Tag: Mind

Focus on the future, be the example of what you want your children to become

HPIM0578.JPGIt seems hatred, anger and mistrust in our world is coming to an all time high. Riots that are born out of peaceful protest spring up more often than not. This world seems to be very short of such things as  forgiveness and understanding.  Anger has its place and time but is only meant to be a short-lived release of tension and feelings of injustice or inequity. Let the anger out and learn to be forgiving to others for no one person is perfect in action or thought. The understanding that we all feel such things as fear, oppression and injustice in our lives, no one is without negative thoughts or negative experiences. The only difference between people is the way they learn to overcome the obstacles in our life. Some chose a constructive way to enacting change and others chose a destructive way.

Both may get the job done, and some believe the destructive way gets results faster, this may be the case but you must realize that the changes brought about in such a way usually wind up temporary or not what changes that one would want.  A constructive approach to change may be slower but usually creates a more permanent change that is more acceptable to all parties. Compromise should never be left out of a solution, for a give and take attitude usually benefits both parties more so than a one-sided solution.

There is no reason that a species such as humanity couldn’t find a way to exist in peace. Regardless of our differences in beliefs and differences in our culture , we all are human beings and we all want to live happily and wish for a better world for our children.  The children are our priority as a species and should be the first priority. How we act, what we say and do is what they learn from. If we show them that we can not learn to live with others in peace and that war, anger and hatred is how to deal with the world around us, then they will follow the same footsteps as us and teach the same to their children as well.

It is time for all of us adults to think before we act or speak, we are not only affecting ourselves, we are setting the pattern of behavior for our children to follow. What we do here and now not only affects today but it will play a good part in how the future will play out for our children and those to come after them.

 

Focus on the future, be the example of what you want your children to become and remember this world is only on loan to our generation until the next generation comes of age.

Raymond Barbier

Without the initial spark we will never see a flame.

EarthOnce I had a person say they wished they could change the world, though that is an admirable goal it is one most would find impossible to carry out. Though it seems like something that is near impossible there is always a possibility one person can change the world or at least the way the world thinks. We have seen in history great statesman, politicians , religious leaders and visionaries make considerable changes in the world and in the minds of the people. One voice can make a difference, all change starts within  ourselves and then it radiates outward towards all around us. How we act, react and what we say has a large impact on our world even if it’s in a small way or localized area. If that one voice inspires others to join in then change begins to expand and can enact a change globally. In a nut shell it takes someone to start a movement for change in order for change to come about. Without the initial spark we will never see a flame. Become what you  believe we all should be like, live by example and then others will follow suit. To preach of a peaceful world or life but be in turmoil yourself is self-defeating. Lead and live by example and make change happen if not in the world at least in your part of it. Be an  agent of change and not  an inactive bystander in life.

This world needs more free thinkers, visionaries and promoters of peace and compassion.

Raymond Barbier

A New day, another chance to live

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A new day has dawned only to reveal another chance to live my life in peace and with love and happiness within my heart.  Another chance to live with understanding and compassion towards all living things. Though the pitfalls and shortcomings within my personality and nature will be here as usual to give challenge and be as obstacles to living this day in the way I wish.

Good intentions are many, but to actually put forth the effort to live in the fashion chose is no easy task.  With both the internal struggle and the opposing forces outside of myself to overcome it is never an easy task.  But alas, no man is perfect and I myself am aware of my many faults. I shall go forth and try to live as I desire, a peaceful and caring individual whom seek only to live in peace.

The first step of a journey is the hardest one to take and is also the most important. Without the first step there would be no journey at all.

Ray Barbier

You can always correct your course

003So many times I allow my emotions to get the best of me and let them control my actions and thoughts. Emotions are very powerful but they do not have to have any affect on how we think and on our actions. The conscious mind is capable of putting emotion aside and letting logic and/or reason take over. Learning to turn off or putting aside ones own feelings for the common good isn’t an easy task but it is one that is possible and beneficial to both yourself and others. From my experience, when I allow emotions to be in charge I usually regret how I acted and become disappointed in myself for being someone I don’t enjoy being. When emotions are in control you are but reacting and have little choice. When you learn to control your emotions you become a person of action and reason. You have full control of how you interact and you become as a captain of a ship. Though storms may throw you off course you can always correct your course and sail to your chose destination.

 You can either be the product of the actions of others and your emotions or you can choose to be the product of your own choices and actions.

