PACKRATS ANONYMOUS had a select group called the KISS team. It was made up of one or more members who had "been through the mill" themselves and thoroughly understood the rules to KISS by and were skilled in how to KISS.
As any romantic knows, the art of KISSing requires sensitivity, personality, character and a lot of determination.
One day I made arrangements to teach the KISS technique to a new member of the PACKRATS. She was the only female in a household of six males. Right away the need for a proper KISS method became obvious. She had never heard of the KISS (Keep It Simple Sweetheart) method and was reluctant to try even the first principle.
The Packrats Anonymous KISS team was prepared for such inertia. We called this state NON-OP. I led the poor dear to an easy chair, propped her feet up and began to KISS. I started in the living room which had been used as a giant laundry basket combination toy box. It didn't take long to "put it right" because a rule of KISS is not to become emotionally involved with the task being accomplished.
Did you ever wonder how much ENERGY is expended in resenting the fact that you have the same old 42 jockey shorts to fold this week as you did last week and there are three more holes than there were last time? You only found two pairs of your own undies' and you know you changed oftener than that. A stranger, however, comes in cold, doesn't care how many times you changed, doesn't count 42 briefs or the holes, but quickly does the job with no emotional expenditure at all, keeping an eye on the next "chore" to be done.
With the living room reborn to its original status, KISS moved to the kitchen which "shared space" at the end of the family room. The mantle over the fireplace was filled, end to end, with everything from matches to tiny bottles of wine--the kind from airplanes--to the usual bric-a-brac found on mantles, a pet rock, dried flowers in a coke bottle, paper clips, rubber bands, pencils, Christmas candles (it was July), a valentine, well you get the idea...
KISS RULE #1: Clear to the surface.
I got an apple box and carefully placed each item from matches to valentine into the box. It isn't the KISSer's job to throw anything away. With the mantle clear, we decided on a focal decor and placed it in the most strategic and balanced location. From here we moved to the next surface: the top of the refrigerator.
KISS RULE #2: Refrigerator top clear FOREVER.
Off came three packages of potato chips, a fly swatter, the five-pound can of peanut butter, a house plant, two loaves of bread, and everything taken from the two-year-old he shouldn't have had anyway.
Morning had been swiftly passing and it was nearing lunchtime.
Without warning a deep voice said "Oh, Sorry! I have the wrong house."
We heard the door bang and shortly re-open and the same voice say:
"Nope. This can't be the wrong house. I went out and counted. This IS my house. I don't understand...NO wait a minute...I DO seem to recall my house once looked like this when it was new before we moved in. Son of a gun! I was right! There WAS a mantle under there all the time."
By this time Vickie was about to have apoplexy. She had NO sense of humor where housework was concerned.
The deep voice continued..."Well I'll be darned! I didn't know refrigerators had metal tops! I always thought they were made of potato chip wrappers."
By this time I was holding my tummy and wiping the tears away. He was hilarious. His whole conversation was delivered with a straight face and was definitely on the dry side. Twenty-five years of parrying the same type of comments in my own situation helped me understand and appreciate the humor because I was not emotionally involved. Taking it "personally" is very painful.
How do we spell relief? Teach a friend to KISS.
From childhood on, we collect behavior patterns, some good some not so good, some downright bad! To keep from being overwhelmed by clutter we need to rethink our behavior patterns. Now is the time to re-evaluate and re-think our actions. Expand your awareness and simplify your life. You CAN survive if you throw it away! If you don't use it, give it away (K.I.S.S.). If you are not going to KISS it, it needs to be stored and cataloged.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Simplify Your Life
As a mother of young children I carried a so called "diaper bag." I couldn't bother with a purse, because, in the hustle and bustle of life with twins and their 15-month older brother and then later, when the other three children were added to the entourage, I might "forget" and leave it somewhere. So, I stuffed my comb in the side pocket of the diaper bag, then stuffed in my wallet because I needed my driver's license. It grew from there. When I outgrew the diaper bag I transferred everything to a purse that was at least the size of the replaced diaper bag--after all, I needed all that stuff. It never occurred to me that I could do without it. It was a convenient catch-all that I lugged everywhere (I wonder if that's how luggage got its name).
Somehow, along the way I acquired what is called "tennis elbow." The X-ray technician said, "You play tennis?" "No, but my family all do." I hate all exercise!
