Where do you find beauty?

I have a mark on my body, right under the left clavicle. It’s from a burn I had when I was 4 years old and very curious about the world and what was boiling inside that pot. I never considered my mark as ugly or beautiful; it is what it is: a part of me. One summer day an old friend, an artist, saw my mark and asked why I didn’t cover it. He found it particularly unsightly. Just a few hours later, another friend, also an artist, looked at it with admiration for its “sensual uniqueness”.

Years later, on a lovely spring day, I was walking in one of my favorite places – Sounion – taking photos of the stunning views and sights. Climbing some rocks to find the perfect spot for the next pic, I saw this persistent tiny flower growing among the rocks and the barren soil. Standing alone, standing strong, with its simplicity and resilience, it caught my eye and admiration, and became the most beautiful thing I had ever seen in this landscape.

“Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder” Plato

Like my mark and the tiny flower, everything and everyone around us can be beautiful or not. We can find and appreciate beauty everywhere and it is rarely about the perfect shape and symmetry. Most of the times, it is about the eyes with which we are looking.

Just remember:

1. We cannot recognize something we do not already have or know its value.
2. All it takes to see the beauty is a loving heart and looking from the soul.

Stop hurting others!

I understand that not everybody can or wants to help others. Do nice things for them, love or support them. Show compassion, consideration, respect. Ok, I get it. 

But one thing everyone can do is NOT hurt others. 

Monday Morning Inspiration: Leap

Scobberlotch (v) to loaf around doing nothing in particular: Monday Morning Inspiration: Leap: 

“If we listened to our intellect we'd never have a love affair. We'd never have a friendship. We'd never go in business because we'd be cynical: "It's gonna go wrong." Or "She's going to hurt me." Or,"I've had a couple of bad love affairs, so therefore ..." 

Well, that's nonsense. You're going to miss life. You've got to jump off the cliff all the time and build your wings on the way down.” 

Ray Bradbury

Inspiration, photo and post of the day by Karen Harrington and scobberlotch.blogspot

Thought of the Day

Song of the Open Road

photo by Gayle Nicholson, https://www.flickr.com/photos/gayle_n/459995677/

AFOOT and light-hearted, I take to the open road,
Healthy, free, the world before me,
The long brown path before me, leading wherever I choose.
Henceforth I ask not good-fortune—I myself am good fortune;
Henceforth I whimper no more, postpone no more, need nothing,
Strong and content, I travel the open road.
The earth—that is sufficient;
I do not want the constellations any nearer;
I know they are very well where they are;
I know they suffice for those who belong to them.
(Still here I carry my old delicious burdens;
I carry them, men and women—I carry them with me wherever I go;
I swear it is impossible for me to get rid of them;
I am fill’d with them, and I will fill them in return.)
2

You road I enter upon and look around! I believe you are not all that is here;

I believe that much unseen is also here. 

Here the profound lesson of reception, neither preference or denial;
The black with his woolly head, the felon, the diseas’d, the illiterate person, are not denied;
The birth, the hasting after the physician, the beggar’s tramp, the drunkard’s stagger, the laughing party of mechanics,
The escaped youth, the rich person’s carriage, the fop, the eloping couple,
The early market-man, the hearse, the moving of furniture into the town, the return back from the town,
They pass—I also pass—anything passes—none can be interdicted;
None but are accepted—none but are dear to me.
3

You air that serves me with breath to speak!

You objects that call from diffusion my meanings, and give them shape!
You light that wraps me and all things in delicate equable showers!
You paths worn in the irregular hollows by the roadsides!
I think you are latent with unseen existences—you are so dear to me.
You flagg’d walks of the cities! you strong curbs at the edges!
You ferries! you planks and posts of wharves! you timber-lined sides! you distant ships!
You rows of houses! you window-pierc’d façades! you roofs!
You porches and entrances! you copings and iron guards!
You windows whose transparent shells might expose so much!
You doors and ascending steps! you arches!
You gray stones of interminable pavements! you trodden crossings!
From all that has been near you, I believe you have imparted to yourselves, and now would impart the same secretly to me;
From the living and the dead I think you have peopled your impassive surfaces, and the spirits thereof would be evident and amicable with me.
4

The earth expanding right hand and left hand,

The picture alive, every part in its best light,
The music falling in where it is wanted, and stopping where it is not wanted,
The cheerful voice of the public road—the gay fresh sentiment of the road.
O highway I travel! O public road! do you say to me, Do not leave me?
Do you say, Venture not? If you leave me, you are lost?
Do you say, I am already prepared—I am well-beaten and undenied—adhere to me?
O public road! I say back, I am not afraid to leave you—yet I love you;
You express me better than I can express myself;
You shall be more to me than my poem.
I think heroic deeds were all conceiv’d in the open air, and all great poems also;
I think I could stop here myself, and do miracles;
(My judgments, thoughts, I henceforth try by the open air, the road;)
I think whatever I shall meet on the road I shall like, and whoever beholds me shall like me;
I think whoever I see must be happy.
5

From this hour, freedom!