Ray Barbier

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So there is no rest for the mind, heart or for our weary soul.

p10056Too much information coming at us all and you can tune in 24 hours a day to all the murder and mayhem. Some of it fact, some conjecture the rest is not much more than rumor. Dirty laundry of the famous, wars on distant shores and the world’s next worse scenario. Too much negativity, violence and tragedy for the human heart to hold. Our mind get stuck in the fight or flight mode and it fills with fear of a possible disaster both far away and near. All of our technology makes us all like next door neighbors and brings us news instantly from across the globe. Too much, too fast and too often is the onslaught of the cold hand of reality and the bad news it brings. So there is no rest for the mind, heart or for our weary soul. We should just turn off the information flow and be happy, but we are way to addicted to it all. We love the adrenalin rush and the feeling of power we get from knowing of all the news and information flowing across our electronic universe.

tpl_7_ppl We are addicted to all the stimulation we get from television and we are heavily influenced  by the multitude of messages that they bring. We live in a generation of fear and we are paying for that mentally and physically. Independent thought is becoming a rare thing because we can’t escape the opinions we hear all day long. If you hear something said enough times you sometimes begin to agree with it or at least accept it. I love my electronics as much as the next guy and feel they are an asset to our species if we don’t forget to be human. We just need to turn them all off once in a while and just be human.  We need to interact with each other face to face, we need to have time to think our own thoughts and opinions as well.

Too much, too fast is too hard on our whole being. Take a break and breathe, enjoy the simpler things in life once in a while. Let your mind wander and let your imagination grow.
Ray Barbier

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution By license.
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Groggy thoughts before coffee… lol

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Sometimes I can stare at the screen for hours and my mind stays blank, sometimes thoughts come flowing out like a river. Sometimes there is no one who can stop my serenity and other times the littlest thing can cause me to explode. Some days I am fearful and other there is no fear within me. In the end regardless of what emotion goes rampant in my head the logical and reasonable mind kicks in and restores the peace. The battle between reason, logic and emotions is one that has raged on since my birth, The mind usually wins but sometimes emotions become too powerful to contain. Maintaining a balance of the mind and heart is essential to a healthy life, yet its one of the hardest things to do at times. Writing blog posts is one of the ways I try to keep balance and seems to be quite therapeutic in the end. It helps me express my opinions, emotions and the real me few ever get to know.

If my blogs ever get popular or not isn’t something I worry too much about since they are already successful in the fact they have helped me be who I really am. Hopefully it has at least sparked a few ideas in others if not gave them some entertainment. Random as my thoughts are and as unstructured my writing style is, the blogs continue to grow in traffic.

 

Raymond Barbier

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Learn to love and accept ourselves as we are

006 The many yeas or tears and fears take a toll on this aging body. The mind becomes hardened and slow to respond from age and its lack of use. The soul calls out for happiness, peace and solitude as the mind seeks a rational solution. Music becomes a refuge for the soul and the soother of the chaotic mind. Fear of death rears its head occasionally to remind me of my mortality. Yet I fight on and press forward into the uncertain future. Exploring outwardly as much as inwardly to find the truths as well as the balance in my life. Finding answers one day only to lose them the next. Seems it’s a vicious cycle of my spiritual path and my timeline.

Still fighting the little child within me that craves to be loved and accepted while I try to establish the blueprint of whom I desire to be. Time is no longer a friend like it used to be in my days of youth. Between the aging of the body and the knowledge of my own mortality I find myself struggling to make it through each day. The distractions of everyday life become stumbling blocks on my spiritual path. Too many light shows, bells and whistles going off to keep focus most of the time. Though I manage to block them out for the most part. The struggle to find a balance between my religion and my spirituality is not an easy task.

It is so hard to have compassion for everyone when you are surrounded by so many who care not for themselves nor for others. So much fear, anger, greed and such a lack of love in this world. Sometimes I believe people are just terrified by the thought of loving and accepting each other. I guess it must be the fear of being hurt and the experiences they had with those they loved before. If there are no risks involved then there is no real benefit in the action of loving. First off we must learn to accept and love who we are, for each one of us are unique and special beings. We must learn to love and accept ourselves as we are before we can love each other. Through self-examination and self forgiveness we learn to forgive the shortcomings and sins of others.

As my days grow shorter I realize that though we are all individual we are also a part of a complex whole. I see all of us as small pieces of a magnificent collective of thoughts, feelings and ideals. Independently operating, yet somehow collectively manifesting the reality we live in and forming the future yet to come. This gives each of us the ability to enact change on a mass scale by creating a chain reaction. The right words, thoughts or actions can create a chain reaction that could change the world and reality we currently live in. A single voice in the dark can grow to become many voices and eventually change the course of not only mankind but the reality in which we live.

 

Well enough of my babbling for now.
May wisdom be your light and Love be the fuel on your life journey
Raymond Barbier

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