Go placidly amid the noise and the haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible, without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and ignorant; they too have their story.

Avoid loud and agressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere
life is full of heroism.

Be yourself.
Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to sheild you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life,
keep peace with your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be careful.
Strive to be happy.

Max Ehrmann, Desiderata, Copyright 1952

We have all heard the expression "thinking outside of the Box". Have you ever thought about what "the Box" is?

It is nothing more than the limits that our societies have placed upon our thinking.

Free thinkers are people who are capable of rising above teachings, the norm, religion, values and societies expectations.

If we all lived within the boundaries created for us from birth then nothing of true new significance would be uncovered. No new horizons. No explorers sailing off the end of the World.

Even as we move from one culture to another, within this small world, we are confronted with behavior that may be considered repugnant to one existence and yet normal to the other. It is a matter of what we have stored in the warehouse of our sub-conscious mind.

There is danger in being a radical free thinker. It lies in rejection and ridicule by other members of any society whose existence and powers are challenged by new order.

7/7/2000

Success

I have searched for many years for the definition of Success, in the context of leading a successful life. It turns out that there are as many definitions as there are seekers and that success lies as much in the attempt as in the achievement.

10/7/2000

Religion provides a crutch for the poor and a pillow for the rich.

12/7/2000

Many of us are sleepwalkers. Going about living without any depth. Every now and then it is important to stop and notice your breathing.

I have become dissatisfied over time with religions whose doctrine it is that we are on Earth to be punished. As far as I know I am the only member of my own "religion". I call it Autocathedralism. Basically each of us contains the holiest of places within our being. Each of us can contribute to a heaven on Earth. The key is love - firstly of self.

12/7/2000

The most difficult application of perseverance is with perseverance itself

All our tears have reached the sea

Have you ever thought that for every famous true saying there is an equally famous and opposite true saying. "Fools rush in where angels fear to tread" yet "He who hesitates is lost"

14/7/2000

Despite modern man's abilities, we have created nothing. We just find new things within creation, new ways of using or combining what was always there. We are on a journey of discovery not creation and as we journey further the horizon maintains it's distance.

The most useful structures on Earth are not made of bricks and mortar but of flesh and blood - they are called communities.

The meek are useful. They can be piled on top of one another to assist the strong to reach the top.

15/7/2000

Within a lifetime you may have exclusive use of some thing, but in the fulness of time do you ever really own anything? You are merely a custodian with a duty to maintain or enhance a part of creation.

A starving person will trade a truck load of gold for a handful of grain.

If you don't expect much you wont be disappointed

18/7/2000

We are still living in the Garden of Eden. It is just that we have not realised it yet.

Wouldn't it be great if we could bottle our feelings, capturing the sheer elation of some of our best moments. Then whenever we are sad we could take the lid off and inhale happiness.

20/7/2000

Love is the fundamental that humanity needs to grasp. It is the key to the gate of the Garden of Eden.

30/7/2000

Try try try
work to get ahead
and then you are dead
and when you are dead
Why why why

One of the ingredients for success is having the ability to stretch - keeping your feet on the ground while your head is in the clouds.

31/7/2000

Learn to listen to intuition.
We are what we eat.
Physician, heal thyself.
5/8/2000

Power of your subconscious mind

We create our own reality, our own world. We interact with all of our surroundings using our conscious mind.
Our conscious mind draws on all the material stored in our subconscious mind, places an interpretation on it and reacts accordingly. The subconscious mind is the storehouse of our learned knowledge, it also constantly receives information from the senses and updates learning.
However some reactions become automated once reinforced. Once bitten twice shy. As a baby we start out with an almost blank canvas. The point is that we can change our reality, even some of the most automated thinking, by reprogramming the subconscious.
In order to re programme the subconscious mind we must bypass the conscious mind, otherwise it will place a learned interpretation on the new information. We have all heard of the terms Brainwashing, Hypnotism and Self Hypnosis, Meditation and Prayer. These are all methods of bypassing the conscious mind and dealing directly with the subconscious.
Implanting positive thoughts into your subconscious mind using affirmations and visualisation, with a good dose of faith that everything will unfold as you desire, will implant new core learnings that will then influence how you interact with your surroundings.
These positive implants can change your fortunes in relation to Love, Health, Spirit and Abundance. You can change your life!

13/8/2000

Ashes to ashes - dust to dust
We are each a perfect part of the universe. When we die our bodies change composition, are recycled and merge with creation. Our spirits (souls) live on - contributing, in varying degrees, to either a hell or heaven on earth for those we leave behind who have or will, directly or indirectly, come into contact with the essence of our lives.

15/8/2000

One of my very favorite quotes:
Who at the best knows the triumph of high achievement; and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.

Thanks to T Roosevelt

21/8/2000

Take a detour

The shortest distance between two points may be a straight line but every now and then take time off the straight and narrow path. If you drive to work every day the same way, take a detour past the beach or through a park that is close to your normal route. This acts as a circuit breaker and increases your appreciation of the new day.

