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.