Category Archives: The Way of Peace

Appetites for darkness; befriending the shadow self.

Motivations, The Way of Peace, Thursday posts, , , , , ,

Tuesday afternoon at the library, instead of doing anything on [church obligations], I spent time with several articles that could have been predicted to make me angry. I’ve forgotten specifics about them, and Net History from the library terminal isn’t available to me here. The deal is, I recognized an appetite for darkness; “The Itch.” Similarly yesterday, yesterday morning, once I realized I really had nothing to do that day, I became intensely angry and prone to look for ways to act out that anger; e.g. by finding more such articles to fume over. Went through some more of the same last night, albeit presence in the shower saw it all go away.

All this in the face of my goal of being perpetually happy and cheerful and an emanator of light and joy.

Continue reading Appetites for darkness; befriending the shadow self. →

For us

Bible, Get on your feet, Justice, Poverty, Qabala, Squalor, The Way of Peace, Thursday posts, , , , , ,

A grassy lot inspires a vision of what can be when a community cares for itself.

When I take the bus to church in the morning, I normally get off at the closest stop, walk three blocks north and one block east.  At the corner where I turn is a vacant lot.  I don’t know who owns it.  In months past, it has typically been heavily littered.

One morning not long ago, as I approached that lot, I saw that it had been cleaned.  I saw this from fifty feet away.  The way things are around here, that little bit of beauty nearly knocked me down.  It took my breath away.  It lifted my spirits.

A tiny bit of beauty can powerfully affect one’s mood.  A mere glimpse of a pretty face can make one’s whole day.

I reflected:  harmony is the essence of beauty, exemplified in the orderliness of the clean lot as contrasted with the chaos of its previous litter.  I reflected on the relatednesses among light, love, harmony, order and prosperity, on the one hand; and darkness, strife, chaos and need, on the other.  What does it take to begin to establish harmony?  I concluded that perhaps love, or self-love, is the beginning of creation.

What if the whole community cared for itself as someone cared for that lot? Continue reading For us →

Self-management: A snippet

The Way of Peace, Thursday posts, , , , , , ,

It’s happened often enough lately that I may as well tell it.

When I go into the shower room at the shelter, often enough, unhappiness meets me.

The shower stall I prefer isn’t available, and I resent it.

This guy is taking up half the shower bench, and the other half is full also, and I resent it.

This other guy is taking up all kinds of too much time getting dressed, and I resent it.

As soon as I turn my attention to what I will actually do — where to put my clothes, choosing a stall that is available, and getting undressed in itself — all those bad feelings vanish.

Complaining means you’re not doing what you can.

Related:  Here – Now – Can

Originally posted 07/01/16.

Scandalous words

Bible, Justice, Politics, The Way of Peace, Thursday posts, , , , , , , ,

These words will scandalize some readers.

Sometime in the future, I will no doubt discuss the same ideas in a more well-ordered way.  But I think I need to produce some expression now.

Jesus never called upon his followers to “change the world.”  Jesus never confronted injustice, oppression, slavery or “the system.”

He had opportunities to do so.

Continue reading Scandalous words →

The offering plate, part 1

Dependency, Get on your feet, Homelessness, Jacob's Ladder, Motivations, Poverty, The Way of Peace, Thursday posts, , , , , ,

One lives in a world substantially of one’s own creation.

The offering plate came around, and I got a shock.  I can remember when I dreamed of putting $60 in there each week, as the woman does who normally sits in front of me.  No such dream is available to me now; I am unable to envision myself ever putting anything in there.

My circumstances have rendered me infantile; a complete “taker.”  One of those who seeks to receive  “blessings” rather than seeking to be a blessing, a “maker.”

What can I give as an offering?

The offertory hymn was, “We are an offering.”

We lift our voices, we lift our hands
We lift our lives up to You
We are an offering
Lord use our voices, Lord use our hands
Lord use our lives, they are Yours
We are an offering

All that we have, all the we are
All that we hope to be
We give to You, we give to You

We lift our voices, we lift our hands
We lift our lives up to You
We are an offering, we are an offering[*]

I myself can be my offering.

More about that next week.

[*]Author: Dwight Liles. ©1984, Word Music, Inc.

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Previous posts mentioning the offering plate:
I’m getting interviews!
What a homeless man dreams of

Previous posts mentioning the credibility of dreams:
Hope and vision

Originally posted 2016-05-14.

Wolves in sheep’s clothing

Homelessness, Justice, National news, National politics, Poverty, The Way of Peace, Thursday posts, , , , , , ,

I am at a difficult juncture.

My immediate material situation requires that, like never before in my life, I practice what I preach; care for myself; work in my own self-interest; be “here-now-can;” “keep the focus on me;” live by the Serenity Prayer.  These are what I counsel any poor person to do.  These are what I most emphatically now must do myself.

This entails dis-attending to all the current social turmoil.

It entails turning a deaf ear and blind eye to many messages, insistent messages, particularly coming from those who claim to have the best interests of the poor (like me) at heart.

Continue reading Wolves in sheep’s clothing →

Transference, BLM and anti-Semitism

The Way of Peace, Thursday posts, , , , , ,

When I hang out at Dunkin’ Donuts in the morning, I have a prescribed spot, in a corner, by the door.

This morning this woman came in scowling.  She was deeply resentful about something.  Once she got her order and began to head out, it became clear that the something had changed.  Whatever she’d been resentful about before was no matter; what she resented now was my skin color.

Transference is the removal of emotions, normally negative, from connection with one idea or situation, and attaching the same to a different idea or situation.  This incident this morning was an epiphany for me of how easily it happens, and how evil it can be.

Continue reading Transference, BLM and anti-Semitism →

The pain pills saga

Bible, Homelessness, Justice, Poverty, The Way of Peace, Thursday posts, , , , , , , ,

The dentist prescribed ibuprofen 800s and, for me to take at night if the toothache became severe, Hydrocodon-Acetaminoph 7.5-325.  This is a narcotic.  “Pain pills.”

I have a large zipper bag with four compartments.  There is a main compartment, which I can lock; a front compartment; a left side compartment; and a right side compartment.

Every afternoon when I sit on my bunk, I empty my pockets and put my phone, debit card, and cash in the main compartment.  I take my afternoon meds, which are already in there, and lock it all back up.

Related:  Giving it all away

Continue reading The pain pills saga →

“World’s happiest man” shares his secret

Get on your feet, Science, The Way of Peace, Thursday posts, , , , ,

A 69-year-old monk who scientists call the ‘world’s happiest man’ says the secret to being happy takes just 15 minutes per day

Another must-read.

This is actually a different approach to meditation than any I have ever used.  I may try it.

Enigmatically, happiness is no laughing matter.  Last week’s article suggested that your happiness is a key to success in life.  It is central to one’s functionality,  the ability to get things done, overcome obstacles, set wise goals and diligently pursue them.  Whether you believe in heaven or hell, wish to serve merely yourself, or instead wish to “serve” God, serve Jesus, or serve humanity — it’s essential to optimize your functionality, your effectiveness in life.

Fortunately, apparently, that can be fun!

Originally posted 2016-02-06.