And after a day of yard work?

Watermelons!!!

Yum!!! 

♥

On a Sunday Morning...

♥

The closer I am to fine

I am trying to tell you something about my life
Maybe give me insight between black and white
The best thing you've ever done to me
is to help me take my life less seriously, it's only life after all.
Well darkness has a hunger that's insatiable 
And lightness has a call that's hard to hear
I wrap my fear around me like a blanket
I sailed my ship of safety till I sank it, I'm crawling on your shores.


I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountains
There's more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine. 


I went to see a doctor of philosophy 
with a poster of Rasputin and a beard down to his knee
He never did marry or see a B-grade movie
He graded my performance, he said he could see through me
I spent four years prostrate to the higher mind, got my paper and I was free.

I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountains
There's more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive 
the closer I am to fine.


I stopped by the bar at 3am
to seek solace in a bottle or possibly a friend
I woke up with a headache like my head against the board
Twice as cloudy as I'd been the night before
I went in seeking clarity. 


I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountains
We go to the doctor, we go to the mountains
we looked to the children, we drank from the fountains
We go to the Bible, we go through the workout
we read up on revival and we stand up for the lookout
There's more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in a crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine
The closer I am to fine 
The closer I am to fine. 

BuddhaOfelia hard at work

Attaining Enlightment never looked so stylish...

...and yummy. 

Buddhahood...  right at our fingertips :)

Chirp-Chirp Chirp-Chirp

Chirps here... chirps there... 

I never did mind, a little chirping now and then. 

Got my living to do

and my beauty to share.

Chirps here... chirps there...

what is that I hear?

is that my name escaping your uncreative lips?

oh how original... how original.

Red shoes are great, I know.

My feet wear them quite uniquely too... yes, I am that cool.

Don't worry about it lady... focus on "The View"

Leave the living to me

and my dancing to my red shoes.

Chirps here... chirps there...

I never did mind... a little chirping now and then.  

Got my living to do

and my beauty to share.

I am ready and willing... 

whenever you wanna dance more and chirp less.

See this twist?

and this twirl?

Give it a chance... though only I can wear this dress.

Chips here... chirps there...

I never did mind, a little chirping now and then.

but I got my living to do

and my beauty to share. 

Happiness

Alert! Alert!

Understand this.

And isn't a wonderful thing?! 

I think so :)

 So, What do you see?  What do you seek?  

Funny how only one letter separates those two words.   

Perspective truly is everything.

You have, at this exact moment exactly what your heart sought.  

So, what will you see tomorrow?

xo

Life is...

any questions?
 xo

Enlightenment... Buddhahood... Wisdom... Heaven... Happiness is...

Any questions? 

;D

  

The day Buddha met Carlin

So the other day I was driving myself a tad bit crazy... yes, I have those days, you are not the only one :)  I couldn't quite grab hold of... whatever it was that was leaving me with this great feeling of chaos... it was as if I was inside a jar and someone took hold of it with me inside and shook it and shook and shook it, and kept shaking it some more until I had completely forgotten what it was like to not shake.  I used these exact words as I was describing my feelings to my husband, "I am looking around at my life and I am seriously asking myself, 'you did this yesterday? how? how did you do this yesterday and the day before that and the day before that?'" and I don't mean I was asking myself those questions as in some sort of judgement.  I meant I was asking those questions as if I had really forgotten how to do the most basic things.  Laughing at me yet? ;)

Anyway, that's how it felt.  It was not a good feeling.  I walked from room to room, either walking towards a child who needed me or some activity that needed my attention, while another child followed me or asked me something... and the day continued.  I would sit, and not know if I wanted sunshine on my face or a good night sleep.  I found myself also saying this over and over again to my best friend, "I don't know.. I don't know anything.  I can't think.  I can't focus. I don't know anything."  and I also said this, "parenting wise, I am failing miserably."  That was the worst part.  It is one thing to feel completely detached from yourself, it is another thing to feel like a parenting failure because of it.

The self flagellation continued as mountains and mountains of things that "needed" to get done kept following me around the house like some zombie in a horror movie.  I began to stop "seeing" the world around me and instead I became just another thing in my world.  I didn't really like the feeling.  In the process, the clock ticked louder and louder, little hands needed my arms more and more and toys seemed to be laughing at me because as soon as I put them away, they would resurfaced yet again.

I had had ENOUGH.   I knew that I knew better than this.  I knew it! why then was I not able to stop this absurd cycle of insanity.   Then suddenly, I heard a voice in my head.  Don't worry, it wasn't one of those voices.  It was a voice that I didn't quite expect.   Even now, as I replay it in my head I can't help but laugh and laugh all over again.  As I continued to walk from one room to another forgetting why I was standing in the room to begin with, I met Buddha... in the most amusing of voices.

...and there, I found my Zen.

"and what about these people who tell you, 'My needs aren't been met.' You know what I tell these people? DROP SOME OF YOUR NEEDS!! "  George Carlin

and in the midst of laughter and a deep exhale :)  I did! :)

I haven't stopped laughing since.

Wanna smile?

Join us in celebrating the Tao of Silly Socks!!

Our silly sensei says,

"You wouldn't worry about what other people thought of you, if you knew how seldom they thought of you "

heehee!

Outdoor Challenge Day 2 *Once there was a tree...*

" Mommie!! Mommie!! Look!! "

" Look mommie!! "

" See me?!"

" See? "

Yes, I do honey, oh my god... do I *see*.

All images and content used here is privately owned and copyright protected. All rights reserved to Something happened on my way to Buddhahood. Seek permission before using.

