Ok, so what comes next?

 

Don’t let anyone tell you that they know what happens after your bodily processes cease to function. No one really knows, but some who have “passed through the veil” and returned, have seen a glimpse.

 

Some see God, some see deceased relatives welcoming them to heaven. Then some see a dark place, a place of rest…oblivion. Those people’s stories are what I am interested in. Why is their experience with death so different than the souls that see God and heaven? I have a theory; the individuals that find that place of oblivion are at peace with death. They know that everyone and everything is subject to entropy.

 

Entropy, it is not just a destroyer but a recycler or sorts. Entropy is an “inevitable truth” of things. There is more to the story as you will see. Entropy works along the opposite line as well. Death, Destruction, the passage of time, an instrument of Entropy/Life, growth, development, reproduction, old age (if you are lucky) and Death that gives life to other beings. Trees grow up and take in the nutrients of their fallen ancestors. Yes the circle of Life is driven by Death and Death is driven by Life.

 

Humans are afraid of Death because of its seeming permanence. We spend so much time as a race running from Death, all the while knowing in our hearts no matter what religious or spiritual belief that we may hold dear to us…that Death will outpace us someday and we will submit to the final embrace. Religion is based on the fear of Death. The question is not how we should prepare for Death and the afterlife, but how are you living today?

 

Are you a decent human being? Do you try to help others when you can? Do you take care of your family? Do you show loyalty to your friends and loved ones? Friends that is all that we can do as people. Do the best you can every day and if you can make a difference in someone’s life. Be the superhero for the person that needs it. We are only here for a short time. Examine how you feel about Death. Don’t shy away, talk to Death. Make it your friend and hang out with it. Death isn’t to be feared any more than Life is.

 

Entropy is inevitable, make a peace treaty with it now while you still have a say in at least your part of the relationship. Maybe if you find the reasons you are afraid to die, then you might find a more compelling reason to live a full life.

~JP~

Animals

 

 

Many of us profess that the system we have is a mess.
What do we do about it though? Some would say it is just a show.
Animals by the millions slaughtered each year. So, so many die in fear.

Eating those beings that we say we care about, killing them to feed our mouths.
Animals feel fear and pain just like we do, but a blind eye is turned at the table.
Feeding our children the anguish and terror of these animals telling them it is all a fable.

I speak today for the animals, the ones that are eaten and those ignored and neglected.
My heart speaks to your heart, please stop eating others, they need our protection not exploitation.
It is our job as humans…protection.

Would you eat your dog? Or cat? Does it break your heart to even think that?
Pigs, chickens, cows and the like. They are no different than your family pet.
Take a chance, make a bet. That you will stop today. Stop killing and eating animals!

Look into the eyes of any animal and what do you feel? Indifference, respect, love?
We are part of a the web of life, not at the top of the heap because humans will one day sow what they reap.
Take a stand, eat a vegetable, root or fruit. They will keep you alive and well…

By not sending another animal through hell.
JP ~ December 2015.

The Warrior’s Prayer Part 6

In love I unconditionally accept the evolution of others.

In freedom I have power.

In love I unconditionally accept the evolution of others. Face it  you can’t really change anyone else but yourself. That is right readers as much as we would like to change something about our kids, spouses, friends the “jerk” who cut us off in traffic, the rude checker at the supermarket…you get the idea…we cannot.

Changes can only come from inside yourself, the person changing and it is different for each of us. Our timing is our timing when it comes to improving upon or moving on in life. If you can unconditionally accept that others “own” their own lives it frees up your energy to work on your life. Ask yourself this very simple question; in all the time you have been alive have your really been able to change other people? If you are really honest with yourself the answer is always no, no and no.

Trying to change others only causes conflict and resentment in both the person you are trying to change and yourself. Free yourself from this trap and love others unconditionally and know that if they feel the need to “evolve” they will when the time is right for them to do so and not one second sooner.

In freedom I have power. What is freedom? It can mean many things to many people but I believe that the type of freedom that Stuart Wilde in this prayer I am delving into is personal freedom. Personal freedom is the power that only we can give ourselves; the power to forgive yourself and then others. The freedom and personal power that you gain from letting go of the need to “fix” situations, people and things.

