Wow! I haven’t been here in a while and it feels strange writing again. But it also feels like it’s past time to reach out. I don’t know how many people my writing helps, but I know it helps a few, and that is enough. To those of you that I have made mind contact with before and to those you just discovering ChrakraCommunity.com, “Hello, sorry I’ve been away so long”.

My wife introduced me to a new practice recently. Quiet your mind and ask, “What is the one thing that I need to do today?” Today my mind replied with a strong voice, “Remind people that we’re still here.” “Remind people that humans are still humane.” “Tell them what happened.” So I am here to do that.

On Thursday I was out walking my dogs. A car was slowly approaching a stop sign, as I was waiting to cross the street. Slow approach usually means they see me, and plan to wave me across the road. So I looked up to make eye contact with the driver, as I always do, and I stepped off the curb. The driver made eye contact with me. Tapped his break for the stop sign. Looked left, looked right, stepped on the gas and sped away. I watched him as he wizzed by in front of me and the dogs a few inches away and quietly mouthed “what the hell?!”

We were okay. A little shaken, but the car didn’t actually hit us. But I was frustrated. I was irritated. As I finished crossing that street I considered the bag of dog poop in my hand. “I should have dropped it on his hood”, said a bitter voice in my head. “I wish I had been thinking quicker.” That would teach him. “Well, nothing to be done about it now.” I continued walking.

About one block later a car pulled up next to me, going the wrong way down a quiet road with the window open. I didn’t know who it was, but they clearly wanted to talk to me. “I’m sorry, it didn’t register what was going on and I’m really sorry,” said the driver. After a moment it registered with my brain. This is the guy that pulled past in front of me. This is the guy that was in such a rush to get somewhere that he didn’t consider the safety of me and my dogs. This guy just turned his car back. Stopped his busy rush to wherever he was going. He came back to apologize. “Thank you, I really appreciate you coming back, we are fine, but I’m glad you said something,” was my response. I was a little dumbfounded, but glad I found my words.

I had come to another street to cross and he was turning around down the street. After I crossed, I looked back and waved at him. I said “Thank you,” and waved before I walked on. I don’t know if he realized what an impact he had on my day, on my thinking. What a huge boon for my attitude and my thinking about humanity.

With everything going on in the world right now. With everything going on in the united states, I’ve started to give up my hopes for humanity. I had started to feel like we are simply a lost cause. I know I mean well, but the rest of all you all, you all are nuts… Or so my thinking has been trending. Apparently my defeated soul starts to sound like a southerner…

I actually welled up with emotion as I walked on and thought about what had just happened. He had apologized. He had arrested his hell bent forward motion and come back to let me know he was sorry. He had indentified me as a person that he needed to reconcile with and done it. I didn’t even get his name. But again, to that anonymous soul out there, “Thank you!”

WE ARE NOT LOST!

Namaste, Kevin

So what did you think of?

You’re not as good as you think?

You’re not as bad as you think?

What other words popped up? Ugly? Short? Stupid? Smart? Loved? Hated?

It’s an interesting little test. I come up with my own words each time. Initially it feels like an exercise in what other people think of you… But upon further reflection, it’s just you and your thoughts going at that little blank space. So it’s really about what you think other people think about you. Or more to the point what you subconsciously struggle with.

For me, I worry that I’m not as smart as I think. Or sometimes I worry that I’m not as good a person as I think I am. An interesting aspect of this exercise is that your fill in the blank work always has a grain of truth and is usually dead wrong.

Meaning that, there is an aspect of soul reflection that comes out of this that should not be let go. You should process how your chosen adjective really overlays on your reality and world view.

Additionally, it is a perfect moment to be aware of  your own self judgement. And, for the most part, you can tell that voice to roll. Get away with your negative thoughts. I am freak-in awesome and you need to deal with it…

Yes, the voice in my head and I do have arguments occasionally. Luckily I very rarely show that to the outside world. That would be weird… Unless I write about it… Which could also come off as weird. Weird.

What was I saying?

Ah, yes. Self work. There is a value to self work. It both feeds into, and is fed by, self awareness. The first step to removing a thorn in your foot, is being aware a thorn is there. Nerves in your foot send pain signals to your brain that tells you something is wrong. You can ignore them, you can pretend they are not there. You can walk along barefoot and get more and more splinters, till the bottom of your foot is covered with little slivers of wood…

Our society encourages this when it comes to self work. We are encouraged to ignore the small voices in our soul that point out splinters. We are lead to believe statements like “Self work and self awareness are a product of conceit and being too self involved.” And like all statements that sound reasonable, there is a grain of truth. But the truth needs to lead to balance, not denial. You can’t, and shouldn’t, focus 100 percent on self.  Nor should you focus 100 percent of other. Life requires balance.

