Daily Inspiration 6-20-12

"He who has seen present things has seen all, both everything which has taken place from all eternity and everything which will be for time without end; for all things are of one kin and of one form." -- Marcus Aurelius In my study of the idea of being present; being in the now, from my study of Eckhart Tolle's book The Power of Now, I am fascinated by how little I have been present in my life thus far. As I practice being present and focus only on now, I find it difficult to stay there very long because I am so used to my thinking mind, that constant chatter in my head. You could call it a comfort zone, but it isn't all that comfortable. I've been taught as in the statue of The Thinker that I can think my way out of situations not pleasing, and I can think my way to success and I can be positive in my thinking and so much more. And, I have with very mixed results. Frankly, I'm finding that now the less I think of things, the happier I am; the more joy I experience. It's interesting how we have turned so much of life into a series of problems. Indeed, in a community sense, we have (with the magic help of the media) turned problems into crises; e.g., the gas crisis, the financial crisis, the global warming crisis, and on it goes. What's also interesting about that is that it is all about the future, not the now. So are our problems. In the now, there are no problems, and I found that hard to believe at first, but now I get it and it is true. I was very surprised to see this quote above by Marcus Aurelius and how closely it relates to Eckhart's book. People who are present have been around for all time, yet few in number. In fact, I met one the other night. He was the most present person that I think I've ever met. I was amazed. He exuded love and interest and caring. He drew us out and listened intently. All the time his face was the face of joy. I can't get it out of my mind. It was so interesting, this meeting, and so short, yet satisfying. I am going to contact him and discuss that with him soon. I'll never forget on being in a room with James Garner (Rockford Files, Maverick, etc.) in 1976. His presence was astounding. He was calm, cool, collected, vibrating with joy as if he instantly loved everyone in the room. That was the first time I had seen anything quite like that. I've realized now that my lifelong goal has been to be that kind of person--to be present, to love openly and unconditionally, to exude joy, to share openly while paying close attention to those around me, to be calm, cool, collected, serene, at peace, and in love with life. I used to think it was to make a lot of money, but it really is not that. And, as I have attracted these teachers and been open to considering, I am finding that I am already these things and have been although I haven't always known what that was or practiced it consistently. Now I find I desire to practice it every single day and as often as I can and it is making a tremendous difference to me. I am so thankful and blessed.

Happiness And Joy Are Abundantly Available To All Who Choose Them In Every Single Moment.  Spread Some Joy Today--by choosing joy yourself. Focus on your joy and others will receive your joy.