Posts Tagged: awareness

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15
Jul 10

Forgetting Reminders

I don’t know about you but I forget things… important things.  I get caught up in the routine of life and some of the most important things tend to evaporate from consciousness.  I have not lost them in my heart, just in my head.

“The most important thing,

Is to keep the most important thing,

The most important thing.”

-         Stephen Covey

There are all kinds of important things that if not careful get lost in the side eddies of life not by intent but by default.  The really sad thing about it is that I have placed reminder objects around me to keep these important things front of mind.

But like anything else they become part of the landscape of my life and pretty soon they are lost as they blend into the surroundings.

What brought this topic to mind is that I noticed a nicely framed message that hangs on my office wall.  I hate to admit it but it has been hanging in my office for over ten years and I rarely look at it.

The sad thing is I put it there.  I wrote the message, printed it, and framed it to be a reminder of things I need to remember.  The message in the frame is a list of core philosophies of life for me to live by as I go about my day.

These are key points that I developed for me to help me become better at what I do.  These were not off-the-shelf messages but points that I knew were important.

Here is what I framed. (full disclosure again… uuugh!)

Challenges & Personal Learnings

“Then he said, ‘Take the arrows,’ and the king took them. Elisha told him, ‘Strike the ground.’ He struck it three times and stopped. The man of God was angry with him and said, ‘You should have struck the ground five or six times; then you would have defeated Aram and completely destroyed it. But now you will defeat it only three times.’”                    II Kings 13:18-19

Side Note: This scripture challenged me to be willing to push the limits and not set my expectations low.

  • Be Bold
  • Go against your tendencies
  • Don’t Do – “Just Enough”
  • Abandonment NOT Tentativeness
  • Do the best you can
  • There’s always time to do nice things
  • Be professional and gracious
  • Make it happen but don’t force
  • Above all – “BE FAITHFUL”

It’s humbling to look for the first time again at a framed message that has hung on my wall for over ten years .

These are important messages for me personally.   What have you forgotten that you need to remember?  Look around and I bet you’ll see something you need to be reminded of.

See you Monday.

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10
May 10

The Big Indian

Howdy, back for another thrill filled blog adventure I see.  Well… thrill filled is a bit of an exaggeration. 

It’s probably more along the line of, you didn’t have any thing better to do or you can’t get to sleep and you are looking for a verbal sedative. 

Well, you’ve come to the right place.  I have found in my life that we tend to find what we’re looking for.  For some, this blog will knock you out pronto and to others it could hit that internal sweet spot sending a tingle up and down your leg (I hope Chris Mathews is reading this).

As most of you know I have been on a new personal journey that started January 4, 2010 with my first blog entry.  I have been mentally meandering looking at the joys of life and trying to put into place those things that tend to trap me from experiencing more of life’s amazing gifts.

The journey has been very forward looking but the past couple of blogs I have been looking back.  I discovered a time box from my youth that my mom had assembled before she passed away. 

This is not a morbid retrospective examination of my youth but an amazing blessing of context.  An honest open look at the past periodically is important to do… as long as looking back motivates forward motion. 

So while digging in the box I found all sorts of things that stirred deep stuff… good stuff.

The Birthday Card

Maybe it was me, maybe it is characteristic of youth, who knows… but I really didn’t appreciate things then that I cherish now.  When I say things, I don’t mean tangible stuff.  Frankly we didn’t have much stuff.  I didn’t know it at the time but we were actually pretty poor.  We knew that we couldn’t afford things like other people but it didn’t seem like we were poor.  Mom and dad (especially mom) was good at keeping us from feeling poor.

One thing I absolutely cherished then and now were my Grandma and Grandpa Woods.  This was my mom’s mother (Polly) and her step-father (Frank).  They were full of life, joy, fun, and unconditional love.  I loved my father’s parents but… they were old and acted it.

Side Note:  Mom’s dad, Bennie Palmer, died when she was 8 from a ruptured appendicitis.  She, a younger sister and baby brother and grieving mother were left alone… during the Great Depression in Missouri.

My grandpa Woods came on the scene and filled the void. 

 

Grandpa Woods was full-blooded Cherokee Indian.  Although we were not blood related, we were his grandkids, he absolutely loved us and we him.  He was a short rotund man whos belly bounced when he laughed.  I remember him being a very hard worker. 

Because he was a full-blooded Cherokee he gave all of us kids Indian names.  And he called us by our Indian name.  I honestly believe he did not know what our real names were… seriously.

