Meditation is like dental floss; good for us, inexpensive, and yields rewards over time. Oh, and not enough of us do it.
Perhaps, the road that I take is somewhat much like M Scott Peck's book 'The Road Less Travelled'. In it, Amazon.com describes the book to be 'confronting and solving problems is a painful process, which most of us attempt to avoid .. enable us to reach a higher level of self-understanding'.
Somehow, the title of his book also reminds me of a poet, Robert Frost who wrote in 1920 'The Road Not Taken', and there is one line in particular that sits in my emotion. It says 'I took the road less travelled by and that has made all the difference'.
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| Every which way but choice, Every which turn is hope |
Many of us walk through a journey in life hoping to gain a better understanding of ourselves. Hope gives us a feeling of optimism and of anticipation. Hope is a wish, a dream, an expectancy. We need it especially when life, often, is unpredictable. When life is often faced with challenges.
As I am writing this, it is raining outside. I hope it stops for then I can go out. Then again, it is the cool weather that makes me to feel comfortable resting at home. Often, such a thought comes when we are uncertain of what would be the best to do. Or what would be a better choice. Unfortunately, most of us are spoilt with what we have by desiring what we have not.
We make choices, and go through life, hoping that they are right. The choices we make by accident are just as important as the choices we make by design. Strictly, no one else can ever make the choices for us. Our choices are ours alone. It is, therefore, important to realize that whatever we choose, we might as well enjoy it as it has been our personal decision.
Albert Einstein says "Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning."
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| There's hope at every level |
Have I made the right choice?
Guessing along hoping that I get my choices are (to be) right will not make me a better person. I should move away from dwelling what is what. I should move the energy away, not to be stuck whether it is a good choice or otherwise, and move on to the next step. Once I have taken ownership of the choices, I should keep the choices alive. I should not focus on the choices per se but to manage on the decision making. I simply cannot manage my life when I do not manage myself. I cannot manage myself if I do not manage my choices.
Truth is, the choices that I have been creating come from my past conditioning to become the better person. It is my programming that has created the choices in the past. It is the choices I make today that are creating the programs of my future.
There is no life as complete as the life that is lived by choice. I just have to honor my choices, be it that I choose to escape from the pains of regrets or affirming the ownership of the right choices. It is always good to remember to forget, and choose to live, rather to choose to live by complaining.
Somehow, a choice will always find a way to express itself when the time is right for it. Guess, this is where the quote 'Everything happens for a good reason' comes in. It is in the choice that we act on that gets us to the destination. It is the choice we empower that set the direction.
We can never go wrong when we take charge on the choice. If we have to take time, take time. Then let consciousness to take over.
How do I make a decision?
Each day that passes, our choices will come and go. They are like diamonds in a chest of jewels, each waiting to be discovered. Importantly, when choices are made, I want to be aware of them and to follow with reasons to be thankful. Definitely, all the choices we make come from the quietest whispers in our mind where we have listened to.
I am the sum total of the choices I have made. What is important is on the choice I make and where to place my hope. I always want to hope in something rather than to hope for something. When I hope in becoming a better person, it places faith and strengthens the nature of choice. When I hope to live in joy, in peace and in love, it aligns my spirit with purpose.
When enough is enough
A choice can never guarantee that everything is going to be fine. Rather, it calls for one to live courageously, to be strong in his/her conviction. To keep doing exactly what is that leads to the goal, the destination, the direction. To hold strong in the taken choice and stand by it.
To be where I am today, I am happy. I am at peace and contented. I could place my hope in wanting more. I could ask for an Executive Mansionette rather than a 5 rooms HDB flat. Or I could place my hope in more spiritual shopping to gain more. Or I could place more activities just to make myself busy. Or I could designate a bigger role of who I am. Or I could set a desire to get to know more people. Or I could just do nothing.
Enough is just enough. Thing is, enough does not just stop. 'Enough' is just a word, probably a trickery to pull a fast one, for the mind to wonder for next. It is a deception for choice.
Where I am today, when enough has reached its limit, I place my hope in it to expand further. Meaning, I do not have to ask for more but to empower and stretch it. For it to radiate brighter. For it to glorify with love and more love.
Everything is an energy, it is only inert when we think it is. From where enough is, I just have to be aware that it does not mean an end, but a beginning. It determines the sort of meaning I want to put in next. It is like the dough left in the fridge waiting for it to be re-invented.
It is all about finding the right way of doing things. What I can hold in my heart, I can have it in my hands. I just have to move in the direction of my dominant thoughts. And, thoughts will eventually become things. When I am unable to find tranquility within myself, it is useless to seek it elsewhere.
The choice that we make about where to place our hope makes a profound difference in how we live our lives. We just have to align ourselves with specific values that we associate with (say) love, peace and joy. Or family, friends. Or appreciation, caring, dedication and devotion. It calls for a commitment to relationship, to simple living and to sustainability. It is a commitment to resolve conflicts.
What's next?
I have to learn what to choose, and how to choose. The best of choices is only as strong as the choices that stand by its side. What is to be the most important lesson is how these choices are managed. How these choices must give strength and conviction for life in the current moment.
When choices are made, we just have to place our hope in all possibilities. We have to place our hope in all things well, all things good and all things positive. We have to allow our soul to find meaning, courage and grace. Only then that we will not give in to despair and we do not have to be crushed by an impossible emotion.
We can't never be separated from making choices but we can live by strengthening our faith in hope. But hope has to be realistic. It has to have realistic sense and realistic mission. Hope guides us into ways of living and acting that take our daily problems away. Hope provides orientation for our actions. Hope proves meaning in our commitments.
I offer Reiki Distant Healing