Can you recite your personal philosophy in 25 words or less?

Legendary college football coach Pete Carroll started his motivational speech by stressing the importance of having a philosophy and knowing it. Carroll asked some of military’s highest-ranking officers to raise their hands if they had a personal philosophy. About half the attendees raised their hands.

Then he asked how many of those who raised their hands could recite their philosophy in 25 words or less. By then, only a small handful of people still had their hands up.

If I was asked to recited my personal philosophy in 25 words or less, my answer would be yes. I would take a shot at it, and probably come up with something close to 25 words and near the truth. But no philosophy is completely ingrained my soul.  My mantra is: To Strive for Love, To seek knowledge, To Find happiness, and Yield not to fear. Inspired by my favorite poem Ulysses by Lord Alfred Tennyson. “To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.”  So I decided to write a sharp personal philosophy in 25 words or less.  And I challenge you to do the same.

I would love to hear some inspiring short philosophies, so drop a link below to your blog post, social media site, or go rogue in the comment section below with 25 words or less. In case you wondering where you can find my personal philosophy in 25 words or less.  I decided to take some time to ponder this exercise and try to perfect my 25 words or less, in a poetic style that speaks of imagination and certitude. I will published it in three days time…

Need a little inspiration?  Here is a Pete Carroll coaching philosophy: Win…Forever.

“I remembered thinking, that’s what it means to really be successful, showing you can maintain success over a long period of time,” Carroll said. “Looking back now, that’s when I decided that I wanted the team I coached to Win Forever.”

“How can you possibly do something forever? Much less Win… Forever?”

“That’s the interesting thing about the philosophy — to accomplish the grand, you have to focus on the small. To exist in the eternal perspective, you have to live in the moment.”

“Each practice takes on utmost importance. Each strength and conditioning workout carries significant weight. They’re all monumental, yet none more valuable than another.”

“And it goes to even more minute scales than that. Each repetition of each drill at practice means everything, because you can’t get to forever without right now.”

Carroll continued recalling the speech he gave to his players,

“‘The issue is this — we set our sights years and years ago to get to this point right here and to prove that we could do this just because we were dreamers and we were hopeful and we were going to do something really special. And the fact that we’re going to play this game tomorrow is not the issue. The fact that’s so important is what we have done, what we have illustrated and the lesson we can take away from this. By having a vision that nobody would back off on, that nobody would take a backward step on, that nobody would ever think couldn’t happen, we found our way to put ourselves exactly where we wanted to be. We’re doing it better than it’s ever been done before.”

“Carroll was a specially invited attendee and speaker at the military’s Conference on Small Unit Excellence, a first-of-its-kind seminar in Alexandria, Va., in late April that has since laid the foundation for revolutionary shifts in the actions and attitudes of the country’s armed forces.”

“Co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Joint Forces Command, the three-day conference attracted the military’s highest-ranking officers, some of the country’s brightest academicians, science’s top thinkers and Carroll — the only sports-related person invited — as they sought the answer to one question: How can the U.S. military improve and maintain consistent success?”

“Much like the rock that you drop in calm water, the effects of Coach’s presence and what he had to say is still rippling through the body of communities here,” Kamiya said. “The ripples are still reverberating through our communities.”  Source USC News

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“Autumn, the year’s last, loveliest smile.” William Cullen Bryant

Welcome back to Enlightenyourday.com

I have had the social media flu lately and unplugged from the Blogosphere for awhile. During my vacation, some dark force in the cybersphere stole the keys to my online portals and subsequently attempted to burn the house down. Fortunately, I had a backup plan on hard disk, and a hosting provider Blue Host that believes in exceptional customer service.

So E.Y.D has changed with the fall season to a new look and feel for the moment. I hope you will enjoy part three in my photo blog series: Enchanting Autumn incantations of sublime seasonal change. Every photo links to its original source on Flickr and Vi.sualize.us. Your thoughts and musings are always welcome here on E.Y.D.  Any nostalgic thoughts or feelings to share about the arrival of Autumn?

“To be interested in the changing seasons is a happier state of mind than to be hopelessly in love with spring.” George Santayana

“Seasons change, friends move away, and life goes on from day to day. Flowers fade and streams go dry and many times we wonder why. Yet we can always be assured because God tells us in His Word, that unlike changes in the weather, love goes on and las”  Unknown

“You must take personal responsibility. You cannot change the circumstances, the seasons, or the wind, but you can change yourself. That is something you have charge of.” Jim Rohn

Pretty Leaves
Pretty leaves are falling down,
Green, orange, yellow and brown.
Here comes one colored red,
It landed on my head.

Pumpkins in the cornfields
Gold among the brown
Leaves of rust and scarlet
Trembling slowly down
Birds that travel southward
Lovely time to play
Nothing is as pleasant
As an autumn day!

