Saturday, August 27, 2016

What Is The Experience Of God?

One question that has often come up in the many spiritual conversations I’ve been part of over the years is “What is the experience of God”?  It’s a question that no one, even my friends in the monastery, can quite agree on.  My basic answer is that I don’t either.  However, I do have a few thoughts about it.  More and more many people wonder if there even is a God.  I don’t know that either with any certitude and I am always amazed at how offended some people get when I say that.  I’m not saying there’s no God.  I’m just saying that I don’t really know.  Isn’t not knowing why people have faith?  I think there are some experiences and feelings that we all have as human beings.  Do you ever have a sense of longing but you are not sure what you are longing for?  Do you ever feel empty or incomplete?  Are you hungry for something beyond food but you are not sure what you hunger for?  I believe these feelings, at their root, are spiritual.  We are all desiring some kind of unity or oneness with someone or something.  I do spend a fair amount of time meditating and practicing mindfulness.  Sometimes when I am being silent and still, I do experience feelings of peace.  There are also times when I experience what some people would call “warm, fuzzy feelings”.  Occasionally I feel one with the universe.  Are these feelings the experience of God?  Again, I don’t know.  They might just be pleasant feelings or my imagination.  I guess all I can really say is that I have all the feelings I mentioned above.  I don’t always know why I have them.  Something or someone seems to be always calling me forward.  Is the inner voice I hear God speaking to me or just me talking to myself?  Again, I don’t know.  I suppose someday I will find out or maybe I won’t.      
 

Wednesday, August 24, 2016

Self-Realization

“Your own self-realization is the greatest service you can render to the world”.
-Ramana Maharshi
 
In my mind, self-realization is the same as what Abraham Maslow calls “Self-Actualization”.  It is the pinnacle of what he calls the Hierarchy Of Needs.  As you can see below, the achievement of one set of needs normally leads to the next level of needs.  Except in the most exceptional of people you will not likely achieve self-realization or self-actualization if you are starving to death, living on the streets, lonely, and with no sense of self-esteem.  Our most basic needs as human beings must be met if we are to achieve the higher levels of fulfillment.  It is when we reach the self-actualization level of our personal growth that we discover what Thomas Merton and others call our “true self”.  This is the self that achieves our full potential as a person and who has the most to give and offer to the world.  This is the true goal for all of us.  You may achieve other goals in life but they won’t be as important as achieving your full potential and recognizing your own gifts and talents.  This is a life long journey.  You won’t reach it by age twenty five.  I am now sixty five and still striving for it.     



Grief And Joy

The difference between grief and joy is what we do with them.  Grief we push away.  Joy we try to hold on to.  When we refuse our grief, it stays.  When we try to control our joy, it leaves.  That’s the way these processes are.
-Ann Wilson Schaef
 
I have not experienced a lot of grief in my life.  Yes, people have died in my life but for most of them it was their time and I was able to accept it.  A big exception to this was the death of a dear friend a few years ago that was both sudden and unexpected.  I am still grieving that loss.  Of course, grief is about more than accepting and dealing with the deaths of people.  There are many kinds of losses in our lives.  It could be the end of a relationship or a job.  In some ways I have lost my children because they are now adults with lives of their own.  They are no longer the little boys who used to fight with me and beat me up in the middle of my living room floor.  I have also lost my youth and must accept that I am not the man I was at age thirty.  On a positive note I think I am a better man although one with considerably less physical abilities.  I have been blessed to experience more joy in my life than sorrow.  The temptation of joy is the desire to re-create the situation that gave us joy.  I am thinking of a past solitary moment, early on a cool autumn morning, when I sat on the side of a hill, while the sun rose over a lake and the light was shining through the trees and burning the mist from the lake’s surface.  It was one of my contemplative, Zen moments and I experienced what some psychologists call “flow.”  This is the experience of being so in the moment that you transcend time and space and are truly in the now.  On a different day I could plan such a moment and feel nothing.  The joy of the initial experience was a gift, not a reward.  I did nothing to earn it.  It just happened.  Does this make sense?  As people we are deeply emotional beings whether we realize it or not.  Some of us embrace our feelings while others of us repress them.  I tend to do a little of both.  It’s easy to embrace joy or love but I tend to repress feelings like anger.  Sooner or later repressed feelings will make themselves known.  Often they show up as physical ailments like headaches or depression.  I guess my advice would be to feel your feelings.  It’s wonderful to jump for joy but it’s also OK to feel angry once in a while.  It’s all about balance.  I’m not sure it’s possible to be happy, joyful, and upbeat every minute of the day.  To be honest, people like that wear me out.  However, if you are angry and negative all the time, you might want to work on that.  It’s not normal or healthy.       

