Andrew Furst's Blog, page 86
December 29, 2015
Christmas Eve by Bill Berkson – Compass Songs
by Bill Berkson
for Vincent Warren
Behind the black water tower
under the grey
of the sky that feeds it
smoke speeds to where a pigeon
spreads its wings
This is no great feat
Cold pushes out its lust
We walk we drink we cast
our giggling insults
Would you please
leave the $2.50 you owe me
I would rather not talk about it
just now Money bores me I would like
to visit someone who will stay
in bed all day A forest is rising
imperceptibly in my head
not a civilized park
I think it would be nice this “new
moral odor” no it would not mean
“everything marching to its tomb”
The water tower
watches over us Is there someone
you would like to invite no one.
Compass Songs is an ongoing series of works by poets that I enjoy. Poetry, as the Zen Masters have said, is like a finger pointing to the moon. It speaks the unspeakable.
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December 28, 2015
Thomas Hardy on Verse
Quotes -The path to right view is an arduous walk through fields of manure.
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Do We Need a Reason To Be Happy? – Dialectic Two-Step
Question: Do We Need a Reason To Be Happy?
..and if yes then should it be tied to a person, goal or what?
Response: I think you have another alternative. First, happiness is a temporary thing. More precisely happiness is as temporary as the things that we tie it too. If we seek happiness in quick fix bursts – like sugar, sex, or shiny things – our happiness will be short lived. If we tie it to things that are lasting but more difficult to attain, happiness can be hard to come by.
The drive to attain happiness is an addiction. Once the last bit of it wears off, we’re like a junkie, driven to the next fix, whatever it takes. If we’re looking for a reason to be happy, we’re limited by the availability of the next thing. We often don’t find what we’re looking for.
But what about looking within for happiness? If there were such a thing, we would have an endless supply. Being within, we’d always be able to access it.
This is one of the benefits of meditation. By settling our mind and body to the rhythm of our own breath, we can find peace, relaxation, and escape from the cycle of addiction. The best explanation of meditation is to experience it for yourself. Take a minute or two try it.
Find a comfortable seat. Close your eyes. Take three deep breaths. With each breath allow the thoughts, tensions, and worries of the day briefly melt away. After the three deep inhales, let your breath return to its natural cadence. Allow your mind to rest on each inhale and exhale.
Follow it for ten breaths, or maybe twenty. If your mind wanders, don’t worry, it always will. Just gently return your awareness to the breath.
After a minute or two, stop. Notice how you feel. It’s not exactly happiness. I call it contentment, openness, and freedom. The practice of meditation is the opportunity, every day, to return to this peace. A peace that is always available from within. As long as we have our breath, we can have contentment. No reason, no object, and no fix required.
Dialectic Two-Step is an ongoing series of my thoughts on questions that come my way.
Wisdom lies neither in fixity nor in change, but in the dialectic between the two. - Octavio
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December 27, 2015
Autumn Drive Through The Poconos – A Three Minute Meditation
On the way back from Baltimore, my wife drove part of the way. So I took some video of the fall foliage starting to bloom in the Poconos.
These Meditation Videos Are Best Viewed In Full Screen
One Minute Meditations is an ongoing series of short videos, poems, and commentary intended as a meditation. Offered as an opportunity to step back from your cyber routine and settle into a more natural rhythm, if only for a minute.
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These videos are produced for those of us who spend an inordinately large amount of time in the cyber-world. They are not a substitute for unplugging from your devices and taking a stroll near trees, water, or a patch of unkempt grass. Getting out into the world - touching, smelling, hearing, and seeing nature is the best way to reconnect with our prime purpose.
What is our prime purpose? We are feeling and sensing machines. We are the universe looking back on itself. We are witness to the wonders and dangers of living in this corner of the cosmos. We are the seekers looking for connection a little further beyond yesterday's borders and boundaries.
But sitting and staring at the screen robs us of the sustenance that we rely upon for wonder and sanity. These videos are an opportunity to bring the sensations of nature to you, while you're in the cyber-world. Its an opportunity to relax your gaze, resettle your posture, and regain some depth in your breath. Listen and watch the video and allow your self to open up and recharge.
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December 26, 2015
New Years Resolutions? – Say What?
Say What? is an ongoing series of laconic exchanges on Buddhism in the format of a comic strip.
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Rusted Battlefield – Tiny Drops (Photography)
Click on an image below to view images in the lightbox
bug flowers
engine weed
trebuchet wheels
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December 25, 2015
Merry Christmas
Quotes -The path to right view is an arduous walk through fields of manure.
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Christmas Morning Coming Down – Peace On Earth
A special edition of Sunday Morning Coming Down (Let’s call it Christmas Morning Coming Down)
One of my Christmas Favorites.
Sunday Morning Coming Down is an ongoing music video series. The songs fit my definition of music for a lazy couch bound Sunday morning.
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In addition to a monthly email you can also subscribe to the following weekly series:
Weekly Series:
One Minute Meditations
Tiny Drops (Photography series)
Compass Songs (My Favorite Poems)
Dialectic Two-Step
Modern Koans (interesting questions)
Sunday Morning Coming Down (Music Videos)
Relics (Timeless Republished Articles)
Say What?
Quotes
Verse Us (Poems I Write)
Meditations on Gratitude
Peace On Earth\Little Drummer Boy
Come they told me pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
A new-born king to see pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
Our finest gifts we bring pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
Rum-pum-pum-pum, rum-pum-pum-pum
Come they told me pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
A new-born king to see pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
Our finest gifts we bring pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
to lay before the king pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
Rum-pum-pum-pum, rum-pum-pum-pum
so to honour him pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
when we come
Little baby pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
I stood beside him there pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
I played my drum for him pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
I played my best for him pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
Rum-pum-pum-pum, rum-pum-pum-pum
And he smiled at me pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
me and my drum
Peace on Earth, can it be
Years from now, perhaps we’ll see
See the day of glory
See the day, when men of good will
Live in peace, live in peace again
Peace on Earth, can it be
Every child must be made aware
Every child must be made to care
Care enough for his fellow man
To give all the love that he can
I pray my wish will come true
For my child and your child too
He’ll see the day of glory
See the day when men of good will
Live in peace, live in peace again
Peace on Earth, can it be
Can it be
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December 24, 2015
The Best Twitter Friends
Explore the word cloud image below to find folks that I think would be great additions to your twitter community. Just click on the name to go to their twitter profile. THEN FOLLOW THEM.
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A Christmas Carol
Quotes -The path to right view is an arduous walk through fields of manure.
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