No spring nor summer beauty hath such grace
as I have seen in one autumnal face

Autumn quote by John Donne

“And you would accept the seasons of your heart just as you have always accepted that seasons pass over your fields and you would watch with serenity through the winters of your grief.” Kahlil Gibran

“Love is the only flower that grows and blossoms Without the aid of the seasons.” Kahlil Gibran

“For him in vain the envious seasons roll, Who bears eternal summer in his soul.” Oliver Wendell Holmes “Don’t doubt the fact there’s life within you. Yesterday’s ending will tomorrow life give you.All that dies, dies for a reason, To put it’s strength into the seasons.” Unknown

“The past is a guidepost, not a hitching post.”
- Thomas Holcroft

“To live is so startling it leaves little time for anything else.”
- Emily Dickinson

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 “Sometimes we love with nothing more then hope. Sometimes we cry with everything except tears. In the end that’s all we have — to hold on tight until dawn.” Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts p. 346

I don’t know how to express my love for Shantaram. I fear defining it, or labelling it. There is no value in understanding the reasons why I love this book. Reason and love have no connection in art. The art that captures us, is the art we dare not make reasonable. Great art is made up of emotions and expressions that move us. The truth I realized in the heart of Shantaram, is that we are all, everyone of us, is moving towards or away for God. And with that, a little bit of my soul swept forward into the light. 

“To know the truth, all you have to do is close your eyes…. We can know God, for example, and we can know sadness. We can know dreams, and we can know love. But none of these are real, in our usual sense of things that exist in the world and seem real. We cannot weight them, or measure their length, or find their basic parts in an atom smasher. Which is why they are possible. “ Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts p. 196

“Didier once told me, in a rambling, midnight dissertation, that a dream is the place where a wish and a fear meet. When the wish and the fear are exactly the same, he said, we call the dream a nightmare.” Shantaram p. 150

“You know, Lin, he said softly, we have a saying, in the Pashto language, and the meaning of it is that your are not a man until you give your love, truly and freely, to a child. And you are not a good man until you earn the love, truly and freely, of a child in return.” Shantaram p. 353

“I was thinking about another kind of river, one that runs through every one of us, no matter where we come from, all over the world. It’s the river of the heart, and the heart’s desire. It’s the pure, essential truth of what each one of us is, and can achieve… Shantaram, which means man of peace, or man of God’s peace. They nailed their stakes into the earth of my life, those farmers. They knew the place in me where the river stopped, and they marked it with a new name.  Shantaram Kishan Kharre.  I don’t know if they found that name in the heart of the man they believed me to be, or if they planted it there, like a whishing tree, to bloom and grow. Whatever the case, whether they discovered that peace or created it, the truth is that the man I am was born in those moments, as I stood near the flood sticks with my face lifted to the chrismal rain. Shantaram. The better man that, slowly, and much to late, I began to be.”   Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts  p.137

“The truth is that there are no good men, or bad men, he said. It is the deeds that have goodness or badness in them. There are good deeds, and bad deeds. Men are just men – it is what they do, or refuse to do, that links them to good and evil. The truth is that an instant of real love, in the heart of anyone – the noblest man alive or the wicked – has the whole purpose and process and meaning of life within the lotus-folds of its passion. The truth is that we are all, every one of us, every atom, every galaxy, and every particle of matter in the universe, moving toward God.” Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts p. 199

“Lovers find their way by insights and confidences; they are the stars they use to navigate the ocean of desire. And the brightest of those stars are the heartbreaks and sorrows. The most precious gift you can bring to your lover is your suffering.”  Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts 

“I pressed my lips against the sky, and licked the stars into my mouth. She took my body into hers, and every moment was an incantation. Our breathing was like the whole world chanting prayers. Sweat ran in rivulets to ravines of pleasure. Every moment was a satin skin cascade. Within the velvet cloaks of tenderness, our backs convulsed in quivering heat, pushing heat, pushing muscles to complete what minds begin and bodies always win. I was hers. She was mine. My body was her chariot, and she drove it into the sun. Her body was my river, and I became the sea. And the wailing moan that drove our lips together, at the end, was the world of hope and sorrow that ecstasy wrings from lovers as it floods their souls with bliss.

The still and softly breathing silence that suffused and submerged us, afterwards, was emptied of need, and want, and hunger, and pain, and everything else except pure, ineffable exquisiteness of love.”  Shantaram  p. 400

“My heart broke on its shame and sorrow. I suddenly knew how much crying there was in me, and how little love. I knew, at last, how lonely I was.

But I couldn’t respond. My culture had taught me all the wrong things well. So I lay completely still, and gave no reaction at all. But the soul has no culture. The soul has no nations. The soul has no colour or accent or way of life. The soul is forever. The soul is one. And when the heart has its moment of truth and sorrow, the soul can’t be stilled.”

“I clenched my teeth against the stars. I closed my eyes. I surrendered to sleep. One of the reasons why we crave love, and seek it so desperately, is that love is the only cure for loneliness, and shame, and sorrow. But some feelings sink so deep into the heart hat only loneliness can help you find them again. Some truths about yourself are so painful that only shame can help you live with them. And some things are just so sad that only your soul can do the crying for you.”  Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts p.124

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“Breathe deeply and appreciate the moment. Living in the moment could be the meaning of life.” lululemon manifesto

This is a special post worthy of your time: It embodies the definition of a healthy and inspiring lifestyle. Vancouver has many treasures to offer: Stanley Park, Yaletown nights, The Art Gallery, Yoga Bums… Wait did I say Yoga Bums? Yes it’s true, the first perfectly engineered and shaped yoga bum was born in Vancouver Kitsilano by a man called Chip. A shape so perfect in every way, I felt the need to investigate further; perhaps even acquire my own Yoga bum J

lululemon athletica (@lululemon) is a company both rich in quality and culture. Known for its comfy fit and great symmetry, it has given a healthy boost to the beauty of the buttocks. Yoga butts aside for the moment, the corporate culture of lululemon is enchanting and worthy of praise. Their mission: “creating components for people to live a longer, healthier, more fun life.”