Shortly after my painful experience with a shot in the elbow which helped nothing, I heard about a "wallet-ectomy." A doctor had determined a man's back pain had been caused by carrying his wallet in his hip pocket and advised the man to change the wallet to his front pocket. Would this work for my tennis elbow? I couldn't even carry my arm and hand let alone drag along my 20-pound purse. Something had to give and it was the purse.
When I gave this assignment to the Packrats Anonymous classes, I had each class member in turn empty her purse on the table and, as she put each item back in her purse, I had her tell the class what the item was and why she carried it with her everywhere she went. Vicki won, hands down. Not only was hers the largest purse, she had the most unique item: Five Swiss Army pocketknives!
"Five Swiss Army pocketknives?"
"Yes. I have five sons."
I took out my keys. Did I need all these keys? I couldn't even remember what they were for, so I undid the ring and took off all the keys and put them in a margarine tub. I kept only the keys to my car and the door to the house on my key ring. I use a remote control to open the garage door, so no key for that. I use only one entry, so only one key was needed there.
I read the label on lipstick. It contains turtle wax. I decided if I didn't want to eat yucky things, I didn't need to wear lipstick anymore, so the five tubes in the bottom of the purse went out. I never could stand junk all over my face, so cosmetics wasn't my downfall. I didn't have five boys, so I didn't have five Swiss Army pocket knives, thank goodness! But I had other non-essentials. It finally boiled down to the realization that I didn't need a purse at all. When going out I took the key ring which had only the key to the car and the key to the house. If I needed a checkbook I took it. Otherwise, I took nothing. I had a hard time with the driver's license. Finally I put it in a small folder and picked it up when I got my keys.
Are you ready to try another experiment? Pick up your handbag. Put it on your lap. Liberation begins here. Start with your key ring. Only the key to the front door, the key to the car you drive and the key to the front garage door should be on your key ring. All other keys are to be on separate key rings and labeled. Key to side garage door. Key to bicycle. Key to brown suitcase, etc. Keep these keys in a "key" place (on a hook inside a cupboard door, in a "key" drawer).
A small clutch wallet may include only: your driver's license and identification. NO pictures of anyone. You see your kids every day.
Take it only if you are going to use it this trip.
"But my MAKEUP!" Put it on in the boudoir.
"My COMB!" Keep one in the glove box.
Tuck a tissue in your sleeve.
This system requires thinking and advance planning, but I almost never carry a purse anymore, which is quite a step down from the flight bag with the entire household and a spare, that I used to carry.
Downsizing allowed me to realize that a great deal of energy is wasted worrying about doing useless chores and robs us of the ability to accomplish worthwhile goals. Remember the non-op machine? The technician comes out and charges a whopping fee for what he calls troubleshooting. Seventy percent of the time he finds the problem is the machine isn't plugged in! Our problem is that we have a drain of power (clutter) from the main power supply. The technician's expensive diagnosis is that we have a short, causing a burnout. His solution? Find the short and eliminate the drain of energy. When he accomplishes this the main power supply generator is functional again. How can we eliminate the drain from our main power supply? One way is to realize that affluence, or the acquisition of things, is the biggest block to the goal of order. We've been deceived to believe more is better. Check with fashion designers or bonsai gardeners. Beauty and elegance are obtained via simplicity. Our new watchword then is simply this: SIMPLIFY your surroundings. I call this the KISS method: Keep it simple sweetheart
Somehow, along the way I acquired what is called "tennis elbow." The X-ray technician said, "You play tennis?" "No, but my family all do." I hate all exercise!
Shortly after my painful experience with a shot in the elbow which helped nothing, I heard about a "wallet-ectomy." A doctor had determined a man's back pain had been caused by carrying his wallet in his hip pocket and advised the man to change the wallet to his front pocket. Would this work for my tennis elbow? I couldn't even carry my arm and hand let alone drag along my 20-pound purse. Something had to give and it was the purse.
When I gave this assignment to the Packrats Anonymous classes, I had each class member in turn empty her purse on the table and, as she put each item back in her purse, I had her tell the class what the item was and why she carried it with her everywhere she went. Vicki won, hands down. Not only was hers the largest purse, she had the most unique item: Five Swiss Army pocketknives!
"Five Swiss Army pocketknives?"
"Yes. I have five sons."
