We are Already Where We Need to Be

By John on January 23, 2011

As human beings we are always trying to get somewhere. Many of us seek some standard of success that we think will bring happiness or validation from the world. Even those of us involved in the personal growth and consciousness process still have the idea that we certainly don’t want to be where we are – we’re trying to get somewhere better. And when we get to that place, everything will be right somehow. Yet, consciousness cannot be found somewhere else; it happens through becoming aware of where we are right now.

Trying to get somewhere else takes us away from appreciating the process. When we begin to enjoy the process itself, we can stop worrying and become completely involved in the fascinating journey that’s unfolding each moment in each day.

Today I am not trying to get somewhere else. I’m focusing on being aware of where I am NOW.

From: Awakening, A Daily Guide to Conscious Living, by Shakti Gawain

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HAPPY NEW YEAR !

By John on December 31, 2010

As we prepare to Celebrate the New Year,

Take time for friends,

They are the source of happiness.

Take time for work,

It is the price of success.

Take time to think,

It is the source of power.

Take time to read,

It is the foundation of knowledge.

Take time to laugh,

It is laughter that helps with life’s loads.

Take time to play,

It is the secret of youth.

Take time to say hello to a stranger,

It broadens your circle of friends.

Take time to love,

It is the one sacrament of life.

Take time to dream,

It hitches the soul to the stars.

Celebrate safely,

Enjoy your holiday.

Looking forward to a Fantastic 2011!

Happy New Year!

John

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I Wish You Enough

By John on December 22, 2010

Enough Joy, that any sadness you experience will be brief.

Enough Friends, that you will always have someone to lean on.

Enough Health, that any illness you have will be slight.

Enough Family, that you will never be alone.

Enough confidence, that you will always stand up for yourself.

Enough Love, that you will always have inner happiness.

Enough Faith, that you will always believe.

Enough Food, to nourish yourself, your family, your friends and someone who is less fortunate.

Enough Sense of Fairness, that you would not prejudice.

Enough Money, to buy what you need, enough left to buy a few things you want, enough to save a little and enough to give away.

Enough Sense of Pride, to accept whom you are.

Enough Compassion, to comfort someone who is suffering.

Enough Inner Strength, to stand up for what you believe.

Enough Work Ethic, to do the best job you can.

Enough Inner Child, to find the joy in play.

Enough Time, to share with an old person.

Enough Forgiveness, of self and others.

Enough of Seeing Yourself in others, that hatred is eliminated.

Enough Patience, to listen.

Enough Warmth, that you are never cold.

Enough Sympathy, to support someone in need.

Enough Self-Respect, that you would not compromise integrity.

Enough Empathy, to feel another’s pain and suffering.

Enough Music, to make your soul dance.

Enough Teacher, to educate a child.

Enough Inspiration, to create a new masterpiece.

Enough Risk, to discover new passions.

Enough Determination, to complete your mission.

Enough Knowledge, to know that you can always learn more.

Enough Kindness, to befriend the friendless.

Enough Heart, to make an impact.

Enough Gifts, to make a positive, lasting impression on someone’s life.

Enough Dreams, to dream.

Enough Wisdom, to see the beauty in Everything and Everyone.

I Wish You Enough.

John Slimp- Author

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Can the Season be 52 Weeks?

By John on December 21, 2010

Isabel Van Heerden posted this on Facebook: What we are today is result of our own past actions. Whatever we wish to be in future depends on our present actions; decide how you have to act now. We are responsible for what we are, whatever we wish ourselves to be. We have the power to make ourselves.

This statement ties in with the movie I watched last night for about the 30th time, Scrooge.

If you were visited by the Ghost of Christmas Past, would you be proud of what he showed you or embarrassed? Would you openly claim your past actions or try to deny them?

If you were visited by the Ghost of Christmas Present would you say ‘that’s me and I am a fair, accepting and honest person’?

If you were visited by the Ghost of Christmas to come, would you look with joy upon what you were shown? Would you be happy with the person you are yet to become?

We cannot change what has been, we can only work on what will be.

I wonder what it is about this time of year that makes people seem, well, nicer.