Our society appear to encourage imbalance. But that is merely a product of the focus on dramatic. News reports don’t tend to focus on the average, they seek out the sensational. Nobody would be drawn to the news if the reports had headlines like, “Another man came home from work today and spent time with his children”. “In Ohio today 14 children were bathed and put to bed after story time”. “Woman finds happiness in the little things and shares love with her friends”.

Self work is exceptional. Self work is vital. Self work will never make the headlines.

If you want to change the world, start with yourself. If you are a mess and you start by trying to change the world, you make the world a mess. Seek balance in self and know yourself. You will radiate balance and earned confidence to a world that desperately needs it.

Remember the work you do on self today seems boring. It can even be painful. But it is just and righteous and worthy of your time. You, are worthy of your time.

Namaste,

Kevin

Wow, I have absolutely nothing to write about today… It’s not that there is nothing to write about. It’s that there is too much to write about. It’s not that I have no opinion on the state of the world today. I have many opinions. I’m impressed by humanity. I’m depressed by humanity. My frustration and confusion has often lead to inaction. How can I fix what appears so intractably broken? How can I focus my energies on being part of the positive forces in the universe? I have a difficult time focus my energies to  make a change. But I want to make a change. I want to see grand forces unleashed from my efforts. With a big enough metaphysical lever, can I fix the world?

I saw a tremendous bumper sticker the other day:

Relax. Nothing is under control.

It reminded me, that even as I struggled to control the small things, I am wasting my time. As I shift my focus from the big items beyond my control to the little items that I have control over, I’m fooling myself. Everything I struggle to become master over is another struggle that doesn’t need to happen.

This isn’t futility. This isn’t me giving up. I must be an active participant in creating the universe around me, that’s why I came to this mortal plain.

But I don’t need to take it so seriously.

When things don’t make sense, maybe they aren’t meant to.

Have you been watching game of thrones? (don’t worry, no spoilers) It’s a violent drama show about kingdom building and battles. We are made privy to the machinations and control attempts by lords, kings and queens, over the world around them. Eventually, almost every plot point ties back and we are given the bigger picture.  We get to see what both sides are thinking and the growth of each situation as it develops. We’ve come to believe that real life is that way. It’s not.

We have come to believe if we watch the news long enough we’ll get the full story and everything will make sense. It won’t.

The people making up the news are as clueless and grasping at straws as much as you are. Yes, context is researched more deeply and more information is divulged. But you aren’t being given access to the backstory in a plot. We often confuse news reporters with the omnipotent narrator in a story. It’s more akin to the faulty narrator in a story where you’re being given a glimpse into the psyche of the story teller. You’re being told about the world as a faulty narrator sees it. There is no objective analysis. There is no omnipotent force informing the report. They are just people, like you. They have agenda and motives and they are part of the story, not an omnipotent narrator. Remember that.

It’s easy to forget when faced with threats from North Korea, that we don’t know the whole story. The parts of the story we see are disturbing. It’s easy to pick sides and draw conclusions. It is especially easy when you have skin in the game. They can fire as far as South Korea? Bummer. Then can fire as far as Japan? That’s rough. They can hit California? WTF, DO SOMETHING!!!

It’s nice to treat it as someone else’s problem. Until it happens to you. But remember, nothing has actually happened yet… But when it does, what will it be? Will war change it? Can we have a positive impact? Would we resolve the problem faster if we found oil in North Korea?

Do I have any control or influence over the situation at all?

Then, suddenly, nature turns it’s attention toward you. Suddenly North Korea drops off the top of the headlines as a hurricane hits Texas. We watch in helpless wonder as our friends and family struggle to escape flooding and survive one of the worst hurricanes we’ve seen in a while.

Feeling helpless sucks.

Then, I read this:

Environmentalists crowd fund a forest

Yes, it’s politically motivated. Yes, the article does a lot bashing. But they are taking a negative situation and making something positive out of it. People are doing something good.

The world is full of good people doing good things. Some for the right reasons, some for the wrong reasons, but they are making a difference.

You are making a difference.

You need to keep making a difference.

Be the person the world needs and let go of the outcome.

Don’t control, simply Be.

If you need a boost, try here:

Uplifting news on Reddit

This subreddit has articles posted that remind you the world isn’t a cesspool.

The world is a better place than the media makes it out to be.

You are a better person than your mind makes you out to be.