The lululemon manifesto tells all…. (Flickr photos link back to lululemon athetica’s photostream)

Drink FRESH water and as much water as you can. Water flushes unwanted toxins from your body and keeps your brain sharp.

A daily hit of athletic-induced endorphins gives you the power to make better decisions, helps you be at peace with yourself, and offsets stress.

Do one thing a day that scares you.

Listen, listen, listen, and then ask strategic questions.

Write down your short and long-term GOALS four times a year. Two personal, two business and two health goals for the next 1, 5 and 10 years. Goal setting triggers your subconscious computer.

Life is full of setbacks. Success is determined by how you handle setbacks.

Your outlook on life is a direct reflection of how much you like yourself.

That which matters the most should never give way to that which matters the least.

Stress is related to 99% of all illness.

Jealousy works the opposite way you want it to.

The world is changing at such a rapid rate that waiting to implement changes will leave you 2 steps behind. DO IT NOW, DO IT NOW, DO IT NOW!

Friends are more important than money.

Breathe deeply and appreciate the moment. Living in the moment could be the meaning of life.

Take various vitamins. You never know what small mineral can eliminate the bottleneck to everlasting health.

Don’t trust that an old age pension will be sufficient.

Visualize your eventual demise. It can have an amazing effect on how you live for the moment.

The conscious brain can only hold one thought at a time. Choose a positive thought.

Live near the ocean and inhale the pure salt air that flows over the water, Vancouver will do nicely.

Observe a plant before and after watering and relate these benefits to your body and brain.

Practice yoga so you can remain active in physical sports as you age.

Dance, sing, floss and travel.

Children are the orgasm of life. Just like you did not know what an orgasm was before you had one, nature does not let you know how great children are until you have them.

Successful people replace the words “wish”, “should” and “try” with “I will”.

Creativity is maximized when you’re living in the moment.

Nature wants us to be mediocre because we have a greater chance to survive and reproduce. Mediocre is as close to the bottom as it is to the top, and will give you a lousy life.

lululemon athletica creates components for people to live longer, healthier and more fun lives. If we can produce products to keep people active and stress-free, we believe the world will become a much better place.

Do not use cleaning chemicals on your kitchen counters. Someone will inevitably make a sandwich on your counter.

SWEAT once a day to regenerate your skin.

Communication is COMPLICATED. We are all raised in a different family with slightly different definitions of every word. An agreement is an agreement only if each party knows the conditions for satisfaction and a time is set for satisfaction to occur.

What we do to the earth we do to ourselves.

The pursuit of happiness is the source of all unhappiness.

Author’s note: I found this manifesto to be something I needed to share with my readers. Simply put, it enlightened my day, and I was grateful for it. This is published with permission from lululemon athletica via one quick call to their guest education hotline. I’m not affiliated with lululemon, but I do practice Yoga and enjoy the comfy fit of their men’s line. Oh… …And I think they fit women just fabulously…

Please share any thoughts or feedback below in my comment section about Yoga bums, lululemon, or its healthy manifesto. Thanks

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What started as a necessary evil, Twitter, has turned into a fun social media experiment. At last count, my Twitter ( @EnlightenYurDay ) had 2,153 followers. I Tweet and Retweet inspiring and eye-catching quotes along with current Social Media Trends from TweetDeck. I use # HashTags and referral sites like MrTweet to cast my net wider. My Twitter philosophy is simple: share truth and beauty. Here is list of my favorite Retweets and Tweets. Kindest Regards to all my Twitter contributors.

RT Inspiring Tweets and Zen Retweets from my Twitter Contributors

flickr photo by scarbody

Zen ReTweets

• RT @MarkIsMusing: For my part I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream” Van Gogh #quote
• RT @joyfrequencies: Awesome! “It was the work of the quiet mountains, this torrent of purity at my feet” Jack Kerouac #quote #quotes
• RT @beiruta: Great #quote “First they ignore you. Then they laugh at you. Then they fight you. Then you win” Mahatma Gandhi
• RT @fitwriter Now that my house has burned down, I have a much better look at the sky–Zen saying
• RT @traveleverywher: RT @Ladyalana: It’s not what if, it’s what now. ~Author Unknown #quote
• RT @ScreamingEagle1: “We make our world significant by the courage of our questions & the depth of our answers” ~ Carl Sagan #quote
• RT @allaboutenergy: The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of Hell, a hell of Heaven. ~ John Milton #quote
• RT @screamingeagle1 Great quote thanks irenerencsi: RT: “Be realistic: Plan for a miracle”— Osho?

flickr photo by Licht

Lovely ReTweets

• RT @MarkIsMusing: To fear love is to fear life, and those who fear life are already three parts dead” Bertrand Russell #quote #zen
• RT @lovepeaceunity: RT @MARCOME: “Love’s the only engine of survival.” ~ Leonard Cohen (via @mscator)
• RT @SusanCosmos: “If you love life, don’t waste time, for time is what life is made up of.” – Bruce Lee #quote
• RT @quotesource: “The greatest treasures are those invisible to the eye but found by the heart.” #quote
• RT @AlexKaris #QUOTE At the moment of commitment, the universe conspires to assist you~ Goethe
• RT @NoTwidiot: “Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius & it’s better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring…” ~unknown?

