Thought for The Day - Searching for Me

Gathering the pieces

Not as in lost or abandoned

But as one gathers new and necessary components

Improving on the "model"

It's a life long process, discovering, letting go, making room, adapting and adjusting.

There is always a degree of self-examination to improve what is my life at the moment.

Thought for The Day - Where Does It All Lead?

The planning, the dreaming, the effort and the failures...where does it all lead? The times you couldn't wait to get to the next step up, in your career, your relationship, to see the kids grow up and move out; where does it leave you? When you moved from this "hick town" to the big city or from the hustle and bustle of the big city to a town where everyone knows everyone, now what?

We are always reaching, grasping, trying to be there, rather than here; to make it big and to be rich. For what? What are we gaining that we didn't have before? And what are we losing that made us who we are? We read the latest self-help book, the Bible or other sacred texts and yet we remain petty and greedy. To what end?

There are moments when you stop and wonder what's it all for? And what am I gaining through all this effort? I'm merely asking questions today, wondering if this is where you find yourself as well. It's a moment of hypercritical reflection; a moment where I wonder if my life means much more than my next exchange of carbon dioxide for oxygen.

What about you? You ever feel this way?

Thought for The Day - Hasty

"Desire without knowledge is not good - how much more will hasty feet miss the way!" Proverbs 19:2 NIV

We are perpetually in a rush! There are few who are exceptions to this phrase. We are on the go, chasing after stuff and people. Our four year old car is no longer adequate, we MUST get another. Our clothes are last year's style; there are new clothes to be had. And electronics? At an average price of $200, we are prone to tossing out phones, televisions and computers every two years! We want what we want, except we aren't really sure why.

To the destruction of ourselves and those around us, we rush, lead by needs and desires that really won't satisfied. So what do we do? How do we put "knowledge" to use rather than being lead around by our desire? Consider professional athletes, dancers, and accomplished actors. Their success isn't made in minutes or hours, it is the result of years of hard work and discipline. It is practicing while others are asleep, it's waiting patiently for opportunities, all the while pressing for an open door to display their talents. The same goes for any person, celebrity or not, who desires something worthwhile and long lasting. Dedication, hard work and a clear vision of what can be achieved. That's how we build rich and vital lives.

Thought for The Day - Launching Out into the Deep

You never know what will move you out there or what you will experience when you get out into the "open seas," but you can trust you will discover as much about you as you do about the world!

There are many things I'm reluctant to do; some things don't fit my identity and aren't part of my make up . I don't need to feel get high from liquor and certainly not drugs; good conversation and good music do the trick for me. But there are some things I know I want to do and places I want to go and situations I want to experience. And quite honestly, not everything can be learned through YouTube!

I find that this journey has strange twists and turns and yesterday's failures become tomorrow's epiphany. I began "blogging" years ago, though I wasn't sure what I wanted to say. I was told by the experts that an artist should blog about his art and so I did. But I didn't always have something to say about it. I could blog about my relationship with God, my aspirations and my philosophies about life, but not art - at least not all the time. I wrote about what was on my mind. But "it" wasn't working; I wasn't feeling the need to do so.

"Back to life, back to reality, back to the here and now..." I went back to the corporate jungle, back to the places where income is the main thing and back to my old role. Oh how I hated the notion of doing so! I met a coworker who seemed to be the epitome of class and professionalism and with a wonderful smile. But the strangest thing: without warning, I would have this sense that everything wasn't right. I didn't know her well enough to ask and yet this feeling wouldn't go away. One day, on a whim, I sent an email to her, short and simple: "Whatever you're going through, no matter what the day brings, there is nothing God can't bring you through." She LOVED IT! And asked if I could send these every day - joking of course. But it stirred the idea: A thought for the day, with a theme. I mulled it over for a while and found there really was a theme for each day. Lord knows I write enough on my own without sharing it so with a little practice and development, and here we are!