The Indian names were really cool.  My sister was “Morning Star”, my cousin was “Buffalo”, another cousin “Papoose”. 

But then there was my name.  Well, you might say it didn’t have quite the flare the other names possessed.  (Hold on, hold on, I’ll tell you in a minute)

In the time box I discovered a birthday card from my Grandpa Woods on my first birthday.  Inside he wrote….

          “To little Pumpkin Head Jerry.  From Grandpa Woods”

 

Pumpkin Head!  That may be cute for others but you ought to live with it.  This is especially true as a teenager.  Seriously… when we were in a store or at church he would yell across the room my name.  He did this not to make fun, he did it like anyone would to call someone’s name to get their attention.

Being called “Pumpkin Head” is especially not cool when as a 15 year old you’re talking to a girl… not fun at all!  He called us all by our Indian names into adulthood until he died.

When younger I was embarrassed.  I was concerned about what people would think and that I would look bad.  I’m not different from most folks but it’s pretty sad the focus we place on making sure we look ok to the world around us.

I have a couple of questions for you.  What do you value now that was not important when you were younger?  Is there anything that embarrassed you when you were young but now you see that it is a part of the fabric of your life that makes you who you are?  

I don’t know about you but I sure would like to hear him call me “Pumpkin Head” again. 

Signing off, see you Thursday.

Pumpkin Head

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1
Apr 10

Trick-or-Truth

Hello.  Welcome back.

This blog thing is getting pretty draining.  I think I will give it up.

Psyche!  April Fool’s.

I know, I know… pretty childish.  Just messin with you.  I better not get too spunky, some of you may actually be bummed that I plan to continue to write.  Oh well.  I think it best I move on before I dig this hole any deeper.

In the last blog I started to respond to a comment made by Kathy.  I touched on the topic of Truth.  I mentioned that I believe there is Truth and there are truths.

Note to all of my non-Christ follower friends:  This is a topic that will definitely have some spiritual context.  I am not expecting for you to believe like I do but I do hope that I share some things that may cause you to think.

I would really like to have your thoughts and comments because I am open to have my thinking stirred also.  So please share your perspective.  Once again, don’t worry, I won’t get preachy on you.

Just so you know, I believe that all truth comes from a single source… God.

There are two distinguishing characteristics of Truth that I would like to poke around on for a bit.  They are, Truth Informs and Transforms.  I plan on talking about how Truth Transforms in the next blog on Monday but for today I will tackle Informs.

Honest Confession: I used the word “Informs” because it had a nice ring when partnered with “Transforms”.

Yes it is shallow and self serving but you gotta admit… the words do sound good together (Sort of like Captain and Tannille, Sunny and Cher or Pebbles and Bam Bam).

Although the word “Inform” is somewhat descriptive it is much too mundane and vanilla for the weight and significance it carries.  There is nothing mundane or vanilla about Truth.

What I mean by Informs is that Truth has a way of quietly piercing the clutter to let us know that we are nearing something of substance and significance.  There is a weighty awareness about the situation we’re in or a thought about something we are mulling over that stills us with… “there is something big here that is deserving of my attention.”

I tried to come up with an example but I found it extremely difficult.  I could not articulate anything that even comes close to the point I am trying to make.

It dawned on me that this is the nature of Truth.  You can’t wrap your mind around it in total.  These encounters provide a small pin hole, a glimpse, of Truth.  As you go through life these small pin holes begin to form a picture, a sense of Who and what Truth is all about.

I believe that Truth is constantly being revealed but we are unaware or blind.  One has to be open and ready, expecting something at any time.  This is not a burdensome duty of being on the “look out” but a childlike anticipation and excitement of discovery at any moment.

In our small community we have neighborhood parades on Memorial Day and Labor Day.  About 9:45 in the morning the homes on each street begin sporadically burping up people to make their way to the parade route.

The children are the most fun to watch.  They are animated, alert and fidgety with excitement.  Even before you hear the siren of the lead police car there is a groundswell of energy that clearly announces that something is about to happen.  The kids start leaning out toward the street, stretching their necks and poking their heads over each other to be the first to get a glimpse of the flashing blue light that proclaiming the reality of something special.

This is the way I want to be in looking for Truth.  A childlike excitement and joy.

Truth is amazing.

See you Monday.

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25
Jan 10

Walkie Talkie

Wow… you’re back.  I wasn’t sure I would see you again after the last blog.  Welcome!  As I said in my first entry, I am taking this journey whether anyone joins me or not but its nice having the company.

