A Panda's Journey
“The universe is wider than our views of it.”
— Henry David Thoreau
Some beliefs are good, and some aren’t. How can you know?
If you believe in what you believe because it benefits you the most, then maybe it’s time to begin questioning your beliefs.
And maybe not.
But when you do question yourself or others, here’s a guide from Lao Tzu:
“Trying to understand is like straining through muddy water. Have the patience to wait! Be still and allow the mud to settle.”
Culture wants you to conform.
It wants you to blindly obey.
But you were born to be free.
You were born with a mind to think for yourself.
This is extremely difficult in societies that aggressively attack non-conformists.
“For nonconformity the world whips you with its displeasure.”
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
This choice is yours.
And yes, if you choose to think for yourself you will lose friends. Some family members may disown you. But what you will find in this process is the truth.
You will find genuine support from the few who are living their truths as well.
It is a risk, but it is a risk worth taking, and a risk that might possibly save the world.
“Nature is pleased with simplicity. And nature is no dummy.”
– Isaac Newton
Nature appears to be meditating all the time. It is still. It doesn’t worry about anything yet it accomplishes its task.
“Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.”
– Lao Tzu
We’ve been educated to worry, but what if we didn’t?
What if for at least one day we didn’t worry about anything – like Bob Marley sings.
My challenge for you is for one day this week, think about what it would be like to not worry about anything at all.
Simply live.
“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”
– Leonardo da Vinci
“Do your work, then step back. The only path to serenity.”
– Lao Tzu
There’s no need to expand on this simple yet profound message from Lao Tzu.
Do your work, then step back.
Enjoy the view.
“Amateurs let adversity defeat them. The pro thinks differently. He shows up, he does his work, he keeps on truckin’, no matter what.”
—Steven Pressfield
Think & figure out your dream.
& take action toward it.
Now is the time to Do The Work.
“For though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again, but the wicked stumble when calamity strikes.”
—Proverbs 24:16
You’ve stumbled. You’ve fallen. But you won’t let this keep you down. Not again. Not this time.
You’ve been created on this planet with a purpose. Some people find their purpose & live it out, while others contribute to purpose without knowing.
To find and live your true purpose requires a righteous pursuit. On this path you will fall much more than 7 times, but you will continue to rise and be stronger with each comeback.
You can go through your entire life with your eyes “closed”, or you can open your heart, mind, and soul and find the treasure that it waiting for you.
It’s your choice.
& Rise again.
Everything is happening right Now.
Transformation is happening in this Moment.
Now is where everything happens.
For example, reflect on yesterday. Everything you did yesterday was happening in the moment. The same is true for today.
Everything is literally happening right Now.
What are you doing Now?
We rise.
We fall.
We get back up.
We carry on.
Your fate is what is destined for you specifically.
You are born into this world in the current form you are in, and you have no say in how you are born.
Your life has been written for you.
It seems the practical choice is to love your fate and flow with it. The other choice, like the stoics talked about, is to try to fight your fate – which is like a dog putting it’s hind legs in the dirt trying not to be carried by the cart which is pulling it.
It’s better to let go and flow with life than to resist and be painfully pulled.
Friedrich Nietzsche said:
“My formula for greatness in a human being is amor fati: that one wants nothing to be different, not forward, not backward, not in all eternity. Not merely bear what is necessary, still less conceal it, but love it.”
Your life has been designed for you to live, and for you to love.
It’s better to embrace and love your fate than to resist and be dragged.
MLK jr. had a dream.
John Lennon imagined.
Jesus Christ lived a vision.
& the list goes on…
“Where there is no vision, the people perish.”
—Proverbs 29:18
Not only did the dreams of these greats serve as inspiration, they were necessary building blocks toward the quality of lives we live today as they continue to serve & inspire us to dream & take action toward our dreams.
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho shares the dream.
Eckhart Tolle’s A New Earth shares a vision.
Shakespeare said “Thoughts are but dreams till their effects be tried.”
& Einstein said “Imagination is the preview of life’s coming attractions.”
Your thoughts & ideas — your dreams, hold more power than you think the do.
So what’s your dream?
What do you imagine?
What vision lives within you?
With Ken Thompson 