Ideas & such
Take care of yourself. People always say that, but there’s a little physics equation mixed in there. I’m pretty sure you can’t take care of other folks any better than you take care of yourself. And you know it’s true – you see amazing people who take care of amazing numbers of people with amazing…
When I dropped by the doctor the other day, I got the chance to look over the magazines in the waiting area, partly because it took an hour for her to get to me, and partly because I thought my appointment was at one (it was at two). This gave me an opportunity to review…
You’ve noticed the difference & so have I – it always feels better to be close to the water. What’s involved here? The Huffington Post’s Carolyn Gregoire offers an insightful review of the special connection between H2O and us – here’s more: Why Being Near The Ocean Can Make You Calmer And More Creative by…
A Bryde’s whale and seagulls feast on anchovies in the Gulf of Thailand, on September 9, 2014. Bryde’s whales are a baleen medium seized whale with dark grey colour and a white underbelly and live in tropical to temperate waters. An estimated population of 30 to 35 Bryde’s whales are commonly seen along the…
Well, you’ve been with me for a while now, so you know the story. I love it, a year after getting “The World According to Brother Ian” going, that somewhere between 250-400 people check into this blog each day. Some of you write me, occasionally you comment beneath each posting, sometimes you hit “like” on…
The Guest House This being human is a guest house. Every morning a new arrival. A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor. Welcome and entertain them all! Even if they are a crowd of sorrows, who violently sweep your house empty of its furniture, still, treat each guest…
I’m a fan of Thay’s, of Steven Goodheart, who shared this poem of Thay’s in a posting, and of showing we believe in peace by showing it – here’s more from Steven: In light of the terrible violence all around the world, in the Middle East, the Ukraine, and so many places, I thought I would…
The solar age is dawning…and just maybe it’s not a new idea. Here’s Jimmy Stewart in “You Can’t Take It with You” in 1938. As we work our way to an ideal in life that the things we do are connected with sharing & healing, it feels pretty natural to begin the process of moving…
Pope Francis prayed for peace in the Middle East alongside Israeli President Shimon Peres and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas onJune 8th at the Vatican. That this happened is the story….the two leaders in conflict embraced & exchanged a kiss on the cheek at the end of the visit. Here are Francis’ remarks: Peacemaking calls for…
Saw someone today who asked me if I was happy & was I OK. I believe this is because a)I was thinking about changing the transmission fluid in the car and that drives me into what most people would describe as a thoughtful, meditative-looking state, or b) I sometimes have BRF, or c) they wanted a…
A friend of mine who is practicing to be a teacher asked me (since I’ve worked as a teacher for kind of a long time), “What makes someone a good teacher?” I believe this: It’s luck. It’s timing. And it’s a belief in sharing and healing. Here’s why. It’s luck. You have to have a…
“Samsara literally means “wandering-on.” Many people think of it as the Buddhist name for the place where we currently live — the place we leave when we go to nibbana. But in the early Buddhist texts, it’s the answer – not to the question, “Where are we?” but to the question, “What are we doing?”…
I have always thought that the story of the Good Samaritan is cool, in that it suggests it’s a good idea for us to help one another when someone is seriously down & out. The amazing thing in it, of course, is that the teachers of truth & compassion (the priest & Levite) pass up…
Those of you who follow Brother Ian know that we here at the monastary are big fans of Arlo Guthrie, so it was a treat to hear his posting for this American holiday… I love the notion of the “gift of hesitation,” and the idea that we might make the world a better place by…
When tv writer & actor Charlie Day was asked to address this year’s grads at his alma mater, Merrimack College, they probably didn’t expect him to say, “I don’t think you should just do what makes you happy. Do what makes you great. Do what’s uncomfortable and scary and hard but pays off in the…
Seems to me there’s an ongoing discussion these days about what we need to do with ourselves. There are folks who want to do things that are practical, and the end of each day feels good, because the hours passed with grounded, down-to-earth accomplishments. Or things that are useful. Or creative. Or balanced. Or balanced,…