We all are going this way
My Christmas and new years are never going to be the same again.
2 January on the evening my mother lost the battle with her illness and just slept in.
I was on the way to her and it felt like a failure not to come to her in that moment, I felt like I left her there to die alone and she died hating me.
I have trouble letting this go, I still feel very strange and are not the same person and sometimes it scares me how I can just sit in my sofa looking in to the wall like Im in another world.
I hope mum met my father now and that they are having their time.
Me I am still here on earth and miss them terribly
In memory of Mamma Lillan 1923-2009 A tough lady, her 80th birthday she dived with salmon in 5c water in Canada. This photo is taken in a cabin at Vancouver Island 2006. (click for larger photo)
Bye Mama
mamma
What is the purpose of life? It is to become happy. Whatever country or society people live in, they all have the same deep desire: to become happy.
Yet, there are few ideals as difficult to grasp as that of happiness. In our daily life we constantly experience happiness and unhappiness, but we are still quite ignorant as to what happiness really is.
A young friend of mine once spent a long time trying to work out what happiness was, particularly happiness for women. When she first thought about happiness she saw it as a matter of becoming financially secure or getting married. (The view in Japanese society then was that happiness for a woman was only to be found in marriage.) But looking at friends who were married, she realized that marriage didn’t necessarily guarantee happiness.
She saw couples who had been passionately in love suffering from discord soon after their wedding. She saw women who had married men with money or status but who fought constantly with their husbands.
Gradually, she realized that the secret of happiness lay in building a strong inner self that no trial or hardship could ruin. She saw that happiness for anyone – man or woman – does not come simply from having a formal education, from wealth or from marriage. It begins with having the strength to confront and conquer one’s own weaknesses. Only then does it become possible to lead a truly happy life and enjoy a successful marriage.
She finally told me, “Now I can say with confidence that happiness doesn’t exist in the past or in the future. It only exists within our state of life right now, here in the present, as we face the challenges of daily life.”
I agree entirely. You yourself know best whether you are feeling joy or struggling with suffering. These things are not known to other people. Even a man who has great wealth, social recognition and many awards may still be shadowed by indescribable suffering deep in his heart. On the other hand, an elderly woman who is not fortunate financially, leading a simple life alone, may feel the sun of joy and happiness rising in her heart each day.
Happiness is not a life without problems, but rather the strength to overcome the problems that come our way. There is no such thing as a problem-free life; difficulties are unavoidable. But how we experience and react to our problems depends on us. Buddhism teaches that we are each responsible for our own happiness or unhappiness. Our vitality – the amount of energy or “life-force” we have – is in fact the single most important factor in determining whether or not we are happy.
True happiness is to be found within, in the state of our hearts. It does not exist on the far side of some distant mountains. It is within you, yourself. However much you try, you can never run away from yourself. And if you are weak, suffering will follow you wherever you go. You will never find happiness if you don’t challenge your weaknesses and change yourself from within.
Happiness is to be found in the dynamism and energy of your own life as you struggle to overcome one obstacle after another. This is why I believe that a person who is active and free from fear is truly happy.
The challenges we face in life can be compared to a tall mountain, rising before a mountain climber. For someone who has not trained properly, whose muscles and reflexes are weak and slow, every inch of the climb will be filled with terror and pain. The exact same climb, however, will be a thrilling journey for someone who is prepared, whose legs and arms have been strengthened by constant training. With each step forward and up, beautiful new views will come into sight.
My teacher used to talk about two kinds of happiness – “relative” and “absolute” happiness. Relative happiness is happiness that depends on things outside ourselves: friends and family, surroundings, the size of our home or family income.
This is what we feel when a desire is fulfilled, or something we have longed for is obtained. While the happiness such things bring us is certainly real, the fact is that none of this lasts forever. Things change. People change. This kind of happiness shatters easily when external conditions alter.
Relative happiness is also based on comparison with others. We may feel this kind of happiness at having a newer or bigger home than the neighbors. But that feeling turns to misery the moment they start making new additions to theirs!
Absolute happiness, on the other hand, is something we must find within. It means establishing a state of life in which we are never defeated by trials and where just being alive is a source of great joy. This persists no matter what we might be lacking, or what might happen around us. A deep sense of joy is something which can only exist in the innermost reaches of our life, and which cannot be destroyed by any external forces. It is eternal and inexhaustible.
