and oh boy is she! She says that bodies talk to her and I believe her. Mine certainly does. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Today it told her that I needed some Saguaro Cactus flower essence to help me deal with some of the people in my life. She said that people can be prickly and rather than avoid them I can, "Pick the flowers, despite the thorns." </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">In other words, enjoy what is beautiful and avoid getting stung by those things which are not. I thought this was beautiful advice and I am going to try and look for the beautiful flowers on the prickly people I encounter from now on. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-32715110436001377952012-02-08T20:00:00.000-08:002012-02-08T20:00:41.687-08:00Life's Not Fair! (And that's the way it's SUPPOSED to be....)<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"...[B]y wanting things to be fair, you are depriving people of their lessons."</i> --LD</span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I was complaining to a friend the other day about something that was patently unfair and this is what she said to me, "Justice is a big issue for you, but by wanting things to be fair, you are depriving people of their lessons." And, <i>BOING!</i> My whole life flashed before me.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"That's not fair!" was my almost constant refrain as a child (just ask my parents) and it infuriated me to no end when they would answer matter-of-factly "Life's not fair."</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I would like to think that as I have grown up I have grown in my understanding of the world and that I would have fully realized by now that the world isn't fair. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">And to be fair (ha, ha) to myself, I think I have. Some people have money; some people don't. Some people have good health; some people don't. To a large extent these "facts" of our lives are determined by the choices we make, but there is a good deal of luck and chance and privilege (or lack thereof) that determines how "fair" our lot in life is. I get that now and have (mostly) accepted it. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">What still gets me is when people act blatantly unfair towards other people. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">But the thing is, I don't get to be the ultimate authority on what is fair behavior and what is not. So even if I think someone is being really unfair, I don't get to decide that that is so. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">AND, even if I did, changing an unfair situation into a fair one by sheer force of my will would be depriving someone of a life lesson. And that's not fair! </span>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-66317033065085479202012-02-07T14:15:00.000-08:002012-02-07T14:15:49.142-08:00Sniff Out the Joy<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"Keep your nose to the joy trail."</i> --<a href="http://www.creative-native.com/">Buffy Saint-Marie</a> </span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">My parents didn't have a lot of music, but <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Best-Buffy-Sainte-Marie-twofer-Albums/dp/B000000EB3">The Best of Buffy Saint-Marie</a> was in heavy rotation around our house in the 70's. "Cripple Creek" was my favorite song and it still makes me feel like I am six years old and being mesmerized by this strange (in a good way...) woman's voice coming out of the speakers. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This quote from Buffy comes via <a href="http://www.peaceloveandglow.com/">my sister</a> in <a href="http://www.dearsoulsisters.com/2012/02/dealing-with-mixed-messages.html">our column for this week</a>. May you sniff out - and find - YOUR joy today! </span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-20816072570973561782012-02-06T15:02:00.000-08:002012-02-06T15:02:20.316-08:00Ahead of Her Time<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"We have all a better guide in ourselves, if we would attend to it, than any other person can be."</i>
--Jane Austen from "Mansfield Park"</span></blockquote>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-68101066457884244732012-02-02T08:07:00.000-08:002012-02-02T08:07:01.726-08:00Let It Go<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i> "What are you holding against yourself today? Let it go. Say, 'I forgive MYSELF,' and mean it."</i> --The Universe </span></blockquote>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-45442998935849164872012-02-01T11:08:00.000-08:002012-02-01T11:08:56.356-08:00It's ALL for Our Learning!<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"Anything that annoys you is for teaching you patience.<br />Anyone who abandons you is for teaching you how to stand on your own two feet.<br />Anything that angers you is for teaching you forgiveness and compassion.<br />Anything that has power over you is for teaching you how to take your power back.<br />Anything you hate is for teaching you unconditional love.<br />Anything you fear is for teaching you courage to overcome your fear.<br />Anything you can’t control is for teaching you how to let go and trust the Universe.”</i>--Jackson Kiddard from <a href="http://www.bheretoday.com/">www.bheretoday.com</a></span></blockquote>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-58164483385226779812012-01-31T12:24:00.000-08:002012-02-08T19:40:50.957-08:00The long-term evolution of my healthy self-sufficiency (Whew! That's a mouthful!)