01
We have to live
as though it matters
how we live our lives.
We can't fritter it away
on exciting pastimes
and frivolous luxuries.
Or on beer
and blackjack.
We owe it to ourselves
to discover the best we are capable of
and bring it forth
in the way we deal
with what the day brings.
We are unique among the species.
No one has what we have.
No one is who we are.
We are better than Jesus in this way.
He may have been cool and special.
We are cool and special.
And the world is waiting
for just what we have to offer.
We can't hold anything back.
We have to live with everything on the line
in each situation as it arises,
not caring what our chances are,
or who is watching,
or if anyone is keeping score,
and bringing our best to bear
on the moment at hand,
no matter what.
02
We cannot go
without meditation,
without silent reflection,
without being quiet.
The difference between living
in Wyoming in 1625,
and in New York or Paris in 2024,
in terms of their silence quotient alone,
is stunning.
We come out of the silence
to here now.
That is a traumatic experience
for our psyche to manage.
We come to our psychological rescue
by returning to the silence
on a regular, dependable, basis.
We have to be quiet
to have a chance
at being who we are,
were we are,
when we are,
how we are,
and doing what is ours to do,
which is what needs to be done,
when/where/how
it needs to be done.
How quiet can you be?
For how long?
How often?
03
To get.
To have.
To be.
The only kind of being
we moderns are interested in are
Being rich.
Being powerful.
Being successful.
The quality of our being alive,
in terms of how we live
and what we live for
(Other than being rich/powerful/successful),
is not something we spend much time with.
How often in the last month, say,
did you sit quietly
and consult your inner self
with "How do you think we are doing?"
"How could we be doing better
in terms of reading the situation as it arises
and responding to what is called for there
in ways appropriate to the occasion,
in service to the true good of all concerned there?"
"In what ways do we need to change
in order to be more like we are needed to be
and less like we are not needed to be?"
"How do we need to be
in order to be who we need to be
in exhibiting our original nature
and our innate virtues/attributes
in each situation as it arises?"
04