flickr photo by Browni63

Social Media ReTweets

• RT @alvinyudistira: RT @unmarketing: The key to understanding “social media” is to focus on the first word of the term.
• RT @lululemon: “How would you start loving your body if you stopped comparing it to others?” Love your body!
• RT @1800GOTJUNK: RT @Earth911 Google got rid of individual employee trash cans to minimize waste & encourage recycling http://snurl.com/k6rlo from TweetDeck ?

flickr photo by digitalTool

Self-Actualization ReTweets

• RT @quotesource: I like that. RT @ColaAllen: Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it” Henry David Thoreau #zen
• RT @SusanCosmos: In response to those who say to stop dreaming and face reality, I say keep dreaming and make reality” Kristian Kan #quote
• RT @NadiaKoligman: RT @ImproveLife: “The only place where your #dream becomes impossible is in your own thinking” Robert Schuller #quote
• RT @ScreamingEagle1: “Begin each day as if it were on purpose.” ~ Mary Anne Radmacher #quote zen
• RT @JavierChua: #Quote: “We know what we are, but know not what we may be.” ~ William Shakespeare
• RT @Montsterr: RT @MarkIsMusing: It is not our abilities that show what we truly are…it is our #choices. Albus Dumbledore #quote #zen
• RT @NDFootballFan1: It’s not the load that breaks you down, it’s the way you carry it.” Lou Holtz #quote #ND #quotes
• RT @quotesource: RT @mariaporter RT @TeddyShabba “Circumstances do not make a man, they reveal him.” Dr. Wayne W. Dyer #quote. Agreed!!
• RT @ghostcrabby: RT @thewebchild “#Success comes in cans, not cant’s.” – Unknown #quote #quotes #zen
• RT @SusanCosmos: Playing safe is probably the most unsafe thing in the world. U cannot stand still. U must go forward” Robert Collier #quote
• RT @JazmineSpirit: Intense desire not only creates its own possibilities-but its own talents -Kobi Yamada #quote
• RT @brandisco: RT @MurrayMelb: #Success is how high you bounce after you hit bottom. – General George Patton. #quote

Funny Tweets From @EnlighenYurDay

“I’m such a good lover because I practice a lot on my own.” Woody Allen #quote #love #movie

• Curiosity killed the cat, but for a while I was a suspect.” Steven Wright #quote #humor

• Always and never are two words you should always remember never to use” Wendell Johnson #quote #quotes #zen

• Luke, there is no try, there is either do or not do” George Lucas #quote

• The worst thing about new books is that they keep us from reading the old ones” John Wooden #quote #quotes #books

• Between two evils, I always pick the one I never tried before.” Mae West #quote

• A word to the wise ain’t necessary – it’s the stupid ones that need the advice” Bill Cosby #quote #humor

• “Constantly choosing the lesser of two evils is still choosing evil.” Jerry Garcia #music #quote

flickr photo by nighthamk3 (away for some time)

Dreamy Tweets From @EnlighenYurDay

#Dreams are true while they last, and do we not live in dreams?” Alfred, Lord Tennyson

#Dreams are illustrations… from the book your soul is writing about you.” Marsha Norman #quote

The robber of your free #will,” writes Epictetus, “does not exist” Marcus Aurelius #quote

There is no snooze button on a #cat who wants breakfast.” Unknown #Zen #quote

A little girl, asked where her home was, replied, “where mother is.” ~Keith L. Brooks #quote #mother #day

photo of Olivia Wilde

Sexy Tweets From @EnlighenYurDay

• For it was not into my ear you whispered But into my heart Twas not my lips you kissed But my soul” Judy Garland #quote

• After the first blush of sin comes its indifference” Henry D Thoreau #quote

• We have to believe in #free-will. We’ve got no #choice” Isaac B Singer #quote

• The question is not whether we will die, but how we will #live” Joan Borysenko #quote #zen

• #Dream as if you’ll live forever. Live as if you’ll die today.” James Dean #quotes #quote #zen

• People living deeply have no fear of death” Anais Nin #zen #quote #quotes

• Never pretend to a #love which you do not actually feel, for love is not ours to command” Alan Watts #quote #zen

flickr photo by weirena

Enlightened Tweets From @EnlighenYurDay

• The gratification comes in the doing, not in the results.” James Dean #quote #quotes #zen

• The best thing one can do when it’s raining is to let it rain.” Henry Wadsworth Longfellow #quote #zen

• I cannot make my days longer so I strive to make them better. Paul Theroux #quote

• “If U can concentrate always on the present, U’ll be a #happy man. #Life will be a party for U, a grand festival” The Alchemist #Coelho

• No man was ever wise by chance.” Seneca #quote #wisdom

• Before enlightenment; chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment; chop wood, carry water.” #Zen #Proverb #quotes

flickr photo by vanvos

Beauty Tweets From @EnlighenYurDay

• If the path be beautiful, let us not ask where it leads.” Anatole France #quote #zen #beauty

• “Let tears flow of their own accord: their flowing is not inconsistent with inward peace and harmony” Seneca #quote #peace