Freedom is flow and flow is necessary for a calm and stable relationship with yourself and others. Give yourself permission to be free from the flotsam and Jetsam of other people’s instability. Today, now as you read this give yourself the power and the freedom to say yes or no to anything without guilt and without judgement.

Be a different person today! Be you! Be the wonderful human that you are!

Be well,

JP

 

Time to think

The last couple of weeks I have been home on short-term disability (work imposed). As I work through the medical maze and insurance paperwork that accompanies such things I have realized that I have time to think. You may surmise that a statement like this odd but hear me out…

My “normal” day usually starts at 5:00 A.M. followed by a nearly 50 mile commute through the worst traffic in the state of Washington, then a full work day and another 50 mile commute through the worst traffic in the state of Washington. You get the idea. Now that I have been at home for a spell, it struck me this morning as I listen to Mozart that I have a few moments to contemplate my situation as it is and how I would like it to be.

Time to think about the past, present and future. The mistakes that I have made, the triumphs that I have had, the good and the bad things I have done for myself and for others. Time keeps rolling, it cares not what we do, into the future it moves like we are not even here as it has always done.

Take some of your “time” this week and think about what is important to you. Is it your wife or husband, your home and children or all of these or none of them? What is important to you? Really important, only you can answer that question. An important question it is though and one that takes some “time” to ponder properly.

In my interim status I have the rare occasion to mull over many things and as it has been written long before any of us were here…”there is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.

Never take for granted your health, family, home or job for you never know when they will pass away from you life.

 

Be well.

JP

Fatherhood

I have now been a father, I actually prefer Dad thank you very much, for almost a quarter of a century. Today I was thinking of all the father’s days that had passed and how so much hand changed in not only my life but the lives of my children and step-children.

My Son-in-Law will soon be having his first father’s day the first of many. This will also be my first fathers day as a grand parent as well. Being a Dad is not easy, it requires sacrifice, love, patience, perseverance and a sense of who you are as a man.

Fatherhood is not to be entered into unless you really are serious about it. Like motherhood it is a permanent job, you don’t get to quit and you never get to throw up your hands and give up. As children get older and move into adulthood and have children of their own the job description changes but it never comes to an end.

I wish all the fathers out there a great fathers day this year. Spend time with your loved ones if you can. You are a link in a chain that remains unbroken from the beginning of the human race. Play your role well dad’s and enjoy the benefits that come along with being a parent and father.

One more thing…happy father’s day, Dad! I love you!

JP

Believing your own thoughts

Do you believe what you think? Sometimes I do and in doing so I put myself in danger. When encountering something or someone we make judgements and think we know everything that we need to. Then a story is built up around what we think and a framework that sets us apart from reality is constructed.

This is trap that we all fall into and it separates us from what is true. It causes pain in our minds. Our perceptions are based on our suppositions not our experiences. We believe our own press of what we think is. Most of the time I would say that you and I are just plain wrong.

Let’s say for a moment that you saw a picture and it was of a family member and they make comments on that picture (on Facebook for instance) without thinking or inquiring into your own feelings emotions you have a negative thought about this person. How could they say that you might ask yourself?! How could they be so callous and uncaring about your feelings?

I have news for you, its is simply this, it is not about you and it never was. The only problem here is that your perception of reality is distorted. Your feelings don’t even come into it. The reason that you have hurt feelings over something like the example above is that you don’t yet realize and need to is that other people don’t do anything because or in spite of you.

If we spend time trying to live in other’s business’s and not take care of our own (for example: Telling everyone how they should run their lives) we will continually suffer for it. Living your life and being aware of who you are without judgement of anyone else is the way to personal freedom.

The next time that you feel that you want to comment on something some one has said or done, stop yourself and ask a question…How will I feel and who will I be if I don’t think that thought? How will the rest of my day go if I just let that person or situation develop that way it is going to anyway without my help, emotion or comment?

 

Something to think about…

 

JP

 

The most under appreciated job in the world

What is the most under appreciated job in the world? I will tell you what it is. It is being a step-parent. Being a parent is hard but at least you have history, blood ties and a bond that you don’t have with step children. I know that some of you may have had a good experience being a step-parent and I envy you.