Enough of the niceties, the mountain is calling, onward and upward.

Have you ever strolled along a secluded wooded path with someone?  There’s something about nature and a leisurely stroll that stimulates the senses, relaxes the mind and most especially opens the heart.  Laughter is free and conversation natural.

There is a subtle joy that seeps in as you slowly walk along with your head bobbing up and down… looking up and around at the beauty and then to the path at your feet to secure your next step.  This cadence with the surroundings does something to and in us.  Our guard tends to be lowered and casual conversation about the trees and beauty seamlessly (almost magically) transforms into dialogue about life.

Our deepest and most meaningful conversations are spontaneous, never contrived.  You cannot force deep interaction.  In fact force undermines the very virtue you seek.

Unfortunately deep meaningful conversations are the all too rare… those times when we feel comfortable enough with someone to expose our deeper self, the self below the obligatory niceties.

Side Note: My hallmarks of a meaningful conversation

  • Natural and fluid vs. forced and formal
  • Both are engaged, not one sided
  • Probing but not pushy
  • Questions but not challenging
  • Varied opinions but not judgmental
  • Focus is on my learning and insight vs. trying to change the other person

By the way, have you ever met someone who felt they needed to set people straight?  For what ever reason they feel it is their calling to let you know where you’re wrong or where you’ve failed.

Strange paradox…  deep conversations are not only for people we know.  The amazing thing to me is some of our deepest conversations are with total strangers.  Why is that?  I have my opinions but I would like yours.

I have had amazing conversations with people on planes.  The small seats, tight quarters and background roar of the engines suddenly disappear and your eyes, mind and focus are fixed.  Sadly, I must confess, many of my deepest conversations have been with people I have just met.

I have two other quick observations.  First, deep conversation is a gift of trust, and secondly they are remarkably intimate.

Hold on… I’m not talking about that kind of intimate.  Where is your mind going?  I’m not that kind of guy… you pervert.

Just kidding, just kidding… anything for a cheap laugh or to get a quick rouse out of someone.

You feeling it in your legs yet?  You know… the muscles begin to tighten as we walk up the mountain.  Thank goodness we’re still on a slight incline.  But the rough climbing is ahead as we begin our ascent.

Later… see you Thursday.

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21
Jan 10

The Big Confession

Hi!  If this is your first visit to my blog… welcome.

This blog is about a rather frightening journey that I have decided to take.  I’d love to have you walk along with me if you wish, but as I said in my first blog entry, this is a journey I must take whether anyone joins me or not.  If you want to know where it all started you probably need to take a look at the first couple of blog entries.

Also, you need to be forewarned.  My journey buddies and I have started walking up this high mountain to get a lay of the land to determine where we want to explore and identify what dragons we want to slay.  Along the way we’re just chatting.

In my last blog I mentioned that I had something to share that may cause some of you to stop walking along with me.

I can assure you of this… somewhere along the journey I will offend you.  Not intentionally, but it will happen.  The question once again, as it will always be, “Is the call (or for some the longing) you have to learn, grow, and explore greater than your immediate irritation or discomfort?”

Okay, here goes… my confession.

What I want to share with you about myself is that I am a Christ follower.  I can hear it now, some of you just said, “Oh SHIT”.

In two sentences I have successfully alienated those who do not follow Christ and most of the ones who do.   I don’t know much about blogs but this is not a great way to build readership.  But once again, this blog is not for you… it’s for me, and what I must do in response to this journey to which I am called.

But before you stop reading, please hear me out.

To the non-Christ follower: I needed to share that I am Christ follower so you will know where I am coming from because it shades my every idea, thought and belief.  If we are going to hang out with each other it must be a transparent relationship.

My agenda is not to make you believe what I believe, think what I think, or love Christ the way I love Christ.  If I have an agenda it is that my blog be a safe place for anyone to explore anything… without pressure.

Just so you know, my last statement really bothered a lot of my Christian friends.  It bothered them because many feel that I should take every opportunity to help you believe in and accept Christ.  Frankly I used to believe that way and most likely I turned more people off than helped.

The reality is, you will believe what you want to believe and no one can make you change.  I don’t know about you but I get really pretty hard headed when I feel pressured to think, believe or act a certain way.

Side Note: I believe in the depths of my being that if a person is a genuine seeker of Truth, they will find it.  The key word is genuine.

