Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Wise Sources


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

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

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.

Monday, March 29, 2010

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?

Sunday, March 28, 2010

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?

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Give. Work. Trust


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

Friday, March 26, 2010

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.

Thursday, March 25, 2010

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.

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

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.

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

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.

Monday, March 22, 2010

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?

Saturday, March 20, 2010

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.

Friday, March 19, 2010

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.

Thursday, March 18, 2010

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.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

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.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

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.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Every Father Dies a Little


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

Not all dying is sad, though.

Sunday, March 14, 2010

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.

Saturday, March 13, 2010

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.

Friday, March 12, 2010

Thursday, March 11, 2010

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?

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

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.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Monday, March 8, 2010

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.

Sunday, March 7, 2010

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.

Saturday, March 6, 2010

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.

Friday, March 5, 2010

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.

Thursday, March 4, 2010

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.

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

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.

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

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.

Monday, March 1, 2010

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?