Nothing is sweeter than freedom
- freedom to live the type of life
you have always longed for.
If ever you have felt stuck
or lost in a maze with no way out,
you should know that this is not the way
life is meant to be lived.
Survival is not living.
Set yourself free to relax into the unknown.
Let go of the fear that has held you back,
let go of the worry, anxiety, and pain.
When life doesn’t seem to go “your way,”
there is a reason.
Following the path of least resistance,
and practicing the law of least effort has not worked for you.
Although at times it can seem that everything is going to happen
the way it does, no matter what you do;
and that your life story was already written for you
before you got here
- it is not so.
You write the story,
one page, one chapter at a time;
it was never written ahead of time.
You can revise or renew or transform the story
that is your life
– any time you choose to do so.
You are the author – the only author;
and in the process the struggle against each moment lessens;
in this way, you open new chapters in which
you express your true happiness and experience joy. 1
Freedom and the Story of the Parrot:
One of the first things I noticed about my newly purchased parrot was that he couldn't fly.
Chico's wings had been clipped and he was stuck here on earth just like us humans. Once the
weather turned nice I took Chico and sat him on a branch of a tree in my backyard, hoping to
make him happier. At first he seemed confused. He walked back and forth on the branch
looking like an agitated father pacing back and forth in the maternity waiting room. I was
surprised to see that he didn't flap his wings in an attempt to fly. Somehow he knew he was
incapable. I always wondered how he knew such a thing.
One day, while sitting on his branch, Chico got way more agitated then he had been when I
first took him outside months ago. He was pacing back and forth and talking up a storm. Then
all of a sudden, he stopped pacing, let out a spine tingling scream, and started madly flapping
his wings for the first time ever.
About three seconds later, he lifted off from the branch like the space shuttle at Cape
Canaveral! I was amazed and shocked. Little did I know his feathers had been growing back in,
and just like a sly convict, Chico had been biding his time until the moment was ripe for escape!
Chico made his break for freedom on a late Monday afternoon, and by late Monday night I
knew he was not coming home. Finally, on Tuesday evening Chico returned, but stayed way out
of reach. I talked to him and showed him some food, but to no avail. Then I took his cage inside
so he would not relate coming back to getting locked up again.
Finally, I made him a firm promise that if he did come back I would let him out every day the
weather was nice. Shortly after making my solemn oath, he flew onto my shoulder and I took
him upstairs.
From that day on, whenever the weather was good I would let him out early and he would fly
around and be back before dark.
I realized that the quality of one's life
is much more important than the number of years one lives.
What sense is there in being a bird if you can't fly? 2
If you really want something,
set it free . . .
You cannot set someone free . . .
they already are free, but . . .
if you love someone, let hir* go free,
no matter how difficult that may be.
If s/he comes back,
s/he was and always will be yours.
If s/he never returns,
s/he was never yours to begin with.
Regardless, Love hir* forever:
that is unconditional Love.
We do not possess anything in this world,
least of all other people.
At most, we only imagine that we do.
Our friends, our lovers, our spouses,
even our children are not ours;
they belong only to themselves.
Possessive and controlling friendships and relationships
can be as harmful as neglect. 3
Set yourself free
from anything
that might hinder you
in becoming the person you want to be.
Free yourself
from the uncertainties
about your abilities
or the worth of your dreams,
from the fears
that you may not be able to achieve them
or that they won't be what you wanted.
Set yourself free
from the past.
The good things from yesterday
are still yours in memory;
the things you want to forget you will,
for tomorrow is only a sunrise away.
Free yourself
from regret or guilt,
(it isn’t easy to accept the consequences
of that which causes regret)
and promise to live this day
as fully as you can.
Set yourself free
from the expectations of others,
and never feel guilty or embarrassed
if you do not live up to their standards.
‘
You are most important to yourself;
live by what you feel
is best and right for you.
Others will come
to respect your integrity
and honesty.
Set yourself free
to simply be yourself,
and you will soar higher
than you've ever dreamed. 4
People are free
at the moment they wish to be. 5
Chico made his initial break for freedom on a late Monday afternoon in April.
When will you make yours?
You too can take a chance when the conditions are right,
knowing you too in your own way,
were built to fly.
If you don't set yourself free,
what will be the purpose of your life?
I would suggest that the quality of one's life
is dependant on feeling one's essence,
and living the design that is you.
If you are a fish,
your life needs to be all about swimming.