I have met many who say they want truth but only explore places they wanted and were not willing to openly look everywhere.  I continue to be a seeker of Truth and this means I have to be open to faulty beliefs I may have and be willing to take an honest look.

I am not here to preach to you.  I promise I will never do that… or make judgments.

Hopefully, I offer an insight or say something that is meaningful to you on your journey in this life.  And if  our journey together helps you see Christ in a new and different way… sweet.

Whether you realize it or not, I believe our paths have crossed for a reason and not by accident.

To the Christ follower: Get the hell over my saying ”Shit”.  Sorry… I just had to say it again.

It may be hard to believe but I am not a curser.  And I really understand why most of you might be offended.  I too would have been very bothered by it a few years ago.

The point I want to make is this…  for me (I am not putting this on you) …for me I love my Lord with all my heart, but was caged by the rules which kept me from a fuller and deeper relationship with Him.  Now I don’t believe that gives me a license to curse like a sailor but I also believe God is bigger than my using the “S” word.

In my time of devotions I pray for sensitivity to the Holy Spirit.  If I felt in the slightest that writing the “S” word was not pleasing to my Lord – I wouldn’t.

I believe that many Christians are trapped in religious thinking and don’t even know it.  This is much too deep of a conversation for now but somewhere on our journey I’m sure it will surface.

But I promise the same thing to you that I promised my non-Christ following friends, I am not here to put anything on you.  I promise I will never do that… or make judgments.

If I offer an insight or say something that is meaningful to you on your journey in this life… wonderful.  And who knows, maybe something will be said that causes both of us to experience Christ in a new way.

And as I said earlier, whether you realize it or not, I believe our paths have crossed for a reason and not by accident.

Hopefully I didn’t scare any of my non-Christ follower friends or scar my Christ follower friends.  Maybe I will see you on Monday.

Ciao

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14
Jan 10

The Voice

Good morning (well… its morning somewhere)

You ready to go?  You’re probably saying, “About time!”  Yep, I agree.  It’s kinda like going on vacation, there’s a lot of prep.  Did you bring your toothbrush?

No it’s not that kind to journey.  It is the kind you do from the comfort of your home.  Pretty cool huh?  Go on an adventure without getting off your butt.   But… (no pun intended) because you are in the safety of your home, this does not mean this journey won’t be challenging, fun, difficult, and hopefully entertaining.

Anyway, my wife wouldn’t want me to go gallivanting off with a bunch of strangers to who knows where (at least without her).

OK… we are now outside the wall that has kept us trapped much too long, the big question is, where to now?  Not back… that’s for certain.

As I sit and type I am literally tilting my head back with my eyes closed.  I feel like someone who is standing outside on a cool morning drinking in the fresh smells and sounds and feeling the soft brush of the wind on the face.

“Where to now?”    Shhhhh….  I am listening for the voice.

Side Note: While I’m enjoying the pause listening, I can almost read your mind….

“What kind of kook is this?  It’s probably some out-of-shape guy sitting in front of the TV in his underwear eating cheese curls and scratching.”  (Sorry for the visual)

Just in case you are wondering…. I’m not eating cheese curls.

But does it matter if I were the fellow I just described?   What does matter is this… if something has been stirring in your core and for some reason you are intrigued about this journey thing…. Will you take the step?   Just small ones will do.  Movement is the key… NOT speed.

OK, back to the voice.

I know… I know… you’re thinking the right medication will help those voices in the head.  But these are voices of the heart and not the head.  If you want to get rid of the voices in your heart all you need to do is ignore them.  They will evaporate pretty quickly… and so does the joy of life.

After listening for a while I still don’t hear anything.  But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t get going.

Let me ask, does getting started without a clear direction or plan bother you?  Is it too loose and open ended for your liking?  When traveling I really like to have a map detailing the course to my destination.  But this is different.

Side Note: There are two types of journeys in life.

There are journeys with a destination and there are journeys of exploration.  You will have both types of journeys but it is imperative that you are clear as to the identity of each because success on either journey requires exactly the opposite process and mindset.

Destination: Has a clear end, defined path, checkpoints and usually a timeline.  The joy is reaching the goal.

Exploration: No clear path or timeline.  Instincts and circumstances determine the path and discovery the end.  The joy is the journey and discovery.

So off we go, I’m not worried going in the wrong direction.  If we should happen to explore the wrong path we’ll know.  We’ll turn around and look elsewhere for the prize.  Cool huh?

Ciao for now.

See you Monday