Posted by: John | June 24, 2013

On the Road

In riding around with Lisa in her little Smart car, I’ve had more time to observe the way most people drive.  There seems to be very little planning ahead.  Drivers will cut across any number of lanes to exit.  If a sign indicates the lane ends ahead, instead of slowing down and getting into the adjacent lane as soon as possible, most drivers stay in the lane they’re in, hoping to get ahead of other drivers.  Of course that means they must come to a complete stop somewhere soon and wait for another driver to slow down and let them into the lane they should’ve entered when the sign was posted.  It’s a ME, ME, ME world on the freeways.

Also it’s apparent that many drivers resent Lisa’s little car.  Although there’s never a “whip lash” issue on initial acceleration, the little car holds its own once traffic starts moving.  Many huge gas-guzzling SUVs will speed-up to get in front of us only to need to stop at an obvious red light three car lengths ahead.  They can’t have her cute little foreign car be ahead of them.  I have to wonder if these drivers live their lives the way they drive – with no looking ahead, no consideration of others, thinking only of themselves.

But there’s always that small percentage of drivers who are considerate and patient of those who are not.  Just as in life, those Buddha-like, Christ-like few enable the rest of us to exist.

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Posted by: John | June 17, 2013

Practice

Been teaching flying – 40 years:
One learns to fly more by flying
rather than reading flying books.
And one learns to live more by living
than by reading about living.

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Posted in Poetry

Posted by: Jivani Lisa | June 13, 2013

The Proven Path

“But how narrow is the gate that leads to life, how rough the road, and how few there are who find it!”
(Matthew 7:14)

On the spiritual path
let us fear any short-cuts
presented to us —
no matter how good
or enticing
they appear to be.

Let us follow the proven path —
through the narrow gate —
although it seems longer
and strewn with endless
hardships.
Truly, lessons
and opportunities needed
by our soul
will be found there.

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Posted in Poetry

Posted by: John | June 12, 2013

You Are Love

I let you glide into my life with your scarf and quiet smile.
The peace you gave brought back my self-respect.

Your generous spirituality opened doors I forgot I shut;
Your serenity slowed me down,
gave me time to look around.

You’re a gift from God to me.
God is love; you are love.
You are all that I can see.

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Posted in Poetry

Posted by: John | June 6, 2013

Take Me to a Thermal

Here’s something combining my favorite song (Take it to the Limit) from my favorite band (The Eagles) about one of my favorite activities (glider flying):

You can spend all your block doing rope breaks.
You can spend all your flight boxing wake.

If the sky went flat by sixteen hundred,
would you still be at Garner?

So put me in a thermal, show me some sky,
and take me to Franklin one more time.

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Posted in Poetry

Posted by: John | June 3, 2013

Throttle Back

Aviation gives us a number of metaphors for living life – the term “Throttle Back,” being one of them. The throttle knob controls the power. Full power (throttle) is needed for take off and many climbing situations. However, upon reaching cruise altitude, the power is reduced (pulled back) to a cruise setting, usually around 75% maximum power. This burns less fuel, allowing greater endurance. The airplane then flies the pilot to a destination. By throttling back, the engine lasts longer.

In our competitive culture, we’re taught to “give 110%.” This all too often leads to burn-out. If we were to “throttle back,” (relax a bit) we would expend less energy, letting life take us where it will. Our engines might last longer as well.

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Posted by: Jivani Lisa | May 29, 2013

I Teach

“Some chose to take care of the sick. Others worked for the wretched and the oppressed. Others took up teaching. Others brought help to the poor, and in their love and their piety they flourished in the company of the great and of the holy. . . .
“What usually happens to those not yet established in their chosen profession is this: They hear people talked about because of zeal or virtues which are different from their own. Straight away they want to take up a discipline like theirs, and because of human frailty their efforts are necessarily in vain. . . .
“The journey to God follows many routes. So let each person take to the end and with no turning back the way he first chose so that he may be perfect, no matter what his profession may be.”
— Abba Nesteros quoted in John Cassian’s Conferences

It may sound silly, but this passage woke me up to the fact that I’m a teacher.  I never really set out to be a teacher – but I certainly didn’t end up as Miss America, a ballerina, or a nun (all things I wanted to do while growing up).  My older sister invited me to teach her aerobics classes for her while she was on vacation for two weeks.  That was in 1985.  After many years of teaching group fitness classes, I felt drawn to teach Yoga.

Often, I imagine that my life would be more virtuous if I were working a mission in Africa or if I were living a life of prayer and penance as a hermit.  But those paths are not my calling.  I am a teacher.  With God’s help, I teach.

How about you?  What is your path – and do you ever feel an urge to go off and do something else?

 

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Posted by: Jivani Lisa | May 28, 2013

Restless Souls

Immediately after John and I met in 2009, we started discussing all kinds of spiritual topics.  I mentioned that I wanted to do God’s will in my life, rather than my own will – but determining God’s will is quite a challenge.  I told him I thought God was calling me to be a nun.  Here’s an email exchange from the early months of our friendship:

John:  “As introspective and articulate as I’m finding you, you may be called for something else [other than being a nun].  I think we each must find our own calling.  We’re both seekers as we agreed.  It was in 2000 when I was fifty-seven that I decided there may be no answers and at my age it would be best for me to hang out in one position both physically and maybe spiritually for the rest of my life.  I couldn’t run anymore.  Everywhere I went was like the place I just left.  Everyone I met was like someone I already knew.  I was told by someone who read much of my writing that I’m an incurable romantic.  I said I thought that was someone with herpes, the clap, and AIDS.  But we go where we must go and do what we must do.  Those of us with restless souls make life worth living for everyone else.”

Me:  “Wow!  I could have written that myself.  It’s like the only real difference between us is age.  I, too, must force myself to stop running, to stop searching everywhere for something or someone.  I, too, am an incurable romantic.  This, of course, means much more than sex.  It is a state of the soul.  For me, it has become a longing for God.  When I center my life in Him and in His will, I find peace.  I know that I am loved; I know that my life has meaning.  St. Augustine said that our souls are restless until they rest in God.  Because, ultimately, we were created for union with God, not with people or with the things of this world.  I agree that in a sense we need to ‘hang out’ physically and spiritually.  This means committing ourselves to something more than our own pleasure or happiness.  However, we are never really standing still.  We are always progressing, either forward or backward.  That is always our choice every single day, in each small decision we make, each word we speak.  ‘Those of us with restless souls make life worth living for everyone else.’  What a beautiful way to look at it!  Namaste!”

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Posted by: John | May 27, 2013

Time

A moment is spiritual;
A minute secular.
A moment lasts forever;
A minute sixty seconds.

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Posted in Poetry

Posted by: Jivani Lisa | May 24, 2013

Icons In or Out?

At work, our computer uses one of my favorite standard desktop background photos:  Tropical ocean with palm-tree-dotted islet and white sailboat.  I like to close out whatever windows were open and just stare at the photo as a kind of Micro-Vacation.

We only have six desktop icons.  They’re all lined up vertically on the left-hand side of the screen.  I like to push them all the way to the left so they’re only partially visible on the screen – thereby maximizing my view of the ocean scene.  One of my co-workers likes to line them up directly over the sailboat on the left side of the photo.

Over the course of a couple weeks, I moved them waaaay over to the left each morning – only to find them back lined up over the sailboat when I came in the next day.

I finally mentioned it to my co-worker as a kind of joke; I told her I was trying to get the icons out of the way so I could enjoy the unobstructed photo.  She responded by explaining her preference of making the icons part of the photo.

Ah!  I never would’ve thought of it that way!  What a good lesson in inclusiveness.

The icons are in.

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