I took out my keys. Did I need all these keys? I couldn't even remember what they were for, so I undid the ring and took off all the keys and put them in a margarine tub. I kept only the keys to my car and the door to the house on my key ring. I use a remote control to open the garage door, so no key for that. I use only one entry, so only one key was needed there.
I read the label on lipstick. It contains turtle wax. I decided if I didn't want to eat yucky things, I didn't need to wear lipstick anymore, so the five tubes in the bottom of the purse went out. I never could stand junk all over my face, so cosmetics wasn't my downfall. I didn't have five boys, so I didn't have five Swiss Army pocket knives, thank goodness! But I had other non-essentials. It finally boiled down to the realization that I didn't need a purse at all. When going out I took the key ring which had only the key to the car and the key to the house. If I needed a checkbook I took it. Otherwise, I took nothing. I had a hard time with the driver's license. Finally I put it in a small folder and picked it up when I got my keys.
Are you ready to try another experiment? Pick up your handbag. Put it on your lap. Liberation begins here. Start with your key ring. Only the key to the front door, the key to the car you drive and the key to the front garage door should be on your key ring. All other keys are to be on separate key rings and labeled. Key to side garage door. Key to bicycle. Key to brown suitcase, etc. Keep these keys in a "key" place (on a hook inside a cupboard door, in a "key" drawer).
A small clutch wallet may include only: your driver's license and identification. NO pictures of anyone. You see your kids every day.
Take it only if you are going to use it this trip.
"But my MAKEUP!" Put it on in the boudoir.
"My COMB!" Keep one in the glove box.
Tuck a tissue in your sleeve.
This system requires thinking and advance planning, but I almost never carry a purse anymore, which is quite a step down from the flight bag with the entire household and a spare, that I used to carry.
Downsizing allowed me to realize that a great deal of energy is wasted worrying about doing useless chores and robs us of the ability to accomplish worthwhile goals. Remember the non-op machine? The technician comes out and charges a whopping fee for what he calls troubleshooting. Seventy percent of the time he finds the problem is the machine isn't plugged in! Our problem is that we have a drain of power (clutter) from the main power supply. The technician's expensive diagnosis is that we have a short, causing a burnout. His solution? Find the short and eliminate the drain of energy. When he accomplishes this the main power supply generator is functional again. How can we eliminate the drain from our main power supply? One way is to realize that affluence, or the acquisition of things, is the biggest block to the goal of order. We've been deceived to believe more is better. Check with fashion designers or bonsai gardeners. Beauty and elegance are obtained via simplicity. Our new watchword then is simply this: SIMPLIFY your surroundings. I call this the KISS method: Keep it simple sweetheart
Divide and Conquer
When I learned to recognize and accept that it's a physical impossibility to clean house by starting at one end and finishing at the other with the entire house then being spotless forever (unless, of course, you have unlimited time, lots of money for help, and a husband who is away on business for a month, all the kids are away at summer camp, and the phone is disconnected), I was able to get on with the task at hand.
At this point I learned to break the elephant down into bite-sized pieces so it could be eaten one bite at a time. Carpets can be vacuumed in 15 minutes. A window pane can be washed in 15 minutes. Dishes can be done in 15 minutes. Laundry can be loaded to wash in 15 minutes, and so on. It took me awhile to figure out that if I divided my housekeeping into four general classifications, it would allow me the freedom to keep on top of it and still have time for fun things. I named these general divisions:
• ROCK BOTTOM BASICS
• BASIC CHORES
• SURFACE CLEANING
• DEEP CLEANING
• ROCK BOTTOM BASICS or RBB is the term I use for crisis-level maintenance of the household. It means different things to different people, so adapt it to your own needs. Use it in times of PMS, illness, pregnancy, depression--any family emergency or crisis. RBB relates to fundamental care (not cleanup, organization, chores, maintenance, etc.)
Care for infants, dependent children, and kitties. Infants and dependent children feel more secure when their regular routine is continued, even in times of crisis. Mealtime and bed time should be as constant as possible during times of stress (as well as at other times!)
1. Fix meals/Cleanup
2. Make the bed--I know this sounds a bit much, but it only takes 15 seconds, more or less and it gives you a feeling of control that far outweighs the time you take to do it.
3. Take garbage, trash outside
4. Do the laundry, but only if absolutely necessary
5. Remember to take care of yourself--brushing your teeth and taking a shower can make things bearable.
Anything more than this is more than RBB.
