lara simmons

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be."  --Douglas Adams For years I have had this idea in my head about MY LIFE - what it would look like, what I would be doing and mostly, that I would finally be IN CHARGE and things would be going according to MY PLAN. You'll be glad to know I am starting to get over that. The deeper I go into this spiritual life, the more I realize that true joy , true peace , true happiness come not from making a plan and sticking to it, but from going with what shows up. Having no plan, or only a very vague idea of a plan, then letting The Universe do the rest is where the magic lies. For instance, you might say, "I'd like to go to the beach this weekend," and The Universe will take that request and start to move. Maybe your friend with a beach house will call you and say, "I'm going to the beach this weekend, would you like to come?" Or maybe not. Maybe i

"Behind your greatest fear lies your greatest gift." --The Universe on TUT.com Amen to that!

"Sometimes a scream is better than a thesis." --Ralph Waldo Emerson I read this on Facebook the other day and it was one of those quotes I immediately knew was going on the blog because it contains a nugget of truth so sharp I want to tell everyone I know. It's about getting out of your head and into your body. It's about feeling your life and not rationalizing it. It's about living and not just plodding along. There is more life in a scream than in a thesis. More truth. And sometimes even, more joy. It you are feeling frustrated or confused or angry today, why not take a break, go somewhere quiet and just scream it out? Happy Monday All!

[An original story, based on a folktale called, "The King's Child"] After one year, there was still no child.  On her 21st birthday, the young bride left her house clutching a wad of cash tighly in her hand. Walking quickly, she headed to a nearby street. As she walked she glanced around furtively, hoping not to see anyone she knew.  A cascade of small bells went off as she pushed open the door. An old woman beckoned her through a bejeweled curtain and into the back room.  She sat down across a battered wooden table from the woman who looked deep into her eyes and said, "What would you like to know my child?" Looking down at her hands, and then up at the old woman, the girl asked the question that had been in her heart for many years, "When will I have a child?" The woman said, "You are but a child yourself, my dear. Go back to school and learn about the world; then you will be ready to mother a child." The girl l

"The journey is the destination." --"Physical Phil" from October Road, Pilot The easy answer is: MY KIDS. Those two little boys whose burps and farts, cries and screeches -  whose very presence - have filled up my world for more than ten years now. Elizabeth Stone said that having children is like having your heart walking around outside of your body. For me, it feels more like two baby-shaped pieces of myself have been let loose into the world and two similarly-shaped holes left in my body. At first I could not bear to be away from them for more than a few minutes, then a few hours, and now I can handle even a few days . But if I think one of them is lost, or I am not absolutely certain of where they are - even for a few minutes - that old panic starts to surface and I feel the loss again in my body. The truth is, however, that living for them gets me into trouble. It leads to unrealistic expectations of behavior (mine and theirs) and a desire for appreci

"Don't compare someone else's middle with your beginning." -- Radhika Chugh Following on from Tuesday's quote about having the courage to be where you are, we have this from Radhika Chugh, my newest internet angel, from her weekly reading on Youtube. Sometimes being where you are means starting something new and that can be SCARY. Especially if it is something you haven't ever done before, or haven't done in awhile. Comparison can be our worst enemy at times like these because we tend to judge ourselves harshly and often find ourselves coming up short. Just as these three spindly palm trees don't look like much when compared to the 140 year old Banyan tree from the other day, we can feel weak, inferior and a little bit funny-looking when we compare ourselves to someone else. So, if you are starting something new this week, resist the urge to compare your beginning to someone else's middle, or even to their beginning. You are exac

"Have the courage to be where you are." --The Universe Sometimes it takes all the courage we have to move forward; and sometimes, it takes even more courage to just stand still and be where we are. When we have a job, all we want is a little time off. When unemployed, we just want a job and can't stand all the free and unscheduled time we have been given. When we have a relationship we often long for something new and exciting. When we are alone, all we want is someone to snuggle on the couch with and watch TV. The hardest thing to do is to embrace what is, to live in the now, to be where you are. This tree is a 140 year-old Banyan Tree that stands in the town square in Lahainia, Maui, HI and it is my new symbol for this kind of courage. For 140 years it has stood still, providing shade and a place to sit, climb and explore for all who walk beneath it. It never wishes it were somewhere else or tries to walk away, and yet, it never stops growing. Expanding it

"Ricard's Buddhist notion of happiness is better described as 'well-being' or better yet: 'a deep sense of serenity and fulfillment, a state that pervades and underlies all emotional states, including all the joys and sorrow that can come one's way.' It isn't to be confused with pleasure, not even hours of it." --From "Stories for Boys" by Gregory Martin This is the third in a series of photographs I took on our recent family vacation to Maui. First came PEACE; then LOVE; so now, of course, HAPPINESS. This quote is from one of the books I read while on vacation and I loved this Buddhist idea of happiness. It seems somehow less daunting, more achievable, and less rooted in factors often outside of our control such as the weather or our income or relationship status. A deep sense of serenity and fulfillment. A state that pervades and underlies all emotional states that can come ones way. Bring it on!

"Meet anger with LOVE." -- The Universe to me on April 12, 2010 I have been thinking about this advice from the Universe a lot lately. As I have gotten a better handle on my own anger over the past ten years, I have started to see the pain and the sadness and the loneliness hidden deep within the anger of others. I know from my own experience that when I get angry and lose my temper what I really need is love, understanding, compassion, but it's kind of hard to see that at the time. And it's even harder to show love to someone who is yelling at you. But I know for sure that is what we are called to do so I'm gonna try. Won't you join me? [This photograph is second in a series of three. Come back tomorrow for #3.]