It is not all bad but is one of the hardest things that I put myself through. I am aware that I took on the role willingly and with my eyes wide open. Being the “other” ostracized person who will always be an outsider is just plain hateful sometimes especially when you have tried your hardest to make things comfortable for your step kids and to be rejected and ignored…it sucks.

I can only hope that someday my step-kids come to understand that I do care about them and I tried to do my best to make the best of a not so nice situation. It is hard when parents split up and find new partners for children to adjust to another persons temperament and way of doing things. I recognize that it was hard for you too. If I was not always the best step dad I am sorry but I did try to be there for you and I am still trying.

Time will heal over old wounds as it always does. People change and our lives move in different directions, and as they do keep in mind that both your mother and I care about you and wish you the best. We have nothing but the utmost respect for all of you.

 

JP

Walking alone

We all walk alone in our own universe of the self. As individuals we
spend time in the collective with other people in an effort to silence
that single voice of their own being, but we are always alone with
ourselves.

Being in your own perspective is not a bad thing as there is no
choice, only the truth of the matter. Embracing the person that lives
with you 24/7 from birth to death is healthy. Knowing who you are and
understanding that person is hard work not to be shied away from.
Find someplace quiet where there are no sounds of technology and other
people and ask yourself, “Who am I”?

Listen for the answer; it will come in its own time. You know yourself
better than anyone and you have to trust that, to hold that, to be the
person you came here to be without fear of what others may think. The
older you get the less you care about what people outside of your
personal universe think, it is not that you don’t value the opinion of
“outsiders”, it is just that learning to trust the inner environment
becomes easier over the decades.

Walk alone in strength and remember the views of anyone outside of
yourself are the perspective(s) of the single universe that each of us
live in. Being hurt by the chatter from someone else’s personal
standpoint is not healthy as it shows that you need to work on your
own point of view, to refine and meld your outlook of things into
something that works for you.

Give it some thought; I am still pondering all of this as it comes to me.

Be well,

JP

Recognizing Strength

This morning an interesting thought took hold of me, if you recognize strength in yourself ,can you see it in others? If you can see it in others, does it bother you? Does recognizing strength in other people make you shrink from their strength as well as your own?

You might wonder where I am going with this line of thought. What I am trying to convey is that I believe that some among us are not only afraid of other’s strength but their own too. Being strong is far more that physical, I would say that most of your personal power is mental and spiritual. Knowing yourself on a fundamental level gives you a base of stability to draw from.

The problem for most people is that they do not understand how to pull from this basic part of themselves. Finding out who we are in this life takes time and self-examination that most are not going to do without some kind of crisis like the death in the family or divorce.

The so-called “Mid-Life Crisis” is one of those times of examining priorities that teach us about ourselves. If you are younger than that, why wait? Ponder what makes you who you are, look inside for what makes you strong and powerful as a person. If you are older you have probably already done this and more than once. What have you learned from your journey?

For everyone it is different and it is an important process that we all must go through, no exceptions. Seek out your inner strength, seek to understand the “real” you. Others do not live in your reality, only you do. Live in your world with dignity, grace and purpose or be a slave to someone else’s ideas of what is right.

Take the steps you need to take, walk down the path, for you have no choice in this. Walk, run, skip or crawl if you must but take the initiative before life forces it upon you.

You are far stronger than you know.

 

Be well.

 

JP

Becoming my Dad

This last year I have been observing an interesting transformation in some of my speech patterns. My Dad’s speech and attitudes have been coming into my lexicon more and more. Now brooding over this it made me think, am I becoming my dad?

That would be no. But then I say something to someone and I hear myself and think that is some shit my dad would say. Funny how this is working out because along with the speech patterns I also find myself having attitudes that I know are my dad’s as well. DNA might have more of an impact than environment, who really knows at this point

Maybe age is making me just not care so much about things that in my younger days would get me upset. Keeping my blood pressure lower is much more of a priority than worrying about others and behavior that I find stupid or offensive.

I still do get upset about things and my wife does point them out like she did yesterday concerning my brother, ultimately though the paradigm is shifting to one of relaxing more and worrying less about others.

I understand that stupidity is universal amongst the human race (me included) and being in a perpetual state of angst over it is just not the way I want to live. So if I am becoming my Dad in that respect…

I guess it is not a bad thing after all.

Stay calm and don’t care so much today.

JP