Friday, August 19, 2016

The Chapters Of Our Lives

The chapters of our life stories can often be taken from the decades in which we have lived.  I was a child of the 50’s, a time many considered idyllic.  I came of age in the 60’s, a time that was turbulent and a time in which there were many substantial changes in our culture.  In the 70’s I got a job, married a wife, bought a house, and became a parent.  Most of the 80’s and 90’s were devoted to turning a job into a career and raising two boys into men.  In the early 2000’s life changed for all of us because of 9/11.  I also became a grandfather and I discovered I had a gift for writing and sharing feelings that many people have but cannot always articulate.  I am now in my mid 60’s and my aging seems accelerated even though I am trying to slow my life down by downshifting as much as I can.  I feel like I am on the other side of the mountain but I am OK with that.  While climbing up the mountain I feel I accumulated some wisdom and a little enlightenment.  Life has been a tall mountain so I am not sure how long it will take me to get to the bottom of it.  I am in no hurry because I am enjoying the ride now.  It’s much easier because it is all downhill.  Life is a journey and every step is important.  How would you measure your life so far?  What are the chapters of your life?  Is the peak of your mountain in front of you or must you look over your shoulder to see it?

Constructive Feedback

All of us are sometimes criticized.  It is often referred to as constructive feedback to give it a more positive spin but it still usually feels like good old criticism.  I have been criticized many times in my life and I admit that I didn't always take it very well.  It's not because I think I am perfect.  It's more because I really strive to do things well and to always do the right thing.  When someone tells me I am not meeting an expectation, it hurts.  I don't know if there is a painless way to receive and accept constructive feedback.  I do believe, however, there are painless and positive ways to give constructive feedback.  First of all you must always respect the dignity and feelings of the person on the receiving end.  Constructive feedback can be presented in a gentle, even loving, way.  Constructive feedback doesn't have to be presented with negative terminology.  The reality of a situation can be presented in a non-threatening way balanced with positive examples of how the situation could have been handled or how it might be handled in the future.  I don't believe any decent human being comes to work or does anything with the intention of making mistakes or doing poorly.  In today's complex and highly technical work environments the use of computers often makes the possibility of errors more likely than not.  Some management gurus, like W. Edwards Deming, believe that mistakes in the workplace are usually the blame of a system or a process rather than people.  When was the last time a "system" or a "process" was put on a work improvement program?  People seem like the only option for criticism so they are usually given the blame.  None of us are perfect, we do sometimes make mistakes, and sometimes our mistakes may be carelessness.  Sometimes we may need encouragement or some deserved criticism.  If we deserve it, we need to be humble and accept that we have made a mistake or need to get our heads on straight.  If we are the leader, the parent, or the friend, do it in a caring, non- threatening way so the person walks away with some dignity and resolve to try harder.  Encourage them.  Don't break their spirit. 

Being Where We Are And Doing What We Are Doing

Here’s something I once read from a book called Peace Is Every Step by Thich Nhat Hanh.
 
We try to be in touch with life and look deeply as we drink our tea, walk, sit down, or arrange flowers.  The secret of the success is that you are really yourself, and when you are really yourself, you can encounter life in the present moment.
 
Today I want all of you to really be who you are.  Along with being who you are I want you to be where you are and I want you to do what you are doing.  This might all sound simple but it is not.  Most people are not who they really are.  Most of us are trying to be who we think we need to be to impress or appease others.  Most of us are not where we are.  Our minds and bodies are rarely in the same place.  Whatever most of us are doing, we are probably thinking about what we need to do next.  Many of our lives demand multi-tasking and that really complicates things.  In today’s world it is very challenging to only do one thing at a time.  Wherever you are today, and whatever you are doing each moment, be there and do it.  If you’re drinking your coffee, tea, or soda, really drink it.  Know that you are drinking it.  When you have a snack or eat your lunch, know that you are doing it.  Taste your food, enjoy it’s flavor, and mindfully chew it.  If you are outside, and there is a breeze, feel the wind.  Today is going to be sunny so it will be a simple task to feel the sun.  Simply put, live your life today and enjoy every minute of the day.  Be alive and awake.     

