If you are on a life journey
this one is dedicated to you . . .
You are not the child of the people you call mother and father,
but their fellow-adventurer on a bright journey
to understand the things that are. 1
Joy seems to be part of an unconditional wish to live,
not holding back because life may not meet our preferences and expectations.
Joy seems to be a function of the willingness to accept the whole,
and to show up to meet with whatever there is.
Rather than the warrior who fights toward a specific outcome
and therefore is haunted by the specter of failure and disappointment,
it is the lover drunk with the opportunity to love
despite the possibility of loss,
the player for whom playing
has become more important that winning or losing. 2
The road of life twists and turns
and no two directions are ever the same.
Yet our lessons come from the journey,
not the destination. 3
Life is a journey filled with lessons, hardships, heartaches, joys,
celebrations and special moments
that will ultimately lead us to our destination,
our purpose in life.
The road will not always be smooth;
in fact, throughout our travels,
we will encounter many challenges.
How we react to what we are faced with
determines what kind of outcome
the rest of our journey through life will be like.
We can focus on the fact
that things didn't go how we had hoped they would
and let life pass us by,
or we can make the best out of the situation
and know that these are only temporary setbacks
and find the lessons that are to be learned.
There will be unexpected life challenges.
While they’ll be unexpected, however,
they shouldn’t really be surprising.
Despite the unexpected hardships and challenges,
Joy is a major part of the journey of life we’re all on,
to be savoured every moment along the way.
But sometimes you may suddenly discover
that you need to reinvent yourself;
recover and heal
from things that have happened,
and transform your life,
while working on personal growth.
It will be a different journey, that you will resent at first.
At some point you’ll get past that feeling,
and open yourself to what you are experiencing.
You'll be stepping outside the box
of your usual actions and thinking patterns:
outside the box created by your previous conditioning;
shedding your old self
and sorting out all the pieces,
and assembling them in a new way.
Every day is a journey,
and the journey itself is home. 5
The life events that brought turmoil and change
were not the cause. They were the final straw;
the end result of a gradual process
that had been building for a long time
and could no longer be contained.
At the beginning of your journey,
there is often no clear direction in mind;
no goal
-just a powerful desire to leave the old life and ways behind.
Initially, it may be purely escape;
- time and space to think,
and plan.
Directions, destinations and goals
will gradually reveal themselves at that time.
Leaving the old programming
that had controlled and victimized you is not easy.
Its thinking, behaviour, and standards etc
deeply ingrain themselves.
And at first, the new life looks scary,
for there’s little to go by that can reliably be used as a guide,
and much like addictions,
your own habits and old programming
are right there, ready to haul you back.
You will feel, and be, very vulnerable.
Transcending the old programming and conditioning
will take more time than you thought it would - be patient.
All your old likes, dislikes, habits, strengths,
fears, insecurities, wants, needs
travel with you; crying out for attention.
If you bend to them,
whatever it is you do, if you’re not careful
- will return you to previous self-defeating behaviours,
and your attempted escape will have failed.
What people forget
is that a journey to nowhere
starts with a single step, too. 6
How well do you really know yourself?
Who are you?
What are your inner self's real needs?
And what is it you are truly looking for?
Why have you waited, and suppressed it so long?
The answers take time
– sometimes a lot.
They will also make you uncomfortable.
The biggest casualties
are always self respect,
self-confidence, self-worth (esteem),
and trust of others.
These are not easily or quickly regained or rebuilt,
and the fewer appealing distractions you give in to,
the better the chances of getting them back.
Discouragement and a sense of failure
often strike to halt any journey in its tracks.
Joy is found not in finishing an activity
but in doing it.
Focus on the journey,
not the destination. 7
Remember that achieving what you set out to do
is not the important thing . . .
"It is good to have an end,
to journey towards;
But it is the journey that matters,
in the end . . ." 4
Success is not a place at which one arrives,
but rather the spirit
with which one undertakes
and continues the journey. 8
Two young brothers decided
to dig a deep hole behind their house.
As they were working,
a couple of older boys stopped by to watch.
"What are you doing?" asked one of the visitors.
"We plan to dig a hole all the way through the earth!"
one of the brothers volunteered excitedly.
The older boys began to laugh,
telling the younger ones that digging a hole
all the way through the earth was impossible.
After a long silence,
one of the diggers picked up a jar full of spiders,
worms and a wide assortment of insects.
He removed the lid
and showed the wonderful contents to the scoffing visitors.
Then he said quietly and confidently,
"Even if we don't dig all the way through the earth,
look what we found along the way!"
Their goal was far too ambitious,
but it did cause them to dig.
And that is what a goal is for –
to get us to move in the direction we have chosen;
to set us to digging!
But not every goal will be fully achieved.
Not every job will end successfully.
Not every relationship will endure.
Not every hope will come to pass.