• BASIC CHORES are not to be confused with RBB and are done every day. If you take more than 1 hour to do basics you need to re-evaluate.
1. Make your bed upon arising
2. Pick up the clutter in your bedroom
3. Put away clean & soiled clothes
4. Straighten books & newspapers (these should not be in sight during the day (non-use) time.
5. Do laundry (if necessary), fold, put away
6. Empty garbage & trash
7. Pick up clutter throughout the house
• SURFACE CLEANING is the kind you do for "show", i.e., dusting, vacuuming, picking up clutter. The easiest way to do surface cleaning is to hire a maid. Barring that, there are plenty of good references on how to do these jobs.
• DEEP CLEANING is done after you're uncluttered and organized. It's the kind of cleaning you do for yourself, i.e., cleaning the chandelier, polishing the paneling, anything that doesn't fit in categories 1 & 2, and is done from a list. A subdivision of deep cleaning is SPECIAL PROJECTS i.e. winding Vickie's 49 antique clocks and dusting her museum piece home, also to this list of special projects could be added pruning, etc. (Sample deep cleaning lists may be found in the appendix.)
Spring Cleaning
When great grandma was a girl there was an annual event called SPRING CLEANING. Great grandma and great aunt Susie donned their kerchiefs, tied a pillow case over the broom (to sweep the cobwebs from those eleven-foot ceilings), took down the lace curtains, washed them, poked them painstakingly on the curtain stretcher, washed the windows inside and out, beat the rugs, vacuumed the carpet, waxed the furniture, took all the china, crystal and silver off the cabinet shelves and washed and polished it. They also washed and ironed all the linens stored in the drawers of the buffet. At the end of this great event which took between two weeks and a month, the whole house sparkled and grandma and great aunt Susie collapsed. The rest of the year their cleaning was "only what showed."
Some of us are stuck between grandma's world and modern methods. We attempt to "clean house" by taking everything out of the closet, cupboards, drawers--whatever--and piling it--wherever. But with our current lifestyle, the phone rings, the kids have a crisis, we have to run taxi service to football practice, ballet lessons and cub scouts. There are a multitude of other interruptions and then it's time for dinner. "All that junk" is piled in the hall or wherever, so we shove it back. Did all that fit in there before? It looks worse than before we started. Feeling frustrated and angry at the interruptions, guilty for not being a better housekeeper, we yell at the kids, the dog, even the goldfish, but the house is "still a mess." What's the answer?
In our pioneer grandmother's day all the kitchen utensils she had to cope with were a huge pot hooked over the fire and an equally huge spoon to stir that pot. On the other hand, we have a food processor, blender, mixer, toaster, slow cooker, electric frying pan, pop corn popper--the list seems endless. Sally said she had 27 appliances that could be kept on the counter top. Most of us don't have enough space to prepare meals and allow for clean up as it is without keeping 27 varieties of appliances sandwiched in between.
Later, in the section on KITCHEN RE-DO, I'll show you what to do to better organize those 27 varieties of appliances. Now that I have an empty nest, I've found I can do without many appliances I once thought imperative to my life. That could be an option for you to consider.
Some of us are stuck between grandma's world and modern methods. We attempt to "clean house" by taking everything out of the closet, cupboards, drawers--whatever--and piling it--wherever. But with our current lifestyle, the phone rings, the kids have a crisis, we have to run taxi service to football practice, ballet lessons and cub scouts. There are a multitude of other interruptions and then it's time for dinner. "All that junk" is piled in the hall or wherever, so we shove it back. Did all that fit in there before? It looks worse than before we started. Feeling frustrated and angry at the interruptions, guilty for not being a better housekeeper, we yell at the kids, the dog, even the goldfish, but the house is "still a mess." What's the answer?
In our pioneer grandmother's day all the kitchen utensils she had to cope with were a huge pot hooked over the fire and an equally huge spoon to stir that pot. On the other hand, we have a food processor, blender, mixer, toaster, slow cooker, electric frying pan, pop corn popper--the list seems endless. Sally said she had 27 appliances that could be kept on the counter top. Most of us don't have enough space to prepare meals and allow for clean up as it is without keeping 27 varieties of appliances sandwiched in between.
Later, in the section on KITCHEN RE-DO, I'll show you what to do to better organize those 27 varieties of appliances. Now that I have an empty nest, I've found I can do without many appliances I once thought imperative to my life. That could be an option for you to consider.
