There is an old parable that has stuck with me over the years. I would like to think that it has helped to guide and shape my words and actions. Occasionally, I need to remind myself of the values it contains. This past week, I have shared it twice with others in situations that could really benefit from it. I like recounting this, as every time I do, it solidifies for me the values and message and helps to crystallize my own actions and words to be more positive.

Imagine an old oriental town, an old man is sitting and enjoying the sunny day near the town’s gate. A shepherd with his sheep is watching this scene:

A tired stranger comes to the old man, sits down near him and asks the old man: “Please, tell me about the town, what kind of people live here?” The old man then said “First, tell me about your place and from where you have come.” The stranger replied, “Really, nothing to tell – it was old, dirty and a boring town. People who lived there were evil and nasty, just quarrels and scandals every day.” “Well,”-said the old man – “It is sad to tell, but here you’ll find the same. A dirty, boring town and people here is not better than in place what you just left”. The stranger then sat a little bit with the old man, ate his breakfast then he left.

Some hours later another stranger came to this old man to ask about this town and the people who live in this town. This old man was not in a hurry to answer this question. He just asked the stranger a question back. About his place where he had come from. The stranger said “Oh, it was a wonderful place, so quiet and peaceful! And people who lived there: they were so kind and nice to me, we became such great friends and we even cried when I had to leave!” The old man replied “Don’t worry, stranger – you’ll find new friends in this town and find this town the same peaceful and quiet. Just go on in!”

The sun started to go down and the shepherd his sheep to go back to the town, he stopped near the old man and asked him why he gave such different answers to these two strangers.

“I did not lie to them.” Responded the old man.”The truth is that in each place that you visit you will find the same circumstances as the place you left. You will also find in this world, just who you are. Also that there is no way to find something different in the world. Till you change yourself. For you always bring your world with you”.

This little gem of a story is golden to me. It poignantly highlights how our perceptions become our reality. If we choose to perceive things poorly, that will be our world. If we choose to focus on the misgivings in others, we miss the incredible joy of focusing on all of their wonderful qualities. I believe in this sentiment very strongly. I do not know why, but quotes, affirmations, and parables like these always touch me in some manner. I find them stimulating and thought provoking. I am sure when I share these things with others, they view me as some newage crackpot, spouting cliches like a Hallmark greeting card, but alas, I will continue.

I am enjoying my personal transformation. I believe that a 25+ year career where I have been paid to locate, discuss, and solve problems has created a tendency in me to focus on problems. I have been contracted to highlight and bring problems to light in my professional life. That mode does not work very well in my personal life. As much as I dislike a dichotomy of being, I need to put those problem focused skills in the toolbox and leave them there, only bringing them out when appropriate. I wish to walk into the new town of everyday being amazed, awed, and overjoyed at the abundance of good I discover.

Write the bad things that are done to you in sand, but write the good things that happen to you on a piece of marble. ~ Arabic Parable

Mom is moving. Likely in a couple of weeks. Why is this something to blog about? Well, she lives in a great spot right now, but she is very rural. There are a number of people that check in on her, but she is still isolated. Being isolated is not bad in itself, especially when you consider how beautiful mom’s flower gardens are along with all the birds and wildlife that come to call. All of that property and the gardens require care though and she will be 80 this year. She is moving to Elmsdale to a 2 bedroom apartment. The building she is moving to is right next to the one my sister lives in, so she will be near family. Also, Elmsdale has a large number of amenities at her disposal and a number of community events where she can be involved.

All of this is insignificant though. What is really important is what mom wants and she is ready for the mom. Mowing a few acres of lawn every week is getting a bit much along with the yard care and snow shoveling in the winter. She recognizes that it is time to say goodbye to the “Garden of Eva”. I want to honour and recognize how hard it must have been to come to that decision. Mom is not a person to dwell on what she is losing and looks ahead, so she takes a very pragmatic view to this move. Still, it must have been a hard decision. Let’s see, in the last year, she has dealt with a stroke, cancer, the loss of two siblings, and now a move. Yep, those are some big ticket items. You are a tough nut Mom, no doubt about that.

Once Mom made about her mind about moving, she kicked it into gear with packing and cleaning. I was going to fly to Nova Scotia to lend a hand, but I suspect she has mostly of this well n hand. I will direct the funds that it would have cost to have me fly out to hiring a moving company to move all of her things. That will save trying to line up folks and trucks for moving.

Mom, I continue to give thanks everyday to have you in our lives. You continue to amaze and inspire me with your positive approach to life and its challenges. Lots of Love headed your way for the move.

Any change, any loss, does not make us victims. Others can shake you, surprise you, disappoint you, but they can’t prevent you from acting, from taking the situation you’re presented with and moving on. No matter where you are in life, no matter what your situation, you can always do something. You always have a choice and the choice can be power. ~ Blaine Lee

We are not directly affected by the flooding in Saskatchewan in 2011. We are not directly affected by the rash of tornadoes in the Midwest USA. We have also not been directly affected by the earthquakes, tsunamis,  landslides, avalanches, or volcanoes. We are safe. Our basement does not have any leaks or water problems, I repeat, we are safe.

I do not say that to be cheeky or irreverent, I am really quite thankful for the security of our home and location. I am staggered by the loss of life and loss in damages caused by some severe weather this year. Mother nature can be a tempestuous gal at times and so far in 2011, we have seen some incredible displays of her power. I empathize with those directly affected by her force. The cost for some has been very high.

Last night, Kathy and I went for a bike ride and we followed the bike path for a good chunk of our ride. A number of times, we had to divert from the path as it was under the water of a flooding Wascana Creek. The creek is high once again and would be great for canoeing. It got me thinking about how extreme the weather has been this year. We are probably in for some fantastic electrical storms this year. I will once again give thanks for our safety and utter soft and silent prayers and well wishes for those less fortunate.

