Look Around You

Now that I am retired and don't have to run around like a maniac, I have time to watch the World and its inhabitants. Here and there, I watch people. Two words for all of you. Slow Down.
Yeah, I know, it seems that you have to go full speed to keep up. Take it from someone who did just that, If you run and run, just to keep up, you are doing something wrong. Streamline your life. Get rid of what you don't need. When you work, work efficiently. Get tasks out of the way and do them right the first time.
To those who say that they have to work multiple jobs to keep up, I have a number, 7.1 million. That is the number of unfilled jobs in the Nation. They go unfilled because American workers are unqualified. The solution to a lot of problems is simple. Take whatever time you can and get qualified. There are many training programs and Community Colleges and Technical schools and they are pretty inexpensive. Give uo a few nights out with your friends and a game ot two and get busy. In the long run, actually quicker than you think, you will have the kind of job people used to have. % days a week, 8 hours a day and enough income to live well. Not lavishly. but well.
Just watch people. They waste so much time and effort and accomplish so little. They concern themselves with details of celebrity lives and local gossip. They carry on about political issues that they have no say on. trust me. despite everything you hear, big time politicians  are going to do, what they are paid to do, which is often not what people really want them to do. Rid yourselves of concerns that are not yours. Take care of your own business and do so carefully and efficiently, always remembering to be kind when called upon and to see to the well being of family and friends when they ask for help.
Then, when you find that you suddenly have time to relax, take a deep breath, open you eyes, and look around at this magnificent World. Have a Blessed day.

Flow

The saying,'go with the flow' has some merit. A lot of merit.
We tend to see life as a series of discrete events, snap shots in the flow of rime. That is simply the way our brain functions. What continuity we perceived comes when our brains fill in the gaps. It is sort of the way digital music is heard. Tiny bits of music are strung together and we fill in the spaces. That, by the way, is why analog recordings sound more natural, more alive.
In reality, there are no gaps. Events flow seamlessly through time and space. What is more, they are all intertwined. The separations of space are an illusion. Nothing stands alone.
Quiet your mind and you begin to perceive the flow of everything. That is ab excellent strategy for getting along in the World. You perceive more of reality and can see the motions, the flow.
Going with the flow does not mean that you like, or even accept, everything going on. You see it, and, much like a martial artist, you turn that energy to your own advantage.Sometimes you win, sometimes not. Either way, it is usually a more effective strategy than standing firm and fighting.
A prime example comes from our recent hurricane. The might oaks fell. The flexible palms. while badly battered, stood.
Anyway, it's something to think about as you go through your day's struggles. Here's hoping that those struggles are few and light and that you win your share of the battles. Remember, it's all just a grand game. As mu Daddy used to say, 100 years from now, no one will care or remember. Go lightly and easily through the coming week. Blessings to all.

Time

Time is perhaps the greatest mystery. St. Augustine said that when he didn't think about it, he understood it. But, when he thought about it, he realized that he had no way to discuss it, Einstein called it a persistently stubborn illusion. You can even make a case that past, present and future are all happening at once.
Bur let's not get all scientific here. On a day to day level, we all know how slippery time is.  Days can fly by in a blur and, here and there, days can seem to drag on for months. The mind can seem to crawl through data and sometimes process input in a blink.
New Age types often prattle on about staying in the 'now.' You cannot do this. There is something called the Hallusian gap. The fastest we can process sensory input is about a thirtieth of a second
In essence, we are always watching a movie of our lives. We see what just happened.
That aside (okay, I have o get a little scientific) the smallest unit of time we can measure is called Plank's time, about 6 times 10 to the negative 25 power, and unthinkably runt number, but a number nonetheless. Before that, the laws of physics break down (this is a singularity). What exists then, if anything, id unknown. But it does mean that in the purest sense, there is no 'now.'
I gave no idea why I am writing this. Maybe, as I get older, I am trying to find a way to stretch the days, but any such effort is doomed to failure. Time will do what it does and pass. Shakespeare wrote that 'the days creep by at a petty pace." He mist have written that when young, because as you age, they fly (my Daddy told me that and I laughed at such foolish talk. He was right.).
What to do with time? Nothing, Don't drive yourself crazy. Time is an interesting topic to think about, but all you can do is follow the advice of the great band Little Feat and "roll with it."
Have a great 'Time' today. And, please, say a few prayers for the folks in the path of Hurricane Florence. God bless all of you.





What to do? What we always have to do with life. In the words of the great band :ittle Feat, "Roll with it."

You Own Nothing

This is true. You own nothing. You merely have temporary possession.  Stop and think. You work and earn pay. Then you but and either simply consume or use what you buy to create something else. And so on, until you leave this World, and believe one thing. You will leave this World.
The old saying is true. You can't take it with you when you go. The Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt and the Emperors  of Old China tried. We have found their tombs filled with treasures and even with the bodies of loved ones and servants to join them in the next World. Well, there lie the remains and they obviously did not accompany the deceased. Even the bodies of the old rulers are just lying there. The soul does not take physical possessions with it and all those shiny things and beautiful bodies lie moldering.
You own nothing. You just, through the Grace of the Creator
This is not saying that you should follow the path if the old Gnostics. The World and its life is not evil. It is a beautiful wonder. You need a few things' shelter, clithes, food and water and there is nothing wrong with having a few trinkets and toys to brighten things as long as you are not grasping for them and clinging to them. Unfortunately, that is what many, if nit mist de, and that is a huge part of the problems we have.
On a personal level, we do ourselves a lot of harm when we waste our precious time on this Earth concentrating on things. More damaging, we waste our even more precious consciousness.
Enjoy your life and take delight in the things you have, but realize, you just have them for a fleeting moment. You van't take it with you, and again, like it or nit, one day, you will go.
It's the weekend. Have fun, be safe and get some rest. May you have a Most Blessed weekend