In one of his books, Robert Schuller cites the value of list making. He says that making a list each day keeps us on track and helps us to stay focused on our goals so we don't become distracted or forget what we need to do. Schuller offers the following story to illustrate this point. A couple decided that they wanted some ice cream. The husband agreed to go to the store. "Write it down," the wife said, "or you'll forget it." "No, I know what to get," said the husband. "Don't forget," the wife said, "vanilla ice cream." As the husband walks out the door, she yells, "And get some chocolate syrup to go over the vanilla ice cream." "OK, OK," he says. As he gets into the car the wife opens the window and yells, "And get some nuts to go with the ice cream." "OK, OK," he says as he drives away. But when he gets to the store, he can't remember what he had come for. After desperately wandering down the aisles, he makes a purchase and drives back home. In horror, the wife opens the package and finds a carton of eggs. "What is this?" she screams, "I knew you'd forget! You forgot the bacon."
BULLET TRAIN TO NIRVANA
A bullet train is a super-speed express that whizzes to its destination at hundreds of miles per hour. Nirvana is a Buddhist word for ultimate freedom, liberation and joy in this life. Sometimes, instead of a bullet train to bliss and freedom, we find ourselves on a very slow moving suburban train that stops every few miles. I once found myself on such a train in India; it took several hours to go about a hundred miles on this train. If our goal is inner realization, fulfillment and peace, yet our mode of spiritual travel is very slow and filled with delays and distractions, we may need to choose a fast track means to our destination. Decide to move forward now, regardless of cost. The pace of the journey may leave us gasping and breathless, but the sheer joy of the momentum will propel us to our journey's end.
ASK
Three men were once fishing in the middle of a lake. Suddenly, the oldest of the three jumped up and said, "I forgot my tackle," whereupon he got out of the boat, promptly walked across the top of the water to the shore, found his tackle and returned again, walking on top of the water. After while, one of the other fisherman jumped up and said, "I forgot my bait," and he also left the boat and went across the lake to the shore and back, walking on top of the water. After a bit the third man, a young and inexperienced fisherman, jumped up and said, "I forgot my lunch." Since the other two had walked across the lake on top of the water, this young man boldly stepped out of the boat and promptly sank. One of the older fishermen said to the other, "Do you think we should have told him about the rocks?" When you don't know, ask.
STAYING FOCUSED
Einstein and his lab assistant had just completed a project. They needed a paper clip to hold the project papers together. They hunted throughout the lab and were only able to find an old paper clip that was bent out of shape. As Einstein tried to fix the old paper clip, his lab assistant suddenly discovered a whole box of brand new, unused clips. But when he handed a new paper clip to Einstein, instead of using it to bind the papers, Einstein began to use the new clip to fix the old one. "Why bother fixing the old clip, when we have new ones?" the lab assistant asked. Einstein replied, "When my mind is focused on a problem, I can't quit until it is solved." Perhaps we too need to stay focused on our problem until we come to a solution, rather than opting for an easy way out.
BICYCLE
A man once had a dream in which a radiant, light-filled being was beckoning to him. It was interesting that this being was sitting on the front seat of bicycle-built-for-two. The radiant being apparently wanted the man to join him on the bicycle. The man felt embarrassed; he didn't want to be seen riding on such a contraption even with a great spiritual being riding with him. But finally, after some hesitation, the man got on the bicycle. And the two started pedalling. The bicycle began to go faster and faster; soon it was moving at an incredible speed through time and space. The man on the back of the bicycle became so filled with the wonder and joy of it all that he suddenly stopped pedaling. Just as suddenly, the spiritual being in the front also stopped pedaling. The man was momentarily puzzled, and then he realized that he had to do his share, that he also had to pedal for the joyous journey to continue. In our life, our spiritual momentum continues as long as we do our part; when we stop, it stops.
LAND IN THE PUDDLE? TRY AGAIN
My cat is a great leaper. But one time when he tried to leap from the kitchen counter, past the sink onto a ledge by the kitchen window, he missed and landed in a sink full of cold water right up to the tops of his four paws. There was a great shock of incredulousness in his eyes: how could he possibly have missed his mark? Yet, the very next day, I watched as he gathered himself for the great leap beyond the sink— and this time, he made it— and he's never missed again. So with us— when we make our great leaps in life, sometimes we miss, land in the puddle and are shocked— how could we have missed the mark? But we need to get up, dry off, gather ourselves together— like the cat— and try again. If he won't give up, why should we?
ACTION
An ant once said to a centipede, "How do you know which leg to move first?" The centipede thought about this for awhile. The more he thought about it, the more confused he became. "How do I know which leg to move first?" The centipede became so obsessed with knowing how he knew that soon he became immobilized- he couldn't move at all. He was stuck in the thought world. We, too, can become stuck and frozen when we spend too much time trying to figure everything out, trying to know how we know what we know. Reflection and analysis are good in their proper spheres of human unfoldment, but when we push these faculties and demand to know how everything works or fits together, we may become frustrated and blocked because life is infinitely more subtle and complex than our deepest thought. The intellect is part of the whole of the vast field of consciousness we call life. Since the part can never totally know the whole, we can relax.