Be you. Keep putting one foot in front of the other. We will get to where we need to be. That’s all we can ask for.

Namaste,

Kevin

Why don’t we have recitals any more as adults?

My 6 year old just had her first recital. It’s seen as a growth moment, a rite of passage and the culmination of learning something new. But it’s also just a milestone. She sang a song and played the piano. While she did wonderfully, it doesn’t mean she is done. It does mark a fantastic milestone, with many more to come.

So why don’t adults have recitals? There are so many things we learn as adults. So many actions that we are practicing, doing for the first time. Could we have a parenting recital? Or a job interview recital? Or even a standard recital? Go learn to sing. Learn piano. Take up a new craft and show it off.

There is no point in finally being an adult if you don’t get to keep learning. And now you have the freedom to learn whatever you want. Nobody is telling you to go practice your piano. Nobody is telling you to read up on basket weaving. It’s all down to you.

I would like to formally invite you to try something new. Practice, practice, practice. And then go show it off. Have your own recital, or better yet form a recital group. A team of people bonded together with nothing more than the quest to learn and a forum to show it off.

Go have a recital!

Namaste,

Kevin

“Life can beat you up, beat you down and leave you crying in a corner.” – unknown (probably something I said)

I remember when I was a kid I always felt ready to be an adult. I’d get to make my own decisions, I’d be the law. I’d have free run.

I remember sitting down and doing the math in my head many times… “Let’s see, I’m in the 3rd grade now, that’s 5 more years of grade school, 4 years of high-school and 4 years of college. Then I’ll be the boss.” WooHoo!

My prediction mostly came true. I took 5 years to go through college. I don’t regret the extra time I took in college. But even in college I was tired of others making the rules. We were paying a fortune to have teachers boss us around and tells us what to do, when to do it and where to be. But then, finally, at graduation I was free. Or was I?…

I entered the world as a free man and found I had new task masters. A boss, bills, taxes. I was free alright. The breadth of mistakes I could make on my own accord had broadened. The pressure I felt on a daily level had increased. It was all on me. I was already locked into a new set of rules with a new set of task masters. The freedom I had imagined as a child had all been an illusion.

Mistakes were made. Nothing egregious. Nothing worthy of a publisher requesting a tell all memoir. But I made mistakes. Lots of them. Little mistakes, big mistakes, common mistakes, repeated mistakes. I would make mistakes that others had warned me about and mistakes on things I’d never even imagined I’d be faced with. But I made mistakes and I regretted them, for a while. Some of the mistakes were quite painful, pain leading to transformation. Some transformations lead to a new way to see the world. Other transformations lead to thought processes that would simply avoid getting into that situation again.

Interestingly, as time progressed and mistakes turned into wisdom, I learned one of my most valuable lessons about my mistakes. My mistakes had helped shape who I was, who I am. If you look at my life as a topographical map, my mistakes marked the points of interest. Some mistakes would be marked as the coastline, with the ocean, where I found I could not cross. Other mistakes would be marked as great mountains, that I had to find ways to toil over or circumnavigate. And some of the greatest mistakes have been turned into national parks because of the beauty that formed in their aftermath. My Grand Canyon and Yellowstone parks, if you will.

But the most interesting part about this analogy and my mistakes is that I kept getting back up and trying again. If  mistake had been considered a block, something that prevented me from moving forward, the whole map would look like a tiny island surrounded by mist or oceans that could not be crossed. My life would be tiny and empty and I would be riddled with doubts and inadequacies. Instead the map of my life represents a journal of my conquests and triumphs, along with a documentary of some of my failures. But each challenge overcome is most notably described as a situation where I failed and tried again.

The best sports analogy I see when thinking about this has to do with basketball. Basketball isn’t about the number of shots you’ve missed, it’s about the number of shots you make. If you get caught up in lamenting a missed shot, you’ll lose the ball and won’t get to shoot again. You have to get your hands back on the basketball and try again. You need to take your next shot. The score at the end of the game represents the number of baskets made. But it only represents a small portion of the actually effort. Many shots are missed in order for a single shot to be made. Even an expert at the game misses shots, it’s the nature of the game. You’ve got to get your hands on the ball and take your next shot.

There are times in life when it is easy to get hung up on what you didn’t do, or where you failed. There are times in life when reflection is valuable and learning from the past is beneficial. But you can’t move forward, you can’t advance the score and keep the game moving, unless you take your next shot. You are master of your destiny. You are in charge now. Get yourself up, dust yourself off, get in the game.

Make mistakes, it is all part of the game.

Take your next shot.

Namaste,

Kevin