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MINE ENEMIES
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I must not demonize my enemies
Because that would make them demons
But they are not demons
They are like me
They are learning on the job, making rookie mistakes
Feeling kind of blah, getting flustered when rushed
Knowing that they have the condition of humanness
I know they have a dark side just like I do
I know what to expect and what can never be
Actually, I feel a tad sorry for them
Yet, I will not let them annoy me, I have better things to do.
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SELF TO SELF
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When I was talking to myself inside my head
While I was making the bed
I used the word "daren't"
And myself was surprised and impressed with myself
If that is even possible
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ONE STEP AT A TIME
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When we walk for exercise, we discover
There are many types of walking
Worry upset walking is how I began walking for exercise
Walking calmed me down, made space between me
And what was perplexing me
Gradually I added Mantra walking
Repeating a helpful phrase over and over
Philosophy walking when I mull over the weighty issues
We all grapple with occasionally
Or in my case, daily
Wrapping-My-Head around it walking
Where I am just beginning to cope
Counting Steps walking when I just don't want any thoughts at all
Imagination walking where I am anywhere my dream mind conjures up
London with Sherlock Holmes, The Silk Road, The Orient Express, Mars
Mindful walking where I coordinate my steps to my breath
Therapeutic walking where me and my Tulpa walk together
Chatting amiably about diverse topics
My favorite is Zen Walking where I simply walk, not thinking
Just experiencing the walking
This often turns into a forest of calm and retreat
To refresh my soul and spirit
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GROWTH, INTERRUPTED
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Here's one reason to avoid vice
To leave wickedness alone
Because those that are vice hardened
Are gradually turned to stone
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Feelings become rocks to throw
Tenderness solidifies into dust
The life of vice is petrified
Iron ore turned to rust
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THANKSGIVING 2024
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I am grateful for my friends on Facebook
We are the citizens of a mythical land
Where there are others a lot like me
We help each other understand
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Life is so unpredictably stormy
But with you I have found a port
Piling up philosophy blankets and pillows
Together in our intellectual fort
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We don't know what the future will bring
Whatever it is, we'll get through
My Dumbo's feather of confidence
Is me being stronger with you
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THE PROCESS
His mother yelled at him after school
Because he STILL hadn't cleaned his room
Every time he was told to get to it
He always answered "Soon"
But this time his mom had it
She said this is where my reminders end
If your room is not clean by Saturday
You can't go out with your friends
Oh he was so angry and resentful
That, on his way to school
He spray painted swear words on the children's slide
And cursed his Mom for a fool
He couldn't process his feelings
Or understand the need for discipline
He just acted out in destructive ways
Thinking he's getting even
With time and more maturity
His ability to process his feelings grew
Until he no longer had a meltdown
Cooperation is the path he will choose
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DRIFTDAY
Some days we feel decisive and bold
Some days we are discombobulated
On those days we put most things on "hold"
Thinking is so over rated
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Timing is very important
We know when the time is not now
We might need to take more readings
Before we can go with the flow
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Today we don't have to decide
Or finalize our plans
We can sit back and let it ride
Until the answer falls into our hands
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BEFORE WE GOT HERE
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When we start to feel bad about humans
And all the problems they cause
There is one bright fact I can point to
We didn't kill off the dinosaurs
We didn't hunt them
We didn't eat them
We didn't ruin their habitat
When I shake my head at human folly
I can always think about that.
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A HISTORY OF MYSTERY
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What happens after we die?
Do we float up into the sky?
Does my personality dissolve like mist?
What happens after all of this?
