Monday, August 29, 2011

Thoughts Are Things


I hold it true that thoughts are things;
They're endowed with bodies and breath and wings;
And that we send them forth to fill
The world with good results, or ill.
That which we call our secret thought
Speeds forth to earth's remotest spot,
Leaving its blessings or its woes
Like tracks behind it as it goes.
We build our future thought by thought,
For good or ill, yet know it not.
Yet, so the universe was wrought.
Thought is another name for fate;
Choose, then, thy destiny and wait,
For love brings love and hate brings hate.

~Henry Van Dyke

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Peace


Peace Prayer

Peace.
So many individuals (dare I say ALL?) desire peace in their lives above and beyond all other things. I notice that people cannot seem to find comfort in the natural ebb and flow of life.
When things are good people are happy. When things are not so good people become unhappy. You can not have good without the bad. You cannot have true peace without chaos.
Chaos will always inevitably find it's way into your life; therefore, peace must come from within.
Undisturbed by circumstances going on around you.
People need to stop thinking things like:
"Why can't everything just be peaceful."
And change their thoughts to:
"I am at peace with everything."

I could compare peace to a river.
A river ever flowing in the same serene scene.
Although it always looks smooth and tranquil from the surface, the water below is constantly having to valiantly push it's way through the earth to get to where it's going. It has to run over boulders and bushes and deal with animals that traipse through it.
And yet, it remains determined. Uninterrupted in it's flow.
Peaceful.





Ten signs and symptoms of Inner Peace:
  • A tendency to think and act spontaneously rather than on fears based on past experiences
  • An unmistakable ability to enjoy each moment
  • A loss of interest in judging other people
  • A loss of interest in interpreting the actions of others
  • A loss of interest in conflict
  • A loss of the ability to worry
  • Frequent overwhelming episodes of appreciation
  • Contented feelings of connectedness with others and nature
  • Frequent attacks of smiling
  • An increased susceptibility to the love extended by others as well as the uncontrollable urge to extend it
~ Peace Pilgrim