From this hour I ordain myself loos’d of limits and imaginary lines,
Going where I list, my own master, total and absolute,
Listening to others, and considering well what they say,
Pausing, searching, receiving, contemplating,
Gently, but with undeniable will, divesting myself of the holds that would hold me.
I inhale great draughts of space;
The east and the west are mine, and the north and the south are mine.
I am larger, better than I thought;
I did not know I held so much goodness.
All seems beautiful to me;
I can repeat over to men and women, You have done such good to me, I would do the same to you.
I will recruit for myself and you as I go;
I will scatter myself among men and women as I go;
I will toss the new gladness and roughness among them;
Whoever denies me, it shall not trouble me;
Whoever accepts me, he or she shall be blessed, and shall bless me.
6

Now if a thousand perfect men were to appear, it would not amaze me;

Now if a thousand beautiful forms of women appear’d, it would not astonish me.
Now I see the secret of the making of the best persons,
It is to grow in the open air, and to eat and sleep with the earth.
Here a great personal deed has room;
A great deed seizes upon the hearts of the whole race of men,
Its effusion of strength and will overwhelms law, and mocks all authority and all argument against it.
Here is the test of wisdom;
Wisdom is not finally tested in schools;
Wisdom cannot be pass’d from one having it, to another not having it;
Wisdom is of the Soul, is not susceptible of proof, is its own proof,
Applies to all stages and objects and qualities, and is content,
Is the certainty of the reality and immortality of things, and the excellence of things;
Something there is in the float of the sight of things that provokes it out of the Soul.
Now I reexamine philosophies and religions,
They may prove well in lecture-rooms, yet not prove at all under the spacious clouds, and along the landscape and flowing currents.
Here is realization;
Here is a man tallied—he realizes here what he has in him;
The past, the future, majesty, love—if they are vacant of you, you are vacant of them.
Only the kernel of every object nourishes;
Where is he who tears off the husks for you and me?
Where is he that undoes stratagems and envelopes for you and me?
Here is adhesiveness—it is not previously fashion’d—it is apropos;
Do you know what it is, as you pass, to be loved by strangers?
Do you know the talk of those turning eye-balls?
7

Here is the efflux of the Soul;

The efflux of the Soul comes from within, through embower’d gates, ever provoking questions:
These yearnings, why are they? These thoughts in the darkness, why are they?
Why are there men and women that while they are nigh me, the sun-light expands my blood?
Why, when they leave me, do my pennants of joy sink flat and lank?
Why are there trees I never walk under, but large and melodious thoughts descend upon me?
(I think they hang there winter and summer on those trees, and always drop fruit as I pass;)
What is it I interchange so suddenly with strangers?
What with some driver, as I ride on the seat by his side?
What with some fisherman, drawing his seine by the shore, as I walk by, and pause?
What gives me to be free to a woman’s or man’s good-will? What gives them to be free to mine?
8

The efflux of the Soul is happiness—here is happiness;

I think it pervades the open air, waiting at all times;
Now it flows unto us—we are rightly charged.
Here rises the fluid and attaching character;
The fluid and attaching character is the freshness and sweetness of man and woman;
(The herbs of the morning sprout no fresher and sweeter every day out of the roots of themselves, than it sprouts fresh and sweet continually out of itself.)
Toward the fluid and attaching character exudes the sweat of the love of young and old;
From it falls distill’d the charm that mocks beauty and attainments;
Toward it heaves the shuddering longing ache of contact.
9

Allons! whoever you are, come travel with me!