• To rise from error to truth is rare and beautiful” Victor Hugo #quote #art

• A beautiful thing never gives so much pain as does failing to hear and see it” Michelangelo #quote

• The sound of a kiss is not so loud as that of a cannon, but its echo lasts a great deal longer” Oliver W Holmes #quote

• “The essence of all beautiful art, all great art, is gratitude” Friedrich Nietzsche #quote #art

• #Love and Compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them #Humanity cannot survive” Dalai Lama #quote

• There are no days in #life so memorable as those which vibrated to some stroke of the #imagination” Ralph Emerson #quote

• I define nothing. Not beauty, not patriotism. I take each thing as it is, without prior rules about what it should be” Bob Dylan #quotes

flickr photo by Jessica Shannon

Money Tweets From @EnlighenYurDay

• Don’t be afraid to go out on a limb. That’s where the fruit is.” H. Jackson Browne #quote #zen

• He makes no friends who never made a foe” Tennyson #quote #friends #zen #quote #quotes

• My #motto is: Contented with little, yet wishing for more. Charles Lamb #quote

• #Money is everywhere but so is #poetry. What we lack are the #poets ” Federico Fellini #quote

• #Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.” Goethe #quote

• “If one does not know to which port one is sailing, no wind is favorable” Seneca #quotes #quote

• If you’re not failing every now and again, it’s a sign you’re not doing anything very innovative.” Woody Allen #quote

• “To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often.” Winston Churchill #quote

• Money won’t make you happy… but everybody wants to find out for themselves.” Zig Ziglar #quote

• The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities” Stephen Covey #quote

• All men dream; but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity.” but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams with open eyes, to make it possible” T. E. Lawrence #quote

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“I am a part of all that I have met…” Ulysses by Lord Alfred Tennyson

What defines originality? Setting out to explore this topic, I quickly realized the simple complicated truth: Everything and nothing is original. Each new idea is spun from a web of past experiences and knowledge.

For instance, can anything claim to be more original then the light bulb. And yet, even Edison’s idea is not original. It’s a thought born from the sun, passed onto the candle, until it became the light bulb.
I realize now, my personal quote “I love all things original“, is fundamentally flawed and probably the result of having heard something from a forgotten source. What I should say is, “I love all things”, for everything is connected, everything is a part of something else. Therefore, originality is beyond any definition I can provide for you.

So I decided to transform this question into my monthly E.Y.D Photo Blog hoping it will spark some illuminating thoughts. To compliment these Social media photos, I have added a few appetizers to meditate upon… Each photo was tagged under Originality, and links directly to the Artists kind enough to share their work on Flickr

Can you define Originality?  Drop me a comment with your thoughts on what originality is to you, or just add one idea you think is original.

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E.Y.D Photo Blog Part II:  orig·i·nal·i·ty

God has given you one face, and you make yourself another.” Shakespeare

Pronunciation: \?-?ri-j?-?na-l?-t?\ Function: noun Date: 1742
1 : the quality or state of being original 2 : freshness of aspect, design, or style 3 : the power of independent thought or constructive imagination

A

Almost every man wastes part of his life in attempts to display qualities which he does not possess, and to gain applause which he cannot keep.  ~ Samuel Johnson, The Rambler, 1750

“A quality given to ideas expressed as unique, novel or different from any other previously recognized ideas of a similar nature.”

There is just one life for each of us: our own. ~ Euripides

“It is better to fail in originality than to succeed in imitation.”  Herman Melville

How many cares one loses when one decides not to be something but to be someone.  ~ Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel

“Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind. ~ Dr. Seuss

“Originality is simply a pair of fresh eyes.”   Thomas W. Higginson

Wherever you go, go with all your heart. ~ Confucius

“Utter originality is, of course, out of the question”  Ezra Pound

“Originality is the fine art of remembering what you hear but forgetting where you heard it”

.  Laurence J. Peter

Most people are other people.  Their thoughts are someone else’s opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation.  ~ Oscar Wilde, De Profundis, 1905

“Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius & it’s better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring…” ~unknown

If you are ashamed to stand by your colors, you had better seek another flag. ~ Author Unknown

“Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever be original: whereas if you simply try to tell the truth (without caring two pence how often it has been told before) you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it. ” C. S. Lewis

“Be yourself” is about the worst advice you can give some people.  ~Tom Masson

Originality is nothing by judicious imitation. The most original writers borrowed one from another.  Voltaire

If you cannot be a poet, be the poem.  ~David Carradine

“You’ve gotta be original, because if you’re like someone else, what do they need you for?”  Bernadette Peters

“Should we all confess our sins to one another we would all laugh at one another for our lack of originality”  Kahlil Gibran

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Flickr photo by Stellablue72

 “Any life is made up of a single moment, the moment in which a man finds out, once and for all, who he is.”  Jorge Luis Borges

Upon finding a great Author that captures your heart, look further down the rabbit hole to find the writer that captured theirs.   Literature is often a road map of wisdom sending omens and random coincidences to guide you.  I’m always listening and watching for a recurring name or title to seek it out.

I found Jorge Luis Borges in Paulo Coelho’s book Confessions of a Pilgrim.  Paulo shared a story about taking a long bus trip to see Borges in person.  Upon arriving and seeing Borges, he didn’t talk to him or ask him any questions.  He just looked at him and then returned home.  I pondered why he didn’t saying anything to his favorite writer. What stopped him from a hello or hand shake.  Paulo is an avid blogger communicating directly with his fans on a regular basis, so I have a good chance of finding my answer.  I will keep you posted on the results.