24/8/2000

How to become a millionaire in five years.
Take $65,000 and double it every year for five years.

26/8/2000

Systems. Capitalist v Communist

These systems are similar in a very basic way. One functions primarily on a political reward system the other primarily on capital reward. If you swapped systems the successful capitalists would be running the communist governments driving the black Opels and holidaying in Dachas on the Black Sea. The reason one system failed and the other succeeded is primarily due to human nature. At a glance, if you had just arrived here from Mars, you would think that the communist system would be the better system. The basic concept of equal distribution of resources, power to the people and so on. Unfortunately the designers of this system forgot to take into account human nature.

1. Given absolute power people hold on to it at all costs.
2. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.
2. People are not born with equal abilities and ambitions.
3. The accumulation and redistribution of assets is a natural phenomenon amongst humans.
4. You cannot successfully legislate against common sense.

I make this kind of comparison. Three people are placed in a room and each is given $100. A day later one has $150 another $100 and the third $50. The communists would come in each day and redistribute the money eventually taking away the basic motivation of the individuals and establishing a reward system for the lowest common denominator.

I prefer the capitalist system that rewards excellence and allows people to dream their dreams with the possibility of attaining them. This system is not perfect, it has been said that the capitalist system is the worst system - but for all the others.

However we must learn to work with our environment. Resources are all finite and we must value them. In this system anything that carries a value is sustained. For example cats, dogs, cattle and sheep abound because they are valuable to us but all kinds of native fauna expire daily unless value is created for them by way of tourism, making pets of them and so on. On a bigger scale our governments should place a monetary value on things like clean air, clean water, native forests, wild animals so that these resources gain a value position similar to other resources like minerals etc. Wealthier nations should learn to value and work with nature not against it and should contribute to third world countries that are forced to exploit what remains of their natural resources. Understand that we are all affected by the downing of a single 100 year old tree in the forests of Brazil.

This leads to a simple concept - Governments, Corporations, Community leaders and citizens need to UNDERSTAND that they have a duty to contribute to the well being of the community that supports them and to the environment that sustains them. Meeting this responsibility will be the way forward for our system. The gathering of wealth is a hollow symbol of achievement if along the way people are impoverished by it or the world in which we live is diminished by it.

28/8/2000

The value of money

Money is in fact valueless. The only things of true value are clean air, food, water, shelter, health, the ability to reproduce, knowledge and love. We ascribe value to money according to the quality and volume of these valuable basics that we allow it to purchase.

Basic societies relied on barter systems, people living by the sea swapping salt and fish for meat produced by wandering herdsmen, a delicately balanced way of life that relied on living closely with nature. Gradually monetary systems were introduced which ascribed value to other objects, such as shells, which could be exchanged for life supporting basics. As our communities have grown in size and "sophistication" we have introduced a system of coins and notes that will soon be overtaken completely by electronically stored and transmitted debits and credits.

Somewhere in amongst all this we have lost sight of the basic concept. People look at accumulating "money" as though it were the main game. A multi millionaire deprived of the basics dies just as quickly as any other person. Some people spend their lives accumulating at all costs, wrecking and abusing the lives of others or contributing to the degradation of our planets limited resources. Some live miserable lives eventually passing on and leaving behind accumulated wealth to be redistributed. It is not the money itself that is valuable it is what it buys and in some unjust societies the power it gives to the holder over other people. This system, with all its flaws, has allowed most developed societies to maintain the basic necessities for the poorest members of their populations. The more balanced and less corrupt the system the higher the standard of living for all. The more chance all individuals within a society have of accumulating wealth during a lifetime the more advanced the society.

So by all means play the game of wealth accumulation but remember:

1. Not to lose sight of the really important things in life. Make sure you maintain balance.
2. Not to harm other people or the environment in your quest for wealth.
3. Not to make wealth accumulation the main game. Excel at something you enjoy and wealth will come.
4. To make opportunities available for others to excel.
5. Skeletons have no pockets.
Finally, remember that the accumulation of wealth is not an essential measure for leading a successful life.

29/8/2000

Greatest investment tip I have ever heard: "Buy in the dry and sell in the wet."

Simple isn't it?

9/9/2000

Words echo - Example thunders

3/10/2000

Do you realize that you have been programmed?

You know that everyone is different, right. That people have different outlooks. That people see things differently. Why?

We are each confronted with millions of micro decisions per day. A lot of these decisions we have automated. Things we do all the time, repetitive things that fall into routines. These decisions have been automated to the point that we don't realize that decisions are involved. Will I brush my hair, which brush will I use, what look do I want, how many strokes to the left and so on. Lets call these personal or internal decisions.

Another group of decisions revolve around lifestyle and require a little more conscious thought. The kind of food you eat, whether or not you exercise, relationships, religion, family. Even some of these decisions can become automated or habitual. Call these lifestyle decisions.