Traveling with me, you find what never tires.
The earth never tires;
The earth is rude, silent, incomprehensible at first—Nature is rude and incomprehensible at first;
Be not discouraged—keep on—there are divine things, well envelop’d;
I swear to you there are divine things more beautiful than words can tell.
Allons! we must not stop here!
However sweet these laid-up stores—however convenient this dwelling, we cannot remain here;
However shelter’d this port, and however calm these waters, we must not anchor here;
However welcome the hospitality that surrounds us, we are permitted to receive it but a little while.
10

Allons! the inducements shall be greater;

We will sail pathless and wild seas;
We will go where winds blow, waves dash, and the Yankee clipper speeds by under full sail.
Allons! with power, liberty, the earth, the elements!
Health, defiance, gayety, self-esteem, curiosity;
Allons! from all formules!
From your formules, O bat-eyed and materialistic priests!
The stale cadaver blocks up the passage—the burial waits no longer.
Allons! yet take warning!
He traveling with me needs the best blood, thews, endurance;
None may come to the trial, till he or she bring courage and health.
Come not here if you have already spent the best of yourself;
Only those may come, who come in sweet and determin’d bodies;
No diseas’d person—no rum-drinker or venereal taint is permitted here.
I and mine do not convince by arguments, similes, rhymes;
We convince by our presence.
11

Listen! I will be honest with you;

I do not offer the old smooth prizes, but offer rough new prizes;
These are the days that must happen to you:
You shall not heap up what is call’d riches,
You shall scatter with lavish hand all that you earn or achieve,
You but arrive at the city to which you were destin’d—you hardly settle yourself to satisfaction, before you are call’d by an irresistible call to depart,
You shall be treated to the ironical smiles and mockings of those who remain behind you;
What beckonings of love you receive, you shall only answer with passionate kisses of parting,
You shall not allow the hold of those who spread their reach’d hands toward you.
12

Allons! after the GREAT COMPANIONS! and to belong to them!

They too are on the road! they are the swift and majestic men; they are the greatest women.
Over that which hinder’d them—over that which retarded—passing impediments large or small,
Committers of crimes, committers of many beautiful virtues,
Enjoyers of calms of seas, and storms of seas,
Sailors of many a ship, walkers of many a mile of land,
Habitués of many distant countries, habitués of far-distant dwellings,
Trusters of men and women, observers of cities, solitary toilers,
Pausers and contemplators of tufts, blossoms, shells of the shore,
Dancers at wedding-dances, kissers of brides, tender helpers of children, bearers of children,
Soldiers of revolts, standers by gaping graves, lowerers down of coffins,
Journeyers over consecutive seasons, over the years—the curious years, each emerging from that which preceded it,
Journeyers as with companions, namely, their own diverse phases,
Forth-steppers from the latent unrealized baby-days,
Journeyers gayly with their own youth—Journeyers with their bearded and well-grain’d manhood,
Journeyers with their womanhood, ample, unsurpass’d, content,
Journeyers with their own sublime old age of manhood or womanhood,
Old age, calm, expanded, broad with the haughty breadth of the universe,
Old age, flowing free with the delicious near-by freedom of death.
13

Allons! to that which is endless, as it was beginningless,

To undergo much, tramps of days, rests of nights,
To merge all in the travel they tend to, and the days and nights they tend to,
Again to merge them in the start of superior journeys;
To see nothing anywhere but what you may reach it and pass it,
To conceive no time, however distant, but what you may reach it and pass it,
To look up or down no road but it stretches and waits for you—however long, but it stretches and waits for you;
To see no being, not God’s or any, but you also go thither,
To see no possession but you may possess it—enjoying all without labor or purchase—abstracting the feast, yet not abstracting one particle of it;
To take the best of the farmer’s farm and the rich man’s elegant villa, and the chaste blessings of the well-married couple, and the fruits of orchards and flowers of gardens,
To take to your use out of the compact cities as you pass through,
To carry buildings and streets with you afterward wherever you go,
To gather the minds of men out of their brains as you encounter them—to gather the love out of their hearts,
To take your lovers on the road with you, for all that you leave them behind you,
To know the universe itself as a road—as many roads—as roads for traveling souls.
14

The Soul travels;

The body does not travel as much as the soul;
The body has just as great a work as the soul, and parts away at last for the journeys of the soul.
All parts away for the progress of souls;
All religion, all solid things, arts, governments,—all that was or is apparent upon this globe or any globe, falls into niches and corners before the procession of Souls along the grand roads of the universe.
Of the progress of the souls of men and women along the grand roads of the universe, all other progress is the needed emblem and sustenance.
Forever alive, forever forward,
Stately, solemn, sad, withdrawn, baffled, mad, turbulent, feeble, dissatisfied,
Desperate, proud, fond, sick, accepted by men, rejected by men,
They go! they go! I know that they go, but I know not where they go;
But I know that they go toward the best—toward something great.
15

Allons! whoever you are! come forth!