In the mean time, I would love to hear your thoughts or theories on why he didn’t say anything. What would you say given the opportunity to meet your favorite writer?

Short Bio on Borges From The Modern Word

Jorge Luis Borges was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina on August 24, 1899. He was always expected to be a writer… He started writing at the age of six, mostly fanciful stories inspired by Cervantes. When he was nine, he translated Oscar Wilde’s “The Happy Prince” into Spanish, an effort which appeared in a local newspaper called El País.”

Poetry Spotlight on Jorge Luis Borges:

“Poetry remembers that it was an oral art before it was a written art.”  Jorge Luis Borges

Flickr photo by kai photography

Flickr photo by Eric Flexyourhead

Instants by Jorge Luis Borges

If I could live again my life,
In the next – I’ll try,
- to make more mistakes,
I won’t try to be so perfect,
I’ll be more relaxed,
I’ll be more full – than I am now,
In fact, I’ll take fewer things seriously,
I’ll be less hygienic,
I’ll take more risks,
I’ll take more trips,
I’ll watch more sunsets,
I’ll climb more mountains,
I’ll swim more rivers,

I’ll go to more places – I’ve never been,
I’ll eat more ice creams and less (lime) beans,
I’ll have more real problems – and less imaginary
ones,
I was one of those people who live
prudent and prolific lives -
each minute of his life,
Off course that I had moments of joy – but,
if I could go back I’ll try to have only good moments,

If you don’t know – that’s what life is made of,
Don’t lose the now!

I was one of those who never goes anywhere
without a thermometer,
without a hot-water bottle,
and without an umbrella and without a parachute,

If I could live again – I will travel light,
If I could live again – I’ll try to work bare feet
at the beginning of spring till
the end of autumn,
I’ll ride more carts,
I’ll watch more sunrises and play with more children,
If I have the life to live – but now I am 85,
- and I know that I am dying …

Flickr photo by xiaming

We are the time. We are the famous by Jorge Luis Borges

We are the time. We are the famous
metaphor from Heraclitus the Obscure.

We are the water, not the hard diamond,
the one that is lost, not the one that stands still.

We are the river and we are that Greek
that looks himself into the river. His reflection
changes into the waters of the changing mirror,
into the crystal that changes like the fire.

We are the vain predetermined river,
in his travel to his sea.

The shadows have surrounded him.
Everything said goodbye to us, everything goes away.
Memory does not stamp his own coin.

Flickr photo by Miceeatcheese

However, there is something that stays
however, there is something that bemoans.

Jorge Luis Borges

In Confessions of a Pilgrim, Paulo Coelho recited one of his favorite poems by Jorge Luis Borges:

I will not be happy now. It may not matter.
There are so many more things in the world.
Any random instant is as crowded
And varied as the sea.  A life is brief, and though
The hours seem long, there is another
Dark mystery that lies in wait for us-
Death, that other sea, that other arrow
That frees us from the sun, the moon, and love.
The happiness you gave me once and later
Took back from me will be obliterated.
That which was everything must turn to nothing.
I only keep the taste of my own sadness
And a vain urge that turns me to the South side,
To a certain corner there, a certain door.

Jorge Luis Borges

Flickr photo by takiostavim

“To die for a religion is easier than to live it absolutely.” Jorge Luis Borges

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1.)  “That which you resist stays.”  David R. Hawkins

2.)  “Would you rather be right or free?”  Byron Katie

3.)  “Misery is complexity. Happiness is simplicity.”  Lester Levenson

4.)  “The more you have, the more you are occupied, the less you give.”  Mother Teresa

5.)  “Doubt is a pain too lonely to know that faith is his twin brother.”   Khalil Gibran

6.)  “And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to the span of life?”  Jesus

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7.)  “To be in time is to be asleep: to be awake is to be in eternity.”  Osho

8.)  “Wherever we may come alive, that is the area in which we are spiritual.”  David Steindl-Rast

9.)  “When you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy.”  Rumi Quote

10.)  “Success is a welcomed gift for the uninhibited mind.”  Adlin Sinclair

11.)  “I love all religions, but I am in love with my own.”  Mother Teresa

12.)  “I consider myself a student of many religions. The more I learn, the more questions I have.”  Dan Brown

Flickr photo by Impersonne

13.)  “Wisdom tends to grow in proportion to one’s awareness of one’s ignorance.”  Anthony de Mello

14.)  “The Church has its problems, but the older I get, the more comfort I find there.”  Bono

15.)  “The less you open your heart to others, the more your heart suffers.”  Deepak Chopra

16.)  “The purpose of the heart is to know yourself, to be yourself, and yet one with God.”  Edgar Cayce

15.)  “The lust for comfort murders the passions of the soul.”  Khalil Gibran

16.)  “The personal life deeply lived always expands into truths beyond itself.”  Anais Nin
17.)  “If you reflect within yourself and find nothing to be ashamed of, how could you have anxiety or fear.”  Confucius

18.)  “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”  Jesus

Flickr photo by Xavier .