Well, I don't rightly know
From a really long time ago
People have guessed and invented
The many possibilities that are presented
Some are scary and bad
They make us fearful and sad
So my very best advice
Is to go with something nice
Whatever would be a comfort
Since it's yours, it will be a good fit
A heaven that cures all our woes
A place where everyone knows
How to peacefully exist
Amid glowing clouds of bliss
So pick your heaven, it's free
It's whatever you want it to be
In the absence of anyone knowing
A magical forest is where I'm going
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MORNING ROUTINE
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Bathe yourself in moonlight
Wash your hair with stars
Brush your teeth with sunlight
But get dressed on Mars
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PRAYER WORKS
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Prayer works, but perhaps not in the way one might think
It is possible the prayer travels to the one prayed for
Like an invisible helper or healer, possibly possibly
But it definitely works on the one who prays
Softening the hard places within
Moving mountains of stony feeling
The mountain in our path, the pebble in our shoe
Making a clear path forward to the Place of Peace
Where the slavering beasts of hurt, anger, fear, resentment
Must stay outside the platinum gates of the City of Mind
Where we can peacefully go about our business
Where the stream of life flows past flowered shores
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ALL FREE
Dawn flowed in while the moon was bright
Thus did the day embrace the night
They cooperate perfectly
The laws of nature working right
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I don't take it for granted the sun will rise
Dawn is a joy to me
Every day a precious gift
Compliments of the Galaxy
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MIRAGE
A heart as tender as moonlight
Can be turned to chilly stone
By the Medusa of lies and trickery
When fluttering trust has flown
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Thus we get older and wiser
All that glitters is not gold
Yet while we develop discernment
We remain upright brave and bold
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Discernment and encouragement
Guard our moonlit way
Warning us - don't follow a mirage too far
Until things are as clear as day
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GO ASK ALICE
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Imagine brave Alice, a remarkable girl
Who suddenly found herself in a very strange world
The up was down, the good was bad
It was the weirdest experience
She ever had.
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In this new world, nothing made sense
The bizarre circumstances made Alice tense
Nothing familiar, nothing she could understand
Suddenly she was thrust into this very strange land
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All the characters that she met were very odd
She couldn't trust them or follow their lead
This is when Alice's clever mind
Developed a strategy, yes indeed
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She would make her own way through the Tulgey Wood
While a grinning cat gave her advice
She would find her way out as soon as she could
Because some Wonderland creatures aren't nice
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Stay on the path, trust in yourself
Gather a few allies
Because suddenly falling into a hole
Is bound to make one wise
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FOCUS
Each living thing fights for survival
Nature has equipped each one
With ways and means to make it
But when all is said and done
Life marches on regardless
Time flows by right under our feet
Events are set in motion
It is up to each one to succeed
While history swirls around us
Filling many thick books on the shelf
The most vital concern at the moment
Is that you take good care of yourself
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A PUFF OF SMOKE
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When an unexpected expense comes up
And someone immediately covers it
We know they must have a nest egg of some kind
They can draw from to cover the bills
The same thing applies to anger
When something relatively minor occurs
The one on slow simmer immediately flies off the handle
We can know they have a cauldera of anger within them
Boiling, barely contained, ready to erupt, dangerous
They can become angry with anyone at any time
Judging the world as worthy of their outrage
Furious with this or that, fuming and spluttering
Until the lava of accumulated anger cools
Until they realize they are a majestic mountain
Not a lethal hazard to everyone in their vicinity
These volcanoes must be avoided, circumvented, shunned
Until the renewal of personal growth gets them past this era
And in this period of dormancy flowers can grow
The anger now extinct except for the occasional puff
Of smoke, rising to join the clouds
Until it dissipates into the endless blue forgiving sky
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LINEAR
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First it is hot, then it is cold
First we are young, then we are old
First we are ore, then we are gold
At least that's the way the story is told
Yet there are surprises
In how things unfold
And today is a brand-new day
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NONPREDICTABLE
Will there be a monster in my closet a few months from now?