You must not stay sleeping and dallying there in the house, though you built it, or though it has been built for you.
Allons! out of the dark confinement!
It is useless to protest—I know all, and expose it.
Behold, through you as bad as the rest,
Through the laughter, dancing, dining, supping, of people,
Inside of dresses and ornaments, inside of those wash’d and trimm’d faces,
Behold a secret silent loathing and despair.
No husband, no wife, no friend, trusted to hear the confession;
Another self, a duplicate of every one, skulking and hiding it goes,
Formless and wordless through the streets of the cities, polite and bland in the parlors,
In the cars of rail-roads, in steamboats, in the public assembly,
Home to the houses of men and women, at the table, in the bed-room, everywhere,
Smartly attired, countenance smiling, form upright, death under the breast-bones, hell under the skull-bones,
Under the broadcloth and gloves, under the ribbons and artificial flowers,
Keeping fair with the customs, speaking not a syllable of itself,
Speaking of anything else, but never of itself.
16

Allons! through struggles and wars!

The goal that was named cannot be countermanded.
Have the past struggles succeeded?
What has succeeded? yourself? your nation? nature?
Now understand me well—It is provided in the essence of things, that from any fruition of success, no matter what, shall come forth something to make a greater struggle necessary.
My call is the call of battle—I nourish active rebellion;
He going with me must go well arm’d;
He going with me goes often with spare diet, poverty, angry enemies, desertions.
17

Allons! the road is before us!

It is safe—I have tried it—my own feet have tried it well.
Allons! be not detain’d!
Let the paper remain on the desk unwritten, and the book on the shelf unopen’d!
Let the tools remain in the workshop! let the money remain unearn’d!
Let the school stand! mind not the cry of the teacher!
Let the preacher preach in his pulpit! let the lawyer plead in the court, and the judge expound the law.
Mon enfant! I give you my hand!
I give you my love, more precious than money,
I give you myself, before preaching or law;
Will you give me yourself? will you come travel with me?
Shall we stick by each other as long as we live?

Song of the Open Road

Walt Whitman , Leaves of Grass, 1900

Balancing Tolerance and Boundaries

Daring to set boundaries is about having the courage to love ourselves, even when we risk disappointing others. (Brené Brown) 

Having gone through two very tough years and a few weeks of hell, I had one concern during a business meeting: not losing my tolerance.

Having followed through with all tasks and responsibilities without making any allowances for how I was or what was going on in my life, I feared I might lose tolerance for others and expect them to have no excuses or to push themselves  equally hard. Which seemed to me unfair on them to some extent.

But – there is a ‘but’ here – the question came: what about boundaries? Again, a matter of balance: being tolerant and at the same time keeping boundaries.

It is essential that we keep boundaries – of roles, responsibilities, what is expected and what is accepted – within this tolerance. Otherwise there is an abuse : of patience, of understanding, of compassion, of love.

This week is about the balance between tolerance and boundaries, honoring my values of respect, integrity and fairness.

Getting over the Drama

A couple of weeks ago, I asked a friend to stop me if I start talking about any life dramas. 

“It's not drama”, she said referring to a specific situation. “It's an outrageous situation you are in”, she added. 

It didn't matter. I was very much preoccupied and influenced by Lisa' s latest blog post. And I decided to stop any negative narrative, justified or not. 

Of course we need to be able to express and not repress our stories. bad or good. We need to receive empathy and understanding, or just vent. We need to articulate a situation if our goal is to find a way out. We must learn to express our feelings and emotions and the things that frustrate us. 

So, there must be a reason for us to tell the story and here is my point: why am I sharing this story?

What is the reason I narrate my 'drama'? What is the purpose of telling this story? And how many times do I need to do that?

My request to my friend was very simple: “Next time you hear me talk about this again, stop me and ask these two questions: ‘What can be done?’ and ‘What will you do?’”

I think that in most situations, in most dramas in our life, there is always something that can be done. The question here, in this post, is how we use our story. Does it become our past, an experience, a lesson, something that teaches us how to navigate through it, or does it become who we are and what ultimately defines how we show up in our lives?

The choice is ours.

A Break and Four Lessons

Halfway through July, I had to take a break from blogging.

