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Wasting what we don’t know
“Pollution is nothing but the resources we are not harvesting. We allow them to disperse because we’ve been ignorant of their value.” ~ R. Buckminster Fuller
I found this quote on the facebook page of my friend and former co-worker, Ryan Brack. If our ignorance of what to do with our resources is positively correlated with the amount we waste, then we have a lot to learn.
Why now? Why here? Why not!
The most common question asked of me (and most foreigners to Taiwan) is “Why did you come here?” Indeed, this is the question many people ask whenever one decides to leave a familiar place to explore something foreign. My answers have varied from ” I followed a boy here,” to “I wanted a change,” to “I wanted to make some money to pay off loans” to “I don’t know.” The 3rd is the most authentic, and the most accurate while the others have all just been rationalizations, excuses, qualifiers. Rationals are so very important aren’t they? We need them more than sex, more than food. We can live a day without food or sex, but we probably couldn’t do a day without a rationale. I’m pretty sure I read that in a book, the title of which I have forgotten.
And so I just love the arts for allowing and requiring me to shut down the left brain buzz of analysis and rationalizations.
These words of G.B. Shaw are validating for me when I feel the unnecessary pressures of finding a good enough reason to begin or to end an exploration.
This is the true joy in life, the being used for a
purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the
being thoroughly worn out before you are thrown on the
scrap heap; the being a force of nature instead of a
feverish selfish little clod of ailments and
grievances complaining that the world will not devote
itself to making you happy. George Bernard Shaw
When I decided to go to Spain to walk the Camino de Santiago, it was something similar. I simply felt joyful to embark on a unique and challenging adventure. The purpose to live playfully, curious about the world and its people, helps me to learn about myself and grow. The accomplishments I most highly regard of my experiences so far, have not been those that promised prestige, stability or wealth (on the contrary, they’ve been at the expense of these somtimes); they have been experiences that I opened myself to because I felt drawn to them.
I’ve always felt that my privilege of being a Filipino-Canadian immigrant meant that I must live my life to the fullest joy possible, or my parents’ sacrifice and dedication to my upbringing and the lives of people who died in the name of “freedom” would have been in vein. They fought for the the options I now have, and although sometimes the scope of them can be paralyzing when making decisions, they are leading me down some incredibly fascinating pathways.
We are living on borrowed time and borrowed soil, with boundless opportunities to create and experience Joy and Love. I can’t think of a reason why I shouldn’t have come.
As my friend Yuta put it, “The world rotates at more than 14,000 miles per hour. We should do our best to keep up.”
It is the search that brought me into this world, it is what keeps me here, and it is what will lead me home to Creator.
“Ask and It Is Given”
The title of the book I just started reading. It was knocked off the shelf by the kitten that I’m minding while I housesit. It’s quite powerful! If you ever see the title or would like to access spiritual guidance in clear language, I recommend looking it up. Authorship on it is uniquely defined (you’ll see what I mean if you read the introduction) but the title of it should come up in a search. Also try Jerry and Esther Hicks. It has a foreward note by Dr. Wayne W. Dyer who wrote The Power of Intention.
What shall you ask for this Christmas? What shall you give? Questions I ask each year and although each year begins with satisfying the expectations of buying ‘things’ as gifts for family and friends, I have the distinct challenge and blessing of not having the resources to give in that way this year. So how shall I gift this year?
Well, to start, I’ve taken care of myself in way so that others need not worry about my well-being. The gift of “peace of mind” that your friend, your sister, your daughter, your colleague, Janice, is not out on the street on Christmas. Moreover, she is in fact happy, even though she isn’t sharing the holidays in Canada.
The other gift is this quote from this book that, honest to goodness, I “coincidentally” or “randomly” opened up to :
Your Greatest Gift to Give Is Your Happiness
The greatest gift that you could ever give to another is your own happiness, for when you are in a state of joy, happiness, or appreciation, you are fully connected to the Stream of pure, positive Source Energy that is truly who you-are. And when you are in that state of connection, anything or anyone that you are holding as your object of attention benefits from your attention.
I shall hold you in my happiness this Christmas Eve. And if you don’t observe Christmas, let it be that on Dec. 24th, I’ll send you love and happiness for no apparent labelled reason.
The other gift I give to to tell all my family and friends that I have already received your gifts. Send nothing but your expressions of happiness that you are ALIVE. It’s a big thing to ask for so if you can’t make it happen, I’ll understand.
And this is my favourite so far from this book:
If your goal is to, finally, once and for all, achieve all that you desire, you will find yourself unable to ever fulfill that goal, for the expanding nature of this Universe defies that idea….out of your awareness will always be born another asking, and each asking always summons another answering. Your eternal nature is one of expansion - and in that expansion is the potential for unspeakable joy.
A big sigh of relief for the perfectionist and overachiever who does in order to check the “to do’s” off the list. It is an encouraging reminder to me that I will never get where I am going, so I’d better enjoy the journey; because where I’m going is where I AM.
A thought for the New Year
