being peace

i have decided i enjoy more

living with a positive attitude

however realistic such optimism may prove

as part of my consciousness practice

negativity doesn't serve me

no matter how realistic

-----

so last night i prayed simply

for the first time in a while

it felt very good

i had felt at the end of my rope

for a few days

stressed over the world

and personal matters

with a jackal attached

i slept well

and woke refreshed

for the first time in days

maybe weeks

----

sleep is important

so is proactivity

there is a subtle Universal law

that moves around sometimes

which states unambiguously

that the state of my consciousness matters

as do my choices

(despite all programming to the contrary)

in determining what is created

on this Earth

-----

i found this space of consciousness today

enhanced by momentarily losing it

yet having committed to a meditation

whereby I was going to remain conscious

I was able to reconnect again

in the next breath

-----

consciousness for me along with this meditation

also calls for observing the reality "out there"

and therein lies both koan and solution

twice today while riding my bike

make that three times

and once after arriving at the cafe

i felt an adrenalinized reaction to others' behaviors

an anger at what i was projecting was others'

unconscious aggression

one of the times

i heard a jackally label

enunciating itself under my breath

toward a car driver

-----

somehow i remembered

to move on to the next breath

and thought

it could well be a kinesthetic sensitivity

to the shift in my sense of well being

that woke up my desire to choose

the next breath

or prayer energy

or the grace of empathy practice

all of which are related

-----

I simply remembered

that essential lesson of proactivity:

I am in charge of how I respond to the world!

I may be bone tired

but as long as I am alive

and possibly beyond that

I have a say

I have this moment

to awaken

-----

with the choice

to return to consciousness

a lightness came over me

and I was able to immediately

see things differently:

oh - this and this happened

and i don't need to take it personally

and that changes everything for me

it's the same for dealing with jealousy

possessiveness and any other projection

we might stumble into

oh that person had their thing going on

a need for this or that

freedom or self-expression

ease and flow

amidst a world that is more crowded

than it was when i was growing up

etc.

-----

there are gravy bonuses to this movement

the empathy that arises

in realizing that i have the same needs

and was right in the same field as they were

wanting to assert myself in motion

on the road

different strategies to meet a similar need:

me on the bike, they in their motorized vehicles

don't need to lead to conflict

yet it takes a nearly polyamorous appreciation

of the Beloved in others

to reach this quality of empathic satisfaction

in everyone

or in other words

loving one's enemies

and thy neighbor as thyself

-----

there is more

utilizing that adrenaline

by appreciating the chi it stirs up

enjoying it

allows us to grow in our stature

literally in our posture

an immediate momentary yoga

transforming aggression into joy

i think this practice is somewhat familiar

to dominant people particularly

yet it certainly can be done

even more fulfulling-ly

with benevolent intention

toward the greatest good

for all

-----

when i observe some of the novel unfoldments

on the Earth

consciousness is an important practice

in the face of radiation increases

the insanity of wars that haven't ended

blatant greed and corruption

like the marketing of water

and massive mortgage document forgeries

forcing unjust evictions

to name but a couple

we can continue to develop our practices

to expand just that much more

the space available for spiritual transformation

-----

and it is this which is the nut

the kernel driving it all deep inside for me

and satisfying my deepest need for

contribution to Life

amidst the seeming immensity of this work

no overwhelm reaches us

for like turtles in the longest of journeys

we arrive on time

remembering to love others

that it is a good day to die

and live

and are reconnected

to a world

that much more beautiful

and reborn

in a smile