The soft flakes fell ..,each a delicate masterpiece of beauty… with gentle precision they landed on the extended arms of the trees. The forest was covered in a blanket of sparkling organic gems. Some translucent and others the purest of white.
I was surrounded by scenes that were surreal ,the world had become a winter wonderland. Suddenly I’d get a flash of black as a frisky squirrel would scamper towards the “cafe”… then I would catch the rusty red of a smaller squirrel rushing to get a place at the “table”.
The blue jays were already poised to shop for the biggest peanut they could find… and since reopening, the woodpeckers were gathering higher up … waiting for the suet and butter bark to be distributed.
The chickadees,, nuthatch and a group of “gray” birds were busy grabbing would they could from the buffet tables. Chirping and chattering all the while as they flew back for second and third helpings
Here we are at the beginning of new week. I hope you have a beautiful start to your day/week.
Have clear goals and take appropriate actions
Always begin with a clear idea of what your goals are. Once you have pinpointed the target for your actions, things will move forward much more smoothly.
PL2019.17
Oyashikiri
The next day after the snow.. the cafe floor was filled with tiny and mid size paw prints. There wasn’t a crumb left.. all the tables/platters were empty.
That beautiful dusting of snow… a hint of what could be in the coming days/weeks. A gentle tease for now,
Willingly take on tasks that are behind the scenes
Be the one who is able to proactively take on the troublesome tasks that no one likes and fore which they are not recognized. By dong so, you will be filled with a genuine feeling of accomplishment.
Let’s set higher goals and work to improve ourselves.
Let’s work towards our goals while keeping a clear vision of what we hope to achieve, Your strong conviction and Makoto (sincere effort) will help drive you towards accomplishing what you set out to do.
Ever alert and ready for a hug/kisses… meet Fiel… my secret love…. I get to visit with him from time to time. There is nothing like a “dog hug/greeting”
Let’s Pray for World Peace
Always live with prayer, hoping for World Peace. When each and everyone of our prayers is combined, it will contribute to creating peace.
PL2017.1.
The start of another month, the cooler weather has begun to be a daily reminder that we will soon be beginning another “winter”.. you ready?
There are pumpkins everywhere these days. the small ones they sell for making pies .. are wonderful cubed and used in stir fries or simply steamed and buttered with your favorite spices.
Your smile energizes the people around you
A smile has the ability to put others at ease and give them energy. Strive to be the first to offer a smile each day to those around you.
Sharing our faith – Shingei – in PL we practice the philosophy of PL in our everyday lives. PL Precept #21 Live in Perfect Liberty. We call this “shingei”. We truly believe that being present and open to the “needs” of another .. sharing and helping when we can, is how we work with Makoto (sincerity) towards world peace.
Prayer makes you stronger
When you put your hands together in prayer, it helps you to strengthen your resolve before taking the next step. You will be able to focus on your task at hand with a clear mindset.
I recall a trip we took years ago.. we drove to Montana, (my previous time to go there I had flown in, and never did I want to do that again).. So my husband the planner said, “let’s drive there” he planned out the route we would take from here in Ontario (Canada) and on a lovely September day, we took off with the two dogs for Montana. The only States I had visited before this was NY, Vermont, NH, Florida, and California. We drove down into NY State and from there he took us through as many of the middle states towards Montana.. What a diverse geography the landscapes were at times “mind blowing” especially as we got closer to Montana itself. I got to see Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Wyoming, Idaho and then into Montana, It was many years ago now and my husband is no longer here to tell me if I’ve missed any of the States we drove through. He promised we’d go back, I had wanted to see Arizona and spend more time exploring, but we had limited time and our goal was my friend in Montana.