Thursday, August 18, 2016

Returning To Our Center

To meditate a short time with depth is better than to meditate for long hours with the mind running wild”
-Paramhansa Yogananda
 
As much as I try to be a centered and balanced person, sometimes my mind is running wild and I feel like I am going in ten different directions.  Life did not always seem as fast paced as it is now.  It seems there is always something to do and somewhere to go.  Living in such a vortex without getting blown away requires deep roots.  Meditation is good fertilizer for these roots.  As much as I talk about meditation I do not spend hours a day in hypnotic bliss.  In the morning I strive for 10-15 minutes of quiet as I sip my coffee.  Once I leave home and slip into the madness of daily life I am often pulled out of my center.  When I am lucky enough to have some presence of mind I can quiet my mind and breathe.  Being centered within myself while being actively engaged with the demands and tasks of life is a never ending tug of war.  It is impossible to be consciously centered all the time.  The best we can do is be aware of when we are and when we are not.  Returning to our center throughout our day can be the North Star on our inner compass.

Wednesday, August 10, 2016

The Idea Of Something....

...is often worse than the doing of it.

It is my late night at work as I write these thoughts.  I have learned that the thought of working late is much worse than actually working late.  The one exception to this might be Friday nights.  It truly sucks to have to work late on Friday.  Late Fridays are even worse than Saturday mornings.  I actually think that Fridays should be mandatory short days with no meetings allowed.  When it is my late day, the first thought in my mind when the alarm clock goes off is “O God, it’s my late day.”  However when I get pass the psychological hump of my normal quitting time, the time left for me actually goes quickly.  I think this feeling is very true about much in life.  The idea of doing something is often much worse than the reality of doing it.  So many of us go through our life with a sense of dread.  This can be so bad that I have even dreaded the idea of having fun.  I might have the opportunity to go out and have some fun.  I find myself thinking, “Now I have to get dressed, drive downtown, and fight all those people”.  OK, sometimes this really is a hassle but when I am finally sitting in my seat in the Yum Center or the Palace Theater and some of my favorite musicians hit the stage and launch into their opening song, I get excited.  I will have this experience on Sunday night at a Joe Walsh concert.  OK, I admit this never happens when I work late but I can say the late hours are often peaceful and quiet.  I like the early part of the day and I like the late part of the day.  It’s the whole middle part of the day that usually makes me crazy.  May I be excused from 9:00 AM until 3:00 PM every day?

Sunday, August 07, 2016

An Interesting Life?

Once a co-worker said to me, “Michael, you’ve had an interesting life”.  I have to admit that it hasn’t always felt interesting but I have had some interesting experiences along the way.  A deeper reality, however, is that if you added up all the interesting experiences in my life it would be a small percentage of the sixty five years I have lived so far. Most of my life has been ordinary. A big chunk of time has been taken up by the business of living. This is not to say that ordinary is bad. Interesting experiences might be thought of like weekends. We all live for them but they make up a small portion of our lives.  Most of life is ordinary and much of it can seem boring or routine.  This is why it is so important to pay attention to the moment, to be awake, and to be aware of the potential for the extraordinary within the ordinary.  I truly believe there is much that is extraordinary hidden within the ordinary. Enjoy the ordinary days. Enjoy your first cup of coffee in the morning. Notice the sunrise. Laugh with your friends. Listen to lots of your favorite music. Eat a piece of the cake that your co-worker brought into the office. Spend some time in your favorite chair with a good book. Look out the window and enjoy the scenery. Even better, go outside and enjoy the scenery.  Don’t let the joy of ordinary days pass you by while you are waiting for something interesting to happen.

