Wise Sources

Emptiness is the source of silence.
Silence is the source of stillness.
Stillness is the source of wisdom.

Telling

When you tell me about who I am,
you're telling me about who you are.

When you tell me about yourself,
you're telling me about myself.

Offering Advice

When offering a friend advice,
how do you know it's the right advice?

How often has a disaster
come disguised as a blessing?

How often has a blessing
come disguised as a disaster?

Looking Forward

When I travel to another place,
do I look forward to the trip?

When I sit down to eat,
do I look forward to the meal?

When I show up for work,
do I look forward to the task?

When I welcome friends and family,
do I look forward to their visits?

Why would I not want to
look forward to these things?

Give. Work. Trust

Give what is yours to give.
Work for what you need.
Trust that you will get enough.

Timing

Sometimes when I wait, I win.
Sometimes when I wait, I lose.

In a universe of time and space,
time can weigh both heavy and light.

Waiting. Watching. Knowing

I am not very good at waiting.
I am better at watching.
I'm best at knowing.

The problem with knowing is that
I don't know as much as I think I know.

The problem with watching
is that too often I watch without seeing.

The problem with not waiting
is that I end up with impatient results.

Is Life a Ribbon

Is life a ribbon from end to end?
A stream. A river. Water draining away.

Is life a sequence of pauses and events?
A string of lights. A long, heavy chain.

Is life granular -- random and disconnected?
A warm beach. Salt scattered across a table.

Yes.

Better for You

Let go of an angry cat, and it will run away more often than it will turn and attack.

Better for you, and better for the cat.

Let a drunken man find the floor on his own, and he will have more reason to get up by himself than to turn and ask you for help.

Better for you, and better for him.

To Be in Control

To be in control
or to be adaptable.
Which is stronger?

To have power
or to be penniless.
Which is more dangerous?

To exert one's own will
or to follow the clearest path.
Which is the richer life?

Good News

Nothing is permanent.

When One Bird Sings

In the spring and summer and into the fall, I can hear birds every morning. In the winter, they either fly away or they're too cold to sing, because the morning air is silent of them.

What I notice most in the summer, though, is not the singing, but rather that one rare morning when the birds are silent.

What I notice most in the winter is not the silence of their absence, but rather that one rare morning when one bird sings.

Seen

Seen from deep in a well,
the sky looks tiny during the day
and disappears completely at dark.

It is anything but.

Seen from the middle of the ocean,
every direction looks like
the way home on a cloudy day.

Such is not the case.

Seen from the height of a cliff,
distant fields seem covered
in fur rather than wheat.

And trees become matchsticks.

Seen from within,
the sky is a shadow of what lies beyond,
the horizon offers a home wherever we travel,
and the land will always outlive us.

Enough to Do Anything

One friend is a start.
Two friends are a tribe.
Three friends are a committee.
A dozen friends are enough to do anything.

In Darkness, We Seek Light

In darkness, we seek light.
In chaos, we seek order.
In cacophony, we seek silence.
In frenzy, we seek stillness.
In opposites, we seek ourselves.

A Lifetime of Times

How many times
must I be reborn
before I am truly flawless?

How many times
must I beg forgiveness
before I live guilt-free?

How many times
must I repent
before I find my one true path?

A lifetime of times,
it would seem.

Every Father Dies a Little

Every father dies a little
when his son becomes a man.

Not all dying is sad, though.

Humility Is a Low Door

Humility is a low door.
To go through it, one must bend
down enough to smell the ground.

Dirt wears
the scent of past lives
and reminds us that death
captures all in the end.

This is what makes
humility necessary.

A Simple Mind

A simple mind is not necessarily a shallow mind.
A deep mind is not necessarily a clear mind.
An empty mind is not necessarily a mindless mind.

Another Reason to Teach

A good teacher always learns more than the students.

Which Path

Which path is true love?
To take the path a loved one prefers you take?
Or to take the path that calls you by name?

Vibrations

I vibrate between
who I think I am
and who I really am.

I vibrate between
who I am now and
who I want to be.

I vibrate between
who I am and who I am.
Both separate and one.

At the Center

At the center of all things
is the center of every other thing.

Two Sides of the Same Coin

Pain and pleasure. Two sides of the same coin.

They balance each other -- which is as it should be, since they both ebb and flow through even the most charmed life.

The true mystery is how they've both come to contain so much spiritual gold.

The Weak Among Us

The weak among us help us realize
the measure of our own strength.

If they are truly weak,
their weakness draws out our compassion.

If they are not,
their weakness draws out our anger.

Stream of Boulders

Sometimes I am the boulder
that turns the stream.
Sometimes I am the water
that bends and rushes past.

When I am the boulder,
I am solid and immovable,
sure in my place.

When I am the water, I carry
away everything in my path,
bit by bit.

Shrinking Possibilities

An empty canvas is full of potential.

Each stroke I paint shrinks the possibilities, though.

By the time I finish, I've stripped away every other painting except the one I end up with.

That's the one I hang on the wall.

Following Your Path

Follow your own path.
Allow others to follow theirs.

When you lose your way,
stop and pay attention.
The universe will show you
the way back to yourself.

When your path
crosses that of another,
be courteous and kind.

Just Because I Believe

Just because I believe I'll get something doesn't mean I will.

But it's even less likely I'll get it if I believe I won't get it.

Faith may not always be enough for success, but it is more than enough for failure.

Hard Listening

How hard a thing it is simply to listen to others -- especially when we disagree with them.

And yet, how important it is to listen to others -- especially when we disagree with them.

White Feathers

White feathers turn gray over time.
Which color is more honest?

Smooth bones turn porous in the sun.
What strength remains in what is left?

Dust hardens into stone underfoot.
Which is more pliant over eons?

Innocence gives way to wisdom.
Which is the greater treasure?