on being present

Marcus Aurelius says to be grateful when you rise each day.

“to think, to enjoy, to love.”

Seneca speaks of living each day like it is its own life.

“begin at once to live, and count each separate day as a separate life.

Trying to live full, honest and mindful every day seems daunting to me still. It has been the better part of a year since I made the conscious decision to wake up each day with a purpose, wake up each day wth presence and to wake up each day with as much gratitude as I could muster. Though it has been a great personal triumph these past few months living a more positive, stoic lifestyle, it is easy to be drawn back into the rat race. Negativity and barriers in thought are almost unavoidable.

How do you cut out the negativity? How do muffle your mind from the noise?

I think the answer is, you don’t. Not entirely at least. Negativity will always be there, the noise of society will always be there. To me, it is about taking steps each and every day towards recognizing these obstacles of negativity. When a car drives by as you wait to cross the street does that stop you from eventually crossing? No, that is, unless you go out to greet it. Let the car pass, let the thought pass, let the external negativity pass, and then cross the street.

Take steps each and every day towards your personal and professional goals. Wake each day and try to be more mindful and grateful for just a second more than you were yesterday. It is these steps that are the way. The journey is the destination.

I am always ‘here’.

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how do you create original outputs?

What does it mean to have an original idea?

How do you cultivate originality?

Lately I feel my best thoughts and ideas are a patchwork of knowledge gained through reading, listening and questioning others and then repurposing that knowledge to my own liking. Using inputs to create my outputs.

Originality and creativity comes with my interpretation and repurposing of these inputs. If this is true, and quality original thoughts are the desired output, are quality thoughts and ideas required as input? OR can quality of thought be created?

I hypothesize that good inputs = good outputs.

It is for this reason I have made it a goal to read more (even more) and begin to think of learning as an occupational passion. The best ideas are the product of good inputs.

LIFE GOAL: Be in search of good inputs. This will not lead to a wasted life.

 

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celebration of life

This phrase is becoming more common and in many circles, is replacing entirely the use of the word funeral. I find this fascinating on a few specific levels.

There is a stigma quietly becoming more popular in society today around using the word funeral to label someone’s end of life ceremony. More and more often, family and friends of recently deceased loved ones are using the title ‘celebration of life’ to label the ceremony instead of calling it a funeral.

We think we are invincible, we have cures for many diseases and death is something we just don’t seriously talk about. It is the one thing guaranteed in life and yet the one thing people are reluctant to discuss. It is interesting and understandable why people would rather call a funeral a celebration of life. You may have never spent enough time actually celebrating your loved one’s life while they were with you and must now make up for it and reflect upon all of those beautiful moments in hindsight.

I think celebrations of life are wonderful and I have been a part of some absolutely beautiful, reverent ceremonies. My thought today is: Let us not celebrate life as an afterthought, let us celebrate life as it happens. Show your gratitude and be present as often as you can. Take time to be grateful even if it is for just a moment and slowly you can begin your own celebration of life as it happens, every moment of every day.

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wood wide web

Trees are amazing. When I think of my first memory of trees, my introduction began with leaves. Fallen leaves. Autumn leaves on the ground to touch and smell and rake and jump in and collect.

I heard an interesting thing today on one of my favourite podcasts RadioLab: Trees are connected, by underground networks, to share data and collectively support each other in growing the wealth and health of the forest. Woah.

Networks of fungal tubes connect old trees to young, oak trees to maple and even insects to roots. These networks truly are the original world-wide-web. The trees provide sugar to the fungus’ which grow expansive networks between nearby trees and breakdown local matter and minerals to then transport back to the trees that need it most.

My first thought, “so the biggest, oldest trees have the most connections, get the most nutrients and continue to keep growing bigger and stronger” ah makes sense. Not true. The trees actually coordinate the allocation of minerals to weaker, younger and even diseased trees to help them become stronger and communally grow the health of the forest.

With all our human genius we have trouble supporting equally our neighbour, let alone another culture or species. Trees are amazing.

Check out the original RadioLab Podcast here – From Tree to Shining Tree

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journal entry

 

I write, poorly but purposely every morning and some evenings. I write down purposeful thoughts, ideas, goals and tough questions to help me have a more focused day, a more mindful day and a more grateful day.

With this inaugural blog post, I think it fitting to share my first ever morning journal entry from my now well used moleskin journal (because Hemmingway used one).

06/25/2016

Not sure what this journal will become, but it will start as a collective of thoughts and goals and dreams. I will consistently remind myself of what I want to achieve and the steps I will take to reach those goals. So, today, June 25th, 2016 – my long-term goals

  • own real estate 
  • $8,500 in passive income
  • own a cottage/land
  • travel EVERY year (even if it’s a mini-trip)
  • be involved in charitable/hospice work, and that’s where it shall begin

*Also, read at least 25 books a year (CEO’s do it so it can’t hurt)

Quote I am pondering: ” Expecting is the greatest impediment to living. In anticipation of tomorrow, it loses today.” – Seneca

 

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