Thursday, August 04, 2016

Lunch With The Monks

Earlier this week I received a call from the monastery.  Two of my friends who are monks were going to be in Louisville and they wondered if I was available for lunch.  I always enjoy meeting them because I like them and the conversation is always stimulating.  I don’t have deep conversations as often as I would like.  Br. Frederic, who is in his early 90’s, has an inquisitive mind and a deep intellectual curiosity.  I can always expect some deep philosophical or theological question from him.  I am humbled that he likes to hear my view of things.  Way back in the early 1970’s, when I was a young man wanting to be a monk, Br. Frederic was one of the monks who interviewed me.  Forty four years later I am still being interviewed by Br. Frederic.  The other monk was Fr. Michael.  He is now the Prior of the monastery.  This means that when the abbot is away from the monastery, Fr. Michael is in charge.  When we were both a lot younger and stronger, we often worked in the monastery cow barn together feeding the large herd of Holstein cows the monastery owned at that time or we walked together with other monks in the hot, dusty fields picking up bales of hay which we heaved onto a wagon to be stored away in a barn for the winter.  In those days the milk from our cows was used to make the famous cheese the monks made and sold for many years.  Today at lunch I shared a story from my days in the monastery.  One of the older monks had found me reading “The Collected Works of St. John of The Cross”, a 16th century Spanish mystic and Carmelite priest.  Let me tell you that it’s pretty deep stuff.  The older monk looked at me and said, “Br. Dominic, you will learn more about God by working in the cow barn”.  I understand this a lot more now than I did then.  God and spirituality are found in the cow barns of life where things can get a little piled up and mucky.  Let’s just say that cows generate a lot more than milk.  I still value the time I lived in the monastery.  It has deeply affected my world view and approach to life and I am happy that I have not lost my connection to that experience.       
 

Wednesday, August 03, 2016

Everyone Struggles

Occasionally I write daily thoughts that are very honest about how I am feeling and these feelings are not always uplifting.  Usually they are about my own struggles as a human being.  In general I strive to write positive and uplifting thoughts to inspire others.  More often than not, the positive and uplifting thoughts do not generate any feedback from my readers.  It is usually when I am most honest and real that someone will write back to me and tell me that they felt I was writing specifically for them.  It seems that I am most likely to hit a nerve with other people when I am most honest and open about my own struggles.  I actually find this uplifting.  When most of us are down or struggling with life we feel alone.  We think no one else has these feelings.  The reality is that most people struggle with one or many aspects of life.  Life is tough.  The daily grind of work, family obligations, and personal chores makes us all weary at times.  I should realize this more than I sometimes do.  I have spent most of my adult life managing other people.  I have heard many sad stories of personal struggles and challenges.  In other words, I know that many good people are doing all they can just to get through the day.  Some people are blessed in life more than others.  Life is not fair.  However, even the most blessed are not without struggles.  Human existence is full of pain and existential angst.  I can’t always make my pain or other’s pain go away.  If I am lucky I can ease someone else’s pain a little.  Maybe you will be inspired by the knowledge that we all share the human condition.  Don’t let the struggles of life get you down.  Keep going and never give up hope for a better tomorrow.  When life is sweet, enjoy it.  When it is sour, you will get through it and be a stronger person than you were before.      

Tuesday, August 02, 2016

Who Is Your True Self?

Who is your true self and what should this true self be doing?
 
One of our life long quests is to find out who we really are.  What is our true essence?  As the Buddhists would say, “What face did we have before our parents were born”?  When all the masks and pretenses are stripped away, who are we?  If we actually discover who we are, what should we be doing?  What is our life’s purpose?  Is my purpose to come to Humana five days a week, write a daily thought, and manage people and inventory?  Is my purpose to be a grandfather to a 12 year old girl?  Is my real purpose as yet undiscovered?  I must admit that I am not completely clear on this.  I have not yet had a moment where I thought, “This is why I was born”.  Like many people I often feel lost.  Sometimes I feel like I am just wandering through life without a sense of direction.  When I began a blog, an apt title seemed to be Stumbling along the Spiritual Path.  Even at this late stage of my life I am not sure how one finds their true self or their purpose.  Do you just stumble through life and suddenly, without warning, it is there in front of you?  I am envious of people who always seem to know where they are going.  I’ve always felt like I am moving in ten different directions without really going anywhere.  There’s a book called Wherever You Go, There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn.  My book should be called Wherever I Am, I Am Lost.  What face did I have before my parents were born?  I am not sure what face I have now.  If you sometimes feel like this too, you are not alone.