19.)  “You are here to enable the divine purpose of the universe to unfold. That is how important you are!”  Eckhart Tolle

20.)  “Your vision will become clear only when you look into your heart. Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens.”  Carl Jung

21.)  “I believe in myself. I believe in the hands that work, in the brains that think, and in the hearts that love.”  Richard Branson

22.)  “It enables me to go to bed with an enriching feeling in my soul and the belief that I am changing myself.”  Nelson Mandela

23.)  “But maybe, by raising my voice, I can help the greatest of all causes – good will among men and peace on earth.”  Albert Einstein

Flickr photo by Eddi 07

24.)  “Your work is to discover your world and then with all your heart give yourself to it.” The Buddha

25.)  “One hour’s meditation on the work of the Creator is better than seventy years of prayer.”  Muhammad

26.)  “In the attitude of silence the soul finds the path in a clearer light, and what is elusive and deceptive resolves itself into crystal clearness.”  Gandhi

27.)  “…where we entirely miss the obvious-that is, that we are all trying to decipher life’s big mysteries, and we’re each following our own paths of enlightenment.”  Dan Brown

28.)  “When a warrior learns to stop the internal dialogue, everything becomes possible; the most far-fetched schemes become.”  Carlos Castaneda

29.)  “Follow your bliss and don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be.”   Joseph Campbell

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30.)  “It is love alone that leads to right action. What brings order in the world is to love and let love do what it will.”  Jiddu Krishnamurti
31.)  “Death is not the biggest fear we have; our biggest fear is taking the risk to be alive – the risk to be alive and express what we really are.”  Miguel Angel Ruiz

32.)  “It’s just such a freeing thing to set these great challenges for yourself, to travel, to learn more about the world, to just go out there and get crazy and get free and get strong.”  Angelina Jolie

34.)  “I think there’s an invisible principle of living too. If we believe we’re guided through every step of our lives, we are. It’s a lovely sight, watching it work.”  Richard Bach

35.)  “Look at every path closely and deliberately, then ask ourselves this crucial question: Does this path have a heart? If it does, then the path is good. If it doesn’t, it is of no use.”  Carlos Castaneda

36.)  “However many holy words you read, However many you speak, What good will they do you If you do not act on upon them?”  Buddha

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37.)  “It is only by grounding our awareness in the living sensation of our bodies that the “I Am,” our real presence, can awaken.”   G.I. Gurdjieff

38.)  “We have always been involved in spiritual evolution. We are spiritual beings, we have always been spiritual beings and we will always be spiritual beings.”  Gary Zukav

39.)  “Christian, Jew, Muslim, shaman, Zoroastrian, stone, ground, mountain, river, each has a secret way of being with the mystery, unique and not to be judged.”  Rumi

40.)  “In the sky, there is no distinction of east and west; people create distinctions out of their own minds and then believe them to be true.”  Buddha

41.)  “The Buddha’s teachings on love are clear. It is possible to live twenty-four hours a day in a state of love. Every movement, every glance, every thought, and every word can be infused with love.”  Thich Nhat Hanh

42.)  “The continual awareness of what was going on made me feel ashamed I wasn’t saying anything. I burst out because I could no longer play that game any more, it was just too much for me.”  John Lennon

Flickr photo by Yorick

43.)  “Without faith, hope and trust, there is no promise for the future, and without a promising future, life has no direction, no meaning and no justification.”  Adlin Sinclair
44.)  “Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.”   Buddha

45.)  “We must have the faith that things will work out somehow, that God will make a way for us when there seems no way.”  Martin Luther King
46.)  “Through awareness, you get a certain attitude. That’s the way, you see, to achieve more peaceful, more compassion, more friendship through that way.”  14th Dalai Lama

47.)  “Spiritual practices help us move from identifying with the ego to identifying with the soul. Old age does that for you too. It spiritualizes people naturally.”  Ram Dass

48.)  “The sage seeks freedom from desire. He does not collect precious things. He learns not to hold on to ideas. He brings men back to what they have lost.”  Lao Tzu

Flickr photo by Xavier Fargas

49.)  “If we knock on the door until it opens, not taking no for an answer, our lives will be transformed as we step up into a higher awareness.”  James Redfield
50.)  “I see the potential for a new world being born in front of me and all around me, and I feel the only way to bring that potential into being is to know myself.”  Gary Zukav

51.)  “No one in the world was ever you before, with your particular gifts and abilities and possibilities. It’s a shame to waste those by doing what someone else has done.”  Joseph Campbell

52.)  “We will discover the nature of our particular genius when we stop trying to conform to our own or other people’s models, learn to be ourselves, and allow our natural channel to open.”  Shakti Gawain

Flickr photo by Eddi o7

53.)  “The highest level of creativity consists in being, not doing. When the being is intense enough, when the words are spoken enough, when the thoughts are thought enough, the doing will automatically follow.”  Marianne Williamson

54.)  “Only as a warrior can one withstand the path of knowledge. A warrior cannot complain or regret anything. His life is an endless challenge, and challenges cannot possibly be good or bad. Challenges are simply challenges.”  Carlos Castaneda

55.)  “If you deny yourself access to the child within because you’re too serious, you also block your connection to the divine Light and your feminine self. Every creator who’s any good uses their feminine side to create with.. Whether a scientist working on a hunch, a painter working on the interplay of colors, or a musician dealing with the juxtaposition of notes and chords.”  Stuart Wilde