Maybe it’s a resurrection in people’s religious beliefs, maybe it’s a belief in Santa or maybe it’s the cold and all the snow. Whatever it is, I must say I like it.  People really do seem to be nicer. They smile at strangers on the street, they send cards to friends, family and almost lost relationships, they put change in a bucket outside of stores, and they have parties and sing songs, make charitable donations and buy gifts for a lot of various people. They put aside their differences and just seem more accepting.

But why, why now, why this time of the year and why ONLY this time of the year? I am happy and grateful but I have to ask “Why just these two weeks? What about the other 50 weeks in the year?”  What do we have to do as a ‘people’ to get this magical Season to last all year?

Perhaps everyone has seen Scrooge this time of year and it serves as a wakeup call to us. Maybe we don’t want to arrive at the place we are currently headed. Maybe we want to change our behaviors so that our future reflects what we want it to be.

Perhaps we should watch the movie Scrooge more often.

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A Letter to Santa Claus

By John on December 20, 2010

We’ll start with “A Letter to Santa Claus” originally intended for a girl to give as a school recitation at a Christmas programme.  It is taken from The American Speaker and Writer, circa 1908.  We find it both charming and thought-provoking, and hope you will, too.


A Letter to Santa Claus

Blessed old Santa Claus! King of delights!
What are you doing these long winter nights?
Filling your budgets with trinkets and toys -
Wonderful gifts for the girls and the boys?
While you are planning for everything nice,
Pray let me give you a bit of advice.

Don’t take it hard, if I say in your ear,
Santa, I think you were partial last year;
Loading the rich folks with everything gay,
Snubbing the poor ones who came in your way:
Now, of all times in the year, I am sure,
This is the time to remember the poor.

Little red hands that are aching with cold,
You should have mittens your fingers to hold;
Poor little feet, with your frost-bitten toes,
You should be clothed in the warmest of hose.
On the dark hearth I would kindle a light,
Till the sad faces were happy and bright.

Don’t you think, Santa, if all your life through,
Some one had always been caring for you,
Watching to guard you by night and by day,
Giving you gifts you could never repay,
Sometimes, at least, you would sigh to recall
How many children have nothing at all?

Safe in your own quiet chamber at night,
Cozy and warm in your blankets so white,
Wouldn’t you think of the shivering forms
Out in the cold and the wind and the storms?
Wouldn’t you think of the babies who cry,
Pining in hunger and cold till they die?

Blessed old Nick!  I was sure, if you knew it,
You would remember, and certainly do it;
This year, at least, when you open your pack,
Pray give a portion to all who may lack;
Then if you chance to have anything over,
Bring a small gift to your friend – Kitty Clover.

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Not Everyone Can Walk, See, Hear or Talk.

By John on July 29, 2010

Not everyone can Walk

See

Hear

or Talk.

It is amazing how Far they can go,

how much Vision they have with no sight

how much they  Listen to

and how well they  Communicate.

Maybe those of us who can Walk

See

Hear

and Talk

should pay more attention to

whom we are Walking ON,

how we Look at people and situations

what and who we Listen to

and how we talk About others.

What do you think?

– John Slimp

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The Pursuit of Happiness

By John on June 1, 2010

Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room. One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour a day to drain the fluids from his lungs. His bed was next to the room’s only window. The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back.

The men talked for hours on end. They spoke of their wives and   families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, where they had been on vacation. And every afternoon when the man in the bed next to the window could sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could see outside the window.

The man in the other bed would live for those one-hour periods where his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color of the outside world. The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake, the man had said. Ducks and swans played on the water while children sailed their model boats. Lovers walked arm in arm amid flowers of every color of the rainbow. Grand old trees graced the landscape, and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance. As the man by the window described all this in exquisite detail, the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine the picturesque scene.

One warm afternoon the man by the window described a parade passing by.  Although the other man could not hear the band, he could see it in his mind’s eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive words. Unexpectedly, an alien thought entered his head: Why should he have all the pleasure of seeing everything while I never get to see anything? It didn’t seem fair. As the thought fermented, the man felt ashamed at first. But as the days passed and he missed seeing more sights, his envy eroded into resentment and soon turned him sour. He began to brood and found himself unable to sleep. He should be by that window – and that thought now controlled his life.

