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“Just as treasures are uncovered from the earth, so virtue appears from good deeds, and wisdom appears from a pure and peaceful mind. To walk safely through the maze of human life, one needs the light of wisdom and the guidance of virtue.” Gautama Buddha
Inspiration: Ten Things To Consider This Holiday Season... Reflect...
As the holiday season approaches; Hanukkah, Christmas and Kwanza are around the corner for those who celebrate them, and the New Year will come a week later for all of us, it would be wise for us to spend some time in reflection. The end of the year is usually a time when we look back and review our year. Below, the ten things that come to mind are worth considering. I have been reading a number of posts/articles around the internet and sharing some would help explain what I mean.
1. Reflections: What truly matters?
The Top Five Regrets of the Dying By Bronnie Ware via Maria Shriver‘s blog
1. I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.
2. I wish I didn’t work so hard.
3. I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.
4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.
5. I wish that I had let myself be happier.
Brene Brown: The Power Of Vulnerability – video below
2. Reflections: Where would we give more?
During this season of giving, many companies are sharing their good fortune. Google gave $40 million in grants. AOL Mail is helping make a difference in local communities with Giving Good. Help decide which three organizations, from a selection of local non-profits, are most worthy of a $10,000 award or give more to those charities or groups on your existing list.
“If the human race wishes to have a prolonged and indefinite period of material prosperity, they have only got to behave in a peaceful and helpful way toward one another.” Winston Churchill
Inspiration: Ten Things To Consider This Holiday Season... Celebrate lives. RIP Cesária Évora.
We can spend some time remembering those who have passed on and celebrate their work and lives. We can celebrate the lives of others around us; our family and friends, our community, and even strangers who have made a difference in our lives. How are we spending our time? Are we stopping to think about the blessing the gift of life is for us?
Cesaria Evora singing Embarcacao with Kayah
3. Reflections: What and who do we celebrate?
Celebrating the Life of Cesaria Evora: Cesaria Evora, the “Barefoot Diva,” a Grammy-winning singer who was famous for her bluesy “morna” music, passed away today in her native Cape Verde. She was 70. I loved her music and had written about her in one of my African Divas posts. She would be sorely missed… My condolences to her family.
4. Reflections: What have we learned?
Reading the list of 100 top books on Amazon, I was struck by the top ten on the list and it got me thinking about what appeals to us and what we learned this year. How do we get our ideas and information? What have we learned from our explorations this year?
1. Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson, 2. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever by Jeff Kinney, 3. 11/22/63: A Novel by Stephen King, 4. Killing Lincoln: The Shocking Assassination that Changed… by Bill O’Reilly, 5. The Hunger Games Trilogy Boxed Set+ 6. The Hunger Games both by Suzanne Collins, 7. Inheritance (Inheritance Cycle, Book 4) by Christopher Paolini, 8. Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and… by Laura Hillenbrand, 9. Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman, 10. Catching Fire (The Second Book of the Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins. What are we reading? What mind shifting lesson did we learn this year?
“All that is valuable in human society depends upon the opportunity for development accorded the individual.” Albert Einstein
Inspiration: Ten Things To Consider This Holiday Season... Work and change...
Another conversation that has held our attention this year has been the job market. Unemployment figures remain static and, even with projections from the Department of Labor, the fact remains that 14+ million people remain without jobs. How has this affected us or friends and family we know? What are we doing to ensure we remain marketable in our field or a new one?
5. Reflections: How are we preparing for the work world in 2012?
CBS has an article that uses statistics from the Bureau of Labor Statistics‘ Occupational Outlook Handbook 2010-2011, to identify 10 job categories projected to shrink in the coming years, as well as areas of job growth. Will these 10 jobs disappear in 2012?: Judge, Fashion designer, Insurance underwriter, Travel agent, Newspaper reporter, Broadcast announcer, Plant manager, Chemist, Economist, and CEO.
6. Reflections: What adjustments/new skills can we learn?
Conversely, there are areas where demand will remain high or increase. Where are the jobs? Health care; Registered Nurses, Teachers in Higher Education, Accountants, Computer software engineers, Home health aides, Customer Service Rep, Food prep helpers, and Retail salesperson. Are we on board for change? Always more below. 😉
Reflections: In A Perfect World…
“In a perfect world, one we’ve never known, we would never need to face the world alone.” Kovu & Kiara (Lion King 2)
Reflections: In A Perfect World... there would be no need for perfection...
