Building Bones

We build our cities
with the bodies and bones
of what came before us.

We will offer the same
building blocks
to those who come after.

It's one long river.
No use getting
caught up in results.

Will to Live

Life makes itself known
in everything that wills to live.

Hell Volunteers

We love hell --
as long as it's
someone else's.

When it's ours,
we start looking
for someone else
to take our place.

If no one volunteers,
we pick someone.

Step

Step across a brook.
Wade across a stream.
Swim across a river.
Walk across an ocean.

Each new challenge is a teacher.
Every new problem is a guide.

What We Choose

One side is right.
One side is wrong.

This is what we see,
but it is not what is.

Right and wrong
orbit one another.

What we see depends
on what we choose.

What we choose depends
on what we fear most.

Personal

Having a
personal God
is great,
as long as
I remember
that the God
I have is
a shadow
of the Reality
that is.

The ultimate
personal God.

Acceptance

Acceptance
comes first
from within.

What comes
from outside
after that
is unnecessary.

Roads

The road to peace
covers the same ground
as the road to war.

The road to peace
leads within.

The road to war
leads nowhere.

Always Grateful

All gain carries loss.
All loss carries gain.

What looks like a disaster
holds the seeds of success.

What looks like a blessing
hides the shadow of a curse.

Bounty and pain both carry
something to be grateful for.

God's Enemies

My enemies are not
God's enemies.
God has no enemies.

Just ignorant and
frightened children.

Born in Fear

Holding in.
Keeping out.

Both are born
in fear.

Always Yes

If I see God,
then doubt
what I saw,
did I see God
or not see God?

The answer
is always yes.

Surest Way Through

If I dream of escaping someday,
I will be forever escaping.

As long as I long for freedom,
I will never be free.

Seeking the next right step
is the surest way through.

Fence or Gate

Wall or door.
Which is stronger?

Strength connects.
Walls weaken.

Fence or gate.
Which is safer?

Safety is communal.
Barriers scatter.

Within Every Leaf

To say there is no Science
within every leaf is ignorance.

To say there is no Mystery
within every leaf is arrogance.

Love Is Lethal

Love is lethal.
It deadens ego.

Love is dangerous.
It gives itself freely.

Love is deadly.
It has no fear.

Love is invincible.
It is relentless.

Many in One

Build a bridge.
Build a wall.

One carries us
toward community.

One drives us
farther apart.

Together they teach us
how to be one in many,
many in one.

Leaving

Leave here to go there.
Leave there to go somewhere else.
Leaving and leaving and leaving.

Leaving will never take us
where we're trying to go.
The journey ends within.

Constant Result

Change is the constant.
Life is the result.

Limited

It's better to adapt
to changing circumstances.

We can't limit others
without limiting ourselves.

View

The view from on top
is always beautiful.

But it's down in the valleys
that life actually happens.

Open a Door

I open a door into wisdom
when I discover the watcher
who watches from within.

I open a door to awareness
when I discover I am not
who I think I am inside.

I open a door to intention
when I discover I already carry
the answer to many questions.

Hard-Wired

We are hard-wired
to want to help
each other.

Anything that
says otherwise is
just programming.

Attention

How much attention
do I need from others?

How much attention
do I expect from others?

How much attention
do I demand from others?

What do I offer in return?
Is it worth the attention?

This Life

This life has a beginning,
a middle, and an end.

I don't remember the beginning.
I know nothing about the end.

The middle is home to dreams,
silence, worry, thanksgiving.

What a short ride from start to finish.
What an enduring evening of stars.

Many Hands

It takes many hands
to alter an entire planet.
We are many hands. 

It takes many hands
to reclaim a planet.
We are many hands.

Old Wall, New Wall

An old wall rests on habit.
A new wall rests on failure.

An old fence rests on history.
A new fence rests on fear.

Boundaries are necessary,
but only when necessary.

One Way to Avoid Pain

One way to avoid pain
is to avoid loving others.

If I don't care about others,
I don't have to care about
what happens to them.
If I don't have to care,
I don't have to feel their pain.

Even so, there's a down side.
When I don't feel pain
because I don't feel love,
I become a vessel
of empty experiences.

God's Perfection

God isn't perfect
because God is pure.

God is perfect
because God is complete.

We are part of
God's completeness.

We are part of
God's perfection.

Aliens

We are all travelers
from distant lands
in one way or another.

We are illegal aliens
when we go where
we are not appreciated.

We become foreigners
when we disdain
our fellow citizens.

To welcome the "other"
has always called down
blessings from the gods.