If you are a bird,
your life needs to be all about flying
and spreading your message
to all that you meet along the way.
What sense is there in being you,
if you don't really let yourself free
and express your heart? 2
You can’t do what you want,
‘till you know what you’re doing;
and you can’t know what you’re doing,
till you know who you are . . .
You cannot change what happened,
but you can change the outcome.
Make amends where it is possible,
and fix what was broken;
change something.
Accept what cannot be changed.
Learn from the mistakes,
make different choices,
and proceed with life. 6
You have the freedom
to choose your actions,
you don't have the freedom to choose
the consequences of your actions.
you have the right, and freedom, to swing your fist;
that right ends where my nose begins.
just as you have the right to speak your mind
and say what you want to say –
but that right too, stops where it viciously
hurts another person deliberately
just because you’re having a bad day,
and are in a foul mood. 7
Most modern freedom is at root fear.
It is not so much that we are too bold to endure rules;
it is rather that we are too timid
to endure responsibilities. 8
You don't get to choose how you're going to die.
Or when.
But you can decide how you're going to live now. 9
Fear is the mind killer; the little death that brings total obliteration;
a jealous gate-keeper that wants you to stay put
in your make-believe prison.
It can't keep you in there, but only it knew that:
now you do, too.
- freedom to live the type of life
you have always longed for.
If ever you have felt stuck
or lost in a maze with no way out,
you should know that this is not the way
life is meant to be lived.
Survival is not living.
Set yourself free to relax into the unknown.
Let go of the fear that has held you back,
let go of the worry, anxiety, and pain.
When life doesn’t seem to go “your way,”
there is a reason.
Following the path of least resistance,
and practicing the law of least effort has not worked for you.
Although at times it can seem that everything is going to happen
the way it does, no matter what you do;
and that your life story was already written for you
before you got here
- it is not so.
You write the story,
one page, one chapter at a time;
it was never written ahead of time.
You can revise or renew or transform the story
that is your life
– any time you choose to do so.
You are the author – the only author;
and in the process the struggle against each moment lessens;
in this way, you open new chapters in which
you express your true happiness and experience joy. 1
Freedom and the Story of the Parrot:
One of the first things I noticed about my newly purchased parrot was that he couldn't fly.
Chico's wings had been clipped and he was stuck here on earth just like us humans. Once the
weather turned nice I took Chico and sat him on a branch of a tree in my backyard, hoping to
make him happier. At first he seemed confused. He walked back and forth on the branch
looking like an agitated father pacing back and forth in the maternity waiting room. I was
surprised to see that he didn't flap his wings in an attempt to fly. Somehow he knew he was
incapable. I always wondered how he knew such a thing.
One day, while sitting on his branch, Chico got way more agitated then he had been when I
first took him outside months ago. He was pacing back and forth and talking up a storm. Then
all of a sudden, he stopped pacing, let out a spine tingling scream, and started madly flapping
his wings for the first time ever.
About three seconds later, he lifted off from the branch like the space shuttle at Cape
Canaveral! I was amazed and shocked. Little did I know his feathers had been growing back in,
and just like a sly convict, Chico had been biding his time until the moment was ripe for escape!
Chico made his break for freedom on a late Monday afternoon, and by late Monday night I
knew he was not coming home. Finally, on Tuesday evening Chico returned, but stayed way out
of reach. I talked to him and showed him some food, but to no avail. Then I took his cage inside
so he would not relate coming back to getting locked up again.
Finally, I made him a firm promise that if he did come back I would let him out every day the
weather was nice. Shortly after making my solemn oath, he flew onto my shoulder and I took
him upstairs.
From that day on, whenever the weather was good I would let him out early and he would fly
around and be back before dark.
I realized that the quality of one's life
is much more important than the number of years one lives.
What sense is there in being a bird if you can't fly? 2
If you really want something,
set it free . . .
You cannot set someone free . . .
they already are free, but . . .
if you love someone, let hir* go free,
no matter how difficult that may be.
If s/he comes back,
s/he was and always will be yours.
If s/he never returns,
s/he was never yours to begin with.
Regardless, Love hir* forever:
that is unconditional Love.
We do not possess anything in this world,
least of all other people.
At most, we only imagine that we do.
Our friends, our lovers, our spouses,
even our children are not ours;
they belong only to themselves.
Possessive and controlling friendships and relationships
can be as harmful as neglect. 3
Set yourself free
from anything
that might hinder you
in becoming the person you want to be.