Late one night, as he lay staring at the ceiling, the man by the window began to cough. He was choking on the fluid in his lungs. The other man watched in the dimly lit room as the struggling man by the window groped for the button to call for help. Listening from across the room, he never moved, never pushed his own button which would have brought the nurse running. In less than five minutes, the coughing and choking stopped, along with the sound of breathing. Now, there was only silence–deathly silence.

The following morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths. When she found the lifeless body of the man by the window, she was saddened and called the hospital attendant to take it away–no words, no fuss. As soon as it seemed appropriate, the man asked if he could be moved next to the window. The nurse was happy to make the switch and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone.

Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his   first look. Finally, he would have the joy of seeing it all himself. He strained to slowly turn to look out the window beside the bed.

It faced a blank wall.

Moral of the story:

The pursuit of happiness is a matter of choice…it is a positive attitude we consciously choose to express. It is not a gift that gets delivered to our doorstep each morning, nor does it come through the window. And I am certain that our circumstances are just a small part of what makes us joyful. If we wait for them to get just right, we will never find lasting joy.

The pursuit of happiness is an inward journey. Our minds are like programs, awaiting the code that will determine behaviors; like bank vaults awaiting our deposits. If we regularly deposit positive, encouraging, and uplifting thoughts, if we continue to bite our lips just before we begin to grumble and complain, if we shoot down that seemingly harmless negative thought as it germinates, we will find that there is much to rejoice about.

What will your attitude be this week?

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Courage

By John on May 20, 2010

If you think about the entire existence of the Universe, your life span could be compared to lighting a candle and immediately blowing it out. In other words, life is short – very short. Missing out on any of the joys life offers is a tragedy.

If your life is being controlled by your fears, you are most certainly cheating yourself, as well as those around you. If you are controlled by your fears you are not open to share your greatness with others and this is denying them the opportunity to learn from you.

You have muscles and you exercise to keep them strong and healthy. They say the heart is the largest muscle we have. I suppose it is probably the largest physical muscle, but Courage is the mental muscle that conquers fear. Like all muscles, the more you use them the stronger they become. Courage is not something you are born with, it must be developed.

No one wants to be in prison but individuals who fail to develop courage, remain confined in mental prisons and face each day as mental lightweights.

It has been said if you face the thing you fear, fear leaves you.

I used to believe that courageous individuals had no fear. Now I realize that everyone has fear, it’s just that courageous people understand the importance of facing their fears and taming them like a wild jungle cat. Eddie Rickenbacker put it very well when he said, “There is no courage without fear.” We all have fear; however, not everyone becomes subservient to their fears.

There is, very likely, something you have wanted to do for years – move to another city, start your own business, apply for that better position, go after the big account, ask someone to marry you, buy a house, start a family. Whatever it is you should do it. Remember, life is not a dress rehearsal. This is it. Curtain up, show time! A little courage leads to more courage; it’s like a snowball rolling downhill.

Observe those poor souls who are without courage. They merely tiptoe through life hoping they make it safely to death.

You and I were never meant to live that way. Learn to live the way you like by no longer living as you dislike.

What will you do today to attack the remainder of your day with an abundance of courage?

That’s living!

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Mediocrity

By John on May 10, 2010

Any time you tolerate mediocrity in others, it increases your mediocrity.

An important attribute in successful people is their impatience with mediocrity, negative thinking and negative acting people.

Do not accept mediocrity from others and especially not from yourself. Do not tolerate negative thoughts or actions.

Before you start telling everyone how much you know, start by being an example and showing them how much you care about them.

People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.

Be the example of positive behavior that you want to see and that you expect from others.

Make what you do today important.

After all, you are exchanging a day of your life for it.

What will you do today that will be important and make a positive change in someone’s life?

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Clap and Cheer!

By John on May 6, 2010

A small boy was auditioning with his classmates for a school play.

His mother knew that he’d set his heart on being in the play – just like all the other children hoped too – and she feared how he would react if he was not chosen. On the day the parts were awarded, the little boy’s mother went to the school gates to collect her son.

The little lad rushed up to her, eyes shining with pride and excitement. “Guess what Mum,” he shouted, and then said the words that provide a lesson to us all,

“I’ve been chosen to clap and cheer.”

What a wonderful Outlook!

What attitude will YOU choose today?

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