56.)  “Love the animals, love the plants, love everything. If you love everything, you will perceive the divine mystery in things. Once you perceive it, you will begin to comprehend it better every day. And you will come at last to love the whole world with an all-embracing love.”  Fyodor Dostoyevsky

57.)  “The secret of attraction is to love yourself. Attractive people judge neither themselves nor others. They are open to gestures of love. They think about love, and express their love in every action. They know that love is not a mere sentiment, but the ultimate truth at the heart of the universe.”  Deepak Chopra

Flickr photo by Ben

58.)  “I think the new spirituality will be a spirituality that’s not based on a particular dogma. And that steps away from the old spiritual paradigm that we have created on this planet, which comes from a thought that there is such a thing as being better.”  Neale Donald Walsch

59.)  “I have an almost religious zeal… not for technology per se, but for the Internet which is for me, the nervous system of mother Earth, which I see as a living creature, linking up.”  Dan Millman

60.)   “Where is the peace in more is better?  This idea keeps us exclusively in the physical domain.  You can replace the more is better belief with an inner serenity that doesn’t need more to be acceptable.  There is no peace in more is better, and if it doesn’t being peace to your life, then it’s something you want to discard.”   Wayne Dyer

61.)  “Happiness is not pleasure, it is victory.”  Zig Ziglar

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Looking back to my first posts on E.Y.D, I realized it took a year to find the true voice of this blog.  Now, I feel my direction is clearly defined.  What I hope to accomplish with Enlighten Your Day is a Meditative Thought Blog.  A portal on the net for anyone seeking a momentary pause to contemplate something positive, to see something brilliant, or share some insight.

To celebrate my first year anniversary, I’m sharing what I learned and loved while journeying into the Blogosphere.

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I.)  First and foremost; it’s all about friends.

I have come to know a myriad of wonderful people and gained a community dedicated to sharing wisdom, laughter, and beauty. My first Cyber connection was Matt a.k.a WOlfhOund: a writer, Social Media Guru and Blogger (Homeless Tales).  Although we got off on the wrong foot, (my fault – never blog before being caffeinated!), I quickly learned the value and importance of friendships.  In the world of Blogging, you can’t be an Island and succeed, you need to build bridges.  Next came Babbages4life and TopSurf, true pioneers of the Stumble-Blog.  It was simple, we shared countless photos, lols, and : ).  Thank You.  Finally, to the many Bloggers who have shared their thoughts and wisdom with me, it has been a pleasure.  Big love goes out to Evelyn (Attraction Mind Map), Mommy Mystic (BellaOnline), 1000meditations (axel g), along with so many others for all your support.

Please share links in my comment section to one or more of your posts so that others can find your work.

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II.)  Secondly, God does create a lot of controversy and a comment fight is a good thing.

My most commented post to date:  Amazing tips for living a better life.  One simple line, “God heals almost everything”, sparked a wild debate.  This debate opened my eyes to the revolving door of being both teacher and student as a Blogger.  It was inspiring to learn from people expressing themselves for reasons greater then the need to be right or win. Instead, being interested in understanding other perspectives and challenging their soul to grow.  Here are my two favourite comments readers were kind enough to share.

This first comes from the post mentioned above.  JM Response to Amazing tips:

“Wow. Reading the above postings was a special experience. It’s as though #28 ruined the day for everyone who read it. I’m agnostic or atheist or I don’t really know what, but it’s really irrelevant. I’m just blown away by the negativity that one comment can provoke in people who are logging on to a website based on “enlightenment.” My personal advice would be to “Fucking lighten up.” But perhaps more sage advice would be what a Buddhist monk once told me when I struggled with one of the teachings: “Ignore that teaching. If it is a roadblock to accepting the good parts in the other passages, then you must discard it. Maybe one day you will feel differently about it, maybe not, but don’t let it get in the way of the parts which are helpful to you.” That’s my two cents. Feel free to get angry, I won’t.”

The second comment comes from a question I asked in: Enlightening Chinese proverbs and a Question from a Quote.  “Religion answers questions. spirituality asks questions. Is one inherently better then the other?”

Photo by Photizo on Gaia

Ian Ward’s response was brilliant: “Spirituality is the journey. All religions are just sign posts. The trouble with religion is that if you only focus on the sign posts, you miss out on experiencing the journey. The good thing about spirituality is that you can pick your own path for your journey and don’t necessarily need any sign posts.”  Ian

III.)  The present moment is always best.

My most viewed post to date, 11 Enlightening movie quotes that will touch your heart, was insanely popular.  Kung Fu Panda was hot at the box office at that time, and starting with that quote seemed to me to make all the difference. The reason being, it was in the present moment; which is the secret of enlightenment.

“Quit, don’t quit, noodles, don’t noodles. You are too concerned with what was and what will be. There is a saying, “Yesterday is History, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift, that’s why it is called a present.” Kung Fu Panda

What can you expect from this second year of E.Y.D?  I think my Bio line on Twitter sums it up nicely:  “A Meditative Thought Blog sharing Your Daily Cup of Enlightened Zen and Artistic Beauty. Find Inspiration, Insight, Gorgeous Photos, Quotes, Meditations, and more. ”

I hope you will join me….

My New Subscription Page:  Subscribe Now!

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Please share some related post or anything you desire below.  The Link Lines are Open…

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