Not every love will last.
Not every endeavour will be completed.
Not every dream will be realized.
But when you fall short
of what you thought of as your aim,
you can say,
this one is dedicated to you . . .
You are not the child of the people you call mother and father,
but their fellow-adventurer on a bright journey
to understand the things that are. 1
Joy seems to be part of an unconditional wish to live,
not holding back because life may not meet our preferences and expectations.
Joy seems to be a function of the willingness to accept the whole,
and to show up to meet with whatever there is.
Rather than the warrior who fights toward a specific outcome
and therefore is haunted by the specter of failure and disappointment,
it is the lover drunk with the opportunity to love
despite the possibility of loss,
the player for whom playing
has become more important that winning or losing. 2
The road of life twists and turns
and no two directions are ever the same.
Yet our lessons come from the journey,
not the destination. 3
Life is a journey filled with lessons, hardships, heartaches, joys,
celebrations and special moments
that will ultimately lead us to our destination,
our purpose in life.
The road will not always be smooth;
in fact, throughout our travels,
we will encounter many challenges.
How we react to what we are faced with
determines what kind of outcome
the rest of our journey through life will be like.
We can focus on the fact
that things didn't go how we had hoped they would
and let life pass us by,
or we can make the best out of the situation
and know that these are only temporary setbacks
and find the lessons that are to be learned.
There will be unexpected life challenges.
While they’ll be unexpected, however,
they shouldn’t really be surprising.
Despite the unexpected hardships and challenges,
Joy is a major part of the journey of life we’re all on,
to be savoured every moment along the way.
But sometimes you may suddenly discover
that you need to reinvent yourself;
recover and heal
from things that have happened,
and transform your life,
while working on personal growth.
It will be a different journey, that you will resent at first.
At some point you’ll get past that feeling,
and open yourself to what you are experiencing.
You'll be stepping outside the box
of your usual actions and thinking patterns:
outside the box created by your previous conditioning;
shedding your old self
and sorting out all the pieces,
and assembling them in a new way.
Every day is a journey,
and the journey itself is home. 5
The life events that brought turmoil and change
were not the cause. They were the final straw;
the end result of a gradual process
that had been building for a long time
and could no longer be contained.
At the beginning of your journey,
there is often no clear direction in mind;
no goal
-just a powerful desire to leave the old life and ways behind.
Initially, it may be purely escape;
- time and space to think,
and plan.
Directions, destinations and goals
will gradually reveal themselves at that time.
Leaving the old programming
that had controlled and victimized you is not easy.
Its thinking, behaviour, and standards etc
deeply ingrain themselves.
And at first, the new life looks scary,
for there’s little to go by that can reliably be used as a guide,
and much like addictions,
your own habits and old programming
are right there, ready to haul you back.
You will feel, and be, very vulnerable.
Transcending the old programming and conditioning
will take more time than you thought it would - be patient.
All your old likes, dislikes, habits, strengths,
fears, insecurities, wants, needs
travel with you; crying out for attention.
If you bend to them,
whatever it is you do, if you’re not careful
- will return you to previous self-defeating behaviours,
and your attempted escape will have failed.
What people forget
is that a journey to nowhere
starts with a single step, too. 6
How well do you really know yourself?
Who are you?
What are your inner self's real needs?
And what is it you are truly looking for?
Why have you waited, and suppressed it so long?
The answers take time
– sometimes a lot.
They will also make you uncomfortable.
The biggest casualties
are always self respect,
self-confidence, self-worth (esteem),
and trust of others.
These are not easily or quickly regained or rebuilt,
and the fewer appealing distractions you give in to,
the better the chances of getting them back.
Discouragement and a sense of failure
often strike to halt any journey in its tracks.
Joy is found not in finishing an activity
but in doing it.
Focus on the journey,
not the destination. 7
Remember that achieving what you set out to do
is not the important thing . . .
"It is good to have an end,
to journey towards;
But it is the journey that matters,
in the end . . ." 4
Success is not a place at which one arrives,
but rather the spirit
with which one undertakes
and continues the journey. 8
Two young brothers decided
to dig a deep hole behind their house.
As they were working,
a couple of older boys stopped by to watch.
"What are you doing?" asked one of the visitors.
"We plan to dig a hole all the way through the earth!"
one of the brothers volunteered excitedly.
The older boys began to laugh,
telling the younger ones that digging a hole
all the way through the earth was impossible.
After a long silence,
one of the diggers picked up a jar full of spiders,
worms and a wide assortment of insects.
He removed the lid
and showed the wonderful contents to the scoffing visitors.
Then he said quietly and confidently,
"Even if we don't dig all the way through the earth,
look what we found along the way!"
Their goal was far too ambitious,
but it did cause them to dig.
And that is what a goal is for –
to get us to move in the direction we have chosen;
to set us to digging!