I have found through this process, I am peeling back layers of my own frustrations and finding someone beneath the surface I forgot existed. I find that I am far more sensitive, meaning I am both spiritually and emotionally aware of other's feelings as well as hypertuned to my own. This 240 pound guy isn't afraid to admit he cries! Wow! Admitting that now puts me out further in the deep!

There are days I am certain I have so far to go; my goals are stretched out to the other end of the universe! And there days I don't think I have the strength or cunning to make it another inch. But each day, without fail, I am further along this journey. And everyday, there is another part of me peeled away and more of me revealed.

Thought for The Day - Tripping Over a Pebble

Elastic 18 x 24 pastels

You've scaled mountains, crossed the burning sands, survived corporate attack after attack and this one pebble trips you, and you're flat on your face! Sometimes it is the enemy you can't see, that does the worse damage. And sometimes, it is the fact that you've come so far, and accomplished so much, that this "one thing" reveals what remains inside of you.

This is not to say you haven't accomplished much or that you aren't strong; quite the opposite, it proves that you are. But everyone has a "breaking point." No, I take that back: everyone has several breaking points! And the very shape of life is designed to uncover them! Years ago, having decided to get serious about my Christian life, I decided to attend church every Sunday. A few months of that, I added to it regular Bible study at church AND Sunday school. I was practicing being kind and patient and generous, using softer words and expressions. I was doing fairly well! But one day I thought: "If I could change a couple more bad habits, I would be okay!" Big mistake! It was going to take far more than a couple more self-perceived flaws to change me into a "Godly man!"

Life, our consideration of this journey, will have you "up" one minute and "down" the next. And it isn't always the same stimuli that takes you in either direction. We are prone to failure and in a sense, that's okay. We can also choose to learn from mistakes and rise above each one. But please be aware: there's always a pebble, or twig, or beautiful face, ready to trip you up!

Thought for The Day - Pushing

Elastic 18 x 24 pastel

Yep.

Have to.

Can't stop because you've had enough or the car wont stop. You've got to push through and stay on top of your goals. I have been there, I have stopped. So many times and with enough excuses to fill a book. But you - and I - must keep going!

I want to tell my story, but the most important thing you need to know is I fight, I get knocked down, kicked around, but I get up. I guarantee your story is similar to mine. You've seen better and worse days and if you're brutally honest, you are certain life is unfair and the gold and silver is laid up for a lucky few. I know some people who are convinced that the "successful" are that way because they have sold their soul to the devil, or my favorite the Illuminati. Seriously?

Dig a little deeper, my friend. The next time you find yourself on your back, lie there for a bit, cry and bemoan your condition. But at some point, listen to the beat coming from your chest. That means you're not done yet. Get up and either try "it" again or determine another path. DON'T. GIVE. UP!!!

Thought for The Day - Slippin'

Triplicate (in process) pastels

"If you fail to plan, you plan to fail."

Yeah...that 'happens.' And it happens to most of us. It isn't that we are without desire of that we don't want to achieve: success, recognition, or live better. But this "planning" and "following through" stuff? Well, that doesn't happen.

So many of us spend our days, miserable at jobs, anxious for the weekend and looking forward to retirement. For the first (full-time jobs), that usually "just" happens; we 'end up' at some company because we applied at 50 of them, we had some skills they could use and they were willing to pay us. We get benefits and enough money to stay miserable. For the weekend and retirement, we hope "it just happens." We hope on the weekend, we will do "something" that's exciting, but usually, we have a bunch of personal stuff to complete, since we're too tired in the week. And then there's retirement; that nagging sinking feeling that the government mandated time is too far away and that we are ill prepared for a fixed income. All-in-all, with all this stuff happening, I think we are digging ourselves a wonderful hole to sink into!

You know, there's something to be said for the people who live their life in spite the warnings and corrections of well meaning 'advisors.' Especially those who achieve. Their "planning" is worked out in their  head, their actions carry out on a daily basis, a practice that allows them to be prepared for an 8 - 5, the weekends and retirement if they choose. But maybe I'm romanticizing a life I'm not living...

Slippin'...it just happens.