Maybe, or maybe not
I am not going to begin shaking with fear from this minute
Over the monster I imagine might be in my closet
In the future
My schedule today needn't change because of the possible monster
I will wait and see what happens with interest
In an abundance of caution I will remember to close the closet door
At night, and keep my monster chasing kit at the ready
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NO CRYING IN SCRYING
I can't foretell the future
Even though I have a crystal ball
I can make educated guesses
But that is about all
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Therefore, I don't make predictions
About what I think might be
I'll do my best to handle NOW
That's quite enough for me
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THE EARTHLING AWAKES
The glorious sun shines on Earth
Just like every dawn since our birth
We will make this day count
Get whatever amount
Of the things we know have value and worth
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BRING A CUP
When a gruesome or troubling event occurs
People instinctively protect children from the sight
They cover the child's eyes or use their larger adult bodies
To block the view
The child is picked up and whisked away
To a calmer and more pleasant place
Why do grown ups do this?
They know to protect the child's tender mind
From frightening troubling images
That might scar the mind of the innocent child
This urge to protect the mind can apply to adults too
We can protect our minds from disturbing troubling news
From being buried under an avalanche of hopelessness and futility
We can turn our attention to the beautiful, the enriching
To the higher, nobler realms we aspire to ascend
Where joy, hope, comfort and kindness
Flow like a steady stream to those thirsty for goodness and peace.
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GOVERNED
I am ruled by many things
The laws of the land, nature, physics
I am ruled by genetics, my disposition
Inner moral compass, lucky star
One thing I will not be ruled by is fear
Just over the next hill there is an ocean of fear
Filled with the monsters of our imagination
We don't have to go there
We can head towards faith instead
Have faith in the path of history
Gradually history reveals a slow gain in improvement
As we understand improvement at the time
I have faith in the human striving for improvement
The very human trait of dissatisfaction that says
Things could be better and if they are not better
We will make them better
Despite missteps, losses, lapses in judgement
Bad habits, existential rage
Humanity has taken wrong turns but we are still on the way
To the greater good, the land of reason
The goodness we all hope for with
Every breath, every heartbeat, every dawn.
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STAR BRIGHT
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If you study history
It clears up the mystery
Of why things are the way they are
Yet the common denominator
Is the hope that now, or later
We have peace while wishing on a star
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JUSTIN CASE
I was looking at my wardrobe
Asking myself "Are you ever going to wear this?"
About each item hanging there
I thought "Ever is a looong time, and life can take many unexpected
Twists and turns. I better hang on to this just in case."
So I am keeping my silly Christmas sweater, the Patriots tee shirt
My SpongeBob pajamas, patient gown, Hazmat gear, prom dress
Spiked battle jacket, frilly apron, ninja leotard, invisibility cloak
Bullet proof vest, space suit, and Vampire Hunting Outfit
Because one never knows, do one?
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HIGH DEFINITION
Politeness begets politeness
Calm reason lowers the level of chaos
If it does not
The polite calm one is a clear and obvious contrast
To the rude lout on the other side of what could have been
A reasonable and perhaps beneficial interpersonal transaction
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CUP OF HAPPINESS
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Becoming miserable by trying to become happy
Is like pouring water over your head trying to become dry
Instead -
The search could just be a straight beeline towards the golden flower
Of Happiness
Which might be quite different than what one imagines
Imagined happiness might require a lot of things our egos flash
Before our eyes
But real happiness might be something completely different
It might be noticing a ray of sunlight on a red fall leaf
It might be that first restoring sip of tea
Happiness is not restricted to only certain people
With certain things, no, happiness is often just a matter
Of removing the obstacles to happiness, like wrong thinking
Wrong choices, or being in the wrong place
Happiness is something that happens to the mind
At peace with itself, to the body that is well treated
To the gumption that does what it can, where it can
To be kind and mindful to others and ourselves
Happiness is not a complex maze of accomplishments and gain
It is just the natural state of our inner children who want to play
Running through a field of flowers, holding the golden flowers of happiness
That most sought-after prize, in our hands.
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CHOREOGRAPHY
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I feel as if I am one united being
Mind, body, personality all seem to be one indivisible creature
This is actually not true, I am endlessly divisible
Right down to the electrons in the atoms of my 37.2 trillion cells
The tiny electrical storms in my brain, the hope I carry in my heart
Looked at one way I am one whole entity
But I am also many things working together in harmony
A Mystery run by Command Central which oversees the indivisible invisible.
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