But not every goal will be fully achieved.
Not every job will end successfully.
Not every relationship will endure.
Not every hope will come to pass.
Not every love will last.
Not every endeavour will be completed.
Not every dream will be realized.
But when you fall short
of what you thought of as your aim,
you can say,
"Yes, but look at what I found along the way!
Look at the wonderful things which have come into my life
because I tried to do something!"
I think those boys got it right.
It is in the digging that life is lived.
It's the joy in the journey that matters most. 9
And you learn a lot about yourself.
Perhaps your goal or aim
wasn’t as clear as you had thought.
and you learn that sometimes
many an important journey is a huge,
meandering circle that leads back home . . .
Look at the wonderful things which have come into my life
because I tried to do something!"
I think those boys got it right.
It is in the digging that life is lived.
It's the joy in the journey that matters most. 9
And you learn a lot about yourself.
Perhaps your goal or aim
wasn’t as clear as you had thought.
and you learn that sometimes
many an important journey is a huge,
meandering circle that leads back home . . .
. . . this is a possible outcome
to which you must be also be open . . .
And you may finally learn
that it was never out there to be found,
for just like joy and happiness,
it was hidden deep inside all along
. . . waiting to be released.
". . .beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and stars;
you have a right to be here,
and whether or not it is clear to you;
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should." 10
If you were all alone in the universe with no one to talk to,
no one with which to share the beauty of the stars,
to laugh with,
to touch,
what would be your purpose in life?
It is other life,
it is love,
which gives your life meaning.
This is harmony.
We must discover the joy of each other,
the joy of challenge,
the joy of growth. 11
When we love unconditionally,
with our hearts wide open,
we feel joyfulness. 12
You have to sniff out joy.
Keep your nose to the joy trail. 13
Specific outcomes cannot be imposed on your journey;
you can only create the conditions and attitudes
necessary for them to happen . . .
Your life is a gift from the Creator.
Your gift back to the Creator
is what you do with your life. 14
Your day’s journey . . .
is unfolding . . .
as it should . . .
let it be a great one.
to which you must be also be open . . .
And you may finally learn
that it was never out there to be found,
for just like joy and happiness,
it was hidden deep inside all along
. . . waiting to be released.
". . .beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and stars;
you have a right to be here,
and whether or not it is clear to you;
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should." 10
If you were all alone in the universe with no one to talk to,
no one with which to share the beauty of the stars,
to laugh with,
to touch,
what would be your purpose in life?
It is other life,
it is love,
which gives your life meaning.
This is harmony.
We must discover the joy of each other,
the joy of challenge,
the joy of growth. 11
When we love unconditionally,
with our hearts wide open,
we feel joyfulness. 12
You have to sniff out joy.
Keep your nose to the joy trail. 13
Specific outcomes cannot be imposed on your journey;
you can only create the conditions and attitudes
necessary for them to happen . . .
Your life is a gift from the Creator.
Your gift back to the Creator
is what you do with your life. 14
Your day’s journey . . .
is unfolding . . .
as it should . . .
let it be a great one.
_______________________________________
Acknowledgements
[1] ~Richard Bach
[2] -Kitchen Table Wisdom ~Rachel Naomi Remen
[3] ~Don Williams
[4] ~Unknown (Paraphrased)
[5] ~Matsuo Basho
[6] ~Chuck Palahniuk
[7] ~Greg Anderson
[8] ~Alex Noble
[9] -Joy in the Journey ~anon
[10] -Desiderata ~Max Ehrmann
[11] ~Mitsugi Saotome
[12] ~Arnold Patent
[13] ~Buffy Sainte-Marie
[14] ~Billy Mills
Media: Why Me, Lord? ~Kristofferson
Acknowledgements
[1] ~Richard Bach
[2] -Kitchen Table Wisdom ~Rachel Naomi Remen
[3] ~Don Williams
[4] ~Unknown (Paraphrased)
[5] ~Matsuo Basho
[6] ~Chuck Palahniuk
[7] ~Greg Anderson
[8] ~Alex Noble
[9] -Joy in the Journey ~anon
[10] -Desiderata ~Max Ehrmann
[11] ~Mitsugi Saotome
[12] ~Arnold Patent
[13] ~Buffy Sainte-Marie
[14] ~Billy Mills
Media: Why Me, Lord? ~Kristofferson
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 empowerment workshops and seminars see: http://www.dawncoveabbey.org/healing-circle
For empowerment workshops and seminars see: http://www.dawncoveabbey.org/healing-circle
 |  |  |  |  |
| _______________________________________________________ A MorningStar Inspirational patch for your life’s Quilt Roadside assistance for your Journey of Life from Dawn Cove Abbey The MorningStar website is made possible through freewill donations _______________________________________________________ |
| -Ending personal and social alienation- ~a stand against Social Injustice~ Please visit and add your voice. |