<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i style="font-family: inherit;">"...[T]his is a critical moment in the long-term evolution of your healthy self-sufficiency. For both your own sake and the sake of the people you love, you must find a way to shrink your urge to make them responsible for your well-being." --</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Rob Brezsny from my </span><a href="http://www.freewillastrology.com/" style="font-family: inherit;">Free Will Astrology</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> horoscope for this week </span></span></blockquote>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-80558527978207853432012-01-30T07:36:00.000-08:002012-01-30T07:36:51.980-08:00For a Monday Morning<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"Once in awhile what you do for work is also what you do for love. And when that happens? It's heaven."</i> Toni Colette as "Tara" in "The United States of Tara"</span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">May you find the joy in your work today and every day.</span>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-72823455822784167352012-01-27T22:26:00.000-08:002012-01-27T22:27:33.700-08:00It Ain't Over Til It's Okay<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"Everything will be okay in the end. If it's not okay, it's not the end."</i> --Sasha Kemble, quoting her friend Lisa on the Verity Credit Union blog</span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This quote comes from one of my favorite writers on my credit union blog <a href="http://www.veritycu.com/">Verity Voices</a> and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this quote. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It reminds me of a movie I watched tonight called, "The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill." If you haven't seen this documentary about wild parrots in San Francisco, I highly recommend it. There is one storyline, about a parrot named Connor that perfectly illustrates this quote. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Conner is a blue-headed parrot and, as such, doesn't really fit into the flock of red-headed parrots, but he tolerates them and they more or less tolerate him (although he does not have a mate, which is a bit sad). </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">He is a quiet bird and brave, he doesn't cower as easily or get as excited when the hawks are flying around. But towards the end of the film Conner is believed to be scooped up and killed by one of the hawks. It is a sad ending for a bird so quietly brave, but the story doesn't end there (because it's not okay). </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">In the special features there is a follow-up interview with a woman who found Connor on her patio that night - intact - and buried him in her garden among the flowers and amidst her other animals. She surmises that one of the ravens that also inhabit the area must of chased the hawk away and that he dropped Connor as he flew away.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">So not only do we get to know "the rest of the story" about Connor, but he received a proper burial and is thought about and his grave cared for by the woman who found him. The End. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>[BTW...If you are still with a BIG BANK and want to switch to a credit union during <a href="http://www.facebook.com/events/332723093416285/">Move Your Money Month in March</a>, you couldn't do better than <a href="http://www.veritycu.com/">Verity Credit Union</a>!] </i></span>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-79085302538588224802012-01-25T08:20:00.000-08:002012-01-25T08:20:00.255-08:00Enjoy Every One!<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>“...[L]ife was a gift...one of those things about getting older was knowing that so many moments weren't just moment, they were gifts.”</i> --Elizabeth Strout from her book, "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Olive-Kitteridge-Fiction-Elizabeth-Strout/dp/140006208X">Olive Kitteridge</a>"</span></blockquote>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-3327123063875851612012-01-24T16:22:00.000-08:002012-01-24T16:22:44.164-08:00Take the Banana<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"If you say, 'No' to this do you know how many other things you are saying 'No' to?"</i> --<a href="http://www.philipmcclusky.com/">Philip McClusky,</a> quoting a friend in his video, "Overcoming the Poverty Mentality"</span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">On Saturday morning I went for a swim as I usually do except that I forgot to grab a banana on my way out the door. Doh!</span>