This kind of satisfaction is to be found in consistent and repeated effort, so that we can say, “Today, again, I did my very best. Today, again, I have no regrets. Today, again, I won.” The accumulated result of such efforts is a life of great victory.
What we should compare is not ourselves against others. We should compare who we are today against who we were yesterday, who we are today against who we will be tomorrow. While this may seem simple and obvious, true happiness is found in a life of constant advancement. And the same worries that could have made us miserable can actually be a source of growth when we approach them with courage and wisdom.
One friend whose dramatic life proved this was Natalia Satz, who founded the first children’s theater in Moscow. In the 1930s, she and her husband were marked by Soviet Union’s secret police. Even though they were guilty of no crime, her husband was arrested and executed and she was sent to a prison camp in the frozen depths of Siberia.
After she recovered from the initial shock, she started looking at her situation, not with despair, but for opportunity. She realized that many of her fellow prisoners had special skills and talents. She began organizing a “university,” encouraging the prisoners to share their knowledge. “You. You are a scientist. Teach us about science. You are an artist. Talk to us about art.”
In this way, the boredom and terror of the prison camp were transformed into the joy of learning and teaching. Eventually, Mrs. Satz even made use of her own unique talents to organize a theater group. She survived the five-year prison sentence, and dedicated the rest of her long life to creating children’s theater. When we met for the first time in Moscow in 1981, she was already in her 80s. She was as radiant and buoyant as a young girl. Her smile was the smile of someone who has triumphed over the hardships of life. Hers is the kind of spirit I had in mind when I wrote the following poem on “Happiness”:
A person with a vast heart is happy.
Such a person lives each day with a broad and embracing spirit.
A person with a strong will is happy.
Such a person can confidently enjoy life, never defeated by suffering.
A person with a profound spirit is happy.
Such a person can savor life’s depths
while creating meaning and value that will last for eternity.
A person with a pure mind is happy.
Such a person is always surrounded by refreshing breezes of joy.
To all the former TVD-lovers (and present ;)….)
Good Blog
Hello TVD/TO fellas!
I have been thinking about this for a long time. I’m finally doing it. And it is with pleasure. Especially since this is my first blogpost in years. And for all of you who haven’t come far along on TVD/TO – you should know there will be major spoilers!
In Fall 2012, the fourth season of The Vampire Diaries premiered. One of the most interesting seasons so far. I had been waiting a long time for the everlasting wining Elena to just turn into a vampire and be tougher. But there was a problem, a problem that very many stupid fans hated.
Elena was no longer Stefan’s girl – Her long lasting feelings for Damon was showing.
“Aaaw, poor Stefan, this show is terrible now-days. Its no vampire show anymore it’s the Delena show.”
“Im so sick off Elena and Damon, this show has no meaning any…
View original post 1,891 more words
An Open Letter BACK to SeaWorld
LETTER of the DAY: In light of SeaWorld’s recent media push, a former casual visitor Amy Costanzo, now a practicing attorney, cc’d The Orca Project on her letter to SeaWorld executives and shares her views on the marine park’s self-serving (and costly) attempt to “set the record straight“.
Well done Amy! We couldn’t agree with you more. You can read SeaWorld’s open letter to the public HERE (published as full-page advertisements in U.S. Newspapers) and then read the response from this everyday caring citizen here:
Dear Ms. Bides, Mr. Jacobs, and all other SeaWorld employees (including Mr. Jim Atchison),
I read your “open letter” (read: flyer) this morning in the Orlando Sentinel. It seems that the American public has grown wary of you and your operations since the release of the film “Blackfish”, and rightfully so. Since you are inclined to make public statements regarding the alleged care of animals, specifically orcas, in your custody, as a…
View original post 2,454 more words
I & my inner subconscious
Gratitude and generosity is a part of the life circles game and if you show none of the mentioned it will come back and haunt you! That is how we all see it nevertheless, but has that ever been tested? I mean what is the meaning of showing gratitude and generosity towards people everyday? Is it a rule you have to follow to be grateful of life?
HELP
I seem to have a entry that I wrote a long time ago as first blog you see, I have been on settings and search for how my blog entry’s are in date or what, I have done nothing wrong and still, it shows an entry that has nothing to do with what I wrote latest.