What brings the trip back is stories I have been listening to that take place in the “old west” life in the 1800’s and the fact that Brian always wanted to take me away during my birthday month. His birthday gift to me was to take me to places he wanted me to experience.(He had been a journalist and media personality, his work had taken him to all four corners of the globe. I used to love listening to his adventures.. ) Now of course I have to plan and decide my own “birthday month”.. After the years of having adventures planned out for me, I confess I was spoiled.. it is an adjustment.. I find myself, part of me anyway, wanting to pack the car and take off to explore… etc… however… another part of me says, “you’ve done that… and… blah blah blah)
In PL we say ” PL Precept # 1 Life is Art ” every day is a new beginning.. a new canvas.. At the moment I have a new living space to adapt to and make my own… a new “lifestyle” ….
The Excitement of life comes from expressing your individuality
In PL we say it is important to live each moment of your life expressing your true self with Makoto (sincerity) when we can do this we will experience the true joy of self expression.” Learn to live respecting one another and working for each other’s happiness.” a lesson we are reminded of daily when we recite the PL Prayer.
After mulling about what I want to do, and simply not getting anywhere, I opened my calendar to today’s reading…and et voila…
Whether you like or dislike something, give it a try
Instead of avoiding something because it’s complicated or difficult to understand, just give it a try. Then you will be able to find it interesting,
PL2017.2
The picture for those who are unfamiliar with the Teepe or Tipi as it is traditionally know.. is a conical dwelling many Native American Plains tribes used as dwellings.
Whatever your day brings, enjoy .. smile.. be happy.
Oyashikiri
Why do teepees have 13 poles?
According to these teachings, the poles of the tipi represent the nations of people living upon Mother Earth and form the circle of life. Each one of the 13 poles also represents a trait to be honoured, starting with the three anchor poles that signify respect, obedience and humility. (wiki)
It seems easy … just sit back, relax…. let the moments come and go.
I watched a short clip today, where there is a moving ball, starts at one side of the frame, moves slowly to the top (centre) of the frame pauses and then slowly slides to the other side of the frame. The caption and voice, asks that you watch taking a slow breath, then hold when the ball pauses, then release as it slowly drops down to the other side. Lovely reminder to pause during your day, to take a moment to just stop relax for a moment before hurrying on with whatever you are doing.
So often we live our lives on automatic pilot, When I was out yesterday driving to the conservation area I frequent, I thought about how often I had done this over this years.. and how the car just seemed to know where it was going. Ottawa is surrounded by green spaces. We are very lucky that way. I found myself asking the empty space around me (in the car) why I always went to the same locations. Why with hundreds of options, did I always go where it was familiar. (didn’t get an answer)(working on it)
When finally home, I settled down for a wee nap, and turned my iPad on to listen to one of my lessons, but instead of a podcast on male *health/ psychology, a story came up about a woman pilot.. a woman who had military training … now no longer in the military she was on a commercial flight when there was an incident that required quick thinking and the skills she had acquired while in the military,
This was not something usually on my radar.. but I was tired, comfortable, my eyes closed… so I let the story unfold. I woke to a story about a woman living in the wilderness of Nevada back in the 1800 when the land was wild, and civilization sparse ,… She tended a trading post on her own, in the middle of nowhere… stepping outside when she heard movement, she found an injured wolf… the story was about how she took responsibility for the injured animal.. and the consequences of her actions. (women did not have it easy!)
Both stories were nothing I would ever have searched out, but there they were.. … both told of courage, of kindness, of persons who put the safety and what was morally right first. Made me wonder what other “stories” were being offered. Interestingly I found that there are human interest stories .. that speak of kindness and helping others in all walks of life. There are consequences in life, and we are often the creators of our own “destiny”.
No one can take away the joy you get from putting your whole heart into something
The joy you feel when you’ve put your all into something is yours and yours alone. Nobody can take that away from you
PL20020.29
Have a great day everyone.. try something different. But keep smiling.
Oyashikiri
*this is a field of its own, men do have issues and problems specific to their gender.
TAOIST Life is Art (Perfect Liberty precept #1)
contact info.- via blogs
--- there are two energies, Yin and Yang = ONE
---to have balance we must live each moment
of our lives.. with Makoto (sincerity)
The only constant in life is change. I am grounded in the reality of Living.
This is true, in all worlds. RL or virtual. I am me and only me.