The Original You

Cats are great teachers. Being home so much recently has given me the opportunity to witness these amazing creatures in a more detailed way. Cats sleep. A lot. I think I heard once that cats sleep about 20 hrs. every day. What I learn from that is they know how to take care of themselves. When they are tired, they sleep. I imagine that our cats are wondering when my wife and I are going to leave them alone. Thankfully for them we leave every day at 5:00PM to go ride our bikes. I imagine them taking a long deep breath of gratitude when we do leave. They are finally able to get their peace and quiet. Another thing that I find amazing about cats is their ability to read our emotions. When I am feeling stressed one of them (usually Squirt) will come and curl up with me on the couch. He has this innate sense that something is wrong with me. I appreciate that. I feel loved and comforted by his warmth and his purring. Cats have their habits. Every day at 5:00PM...

The creator of this universe came up with a fantastic idea. The idea was you. When your creator decided to create you there was a celebration. I can see the angels and beings of light just throwing a party, because your creator said it was time for you to exist. There has never been a time when your creator has not existed, and there has never been a time when you have not existed. That means that before our planet existed, before our sun existed, you existed. In the spiritual realm you have been floating around waiting for the perfect time to inhabit a human body. I do not have any direct knowledge that proves that you choose your body, but I have heard several spiritual masters say that we do. Again, I have no idea. What I do know is that you were destined to be here now. If anyone ever told you that you were an accident, or that you should not have been born they are wrong. You are a magnificent miracle that has always been destined to be here. The timing had to be rig...

“You are not what you do.” How many times have you heard someone say that to you? Probably many. Do you believe it? What would happen to your self-esteem if you made a larger mistake? I’m not talking about turning right instead of left at an intersection. I’m talking about if you forgot to show up for an important job interview or forgot to pay the electric and the power gets shut off. Can you accept yourself as being a beautiful human being even when you make mistakes? Here is what I know about the human condition. We are going to make mistakes. A lot of them. I also know that mistakes do not define me. What I do is not as important as who I am. Who I am is the glorious manifestation of a Creator that loves me unconditionally. There is nothing I can do or not do to affect this reality. The love for me is not conditioned upon what I do. The love for you is not conditioned upon what you do. What would it be like to go through life not worrying about whether we are pe...

Every day my wife and I visit our beautiful butterfly garden. There is a bird feeder that was installed by some generous soul. I appreciate this kind gesture, because we get to watch the beautiful birds that land there. The birds swoop down from their perch on the nearby tree, landing gently on the feeder. They know how to take turns. They don’t barge in front of each other. The birds sitting in the trees wait patiently for the bird that is on the feeder to leave. The birds take their share of food, and then leave to go back to another tree. Every bird seems to get enough. Under the feeder we watch the squirrel taking advantage of the seeds that fall. They trust that this will happen on a regular basis, so they are also in the nearby tree waiting patiently next to the birds that are next to take flight. Next to the feeder are some beautiful flowering plants that are waiting to be pollinated by the industrious bees. The bees know that they have an important duty and are eager t...

You are being taken care of. Right now. Do you believe that? I cannot tell you the number of times in my life when I didn’t believe it. Fear was a constant friend for me for much of my life. It governed my decisions and clouded my vision of the future. It blocked my opportunities and sabotaged the ones that I accepted. It took hold of my life in a way that sent me to places I didn’t wish to go. The fear was that I was not being taken care of. In short it was a lack of faith. I was afraid from the earliest days of my life, even though I was raised in a very affluent family. Hear is a truth. Money does not fix the fear of not being taken care of. I know plenty of wealthy people who still live in fear. I also know many people who are not affluent who know that they will be taken care of. If it’s not about money, then how do I lose this fear? I believe that it is about knowing that life is safe. It’s having a faith in something much bigger than us. Each of us has a diffe...

I try to stand in the Light as much as possible. This Light is so beautiful that I can barely comprehend it when I see it. I have seen it several times in my life. It made itself known to me when I was married. The words “I do” came to me as a beautiful sign from the Light that all was well. The Light came to me when I had the thought that all my negative thoughts about myself were wrong. The Light came to me when my heart was willing to forgive the wrongs of those whom I felt anger towards. The Light came to me too when I survived an attack in 2004 that almost took my life. The Light was in the surgeon’s hands as he saved my life. This Light I speak of doesn’t have one name. It has many names. Throughout the eons of time many have named it. Some called it God, Jesus, Buddha, Mohammad, Source, The One, Nature, Holy One. Every name is valid. Every name matters. They matter, because they are all the Light. We are in the Light. The Light emanates from us, towards us, throug...