<span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I knew I would be hungry after my swim, but I was running late so I took off, thinking I could just grab a smoothie after my swim.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">In the locker room I ran into my neighbor who also swims on Saturday mornings. We went in, did our workout and finished up at almost exactly the same time.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">As we rinsed off and got dressed, we chatted, and she said, "I am always so hungry afterwards. Sometimes I feel like I might pass out."</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I said, "Me too. I usually eat a banana before swimming, but I forgot this morning so I am starving."</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">She then pulled a banana from her bag, peeled it, and offered me a piece.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Which I, of course, refused. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">And which, of course, puzzled her. I could see it in her look, "<i>Why would she refuse to take a piece of my banana when she just said she wished she had a banana</i>?"</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Why? Because it's what I do. It's one of my things. An "area of growth" you might call it. I almost always say 'No' when someone offers me something I want.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I need to repeat that so even I can hear how crazy it sounds: <b>"I almost always say, 'No,' when someone offers me something I want." </b> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">So, yes, I know how crazy it sounds, but I didn't <i>really</i> know until I listened to this video called "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=2sXJvCKvEHI">Overcoming the Poverty Mentality</a>," on <a href="http://wwwnewearthdaily.com/">New Earth Daily</a>. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">As I listened, I recognized far more of myself than I would like to admit, especially the part about <a href="http://refrigeratororacle.blogspot.com/2012/01/open-my-heart.html">being open</a> to receiving. I am not open to receiving for the most part. Not gifts, not money, not complements, not even a piece of a banana. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">As I thought about this - and meditated on this quote from the video - my throat tightened, my chest felt heavy and I felt sad. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">And I knew without a doubt that I have some work to do in this area. To open myself to receiving and to accept the gifts the Universe sends to me through others with grace and with gratitude. To take the banana<i>. </i> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Because if I'm saying 'No,' to the banana I am sure there are countless other things I am also saying 'No' to that I am not even aware of. <i> </i></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>[BTW, <a href="http://wwwdearsoulsisers.com/">Dear Soul Sisters</a> was recently featured on this same website, <a href="http://newearthdaily.com/">New Earth Daily</a>. Click <a href="http://newearthdaily.com/?p=586">here</a> to see our first dose of Daily Inspiration!] </i></span>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-32669852949705567132012-01-23T13:02:00.000-08:002012-01-23T13:03:15.195-08:00NO FEAR<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;">"I will not be afraid of love today." --<a href="http://www.acim.org/">A Course in Miracles</a>, Lesson 282</span></blockquote>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-80268544670451456772012-01-20T08:54:00.000-08:002012-01-20T08:54:00.367-08:00Trying to Find Love in a Bottle<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"Having obscene amounts of money, power and status is just one kind of success. (And often a rather boring one at that.) Far more intriguing are the triumphs that come from outwitting ones own shadowy behavior and unconscious habits...."</i> --Rob Brezsny from <a href="http://www.freewillastrology.com/">Free Will Astrology</a></span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Saturday afternoon found me sitting by the fire, reading a book and drinking a glass of red wine. This sounds lovely I am sure except....I can't drink anymore. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I never really could. I have always been a lightweight, tipsy after two drinks, drunk after three or four and completely useless the next day, but lately (since I had kids, stopped being so unconscious, started meditating) I just have no tolerance for alcohol. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Half a drink and I feel tipsy and completely hungover the next day. I guess this would be okay except gone are the days when I could spend a whole day recovering. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I have breakfasts to make and laundry to do and books to read and boo-boos to bandage and fights to referee and playdates to arrange.....you get the idea. No rest for the wicked and all that. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">So I have quit drinking, for the most part. You don't have to hit me over the head. Someone up there (glance Heaven-ward) doesn't want me to drink. Okay, I get it already. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The thing is, sometimes I just WANT to. I just want to be able to have a glass or two of wine, kick back and relax my mind. For as long as I can remember my mind has been like a hamster wheel, always spinning. Spinning tales of fear and judgement, of worry and anxiety, of shyness and social anxiety, of not measuring up, not being good enough, not being liked, not saying the right thing, not looking the right way.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I know these are, for the most part, tales of untruth. I am pretty lucky actually and can fit in most places I go. I can talk to most people. But inside my head it is a mess of what is wrong, what could go wrong, what other people might think is wrong. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">A glass or two of wine totally takes care of that. Whoosh! All gone. In its place is a fuzzy little ocean of love. That's right. LOVE. Pure unadulterated love in a bottle. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It's soft and warm (or sometimes slightly chilled), tastes good and goes down smooth, leaving a path of calm in its wake. It feels so good to forget for a little while all the stuff that is in my brain.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">But it is not without cost and lately the cost is getting higher and higher.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">On Saturday I hadn't finished my first half a glass (I drank two half glasses instead of one full glass to make it last) before I started to feel hungover. Lethargic, headachey, a little bit nauseated. Blech!</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I was so disappointed. My fantasy had failed me again. All I wanted was one afternoon by the fire with a glass of red and a fuzzy head. Was that too much to ask? </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Apparently so. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The thing is, I want to drink AND I don't want to drink. Sometimes I do. But mostly I don't. Most of the time that is okay. Most of the time not drinking works for me. But sometimes the fantasy (the fuzzy little ocean of love) gets in my head and I just want to put on some fancy clothes, some high-ish heeled shoes and go out with the girls for a few glasses of wine. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I feel like somehow I am being denied something that is my birthright. It is so engrained in our culture. A cocktail, Happy Hour, a glass of wine with dinner, a coffee drink to finish the night....</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">What I realized during this last "binge" (if you can call it that) is that what I am really searching for is the same thing I am searching for when I sit down to meditate. A feeling of complete and total love and acceptance. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">When I have had a glass of wine I feel like everything is as it should be. I am perfect and so is everyone else. It is complete love and acceptance for things as they are. It is LOVE. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">But it's a false love. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Real love comes from inside. From that deep place inside that is hidden underneath all of the pain and guilt and shame and fear. In the center of our beings. The center that somehow gets revealed to us through drinking and drugs and, oh yeah, through meditation, without all the yucky side effects. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">So I am back on the wagon. It feels strange to say. I have never been endangered by my love of alcohol. Have never gotten a DUI or lost a job or even a friend because of my drinking. It has never led to any really unsafe situations or caused me serious problems, but I don't know if I can say that for others. When I am hungover I am much more likely to yell at my kids. To scream at my husband. To hate my life. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I am much more likely to rail against things as they are and to want them to be as they appear under the influence of alcohol - perfect. </span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">That, of course, is impossible and furthermore, an illusion, even under the influence of a glass of red. Maybe especially under the influence of a glass of red. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The world as seen through a glass of wine is soft and fuzzy, like the world through a pair of old glasses that no longer corrects your vision. You don't see clearly. Everything is blurry and you can convince yourself it is perfect, which may be why the world under the influence of a hangover is so hard to take. It is sharp and clear and painful. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">That same world, however, can be made soft and warm not by what you drink, but by how you see. Seeing the world through the eyes of love, instead of the eyes of judgement and hate, can give you that same soft fuzzy feeling, that same feeling of love. Without the bottle. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It's not as easy, but it comes without a price. One that seems to be getting higher and higher every day. </span>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-34771550281491387972012-01-18T09:16:00.000-08:002012-01-19T09:17:13.851-08:00The January Blues<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"Our bodies live off of LIGHT. Now (winter) is not the time to take on big projects. Now is the time to let things die. Self- introspection is the name of the game now. Follow the seasons - pop a big project in the spring. Reflect in the fall."</i> --<a href="http://conscioussystems.net/">Dr Mark Dunn, ND</a> </span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I got this quote at a seminar I attended more than four years ago and it has stuck with me ever since. I have always felt this, that the whole Christmas/New Years/Holidays with a capital "H" thing was all out of whack. I am feeling it again right now, <i>particularly</i> right now. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">January, in our culture, is all about new beginnings, resolutions, making plans and getting going. I don't know if I am the only one, but I am just not feeling it. Never have. Especially after all of the holiday busyness all I want to do right now is SLEEP. Rest. Lie in front of the fire. Read books. Watch TV. Be a total slug. Hibernate.