Bevrijding:    een probleem hebben,    maar er geen probleem van maken    dat je een probleem hebt.

 

There is a time when it is necessary 

to abandon the used clothes,

 which already have the shape of our body

 and to forget our paths, 

which takes us always to the same places.

 This is the time to cross the river: 

and if we don't dare to do it, 

we will have stayed, 

forever beneath ourselves.

-   Fernando Pessoa  -

NITCH

 

 

 

K E E P   G O I N G  

 

YOU NEVER KNOW 

WHAT'S AROUND THE CORNER

 

sistercody

If you are looking for a sign to keep going on your journey, please let this be it.

 

 If you are looking for a sign to stay alive, please let this be it.

 

 Life is a wild ride and a lot of times it’s hard to make sense of. 

 

So many things happening all at once, it can feel so overwhelming to just get a grip on reality. 

 

There is so much going on in the outer world, and then just as much going on in the inner world. 

 

It gets confusing at times. It gets dark and scary at times. 

 

Some days we wonder how we can make it another day, but we do. 

And what I’ve noticed in life is that change is always happening

 

 So the more we hold on to a single idea or expectations, the more we will suffer. 

 

Change is a huge part of life. 

 

From the weather, the seasons, our moods, thoughts, even down to the cells that make up our bodies. 

 

All constantly changing.

 

 So if you are going through a hard time, know that it will not last forever. 

 

And know that you are never alone. 

I myself have been feeling the heaviness of change. 

 

Feeling lost at times. 

 

Feeling dissociated. 

 

Feeling numb. 

 

But I see that it is all a part of this journey.

 

 And the more I cling to any certain thing, the more life will drag me around.

 

 I am learning to be graceful with myself and change.

 

 To flow with it. 

 

Remembering that change is also a beautiful thing.

 

 And that without change I wouldn’t be where I am. 

 

So if you are looking for a sign, please let this be it. 

 

You never know what’s right around the corner. 

 

🌻🌞💛

 

 

 Het leven draait niet om een zoektocht naar jezelf.

 Het draait om het creëeren van jezelf.

-George Bernard Shaw-

 

 

R.I.P. K. Schippers

 

 

Addiction is not a choice that anybody makes; 

it’s not a moral failure; 

it’s not an ethical lapse;

 it’s not a weakness of character; 

it’s not a failure of will,

 which is how our society depicts addiction. 

Nor is it an inherited brain disease,

which is how our medical tendency is to see it.

 What it actually is:

 it’s a response to human suffering.

 -Dr. Gabor Maté-

 

 

findingawareness

If we have to sacrifice ourselves in the process of accepting someone, is that really acceptance? Or is it our need for security, simply overpowering our desire for self-preservation?

When we really need the other person to fulfill us, we do anything to keep them near. We bend over backwards and often go overboard in serving their happiness.

What use has acceptance if it brings pain ? What use is it if we lose our dignity or core values? Acceptance is true, only when it brings balance to our mind.

If it brings peace to our relationships, without taking away our peace of mind, that’s acceptance. Otherwise it’s just tolerance.

Tolerance creates conflict. Acceptance ends it.

 

 

 

 Sometimes you get what you want. 

Other times, you get a lesson in patience, timing, alignment, empathy, compassion, faith, perseverance, resilience, humility, trust, meaning, awareness, resistance, purpose, clarity, grief, beauty, and life. 

Either way, you win.

- Brianna Wiest -

For a table to exist, we need wood, a carpenter, time, skillfulness, and many other causes.

 And each of these causes needs other causes to be. 

The wood needs the forest, the sunshine, the rain, and so on. 

The carpenter needs his parents, breakfast, fresh air, and so on. 

And each of those things, in turn, has to be brought about by other conditions.

 If we continue to look in this way, we'll see that nothing has been left out. 

Everything in the cosmos has come together to bring us this table. 

Looking deeply at the sunshine, the leaves of the tree, and the clouds, we can see the table. 

The one can be seen in the all, and the all can be seen in the one.

 

- Thich Nhat Hanh -

 

 

 

 Sometimes when we attempt to listen to another person, we can’t hear them because we haven’t listened to ourselves first. 

Our own strong emotions and thoughts are so loud in our heart and in our head, crying out for our attention, that we can’t hear the other person. 

Before we listen to another, we need to spend time listening to ourselves. 

We can sit with ourselves, come home to ourselves, and listen to what emotions rise up, without judging or interrupting them. 

We can listen to whatever thoughts come up as well, and then let them pass without holding on to them. 

Then, when we’ve spent some time listening to ourselves, we are able to listen to those around us. 

- Thich Nhat Hanh -

 

 

 

Als jouw leven een film was,

wat zou dan de titel zijn?

 

 

 

 

 Death puts things into perspective... 

Do I really want to hold a grudge? 

Is this really worth my time? 

Is this who I want to spend my time with? 

How will I feel looking back on my life when my time comes?

- Tiny Buddha - 

 

 The best way for us to share our practice with our families is through our way of living, not through our words. 

It is possible for us to drive our cars mindfully, enjoying breathing in and out, not letting ourselves be carried away by thinking about the past, the future, and our projects. 

And when we come to a red light, we smile to it as a friend, not as an enemy, because the red light says, “Stop! Go back to your breathing, and enjoy it.” 

Before you open the door when you get home, you might pause and breathe in and out three times and smile, so that when your loved ones see you, you will be more pleasant after a hard day’s work. 

When you make breakfast, you can transform breakfast making into a practice of love and happiness. 

Enjoy every moment of your breakfast making, and the kitchen will become a meditation hall. 

There is peace and calm, and you may invite your partner, your child, to join you. 

Then when you eat breakfast, eat in such a way that peace and freedom are possible. 

When you brush your teeth, can you take those one or two minutes to brush them in freedom and joy?

 And when you sit down and enjoy your tea or coffee after lunch, be peaceful, be free, and enjoy it deeply. 

Be fully present for your tea or coffee. 

It is possible for us to be grounded in the present moment and live each moment deeply with the energy of mindfulness and joy.

- Thich Nhat Hanh -