My wife and I have a new wonderful habit. Every day at 5:00PM we shut off our computers, feed our cats, and then go for a bike ride. Fortunately, we live in a beautiful community with lots of trees and wonderful wildlife. On any given day we will see ducks, swans, turtles, and birds of many varieties. It’s amazing what each new trip brings us. This week we were privileged to see a swan baby. It must have been born in the past week. Swimming within a foot from its mother reminds me of how I want to be closer to God. The baby swan is completely dependent on its mother for food and protection. The father is always near and seeing them together always warms my heart. Our destination every day is the beautiful butterfly garden. It is a 1 ½ mile ride to this garden and is always worth the trip. Arriving at 5:45PM the heat of the day is starting to wane enough to allow the breeze to relieve us. When we arrive, there are always monarch butterflies waiting to be photographed. Their be...

We are one. We are one mind, and yet we are separate. We are all the same, yet we are all unique. How do we square these ideas with each other? How can I be the same as everyone else, and yet be completely unique? How does a snowflake look like another snowflake, and be completely different from the other? Contemplate that. There are trillions upon trillions of snowflakes falling from the sky every day on this planet. How can each one be different? In the eons of time haven’t two snowflakes been the same? The experts say no. How is it that humans are all different? How can we look similar in many ways, and be completely different from one another? In some ways we are the same. We have qualities that are similar, and yet we are all different. There will never be another you. How can being unique give us a sense of being one with each other? How can our uniqueness create a sense of togetherness? Doesn’t being unique create a sense of separation? Wouldn’t we all need to be the same in...

I invite you to think of something about yourself that you like. What do you do well? What do you bring to this world that nobody else can? I used to falsely believe that I had nothing valuable to share with the world. I had lots of issues stemming from a false narrative about myself. Where this narrative came from is complicated. It came from society, school, and other people close to me. Maybe you were raised in an environment that didn’t highlight the gifts you bring to this world. I would like to suggest a different vision for you. I invite you to look at the possibility that you are unique in a way that is valuable to this world. I remember this when I go to Disney World, and they ask me to place my finger on the scanner to enter the park. Out of the millions of people that have visited Disney World over the years, the system knows that it is me that is entering the park. I feel valued when they let me through. I know I am unique. Could you feel that way in your every...

The question came to my mind this morning. I’m sure it has come to yours. When will our lives get back to normal? In that moment I was reminded that I have control issues. I want someone to tell me how it’s going to progress, how I can protect myself against the coronavirus, and when my life will get back to normal? Here is my truth. I have no interest in my life being exactly the way it was. OK. Let’s be honest John. I want a lot of it back. But like many of us who are sitting at home right now, I am in conflict. I want my life back the way it was, but I don’t want the hectic non-stop schedule that I had before. I want balance. Something beautiful happens when we can admit that we are not in control of what happens in the outside world. It takes the pressure off our insistence on taking responsibility for things that are not ours to take. There is an unloading of a burden that we have taken on. Many of us even believe that we will be rewarded for our heroism. Let me be...

I saw a sign in front of a church “Hope Has Not Been Cancelled”. It was brilliant. It was simple. It was courageous. In my life almost everything has been cancelled. School, church, golfing, diving, and all entertainment outside of my home. My schedule is always full of activities. I’m used to going from one activity to another. All of that stopped on March 13 when social distancing measures cancelled everything. There is one thing that has not been cancelled. That thing is hope. You cannot cancel hope. You can postpone it. You might be able to squash it by pretending there is none. Hope can even be obscured by the pain of this world. But you cannot cancel it. There was a time in my life when I had no hope. There were years when I saw no hope for my future. I was in a lot of pain both physically and emotionally and didn’t see a bright future for me. Those were some dark days. It took me a long time to find this better space that I inhabit now. I am extremely grateful for...