In a perfect world, one we’ve never known,
we would never need to face the world alone,
They can have the world, we’ll create our own,
I may not be brave or strong or smart,
But somewhere in my secret heart…
“The essence of being human is that one does not seek perfection.” George Orwell
“To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often.” Winston Churchill
What would your perfect world look like? Is it idealism that makes us seek perfection? Instead of spending time worrying about perfection, it would be best to get on with living life, managing our flaws, and respecting each other’s imperfections. What prompted my interest in this topic? I’ve been fighting with myself to handle the blog better even as I battle health matters… with shifting schedules and priorities. The perfectionist in me wants all the LEGO bits to fall into place and fit, whilst the realist in me knows that even when the Dominoes tiles fall, one can start over; that is life. We need to stop being so hard on ourselves and on each other. We do the best we can and honor the rest in due time. Perfection is not a requirement for life. True.
♥In a perfect world, having a blog assistant/virtual secretary would be great.
“The thing that is really hard, and really amazing, is giving up on being perfect and beginning the work of becoming yourself.” Anna Quindlen
Reflections: In A Perfect World... Our grass would be perfect & green; just as we are.
I know, love will find a way,
Anywhere I go, I’m whole, If you are there beside me,
Like dark, turning into day,
Somehow we’ll pull through, now that I’ve found you, love will find a way…
“All that attention to the perfect lighting, the perfect this, the perfect that, I find terribly annoying.” Meryl Streep
“The artist who aims at perfection in everything achieves it in nothing.” Eugene Delacroix
If we would stop for a moment and consider the wisdom in Anna Quindlen’s book “Being Perfect,” we might become less inclined to torture ourselves with guilt and just get on with the art of embracing who we are and where we are; quirks, warts, foibles and all… We are perfect as we are and perfectly blessed for who we are. In one part of her book, Anna suggests that we look carefully at how we spend our time and ask ourselves why we make certain choices. The answer she encourages us to have, and we had better believe it honestly and unequivocally, is that our daily choices are made: “Because they are what I want, or wish for. Because they reflect who and what I am. . . .” Is that truly how we face our daily plan of action? If not, why not?
♥In a perfect world, all our actions would be relevant, pure, productive and beneficial for us and others.
“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.” Antoine de Saint Exupery
Reflections: In A Perfect World... the sky would kiss the sea and all would be well...
I was so afraid, now I realize
Love is never wrong, and so it never dies,
There’s a perfect world shining in your eyes,
And if only they could feel it too,
The happiness I feel with you they’d know…
“To practice five things under all circumstances constitutes perfect virtue; these five are gravity, generosity of soul, sincerity, earnestness, and kindness.” Confucius
“To me, every hour of the day and night is an unspeakably perfect miracle.” Walt Whitman
We learn to appreciate the miracle of life more when we have come close to losing it… Good health is a blessed gift, however, when we struggle with ill-health, it teaches us to become compassionate, patient, grateful, and perhaps more forgiving of the reactions and behavior of others. Nature is composed of many perfect parts; on land, sea, air, from plant life to animal and human life, and all thrive in varying degrees of strength and beauty. We depend on each other to sustain our world and keep the chain of life flowing. If we could find ways to practice the five qualities or virtues Confucius mentioned above, it would not only revolutionize our lives but also our perception of the world and all in it.
♥In a perfect world, each of us would practice the five virtues; gravity, generosity of soul, sincerity, earnestness, and kindness. Always more below… 😉
Musings: Living On The Front Line…
“An idealist believes the short run doesn’t count. A cynic believes the long run doesn’t matter. A realist believes that what is done or left undone in the short run determines the long run.” Sydney J. Harris
Musings: Living On The Front Line... Idealism keeps us believing...
Eddy Grant – Living On The Front Line
Living On The Front Line Lyrics via Azlyrics.com
Yeah, oh yeah
Mmm, oh yeah
Mmm, alright
Oh you got me
Living on the front line
Oh you got me mama
Living on the front line
Oh mama
You gonna mourn me in the wrong time
Oh you got me mama
You gonna mourn me on the front line
They got me living on top of my existence
Oh appreciating my resistance Contd…
The Story Of Lovers Rock – Official Trailer adiff.org
Does idealism and naivete walk hand in hand? Perhaps. There was a time in my life when I believed that each of us had to go to the frontline to aggressively defend our beliefs. I still believe we should defend our beliefs, even our idealistic beliefs, but NOT aggressively. There are many other ways to speak truth to power, to do the right thing without acting with aggression. We can use creative, innovative, peaceful approaches on the frontline… even brutally honest words. The music of Eddy Grant echoed it. We can juxtapose it with romantic, soothing words. The story of Lovers Rock echoed it. Without a measure of idealism coupled with action, no one will accomplish a heartfelt dream or take a stand against oppression, against evil, against hypocrisy…