It takes an earthquake to remind us that we walk on the crust of an unfinished earth. ~ Charles Kuralt

No more cable TV. We canceled our subscription. The Digital PVR was picked up on Monday morning. I do not watch a lot of TV so it is not much of a sacrifice. Occasionally, I would sit down, pick up the remote, and surf. Kathy is going to miss the cable more than I. This is an adjustment. Not having cable means we can save money and be more frugal with our time. There is less and less that I find entertaining to watch, mostly variations on a theme that has been done countless times. I am thankful that I do not have an addiction to TV, Movies, or passive entertainment in general. Maybe I am a bit ADHD, but I get bored easily if I am not personally involved in an activity. This is going to save us a considerable amount of money in the course of a year too. The hits just keep coming with this decision.

We still have Netflix set up on the xBox 360, so we are not completely deprived of viewing TV shows or Movies. We probably will not use it much, but it is there when we feel like a passive diversion.

So many shows that friends have recommended we watch. Breaking Bad, Six Feet Under, House, Heroes, Game of Thrones, and the list goes on. Heck we are slowly making our way through the Battlestar Galactica DVDs we borrowed from Josh. We probably watch an episode a week. We should be finished that by the end of the year. At this pace we have years of metered viewing ahead of us. *grin*

Here’s to avoiding the TV Poltergeist…

Television has proved that people will look at anything rather than each other.  ~ Ann Landers

There are times it is hard to navigate. My journey through the seas of gratitude encounter the odd storm or two. It appears that I am in a metaphorical squall right now; it is making it hard for me to “stay the course”. I feel like taking my hand off the ship’s wheel and going below deck to seek respite from the weather. It is hard to resist the temptation to go below, but it is obvious that taking my eyes off of the storm does not lessen it’s threat. I cannot abdicate my role in navigating the rough waters. I must simply isolate each wave in the storm and face it bow first. Deal with each one separately and distinctly. I cannot deal with the entire storm, but I can deal with each wave and gust of wind. Life is like that. A bunch of adversity may band together to form a formidable storm, however, isolate each thing and address it separately. I write today to remind myself not to get overwhelmed by turbulent waters and to keep both hands planted on the ship’s wheel. The path of gratitude must endure. The path of gratitude recognizes the contrasting nature of dark days and sunny days. The path of gratitude is the lighthouse that guides the ship through the darkest hour on the seas.ENough maritime metaphor, this is making me homesick for Nova Scotia.

The offing was barred by a black bank of clouds, and the tranquil water-way leading to the uttermost ends of the earth flowed somber under an overcast sky – seemed to lead into the heart of an immense darkness.  ~ Joseph Conrad

The last few days have been rainy. I know this weather drives most people nuts and our farmers really do not need any more moisture, but I kind of like it. The sound of the rain through an open window. The smell of the earth and moisture. The lush green provided by the rain. Maybe it is all of the years I spent in Halifax that has acclimated me to rain, not sure.

Something about a cup of tea or coffee on a rainy day. A walk in the rain. Gazing out the window on a lazy Sunday afternoon. Add in the possibility of thunder and lightning and I am absolutely captivated. Mother nature can be quite showy at times and what a spectacle to behold. Last night I went for a brief drive and the sky was very dark and foreboding in the south. Periodic flashes of a distant storm could be seen. That is another wonderful scene. A very dark sky on one front with sun coming from another angle. The contrast of colors is amazing. The sun illuminates all of the lush green under a dark dark blue sky. There are so many things to like about this. The power, the color, the force of nature. It is all quite humbling and it informs me how insignificant we are in the grand scheme of things. Brilliant.

Here is a song I first heard when I was 11 years old. I bought the album and listened to all of the songs and this one in particular resonated with me. I guess it made me appreciate rainy days when I was quite young. “You’ve never felt the rain my friend, until you felt it running down your back”. Thank you Paul McCartney and Wings for teaching a young lad to look at rainy days differently.

Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather.  ~ John Ruskin

This may sound a little goofy, but I was sitting here enjoying my coffee pondering where my gratitude journey was going to take me today. The window is open and I found myself getting lulled into a reverie by the morning bird song. The scent of a fresh rain hangs in the air and the birds are busy chatting up a storm. I pulled my thoughts back to the task at hand and then, once again, I would lean back and just listen to the birds. They are so cheerful and full of enthusiasm; it is hard not to be distracted by their song. Then a soft smile formed as I realized with some irony, that my distraction is not a distraction at all. It is something to listen to and enjoy.

Our backyard is such a wonderful counterpoint to our front yard. In the front, we face a busy city street, the back yard has large trees and is a haven for birds. All sorts of avian creatures come to find respite in one of our trees. We currently do not have a fence so we are likely hearing more bird song from beyond the confines of our backyard. When our new fence goes up, I am sure we will be provisioning spots for bird houses and feeders.

This is such an enjoyable way to have my morning coffee. It sure beats getting up to rush out the door. I am thankful for the opportunity to stop and smell the roses; to stop and hear the birdsong. It truly amazes me how many of the world’s problems fade into the background when I tune into my senses and pay attention to the nature around me. For someone like me, who lives in his head, it is a welcome way to disconnect the brain for awhile and just soak in the sights, sounds, and smells. Perhaps another cup of coffee is in order; after all, it can’t hurt to sit here and listen awhile longer.

The very idea of a bird is a symbol and a suggestion to the poet. A bird seems to be at the top of the scale, so vehement and intense his life. . . . The beautiful vagabonds, endowed with every grace, masters of all climes, and knowing no bounds — how many human aspirations are realised in their free, holiday-lives — and how many suggestions to the poet in their flight and song! ~ John Burroughs