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Wear a Dress
Vicki asked me, "What happened to the wear a dress assignment? That was our first assignment. Wearing a dress makes you change yourself, then you can change your house. That assignment should be #1 on the list of things to do. Who wants to sit in a pile of junk with a dress on? Your attitude changes when you wear a dress (as opposed to a jeans personality). When you go around in sweats, you don't care whether you sit amidst garbage. When I started to ride my sister's horse, I didn't have proper riding clothes. I wore my jeans. When the horse drooled on me I wiped my hands on my jeans. I wouldn't dream of doing that on my slacks, riding habit, dress or stirrup pants. To put yourself in a better frame of mind, try to get up, get dressed, put makeup on, wear a dress. Doing this gets you ready to be able to pick up the piece of toast on the sofa."
Jeans Personality
When Meg was a teenager she usually wore dresses or slacks. One day she pulled on her jeans, and with them, her jeans personality. If I hadn't been standing there as a witness I wouldn't have believed it. Her whole persona changed! And not for the better. I believe that in many cases, the donning of jeans, old sweats, or an old muu-muu contributes to an overall downturn in self esteem.
Attitude Adjustment
Anne told me, "I'm not dieting. Dieting doesn't work for me. When I don't lose weight I feel like a failure. Right now I'm concerned with eating only good food that will nourish me, at intervals that will prevent recurrence of un-health." Anne had spent years yo-yo dieting with the net result of overall gain. She periodically starved herself, lost a few pounds, then binged and gained back more than she had lost.
"Exercising gives me positive energy and makes me feel good. My goal is to recapture the self esteem I had as a child when I felt happy and secure because I was in control of my own essence. I wasn't afraid."
"Using the GIGO (garbage in/garbage out) method I set about reprogramming myself one step at a time. I'm making a positive attitude adjustment. I'm happier when I control my own essence. I can be at peace with myself. I can cease to be cynical. The steps are unique and individually tailored to fit."
FORMULA: Positive input, positive output results in affirmation. For example, think to yourself, "I'm becoming more beautiful. If I reprogram my mind with positive and only input positive, no negative can come out. The idea is to adjust my input to positive (positive expression of positive thoughts) thus building positive mental energy which enables my mind to function for full benefit. The power thus energized is visible on my countenance (aura)."
Sometimes life is so busy and loud we can't hear our own inner voice directing us toward good and beauty.
Beauty is a feeling, comes from within, and is solidified in everything we touch. It's a state of good, positive, order, truth or overall well-being. It's the ideal state, the absence of depression, illness, un-health. As long as I thought about myself as ugly, I could live in chaos and be acted upon. I didn't have to be responsible or "keep my house clean." Ugly does ugly. Ugly is like a military tank trap keeping us out of commission to further travel or progress and is accomplished by focusing on ugly. When I was able to recognize my own beauty, I took responsibility for my own life, became self directing, no longer acted upon, but acting for myself. If you stop focusing on ugly, beauty can blossom.
One day I took fresh towels into the bathroom. I had an armload, so I didn't turn on the light. As I spun around I caught a glimpse of Aunt Grace in the darkened mirror. Wait! Aunt Grace has been dead for more than twenty years. How could I have seen her? I turned on the light and peered closer. Yup! That was Aunt Grace peering back at me. No! Wait...that's really me! But Aunt Grace was beautiful (she loved me). How could I look like her? I'm old. I'm overweight. I'm not beautiful (I believed that because I didn't love me). Closer study and pondering made me realize Aunt Grace was about the age I am now when I knew her. She wasn't overweight, she was just right (she was about my size!) Suddenly, the light turned on inside my head. Aunt Grace was beautiful (I thought so because she loved me). If I look like her I must be beautiful. I vowed that day to stop seeing ugly when I looked in my mirror. I decided to look for my resemblances to Aunt Grace, to start loving me and to be happy. A recent visit to my sister showed me how successful I'd been at that particular quest. We were seated in her living room chatting. Out of the clear blue she interrupted, "My gosh Lorrainie, I don't know whether it's your glasses, or a trick of the light but you look just like Aunt Grace!"