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It is all I can do to get out of bed in the morning and I find myself sleeping later and later. Despite wanting - and planning - to get up at 6:00 AM and meditate or go to the pool before the kids wake up, I find myself lying in bed until 8:30 and then having to hop up and hurry them out the door. Even when I go to bed at 9:30 or 10:00 I can sleep until well past 7:00 these days. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Part of me is railing against this. "<i>You need to exercise, you need to meditate</i>, " I tell myself, but my Self does not want to listen. My Self wants to sleep. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">As I reflect, I realize that it is this way every year. Every year I find myself swimming up stream, trying to fit a mold that doesn't really work for me, for my biology. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">So I am trying to do it differently this year. Trying to let it be. Trying to go with the flow and wait to be ready to "spring" into action. I imagine it will happen sometime around March 22nd. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">In the meantime, I am working on a plan for next year. For the holidays and beyond. To celebrate in a way that honors the season and my body. I wonder what that would look like? </span>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-55534290386675672362012-01-16T08:00:00.000-08:002012-01-16T08:54:48.795-08:00Little Bee<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"A billion people are hungry, hundreds of conflicts and wars are ongoing, tens of millions suffer from eradicable diseases, there is always at least one genocide underway somewhere on the planet, more people still live under dictatorships or oppressive regimes than live in free societies, and arms dealers still make more money than farmers. Of course individuals can make a difference, but the fact is that evil has had the whip hand in this world ever since Cain. That doesn't mean we should stop trying to be good, but we shouldn't kid ourselves, either. Evil is not going to be vanquished. Our job is to resist it, and to plant the seeds of further resistance so that goodness never entirely vanishes from the universe. There are degrees of resistance. It starts when you <a href="http://www.29gifts.org/profiles/blogs/gift-15-1-and-halfway-there-baby?xg_source=activity">give a dollar to a homeless person</a> and it escalates to the point where people give their lives, as Gandhi did, or Martin Luther King Jr. One person can make a difference by traveling as far along that continuum as they feel able."</i> --Chris Cleave, author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Little-Bee-Novel-Chris-Cleave/dp/1416589635">Little Bee,</a> in the author interview in the back of the Simon & Schuster trade paperback edition published in February of 2010</span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I just finished reading <a href="http://www.blogger.com/">Little Bee</a>, a book about a teenage refugee from Nigeria who is released, without any papers, after two years in a British detention center and has to try and make her way in the Western world. It is both brutal and sweet, devastating and hopeful, unbelievable and unforgettable. It is one of those books that I just can't stop thinking about. Can't stop remembering. Can't stop feeling. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">At first I was tempted to run off to Nigeria and see what I could do to help the women and children there who are being killed to fuel our cars. But I knew in my heart that this was impossible and irresponsible to my own family. So I looked around to see what I could do. I could send money, of course, to a charity that works to solve these kinds of issues in Nigeria and other parts of Africa, but that seemed too easy - "just" give some money. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>I could get rid of my car and walk everywhere.</b> Or ride my bike. I pictured myself with a bike basket full of groceries pedaling home from our local Trader Joe's. My husband disavowed me of that notion immediately, "<i>I don't want you careening down that busy street with a bike full of groceries. Talk about a recipe for disaster!</i>"</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>I could sending loving energy to the women and children being tortured and killed.</b> Think about them, remember them, keep them in my heart. Again, this seemed to come up somehow short. How hard is it for me in my safe home with plenty of food and plenty of freedom to send them light and love? </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Then I picked the book up again and read the author interview in the back of the book and I found this passage. I felt like it was telling me what to do. Get started. Do what you can. Make a difference by traveling as far along that continuum as you feel able. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">In September of last year I made a commitment to <a href="http://www.29gifts.org/profiles/blogs/gift-15-1-and-halfway-there-baby?xg_source=activity">give $1 whenever I see a homeless person</a>. After reading this book I made the commitment to walk whenever and wherever I can to cut down on my dependence on the oil for which women and children all over the world are being killed. Twice this week I have gone to get in my car and stopped myself, taking off on foot instead for the store and the bank. