This is a great quote with an excellent story. The last line resonates and echoes the words of Zen masters such as Thich Nhat Hanh and Senryu Suzuki.
Monthly Archives: November 2012
Medicine Wheel
Medicine wheels are part of many First Nations’ cultures. They serve to connect people to the environment and reflect our interdependence with nature and each other. They signal the need for balance required in our lives and ground us with and in our world. I took the picture on Bowen Island and began to write the poem.
I feel welcomed–
At home,
I found my way–
Linked to the universe,
With each being
Inseparably bound–
I could not lose my way
A voice gently beckons,
“Cross the hearth.”
Bask in its warmth–
Refresh with its water–
Breathe its sweet air–
Let the earth ground–
Replenish here;
No magic–
Only magical.
A beautiful scene that allows life to flow by with each moment fully captured.
Waiting for winter
ice cover and sparkling snow
life floating past slowly.
The Panther
I had a great day today. The beauty of mindfulness is I am learning that good and not so good pass and flow into another moment. I waited more than 1/2 of my life, I hope, to learn this lesson. The day was long, but sharing tea and conversation at the end completed it so fully.
Today, as I reflected on yesterday’s ‘trials’ I recalled Rainer Maria Rilke’s poem, The Panther. I felt like that yesterday. When I let go, I felt so much better; I no longer pacing behind bars.
From seeing the bars, his seeing is so exhausted
that it no longer holds anything anymore.
To him the world is bars, a hundred thousand
bars, and behind the bars, nothing.
The lithe swinging of that rhythmical easy stride
which circles down to the tiniest hub
is like a dance of energy around a point
in which a great will stands stunned and numb.
Only at times the curtains of the pupil rise
without a second … then a shape enters,
slips through the tightened silence of the shoulders,
reaches the heart, and dies.
This post and the video are very important. What are we doing in our schools? I wonder? No one is particularly interested in my wondering; at least not those who are in positions of power. Creativity and innovation are the buzzwords of the early 21st Century, but are we more creative or innovative? We have more tools or weapons at our disposal, depending on our viewpoint, but is that the message in the video? I certainly don’t think so, but have been outvoted to date by a plethora of bureaucrats, autocrats, and technocrats who are more concerned with their job than the education of children. What is the next fad and what will it do to quash creativity?
Doing what you like is a very important key to success and to your state of balance. Do schools kill creativity? Not only is Sir Ken Robinson talking about serious things: how we educate (and unnecessarily medicate) our children, but he’s also being very funny. Remember that laughter boosts your immune system. Also remember that your approach to your children’s education may greatly affect their lives.
Excerpts from the transcript:
“If you ask people about their education, they pin you to the wall. Because it’s one of those things that goes deep with people, am I right?, like religion, and money, and other things.”
“But now kids with degrees are often heading home to carry on playing video games, because you need an MA where the previous job required a BA, and now you need a PhD for the other. It’s a process of academic inflation. And it indicates…
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My Status Quo
Is it a full moon tonight? The classroom and beyond was full of energy and it was not always healthy. I was a little frustrated and visibly annoyed part way through the afternoon. I taught one more year and wanted to teach these students so it hurts when they are disrespectful. On the way home I realized I need to set the pace. My ability to influence is my ability to shake up my status quo and walk into the fire so to speak. I chose to have a dog in this fight so what am I going to do. Even weeds of a tough day have purpose. They fertilize and increase the yield of a crop: children’s learning. This is not lost on me.
transformation–
my status quo defenseless;
an ongoing quest
seek a vision
unearth the true self
one digs deep
rest in sureness of the heart.
transform–
polish the gems of self
right speech! right action!
be confident
challenge my status quo,
influence others seriously
your time has arrived.
What a wonderful way of seeing the world?
A Stranger’s Voice
When Monday rolls around and I spent Sunday disconnected, I find things quite loud and hectic. I even find my voice loud and my mind hurried and harried, but I do find I am increasingly able to recognize this is the case in that moment.
I heard a voice–
At once, both
Familiar yet unfamiliar.
This voice–
Somehow too loud
Intruded upon the day.
Tried to lean in
Attempted to recognize
Where had I heard this stranger?
Suddenly,
Without warning
I recognized it!
It was mine–
Out of place
After a spacious silence.
Here is a good, yet simple set of instructions to be thankful each day.
Thanksgiving is a holiday like no other – the food, the football, the family and friends. It’s a time to unwind, reconnect, and give thanks.
But according to a survey conducted by the John Templeton Foundation, don’t expect to hear many “thank you’s” at the office. As reported in the Wall Street Journal, only 10% of adults say “thank you” to their colleagues everyday. Ouch.
While I’m surprised by this statistic, I’m not shocked. Here is the good news though: there’s a major opportunity to build a culture of appreciation on your team or in your office. And it begins with you.
When You Give You Get
When you express gratitude, you acknowledge the benefit you’ve received from another person or a situation. You show humility by recognizing you’re not the sole source of your fortune.
The field of positive psychology continues to unpackage the science of…
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How do I listen?
I commented on a re-blog, Here’s an Idea that Mimi‘s post coincided a PBS show about a branch of neuroscience called Contemplative Mindfulness. Rudolph Tanzi is central in this work which has grown from other recent research by Richard Davidson, Ellen Langer, and Jon Kabat-Zinn. Mindful practices have been with us for centuries and are found in Christ’s, the Buddha’s and Mohammed’s teachings. Mindful listening begins with me, moves outward, and is eloquently described by Hafiz, a Sufi poet. Mindful listening requires humility those teachers emulated in their lived practice as the servant as leader.
How
Do I
Listen to others?
As if everyone were my Master
Speaking to me
His
Cherished
Last
Words.
Stay human friends.
Teacher as Transformer 