The Voice: Dan Palmere's Blog

Spreading Thought

When we deal with today only, seemingly impossible projects become manageable. Conflicts that would have consumed all of our attention can be addressed for a reasonable amount of time if we recognize that they may not have to be resolved completely and at once. And "just for today," we can make small changes in our actions and attitudes, explore new possibilities and take a few tiny risks, all of which can help us to move forward in a positive direction.

You can begin by trying to adopt one or two of the suggestions below. It doesn't, matter which ones we choose; they can all help us put this one day to use and learn that managing a single day can be the beginning of a new and better life:

• Just for today I will try to live through this day only, and not tackle all my problems at once. I can do something for twelve hours that would appall me if I felt that I had to keep it up for a lifetime.


• Just for today I will be happy. This echoes in the philosophically profound words of Abraham Lincoln: "Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be."


• Just for today I will adjust myself to what is, and not try to adjust everything to my own desires. 


• Just for today I will have a program. I may not follow it exactly, but I will have it. I will save myself from two pests: hurry and indecision. There is more to life than increasing its speed. 


• Just for today I will be unafraid. Especially I will not be afraid to enjoy what is beautiful, and to believe that as I give to the world, so the world will give to me.

 

Photo Credit: sakis.da

Today's Reflection

When you are in the grips of anger or desire, contemplate and dismantle the emotion by investigating it. Where did this feeling come from? Where is it dwelling?

This technique has been extremely valuable for me. Our mind is so much like a crystal ball in that we can start off the day with a fairly positive and friendly outlook (clear slate), but in a split second our mind is taken over by a single emotion; we get tunnel vision. 

Our mind is fundamentally open and clear. Emotions are just thoughts with a lot of energy in them. You could address these emotions in the same way you address "lighter thoughts" -- things you see or experience that you brush off almost instantly. We want  to experience sustained feelings of joy (and other positive emotions). This post is specifically addressing the negative emotions that many of us inevitably experience. 

When a strong emotion comes up, we feel triggered and we're not exactly sure where that emotion comes from or what truly caused it. There's a constant stream of negative thought patterns running through our minds: job, relationships, finance, etc. It seems strange just observing those thoughts now, for me, that we would indulge those thoughts as normal or as confirmation that we're in reality, it's a familiar feeling--a reality that seems to be constant suffering for us. 

We can actually be free from this type of negative thinking by recognizing it in the process and saying, "Do I need to go there or can I take a fresh moment, take a breath and change my mind?" 

Photo Credit: Jacob2000  

"Growth is the willingness to let reality be new every moment."

- Deepak Chopra

 

Today's Reflection

The sensible approach is to say, “I can still be irritated ninety percent of the time. But with ten percent of my mind and heart, I’ll try putting others first.”

Sherlock Holmes: Review

I went to see Sherlock Holmes with a couple of friends this past Monday evening. The sizable theater filled up about halfway by the time previews began.

The name "Sherlock Holmes"  was something I was vaguely familiar with prior to the film. I knew he was some type of detective and possibly fictional. Also, his first name is often used in conjunction with a profanity as a common expression when one rebukes an individual who has just stated the obvious. I think you know what I'm referring to. 

During the course of the film, I was easily captivated by the classic "solving a mystery" plot. The script was incredibly witty and sophisticated. It had the right touch of traditional British humor (dry) and at the same time had the pacing of an American comedy. It's extremely accessible to a wide-range audience. 

Guy Ritchie's directorial choice with Robert Downey, Jr. (Holmes) was fascinating. There was a seamless transition of an Adrian Monk type obsessive compulsive observation and the street-tough mindset that helped him in many situations in the film. "Holmes was a gentleman, but he was also a street guy who could scruff it up a bit. I thought the story had lost that part of its essence. I like street life, but I like grand things, too. Being able to move within those two worlds appealed to me," said Ritchie in an interview. 

After seeing the film, I learned that Sherlock Holmes was indeed a fictional character who first appeared in print in 1887. Characterized by the Scottish author and phyisican Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Holmes was famed for his vast knowlege of many topics and attention to tiny details to solive big cases. Doyle wrote four novels and fifty six short stories that feature Holmes. 

If you can't catch this film in theaters, I would definitely recommend it as a rental for movie night at home. It has a great balance of humor, action, and suspense all packaged into a mere two hours. 

Holmes and Dr. Watston discussing the mystery. 

New Year's awareness

It's a month of new beginnings in many ways. 

What happens during the year? We lose our connection between the mind and body. During the days leading up to the New Year we examine all the negative aspects of our life: "Something needs to change, I can't live like this anymore." This pattern of thinking is typically negative towards ourselves or rolled off as humorous neglect. 

You might say, "I'm going to make some changes in my life". That's fantastic. Taking control and stepping in a positive, healthy direction feels natural, it feels right. The mind wants it and the body needs it. However, we inevitably lose the fire of the resolution. External factors get in the way of precious time and commitments we set out to engage in. It happens every year and every day and fools us again and again. 

Why is this? It happens because of the intensity and speed of life that we have created. The mind constantly seeks out the next thing to do. We rarely find comfort in being still and listening to the needs of our body and mind's interest. There is more to life than increasing it's speed. Just because others around us are moving a mile a minute, we don't have to contribute. We don't have to add to the rush. 

As soon as we start to see that we spend so much of our life and energy avoiding being present, being honest emotionally, being fully known, we can start to feel what's underneath it all. And what's under it might be tenderness, vulnerability, and the connection to basic goodness of our life and that of others. 

For me, that's the fire of the true new year's resolution. A synonym for "resolution" is single-mindedness. I don't want to be so single-minded to complete a task that I lose focus of the other needs of myself (mind and body) and others. A more appropriate suggestion that I'll offer in place of that term is a new year's awareness. Instead of making a list of things that I'd like to do, to be done at some point throughout the year, I'm going to attend to the present moment and become aware of the needs I actually need to fulfill, rather than the needs my mind tells me should be done to satisfy or gain the approval of others. 

"Everybody wake up, if you're living with your eyes closed."

- Dave Matthews Band, "Everybody Wake Up (Our Finest Hour Arrives)"