Poetic Shutterbug

Photo taken by me @ The Botanical Gardens Same photo digitally altered by me - my interpretation of a cluttered mind with racing thoughts. The mind is our own personal kingdom. It is not made of substance yet it controls our entire being. This is why it is important to posses a quiet mind. Our minds consist of past conditioning and thoughts which race as if they were in the Indy 500 using our mind as the raceway. Have you ever experienced insomnia because you had all these racing thoughts cluttering your mind and as a result could not fall asleep? It’s a horrible feeling especially when you realize that all of these thoughts are not allowing you to have peace of mind, which is necessary for a happy and content life. We also have to understand that we control our thoughts. So, when having all of these racers speed around in your mind you have to remember that you can control these thoughts. Just put the brakes on and quiet that speedway. How? Here are a few ...

Photo taken by me @ The Botanical Gardens Being Kind Have you ever noticed that when you are kind to someone the joy you feel is immeasurable? Just smiling and saying hello to someone on the street can not only put a smile on their face but allow you to share your heart with someone. There are those who would be kind in order to get something from you and sometimes it is difficult to tell whether they are being genuine or have their own agenda. The sure fire way to tell is how do you feel when they are kind to you. If you feel a sense of joy and love within your heart then they are being genuine. If your intuition kicks in and you find yourself asking, why are they being so nice, then you’ve already answered your question. Just think if we were all kind to each other what a different world this would be. There would not be wars, there would not be violence and there would not be anyone hurt or angered. As humans we sometimes choose not to be kind and that is the pro...

Photo taken by me @ The Botanical Gardens You Are An Individual We are all blessed with intuition yet not everyone listens to those soft words, which come from our heart. Have you ever been faced with a situation where there is something that is telling you to stop yet you go ahead anyway? That something telling you to stop is your intuition. My mantra is to always listen to that soft whisper. When asked to do something or go somewhere your initial reaction is that of your heart. That is your inner self or your intuition that guides you in the right direction. I believe we are all connected. We are all brothers and sisters. What makes us individuals is not our hair or eye color but our spirit. Our spirit with roots in creation and passion. Our spirit and our heart are at the core of our individual nature. Within spirit lies our creative talent - our true authentic self. Our heart houses our feelings and passions. These two entities work together to help us fin...

The year’s at the spring And day’s at the morn; Morning’s at seven; The hillside’s dew-pearled; The lark’s on the wing; The snail’s on the thorn; God’s in His heaven - All’s right with the world! ~Robert Browning I love this poem by Robert Browning. It epitomizes perfection. It speaks of new birth. The birth of Spring, the birth of dawn. It shows how the universe is in order and on a divine path. The earth and nature are perfection. As humans, we manipulate the earth and it’s bounty by our ego driven acts. Rather than looking at the earth and the gifts it has bestowed upon us we are constantly looking for more and striving to be that perfect person. We look for situations and outside sources to make us feel perfect. We look without rather than within. Rather than seeing the earth in awe, we see it as awful. Each day the earth rotates, the sun rises, the sun sets, the stars glisten and the flowers bloom. These daily earthly rituals are perfection yet we only see the imperfect...

Strength of numbers is the delight of the mind. The Valiant in spirit glory in fighting alone. Ghandi Did you ever notice that when you decide on doing something, whether it be changing jobs or following your dreams and you begin to discuss your ideas with family, co-workers and friends, that you will inevitably need to defend your ideas and most likely end up arguing in defense of your thoughts? Why? Because when we put those ideas out there, two things happen. First, behind those ideas is our ego intent on bragging to others in order to validate the thoughts and intent. Remember that intent from ego is taking the wrong direction. Intent from heart is the true and right direction. Second, no matter how strong you feel about your idea, the fact is that when others finish telling you how “out there” your idea is or give you logical reasons as to why it’s never going to work, all that negativity will kill your idea and result in it never coming to fruition. As in the quote above...

Tranquility Beyond darkness within light lies the key to acceptance, one with spirit. Ego absentia authentic truth caress the soul, awakening.