Many of us are feeling powerless right now. Powerless to stop the coronavirus. Powerless over when businesses will open again. Powerless over when a vaccine will be available. Powerless over our feelings. It’s a tough time for many. Despite these challenges there is a beautiful light shining from the writers of this world. I am reading many stories of hope on Medium every day. This article is to remind you of the power that you have as a writer to heal the world. Yes, you do have the power to heal the world. In every generation there has been a crisis of some kind. During and after the crisis people turn to writers to give them a sense of hope. Some writers create fiction to escape in. Some writers create romance novels to help people remember the power of love. Some writers write spiritual essays to give us hope that things will get better. Whatever your flavor of writing, you are giving us all a way to feel our feelings and to find our way through the crisis. I starte...

During this time of social distancing and disruption of my life, I have a great opportunity to practice a lot of self-care. Like so many, the disruption of my routines has created an opening to explore creative avenues. Since being at home I have been writing, exercising, and spending lots of time speaking with friends and family. The crisis has opened doors to opportunities that didn’t seem available to me before. They were available, but I was not aware of them. I was too busy. Slowing down has enabled me to see parts of my personal life that I need to work on. This has been painful. It is painful to see the parts of me that are still selfish and full of fear. It is not easy to admit the faults that I still have. It is difficult to admit that I still have lots of things in my personal world that need attending to. These things that need addressing have always been there. But I was covering up the feelings with busyness. I was moving so fast I didn’t realize what needed to be ad...

Have you ever stared at a blank piece of paper or computer screen, and had no idea what to write down? Have you recently looked at your calendar for the next month or two, and have no idea whether what you put on it will happen? That is the position that millions of people are in right now. Today people have been laid off, are in the hospital, are on lock down at home, or in some other way left with tons of unknowns about their future. We are all in this boat of the unknown. I find it particularly challenging, because I am somebody who loves to have a busy schedule full of lots of appointments. I drive a lot for my various jobs and enjoy the variety that my schedule affords me. Being at home for weeks at a time with very few places that I must be leaves me with a schedule that is virtually blank. I am learning to fill out that schedule with some beautiful routines. These routines are keeping me anchored during this very unknown time. What I find most i...

My wife and I went out today for our afternoon bike ride. We do this every day now that Florida is in a shutdown. We always go a certain way around the path, but today I suggested we go the opposite direction. It was amazing. We saw things that we never saw before. It felt like we were on a completely different path. It got me thinking about perspectives, and how when we change them our whole world changes. Many of us get stuck in ways of behaving in the world that feel comfortable to us. We have our routines. We love our routines. For me, my routines before COVID-19 included going to my favorite sandwich shop for lunch, sitting in the library before my next appointment, and working out at my gym on Monday and Wednesday. All of that changed for me on March 13. That’s when the social distancing orders started coming down where I live. Suddenly, all those things came to a halt. No more church service, no more band rehearsals, no more teaching in schools, no more golfing, no m...

In this time of social distancing, many of the activities that we usually do are now unavailable. We can’t go to our local beach, swimming pool, restaurant, or movie theater. It can feel very restrictive. We may even feel deprived. This is normal. We are not used to having our lives curtailed like this. Immediate gratification is something we have grown accustomed to. The blocking of these activities by governmental agencies can be difficult. What do we do with all this time we have on our hands? I have been writing. Writing a lot. I have been exercising every day with my wife. Every afternoon we ride our bikes to our beautiful butterfly garden. We sit on the bench and watch the amazing life that is on display there. We always see some new type of butterfly or bird that we haven’t seen there before. The variety is quite stunning. We always walk away from the garden feeling like we have been witnesses to something amazing. The butterfly garden has been there for many months, b...

I was sitting on my back porch two days ago watching the ducks swimming on our pond. I was reminded about how nature takes care of itself. I was reminded that the ducks don’t need to worry about anything. Then why did I go to bed the other night worrying about my finances and my physical and emotional health? Why was I worried about things when I know that I am being taken care of? Lots of people are worrying about these things right now. Our world is experiencing a shift in consciousness, the likes of none of us alive have experienced. There seems to be a concern by lots of us about how and when this virus will end. The feeling of being alone is present with a lot of us right now. We are alone at home, alone with work, alone in our cars, alone in our parks, and alone in our minds. Despite being physically alone, I propose that we are not alone at all. We are always in the presence of a loving and supportive Creator. We all have a different name for that Presence. The name does...