Gaining knowledge of my own beauty freed me from bondage to ugly. When someone pushes my ugly buttons I can pull the plug and refrain from being ugly, which is a better way. The choice between ugly and beautiful is mine to make, not my parents', spouse's, children's, or anyone else's. When I'm beautiful I'm responsible TO my own divine nature. Recognizing my own beauty and refusing to allow rejection to dissuade me from being of worth, allows me to become self-directing, no longer acted upon but acting in my own best interest. The more rapidly I work to overcome evil with good, which is sometimes called obedience, the faster I progress toward enlightenment. When I allow myself to be beautiful it means little whether I am young or old, short or tall, fat or thin.
CAUTION: This recognition isn't accomplished overnight so "don't run faster than you are able." The little dog got to Dover one step at a time, and he stopped to chase rabbits along the way.
You can't "save" anyone else. The person's own desire saves himself as he recognizes truth on whatever level and chooses to live it. The example of your own light or beauty, held high to show the way is the candle at which others ignite their own flame.
"Exercising gives me positive energy and makes me feel good. My goal is to recapture the self esteem I had as a child when I felt happy and secure because I was in control of my own essence. I wasn't afraid."
"Using the GIGO (garbage in/garbage out) method I set about reprogramming myself one step at a time. I'm making a positive attitude adjustment. I'm happier when I control my own essence. I can be at peace with myself. I can cease to be cynical. The steps are unique and individually tailored to fit."
FORMULA: Positive input, positive output results in affirmation. For example, think to yourself, "I'm becoming more beautiful. If I reprogram my mind with positive and only input positive, no negative can come out. The idea is to adjust my input to positive (positive expression of positive thoughts) thus building positive mental energy which enables my mind to function for full benefit. The power thus energized is visible on my countenance (aura)."
Sometimes life is so busy and loud we can't hear our own inner voice directing us toward good and beauty.
Beauty is a feeling, comes from within, and is solidified in everything we touch. It's a state of good, positive, order, truth or overall well-being. It's the ideal state, the absence of depression, illness, un-health. As long as I thought about myself as ugly, I could live in chaos and be acted upon. I didn't have to be responsible or "keep my house clean." Ugly does ugly. Ugly is like a military tank trap keeping us out of commission to further travel or progress and is accomplished by focusing on ugly. When I was able to recognize my own beauty, I took responsibility for my own life, became self directing, no longer acted upon, but acting for myself. If you stop focusing on ugly, beauty can blossom.
One day I took fresh towels into the bathroom. I had an armload, so I didn't turn on the light. As I spun around I caught a glimpse of Aunt Grace in the darkened mirror. Wait! Aunt Grace has been dead for more than twenty years. How could I have seen her? I turned on the light and peered closer. Yup! That was Aunt Grace peering back at me. No! Wait...that's really me! But Aunt Grace was beautiful (she loved me). How could I look like her? I'm old. I'm overweight. I'm not beautiful (I believed that because I didn't love me). Closer study and pondering made me realize Aunt Grace was about the age I am now when I knew her. She wasn't overweight, she was just right (she was about my size!) Suddenly, the light turned on inside my head. Aunt Grace was beautiful (I thought so because she loved me). If I look like her I must be beautiful. I vowed that day to stop seeing ugly when I looked in my mirror. I decided to look for my resemblances to Aunt Grace, to start loving me and to be happy. A recent visit to my sister showed me how successful I'd been at that particular quest. We were seated in her living room chatting. Out of the clear blue she interrupted, "My gosh Lorrainie, I don't know whether it's your glasses, or a trick of the light but you look just like Aunt Grace!"
Gaining knowledge of my own beauty freed me from bondage to ugly. When someone pushes my ugly buttons I can pull the plug and refrain from being ugly, which is a better way. The choice between ugly and beautiful is mine to make, not my parents', spouse's, children's, or anyone else's. When I'm beautiful I'm responsible TO my own divine nature. Recognizing my own beauty and refusing to allow rejection to dissuade me from being of worth, allows me to become self-directing, no longer acted upon but acting in my own best interest. The more rapidly I work to overcome evil with good, which is sometimes called obedience, the faster I progress toward enlightenment. When I allow myself to be beautiful it means little whether I am young or old, short or tall, fat or thin.
CAUTION: This recognition isn't accomplished overnight so "don't run faster than you are able." The little dog got to Dover one step at a time, and he stopped to chase rabbits along the way.
You can't "save" anyone else. The person's own desire saves himself as he recognizes truth on whatever level and chooses to live it. The example of your own light or beauty, held high to show the way is the candle at which others ignite their own flame.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)