Why doesn’t my latest entry show on the blog, but when I search for my self, I can see my blogs
HELP
Kissie dum eller bara korkad
Jag anser att man är osäker på sig själv o sitt utseende om man gör ansiktslyft och redan ÄR en skönhet, Jag förstår inte varför Kissie gör såna här grejer som redan ser bra ut.
Är hon så beroende av uppmärskamhet att hon måste göra detta och t.o.m sätta ut ett klipp på YouTube?
Nu förstår jag att jag hjälper henne att föra detta vidare genom att sätta klippet här men jag tycker det är vidrigt, hur galen efter uppmärksamhet får man vara, ni BLOGGARE som blivit kända på att blogga anser jag inte vara A kändisar, vad har NI gjort? Inget anser jag mer än att sitta o skriva en massa skit (i och för sig är jag en hycklare nu som gör detsamma)
Skriv något NYTT och kom med nya saker som får folk att verkligen reagera.
bara namnet Kissie…. vad är det för nåt? är du en katt eller`? Kolla mitt förra inlägg om botox, ska du se ut som catwoman eller?`HA HA
/ xo xo
Kolla här — vad lider hon av? Varför ber hon youtubekollare att inte kommentera på youtube? vet hon inte att det finns en funktion på youtube där man faktiskt kan stänga av den funktionen. Skärpning Kissie, du är ändå 20 år min dotter är 21 och mycket mognare än vad du är.
efter de klippet sätter jag ut det klippet där hon förstorar läpparna, förstår fortfarande inte behovet av att sätta ut detta på nätet, att videoblogga är en sak men detta…. sedan KISSIE!!! Sluta sitt framför datorn som det vore en spegel, du är så söt så söt och ingen kommer att fördärva ditt hår under tiden du bloggar. Ps jag vet klippet har två år på sig men jag har inte förstått vilken egotrippad donna du är förrän jag började “studera” dig lite man kan inte annat än att reagera.
Sen kan jag inte låta bli att sätta ut detta som är rätt kul, det är en fan eller ickefan som satt ut detta, sen har vi parodin på läppförstoringen… håll till godo ha ha
Jag blev chockad när jag såg på Law and order Svu Hur Rose McGowen fördärvat sig i ansiktet, hon ser ju ut som hon inte kan röra muskler i ansiktet, varför fördärva ett redan vackert ansikte?’
Likadant med Lindsey Lohan, Milly Cy-rus, Cher, m,fl m.fl’
I Sverige blir detta vanligare o vanligare och jag
I Sverige är inte detta så vanligt som i USA, men har någon funderat på hur dessa ser ut om 20 år ungefär, vi kommer ju inte se ut som människor längre, utan som stela dockor, det är FULT helt enkelt, små fina jobb har jag ingenting emot men när redan unga snygga tjejer gör stora läppförstorningar m.m. så de ser värre ut än innan då börjar det gå för långt, var ska detta sluta, är vi verkligen så rädda att bli FULA?
Ni som gör detta för en liten förbättring på äldre dagar är det helt okey bara det är snyggt, men snälla kan någon ung människa lämna en kom-mentar till mig om varför du gjort det? Många just av de yngre ser sämre ut och stelare framför allt efter ett ansiktslyft, o Botox ska vi inte snacka om så hemskt det ser ut.
Vanför är vi så skönhetsfixerade, är de all tryck ifrån media, mobbing i skolorna vad? Titta på Vic-toria Silvstedt som hon har fördärvat sig, det tycker t.o.m. pressen, REAGERA
KimberlyRules
catwoman
HJÄLP NÅGON
När jag skivit en blogg och sen publceras den och jag återvänder till exempel nästa dag, samma jäkla gamla inlägg kommer upp hela tiden, jag har varit och kollat var jag ändrar hur inläggen ska komma och allt ska vara rätt att de visas efter sista inlägget (senaste) varför blir det så här? Kan någon hjälpa mig
Kimberly
A very blurry picture spoke to us, and said. Britney will perform on BMA´s?
A very blurry picture spoke to us, and said. Britney will perform on BMA´s?.
This is my sons and the best blog about Britney, he is a huge fan.
Kimzy's Webblog 