TRUE KINDNESS
A man once went into a coffee shop. When the waitress came for his order, he said, "I'd like a cup of coffee and a kind word." The waitress returned with the coffee. "And how about the kind word?" the man asked. "Don't drink the coffee," the waitress s replied. Sometimes we find that the greatest kindness is useful and accurate information or advice. We don't always need for somebody to compliment us, but we always need to know the best course of action for us to take in any given situation. When we are unsure about what direction to take in life, it is important to ask for help. Find the right person who understands your problem. Whatever our problem in life, there is almost always someone around who can point us in the direction of a solution. Don't ask merely for words of compliment when what you need is a solution to a dilemma.
MAKING MISTAKES
Sometimes our biggest fear and worry is that we will make a mistake. Many of us live in sheer terror and dread that somehow we'll 'blow it' if we aren't careful. And even when we are super-cautious and so careful, at times, we think, "Ah, I've still blown it— even as hard as I've tried not to." Fear of failure or of making mistakes can paralyze us and keep us from trying anything the least bit new or different. Yet we can only grow as we allow ourselves to experiment with life. Buckminster Fuller said, "There are a number of very important irreversibles to be discovered in our universe. One of them is that every time you make an experiment you learn more: quite literally, you cannot learn less." So don't be afraid to make a mistake— how else can we Iearn anything?
SLOWLY, SLOWLY
A Japanese Zen Master once said to a snail: "Certainly, climb Mt. Fuji, but slowly, slowly." Sometimes, when we have an enormous undertaking at hand, we are so anxious to reach the end. We are like those who begin a mystery book by reading the last page first so that they will know "who did it" before they find out what was done. Sometimes we want answers to questions we've barely formulated. Or we want to succeed in some venture without going through the process which will warrant us success. When we are trying to get somewhere, particularly somewhere we've never been before, it is helpful to slow down, to ask directions, get advice and proceed in an easy and unhurried way. Stephen Crane once wrote a poem about a man who was chasing after the horizon. A bystander tried to stop the man, "It is no use... you can never.... " "You lie," cried the man as he kept rushing after the horizon. We can let ourselves slow down right now and let ourselves be clear about where we are going, and we will arrive on time and at peace with ourselves.
READY - FIRE - AIM
Andy Warhol once said that in the future, everyone will be famous for fifteen minutes. If we were to realize our fifteen minutes of fame, what would we want it to be for? How would we like the world to see us? What gift are we here to express; what purpose are we here to achieve? Sometimes we are so caught up in our daily routine of family, friends and jobs that we lose track ofour underlying purpose, our reason for being in this world. Someone once said that most people die playing at little games. If we are here on this earth to do something significant, have we discovered what it is? And if we know what we are here for, are we busy achieving our purpose? Have we gotten waylaid by distraction, or are we on course? This life is a gift; we have so many hours, days, months and years to realize our heart's desire. Whatever it is, let's decide to move ahead into the fulfillment of our lifework.
DIVINE DISCOVERY
T.S. Eliot, the great 20th century poet, once wrote that we "ought to be explorers... we must be still and still moving / into another intensity / for a further union, a deeper communion." Indeed our life is a journey of continual discovery, an ever-reaching toward further union and deeper communion. There comes a time in our life when we are no longer content to settle for satisfactions in a worid too small. We seek the larger life, a more spiritual and integrated way of being in this life. Some of us travel around the globe only to come to discover that the real transcendent fulfillment is always right where we are; we come to realize that Cosmic Awareness and spiritual realization exist deep within ourselves. We are that which we have been seeking; the place of peace and harmony is within. We don't have to struggle to find our way. We can let go and let our way be revealed to each of us from within ourselves. As we come to relax, let go and trust our lives, inner meaning and fulfillment are ours.
GETTING TO THE TRUTH
A famous conductor was holding a rehearsal. Though the first violinist was playing with flawless excellence, the conductor couldn't help noticing an obviously pained expression on the violinist's face. The conductor became so distracted by the silent anguish of the violinist that he stopped the orchestra in the middle of the piece. "Am I disturbing you?" he asked the violinist. "No," said the violinist. "Is it the other musicians?" "Oh, no," said the violinist. "Are you ill?" "No." "Has a tragedy occurred in your family?" "No." "Is the auditorium too stuffy or too hot or too cold?" "No." "Well," asked the exasperated conductor, "what is wrong?" The violinist wrung his hands together, and in a tone of deep despair he said, "You see, I hate music." Sometimes we have to go to the absolute core of a situation in order to discover the Truth— never stop your inquiry into Truth until the Truth reveals Itself to you.