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I will continue to look for opportunities to make a difference when and where and how I can. For now what I can do seems small, but someday I may feel able to travel further along the continuum of resistance and hope. Maybe even as far as Nigeria. </span>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-70013879784164534272012-01-13T18:12:00.000-08:002012-01-14T18:13:07.448-08:00This Space Intentionally Left Blank<span style="font-size: large;">I am taking the day off today. Just me and my pjs and the couch and "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_of_Tara">The United States of Tara</a>" on Netflix. Hope it's a great one for you!</span>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-89740462879811435252012-01-11T10:40:00.000-08:002012-01-11T10:40:00.319-08:00More on Not Knowing<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"...[A]ccept the non-knowing. There’s great power in not knowing, some might say the greatest. It doesn’t mean ignorance, or tuning out, or losing your self-awareness. It simply means finding joy, not anxiety, in life’s inconsistencies and mysteries....."</i> --<a href="http://annapulley.com/">Anna Pulley</a> </span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I love the way the Universe works. As I wrote my non-post for Monday (that I actually posted on Tuesday ;) a "real" post about not-knowing came to me. See how that works? Accepting that you don't know actually leads to knowing. And vice versa I am pretty sure.....</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Anyway, this weekend we went to the beach with some friends. You know how experts have been saying for years that eventually California is going to fall into the ocean? Well, in parts of Washington State, including where a friend of ours has a cabin, this is actually happening. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">They call it <a href="http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/sea/coast/erosion/washaway.html">Washaway Beach</a>. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">As you walk along, you can see bits of cement and rebar, cabinets and port-a-potties, half-full bottles of soda and baby dolls stuck in the sand and houses hanging off the edge of the dunes, just waiting for the next storm to come and wash them away. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It is sad and it is scary and, at the same time, almost a relief.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Somewhere deep inside of all of us is the knowledge that we aren't really in charge. That we aren't in control. That there is something - a force beyond our understanding - that calls the shots in this life. But most of the time we live in denial. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">We buy things. We make plans. We build houses. With the expectation that these things will last, that they are set in stone. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">But nothing is ever set in stone. Nothing in this life is permanent. There is nothing but not-knowing everywhere we look. And there can be great power in that, if we can simply find the joy in it. </span>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8150528805941802209.post-39202506350042659382012-01-09T10:58:00.000-08:002012-01-13T12:41:32.936-08:00Knowing that I don't know<div style="text-align: center;">
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"Part of true knowing is knowing that we do not know."</i> --Unknown, from an article entitled, "“Rising Above Sham Spirituality Part 1” from <a href="http://www.thenewcall.org/">www.thenewcall.org</a> </span></blockquote>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I don't know what to write today. In fact, it is not even today, it is tomorrow. I am post-dating this post. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I didn't post anything yesterday because I just did not know what to write. I wrote three or four posts, but none of them screamed "Post me!" so I didn't. I just let it go, knowing that something would come. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">And yet, here it is tomorrow and I still don't know what I want to write about this week. So I am just trying to be okay with that and I am going to share with you something fabulous that someone else wrote (and recorded).</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I heard <a href="http://www.kuow.org/program.php?id=24508%20">this story</a> on NPR last Friday about Opal the Octopus who gave birth to 50,000 babies in a den in the Puget Sound near downtown Seattle and it just touched my heart for some reason. I feel sad and happy all at the same time when I think about Opal and her babies and all she gave for them. I hope you will enjoy it too. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Knowing that we don't know is one of the hardest things there is about this human life I think. Maybe writer's block is the Universe's way of teaching me to be more comfortable with that. I am trying to learn. In the meantime, enjoy the story, enjoy the video and enjoying knowing that you don't know. Much love!</span></div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/-2tZMhoq0nI" width="560"></iframe></div>lara simmonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02993584916640656415noreply@blogger.com0