What is happiness?

...and now, a lesson in joy.

A lesson in joy.

♥

"mmm... yummy jelly on crackers... mmmm... oh this is sooo good. Wait, What? huh? Really Mommy? okay.. okay.. I'll listen. "

"Really?!! HaHa!! oh my god Mommy... you are so silly!! "

" HAHAHA!!! Oh MY GOD!!! MOMMY YOU ARE TOO MUCH! I CAN'T STOP!! HAHAHA!! "

" Oh dear... I am gonna have to lay down. That was just too much. Too much mommy. "

♥

Another great day

Another great day in my life
yes... today was another great day in my life.
I saw new faces...
some scary... some amusing...
and some a little sad...
I smiled... and they smiled back.
It was good.

The sky was immense
the sun kissed my face
and I didn't bother to fix my hair.

I didn't have to look up
I could "feel" the sky...
it's bright blue stared back at me...
and I knew I was free... and complete.
It was good.
It was very good.

Between the Latte and orange peels...
the seesaws and getting lost on our way...
I lived a dream...
I lived.

Joy was me
I was joy
I will remember today
Today will remember me
It was so good...
so good...

Today truly was... another great day in my life.

Meet your world... again.

Waking up...
New Day.
Hello.
A million universes created in a mili-second.
New rays of sunshine reach my skin.
Newness abounds.
Yesterday's page was written...
what will we write today?
I stretch... mmmm... "could probably use another hour..."
and I meet you again...
I meet you again.

His kiss on my forehead.
treasured greetings whispered...
a dancing 6 year old rubs her eyes as she stumbles out of bed
her world wrapped around my embrace.
Trains and tracks built around my pillow by 3 year old hands
and I smile as I reach for 'Thomas the train' in my hair.
chubby 9 month old legs learning new steps... as I take my own steps for granted.
and I meet you again.
I meet you again.

Hello...
Thank you.
Thank you.
What shall we paint today?

The proper question

Who are you? How are you? Better yet... how is your mind? How is your spirit? How is the silence between this thought and that thought?

Do we really know how we function... and subsequently how we don't? We wake up, we "work", we clean, we talk, we walk from one room to the other, we drive here and we drive there... we get lost in the business of life, keeping up with the mundane through our limited perceptions, identifying our existence with short term goals and long term plans, "What are we doing this weekend? " "did you pay that bill?" " When will I have some down time?" we stroke our egos with our judgements of others, criticisms which say more about ourselves than they do about our object of scrutiny. " Ugh, people..." " oh my god, they are such a mess." "I like him, I don't mind her" perpetually clogged by all the noise, "when will that light turn green?" "how much more until we get out of here?" " Let me just get to the end of the week." How can we possibly know who we are, how we are and where we are, when we are constantly existing in a state of illusion and if we are not careful, delusion.

Again I ask, and this time correctly, How is your mind? how are your thoughts? Do you understand the power of your thoughts? how much you control? and if you don't... how much control you relinquish? how are your words? What do your words say about YOU? what do your thoughts say about YOU? what do the silence and the noise in your mind say? What do all these things that you think are seemingly unimportant sow and consequently reap?

The human condition while tragic, it is also very interesting. We make life, we take life, we build airplanes and can fit a computer in a cell phone... but we act as though we have no control of life. Our problems are someone else's lack there of. Our pain is someone else's cruelty. Our mental and emotional chaos is the result of someone else inflicting abuse. Our inability to find, to receive... is someone else's inability to give.

Let's face it, Human beings, as an organism are sick and we are only getting sicker. When it comes to building, to nourishment, to cleansing, detoxifying our bodies, it is ( for the most part ) universally understood that we need to break it and then rebuild. We need to detox our bodies. And if we really pursue health we need to not only detox our bodies we need to rewire our entire chemistry. If you want to build muscle, you need to actually destroy the muscle and then rebuild. Same goes for our mind, our way of thinking, our understanding of how to live, how to be happy, how to *be*.


" We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts we make the world. "

What does that mean? Very simply this, we need to be aware and MASTER our understanding of our thinking, our minds, for it is our minds' working which dictates our lives, our identities, our sufferings and our joys. This is more than just thinking positive thoughts. No, like I said, we are talking about rewiring our mental and emotional processes. And there is something that we need to understand above all else, something I did not understand until very recently, whether you know it or not... that which you do not control, controls you. Regardless of any superficial grasp of personal control, our checkbooks, our homes, our relationships, it is our thoughts, our uncensored, unabashed, unfiltered thoughts and emotions which define us.

No more of the same... that's a good start. Wipe the slate clean. Remember the definition of insanity is repeating the same behavior over and over again and expecting a different result. We are our thoughts. We are the thoughts behind our actions, our concept of the world, our perceptions, our ideas. When we define ourselves as, "I am a woman" " I am a parent" " I am a Teacher" We are simply listing titles of roles we play or responsibilities we fulfill. Who we are is much deeper and interesting than that :) Pay attention to it. Guard it. Free it. Nourish it. Master it.

It is not the economy's fault for our lack of wealth. It is not our abuser's responsibility to rid us of our pain. It is not our mothers' short comings that dictate our insecurities. It is not someone else's ignorance which defines how we choose to see and paint the world. It is not someone else's cruelty that determines whether or not I trust and love.

Who I AM is defined by my thoughts. By my will and by my discipline of both.

I am.

I am my thoughts
I am my opinions
I am my ideas
I am my judgements
I am my anger
I am my love
I am my doubts
I am my choices
I am my smile
I am my breath
I am my memories of you
I am the brush...
I am the canvas...
I am.