These automated, habitual responses have been learned through contact mainly with parents or other influential people as a very young child and through basic learning experience. We are born with a blank canvass and absorb our blueprint for thought from others as transmitted by their thoughts, words and actions. As a young child our conscious mind is less active and our subconscious mind is therefore able to readily absorb information from external stimuli. Once this information is absorbed, accepted and stored in our subconscious mind it forms part of our "personality". This "personality" is then utilized in all decision-making processes, large and small, throughout our lives. The senses of touch, sight, smell, taste and hearing then continue to add to our storehouse of knowledge as we progress through life.

As we move into adulthood, experience and learning come into play and we begin to use the conscious part of our mind to interpret and justify all of the stored information in our subconscious warehouse. However everything we do is still based on our "personality". If someone gets to know you they will expect you to act in a certain way given a certain set of circumstances. People will categorise you as warm and friendly, proud and aloof , lazy, alert and so on.

Now if you understand from this that you have been pre programmed then amazing things can happen! You understand that it is possible to change, if change is what you desire. As we get older it becomes more difficult to change our programming because our conscious mind is more active. It places a "personality" slant on all new learning. In order to truly change we therefore need to avoid the conscious mind and feed new information directly to the sub conscious mind. The conscious mind then draws upon the new or changed information held in the sub conscious mind leading to a change in "personality".

7/10/2000

Is there a person so conceited, so limited in their thinking so as to believe that mankind is the only intelligent life form in this Universe?

21/10/2000

"Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent."

~ Calvin Coolidge

25/10/2000

Vikings leading their men to new lands where battles were expected, used to have their men burn their boats on the beach.

11/11/2000

No one can inspire us, no one can sadden us. They can only offer to, we hold the power to accept.
We all go through emotional changes and sometimes it is comforting to be sad. I think we need to knock ourselves down sometimes in order to rebuild an even better and stronger person.
Love
Peter
30/11/2000

Religion is for people who are afraid they'll go to hell. Spirituality is for people who have been there.
With thanks to Dennis Knapp.
17/12/2000

When my time comes to move on I will be entirely satisfied if I have accumulated nothing - provided I feel that I have used my life courageously. Pushing the boundaries, taking the calculated risks, not accepting foregone conclusions and anticipating miracles.
27/12/2000

The day we stop learning is the day we die (probably).
27/12/2000

Death is the bodies way of telling us we have done too much.

I have no need to jump from a perfectly good airplane because I get out of bed every morning with a parachute strapped to my back.
27/12/2000

Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandella. Some of the greatest names spoken in modern times, the greatest lives lived in our generation and yet they have lived simple lives of deprivation. What then has made them great among us?
They share:
the ability to forgive their persecutors
the ability to love
great yet simple vision
truth

In the shadow of my Pine
It's seed carried from Norfolk Isle
Planted here by unknown hand 100 years past
The air moves, a breeze shuffles through the foliage above me
What same breeze moved about the planting of this tree
Ageless time ticking by
My minutes ebb, wisely used or not
Life spark held within my vessel seed
Inform me tree what use have we for immortality.
Peter

I bargained with Life for a penny,
And Life would pay no more,
However I begged at the evening
When I counted my scanty store.

For Life is a just employer,
He gives you what you ask,
But once you have set the wages,
Why, you must bear the task.

I worked for a menial's hire,
Only to learn, dismayed,
That any wage I had asked of Life,
Life would have willingly paid.

Anon.

"Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something and that this thing must be attained."
~ Marie Curie
20/01/01

Let your imagination run wild
Let your heart rule your head
Let your intuition be your guide
31/1/01

I am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.
Albert Einstein
10/2/2001

INSTRUCTIONS FOR LIFE
by The Dalai Lama 9 August 2001

1. Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
2. When you lose, don't lose the lesson.
3. Follow the three Rs:
Respect for self
Respect for others and
Responsibility for all your actions.
4. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
5. Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.
6. Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.
7. When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
8. Spend some time alone every day.
9. Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.
10. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
11. Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll be able to enjoy it a second time.
12. A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.
13. In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don't bring up the past.
14. Share your knowledge. It's a way to achieve immortality.
15. Be gentle with the earth.
16. Once a year, go someplace you've never been before.
17. Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.
18. Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.
19. Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.

5th December 2001
John Greenleaf Whittier 1807-1892
For of all sad words of tongue or pen the saddest are these: "It might have been!"

13th December

On Palestine and Israel

Violence begets violence. Do you not have a single leader/servant amongst either of your peoples who will step forward and pick up the mantle of peace, love and tolerance? Who amongst you can look beyond today? You are both without grace, you fight over some of humankinds most spiritual places. Is there a Martin Luther King Jr, a Ghandi, a Nelson Mandella in your midst? History awaits you, be brave, step up.

IF

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too:
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim,
If you can meet Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same:
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings,
And never breathe a word about your loss:
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will that says to them "Hold On!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with Kings-nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much:
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!

Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936)
If the reader be female just leave off the last line, or change it to suit, or accept it in its' non gender context. What a gem this poem is! How do people put words together like this?