I was not without inspiration or time. I had at least the same amount of available time as before. I had successfully completed 6 months of my project of daily blogging, I was half-way to my goal, and ideas kept flowing inside my head.

What happened then?

The very important priority of care (for oneself and others) happened. After overcoming the initial guilt of not following through with my commitment – a nightmare for someone who values integrity enormously – I decided to see the opportunity of what this situation was teaching me.

So, after the inspiring lessons of the first 31 days, here are my very useful lessons of a necessary break:

Lesson 1

We can do anything we decide to do.

One of the things we must consider though is the price, the sacrifices. What is the price of a certain commitment? What will we need to let go, neglect, or forget during that time? Is the outcome worth the price? 

Lesson 2 

Commitment and flexibility do not go hand in hand. 

Once we have committed to something we cannot afford flexibility. So before starting, before committing, examine how important flexibility is for you, what kind of flexibility you would like to have, and how you can adjust the commitment. 

Lesson 3

Habits do not last. At least not in my case.

Throughout my life I have had many different habits depending on the place where I was living, the work I was doing, the hobbies I had. None of them lasted. 

After 6 months of the daily habit of blogging, writing had not become an automatic behavior or routine. 

Lesson 4

Make self-care a priority.

It's ok not to do something if this contradicts self-care. In this case, it is not about flexibility, it is about sustainability.

Help Others

Guest blog post by John Economou

“Help others”. This was one of the two pieces of advice that Lattie  F. Coor gave to me and to the rest of the graduates on Dec 13th, 2001 during the Commencement Ceremony at A.S.U. It sounded like the kind of wake up call I needed.

Just like most of you I assume, I've received help from others quite often. While growing up,  whether it was at camp, through playing sports, while in college or at work. Pretty much all the time, now that I think about it. I admit it, it feels good to know 'people have your back'. 

So, there comes a time when you realize that it is your turn to “help others”. Not because you “have to”, but because you want to. Because you know that even doing a small favor for someone else, just might mean the world to him/her. Just like it meant a lot to you when others helped you.

Ιf you acknowledge that people helped you so far in your life, maybe now it is your time to “give back” and start helping others.

Great Hearts

What Is Fear and How to Overcome It

What is Fear? 

An unpleasant emotion caused by the threat of danger, pain, or harm:

1. A feeling of anxiety concerning the outcome of something or the safety of someone;
2. The likelihood of something unwelcome happening;

3. A mixed feeling of dread and reverence.

Fear is a series of reactions in the brain triggered by a stressful stimulus and ending with such physical reactions as tense muscles, rapid heartbeat and rushed breathing. This is the well-known fight, flight or freeze response.

Fear, triggered by the amygdala, is one of nature’s earliest survival mechanisms. During the early beginnings of life, nature developed the amygdalae as special purpose organs in the brain to remember and respond to danger signals.

What was purposed to help us survive, now has become a mechanism that often prevent us from living.

The most common acronym for fear is False Evidence Appearing Real and some of its side effects are:

-  Indecisiveness that results in stagnation

-  Anxiety and stress

-  Resistance to change

-  Lack of self-confidence

-  Life becomes centered on pessimism

-  Errors in judgement

-  Fight, flight, or freeze reactions

-  Doubt

-  Anger

-  Hate

How to overcome fear?

Although we assume it would be hard to break free from fear, it is not.

Here are some ideas and steps to help us overcome fear:

• Acknowledge it. Name the fear, write it down, measure it.
• Get control of your imagination. Visualize yourself in the situation you are dreading, but this time see yourself calm, confident and composed.
• Breathe. Focus on your breath. Take a deep breath and slowly breathe out.

The above will kickstart your thinking brain (neocortex). Once you start with these steps, the next ones will be easier:

• Don’t believe your thoughts. Challenge your assumptions and the false evidences that appear real.
• Make a list of the benefits you or others will get once you face your fear.
• Disengage from the outcome.
• Make a list of your strengths.
• Release control.
• Be comfortable with the unknown, the new, and the uncomfortable.
• Get busy. Focus on what needs to be done, just do it and focus your attention and energy on that.
• Exercise! (Yes, it does have a positive effect on fear too.)
• Expose yourself to your fear(s).
• Replace fear with curiosity and fun.
• Get a coach.

"What is needed, rather than running away or controlling or suppressing or any other resistance, is understanding fear; that means, watch it, learn about it, come directly into contact with it. We are to learn about fear, not how to escape from it." (Jiddu Krishnamurti)