TWO INTO ONE
A businessman once said to a sage, "I take one thing and make it into two." The sage replied, "I take two things and make of them one." It's easy to divide life up into a multiplicity. Sometimes it's more difficult to recognize the inherent oneness of all things. One means: no sense of separation. Once my cat was chasing a dragonfly; the dragonfly happened to land on my arm, and it so blended in with the hair on my arm that the cat couldn't see it, and, after a while, the cat wandered away, seemingly puzzled and disappointed. Whenever we have felt a sense of oneness and rapport in this life, the fear and anxiety that was chasing us wanders away. Oneness dissolves pain and hurt and frustration. When we are a part of a larger whole, there is always a feeling of expansiveness; we are connected to the allness of this life—therefore exciting possibilities are available to us. Since we share ourselves with the whole of this life, the whole of this life can also share itself with us.
THE STRAIGHT WAY IS THE BEST WAY
A connoisseur of antiques happened to be walking by a grocery store when he noticed a cat lapping milk from a saucer by the front door. With a shock, he realized that the saucer was an expensive antique. He walked into the store, deciding to bargain for the saucer. In order to allay the suspicions of the store owner, the antique collector said, "That's a very cute cat I saw outside. How much do you want for him?" "$20.00," the owner promptly responded. "$20.00 is a lot for a cat, but, OK, I'll take him," the collector said handing over the money. And, as an afterthought, he added, "By the way, the cat seems so attached to that old saucer— how much for that?" "Nothing doing," said the grocery store owner. "That's my lucky saucer. Why I've sold 35 cats this month from that saucer." It's always the simple, straight way that leads us forward. Go for what you want with integrity, not what you hope to get through expediency.
VISIONARY HEART
What does it mean to have a visionary heart? It means to see things that haven't yet come into being. We can ask ourselves: which way are we looking— backwards or forwards? When we are looking backwards, we reflect on "the good old days," how good things were back then. When faced with a new situation, we ask: how did we handle it before? Yet, as we all know, doing things in the old way does not insure success in the present and may bring failure in the future. Someone once said that the last words of a dying business are: "We've always done it this way." When we are looking forward, we are open to see new solutions, new possibilities, new ways of approaching our situation. We release the old solutions as having served in their time, but we want fresh ideas, innovative insights that will come from the unborn, unconditioned places within ourselves and will revolutionize our way of being in business, our way of relating to the world and to ourselves.
INVISIBLE SUPPORT
Wittgenstein, a 20th century philosopher, once said, "The solution of the problem of life is seen in the banishing of the problem. Is not this the reason why those who have found after a long period of doubt that the sense of life became clear have then been unable to say what constituted that sense?" Indeed, there seems to be an invisible presence in our lives which sustains and supports each of us. And when we come to discover the meaning and purpose and reason for our being in this life, it is as if some invisible something deep within us has guided us to our individual solution. Even though we spend much time struggling and straining to find life's answer, it is when we finally come to a point of surrender, of letting go, that we feel ourselves inwardly supported, sustained and nourished.
THE GIFT
A young man once went to a Zen Master and said, "If I study really hard, how long will it take for me to get enlightened?" The Zen Master replied, "Ten years." "What if I study even harder, night and day?" "If you study that hard, it will take 20 years." "What if I go without sleep and food, do everything you tell me and work even harder?" "If you work that hard," the Zen Master replied, "it will take 30 years." The young man protested, "How come every time I tell you how much harder I will work, you tell me it will take that much longer?" The Zen Master replied, "If you have one eye on the goal, you only have one eye open to receive the gift." Indeed, each day is constantly trying to give us its gift— if we are too obsessed with our goals and our plans, we may miss the gift life is giving each of us at this very moment. We don't have to miss the gift of fulfillment because we are so anxious about the outcome. We can realize and accept our Good this moment and just let it be.
PEACE ANCHOR
J. Krishnamurti once asked a spiritual aspirant, "Where are you anchored, sir?" The seeker had no ready reply to the question. This is a question we might ask ourselves: where are we anchored right now? If our focus is on external things in the outer world, we may find that we become easily unsettled by the comings and goings, ups and downs, of everyday life. Job, family, finances, relationships all tend to fluctuate; people and situations shift and change— he who is for us today may not be tomorrow. This is why we, as human beings, have always sought a calm center within ourselves in the midst of all the changes of life. This center we discover within the depths of our own being we can call a peace anchor, a place of inner stability and focus we can always turn to, regardless of outer conditions or circumstances. This center of peace, harmony and order gives us the clarity and courage to move easily through our life circumstances with calm gentleness and quiet integrity.
PEACE ENVELOPE
Sometimes we open an envelope and we receive a happy surprise— a friend we haven't heard from has written, or we receive an unexpected financial windfall or we receive some other good news. If we hadn't opened the envelope, if we had just tossed it away, we would never know the good that we had missed. Too often in our life, peace is like an envelope we never open. Peace isn't something far away or difficult to obtain. Right this moment, we can drop whatever may be bothering us. We can open our hearts to peace; simply let ourselves be at peace— no struggle, no strain, no trying— just let ourselves be at peace now. No need to force or make anything happen— just be at peace for this little while. It's surprising how simply deciding to be at peace helps us see clearly what to do next and how to do it. Each day we can decide to open our peace envelope and let things work out well for us.