Free yourself
from the uncertainties
about your abilities
or the worth of your dreams,
from the fears
that you may not be able to achieve them
or that they won't be what you wanted.
Set yourself free
from the past.
The good things from yesterday
are still yours in memory;
the things you want to forget you will,
for tomorrow is only a sunrise away.
Free yourself
from regret or guilt,
(it isn’t easy to accept the consequences
of that which causes regret)
and promise to live this day
as fully as you can.
Set yourself free
from the expectations of others,
and never feel guilty or embarrassed
if you do not live up to their standards.
‘
You are most important to yourself;
live by what you feel
is best and right for you.
Others will come
to respect your integrity
and honesty.
Set yourself free
to simply be yourself,
and you will soar higher
than you've ever dreamed. 4
People are free
at the moment they wish to be. 5
Chico made his initial break for freedom on a late Monday afternoon in April.
When will you make yours?
You too can take a chance when the conditions are right,
knowing you too in your own way,
were built to fly.
If you don't set yourself free,
what will be the purpose of your life?
I would suggest that the quality of one's life
is dependant on feeling one's essence,
and living the design that is you.
If you are a fish,
your life needs to be all about swimming.
If you are a bird,
your life needs to be all about flying
and spreading your message
to all that you meet along the way.
What sense is there in being you,
if you don't really let yourself free
and express your heart? 2
You can’t do what you want,
‘till you know what you’re doing;
and you can’t know what you’re doing,
till you know who you are . . .
You cannot change what happened,
but you can change the outcome.
Make amends where it is possible,
and fix what was broken;
change something.
Accept what cannot be changed.
Learn from the mistakes,
make different choices,
and proceed with life. 6
You have the freedom
to choose your actions,
you don't have the freedom to choose
the consequences of your actions.
you have the right, and freedom, to swing your fist;
that right ends where my nose begins.
just as you have the right to speak your mind
and say what you want to say –
but that right too, stops where it viciously
hurts another person deliberately
just because you’re having a bad day,
and are in a foul mood. 7
Most modern freedom is at root fear.
It is not so much that we are too bold to endure rules;
it is rather that we are too timid
to endure responsibilities. 8
You don't get to choose how you're going to die.
Or when.
But you can decide how you're going to live now. 9
Fear is the mind killer; the little death that brings total obliteration;
a jealous gate-keeper that wants you to stay put
in your make-believe prison.
It can't keep you in there, but only it knew that:
now you do, too.
__________________________________________
Acknowledgments:
- from the Freedom Trilogy: Part 1 ~Klaas
[1] ~Klaas Tuinman
[2] - from “The Rewards and Risks of Personal Freedom”
~Charlie Badenhop
* hir* = his/her
[3] ~Alison Willcocks
[4] -Set Yourself Free ~Edmund O'Neill
[5] ~Voltaire
[6-7] ~Klaas Tuinman
[8] ~Dwight Eisenhower
[9] ~Joan Baez
Media: Hey Jude (Piano)
Acknowledgments:
- from the Freedom Trilogy: Part 1 ~Klaas
[1] ~Klaas Tuinman
[2] - from “The Rewards and Risks of Personal Freedom”
~Charlie Badenhop
* hir* = his/her
[3] ~Alison Willcocks
[4] -Set Yourself Free ~Edmund O'Neill
[5] ~Voltaire
[6-7] ~Klaas Tuinman
[8] ~Dwight Eisenhower
[9] ~Joan Baez
Media: Hey Jude (Piano)
For prayer requests and more, visit our sister site Stella Maris,
- a place where truth and beauty dwells: or write for information.
- a place where truth and beauty dwells: or write for information.
To submit comments, requests or materials,
contact me at: outreach@dawncoveabbey.org
contact me at: outreach@dawncoveabbey.org
I gladly welcome all article, haiku, humour and poem contributions
For transformational workshops and retreats see:
http://www.dawncoveabbey.org/healing-circle
For transformational workshops and retreats see:
http://www.dawncoveabbey.org/healing-circle
 |  |  |  |  |
| _______________________________________________________ A MorningStar Inspiration from Dawn Cove Abbey Roadside assistance for your Journey through Life ________________________________________________ |
| Click for Part 2 |
| Click for Part 3 |
| ~Explorations In Awareness~ -Demystifying & Detoxifying the Mind to combat Alienation and Dysfunction- Please visit and add your voice. |
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