Lollipop

Does happiness affect your productivity?

Science says it does.
Shawn Achor at Harvard, has done experiments with children
Four year old children performed twice as fast in a task required thinking
when they were primed by happy thoughts.

Now here comes the real interesting part: an experiment with doctors!
The doctors were given a manuscript based on which they had to make a diagnosis.
Half of them were given a lollipop to make them happy before they were given the task.
And guess what! Yes they arrived at the correct diagnosis twice as fast as the others.

So, please, if you have a spouse who is a doctor,
make them happy before they go to their clinic.
If you have a relative sitting for an exam,
make them happy just before the exam

A simple lollipop may do :)

Here is a link to a video of Shawn in you-tube

Generosity

A beggar
It could be a lazy fellow

She passes by

She thinks and regrets,
Returns
Gives a penny

Feels OK for a while
Was it enough?
Returns and gives some more

Feels OK for a while
Thinks about her salary
returns,

Gives a bit of her time
A small talk, a pat on the back
Feels OK now for long.

Silence 1.01

Silence

Contemplation, searching for my soul 
Silence encompassing all 
Alone but not in solitude 
Silence giving fortitude 

My ego-thoughts trying to prop up 
Silence makes them stop 
Soul is what I’m searching for 
Silence, silence I adore 

Connecting to my soul 
Silence winning after all 
Thoughts connect with high above 
Silence fills my soul with love 

Conscience conquering my mind 
Silence makes it look so kind 
Soul and conscience hand in hand 
Silent wish to never end 

Grateful heart joins in 
Silence makes it all akin 
Thanking God for this silent contemplation 
Thanks for silence, thanks again

Aufie Zophy

Note:

Above is perhaps one of my ten best poems. I had written it and a few weeks later I found that a therapist from New York had put it up on her website. Initially I was a bit confused if this was to be called plagiarism or not. She had not contacted me, not asked my permission. On the other hand she had put the author name, I use, under the poem of Aufie Zophy. 

I made up my mind to not put any copyright on whatever I publish online. I think we get ideas and talents from our Creator to be shared with the whole world. What is created in our mind, is not solely ours, it still belongs to our Creator and is there to be shared with each and everybody. So, I decided to be proud instead of upset about anyone sharing poems on their website written by Aufie Zophy (me). If I now google 'Aufie Zophy' on the web, I find more than 600 websites that have used my poems. Somehow it makes me happy even though the vast majority never sought permission to share these poems. I think the warmest feeling I got when I read a website that related about an event with children who recited one of my poems on peace and considered as one of the highlights of the event. :) . Some poems have been put on music :)

The above poem is written in 2010, the year I started to write poems in English and put them up on the website PoemHunter. I have received quite a number of good comments about this particular poem and I still like it as a poem among my 10 best. In the mean time I have written and published on PoemHunter about 220 poems (or sometimes I prefer to call them attempts at poetry, rather than poems). Please visit the website to read more of them: http://www.poemhunter.com/aufie-zophy/ (simple and safe link)

How can I serve

the more we deliver service
to humanity, i.e. to our fellow human beings
the more peace of mind

If we make selfless service
one of our main aims in life,
our life may be full of peace
and happiness

Surely not all of us
actually perhaps none of us,
is always in a situation
where we can serve,
where we can lend a helping hand.
I think all of us go through
times when we are the ones needing help.

Whenever we are in a position that allows us to serve
in a position that allows us to give a helping hand,
we should do so.

If more people would be continuously aware of the
good feelings and the great peace that is brought about
by rendering selfless service,
less people would have to wait a long time to receive the help they need.

:) 

Being humble

How many times do we say:
This guy does not know what an X is?
X standing for whatever the subject or object of our interest.

How much more psychologically sound would it be to say:
This guy's perception of X is quite different from mine.

True experts tend to be aware of a level of grayness of most matters
and even if they are very convinced of their own truths,
they always maintain a certain level of doubt and humility

Doubt does not always feel comfortable.
Nevertheless, it is quite often preferred since
certainty is often too close madness.
 --------------
If you enjoyed this,
You may also like the poem hard is the fall
and the essay: humility

Soooo different.

We were all born with a heart full of love
As babies we were generous with our smiles
People were loving us back

Somehow along the way
we got a few bad experiences
We gave love and our ego somehow got hurt in the process
Our ego got hurt, but not our heart, not our soul.

Our ego told us the huge lie:
Better be stingy with your love
so, I the ego does not get hurt.

Somehow along the way
we got a bit wiser as well.
We try to find soul and heart in most situations
and become a bit less ego dependent

But the big lie of our ego
Better be stingy with your love
persists.

NO matter how people react,
if we just decide to share the abundant love in our heart
if we manage to share it and do not care too much if it comes back or not.
It will give us so much soul happiness.

It is sitting so abundantly in our heart.
Let us share and care for our family, friends and strangers alike
if we get a cold shoulder, it is affecting not our soul
It affects the soul of the one giving the cold shoulder in a negative way.
His ego may get a false boost but we do not have to allow it to affect our own ego

Give love,
It sits abundantly in our heart.
If people react negatively because they themselves lack love,
Still give love
We have an abundance to share
Not long after we start to persistently to give the love,
our live will be sooooooooooo different.

Let us give up today
the lie of our ego to be stingy with the abundant love in our heart
let us start to live
the truth of our soul to share, share, share the abundant love in our heart
We will never regret it if we persist
and soon our live will be
soooooooooooo different.

The ones who are negative or do not respond
are the ones who  need our love most
So just keep giving from the abundance of your heart
Soon they will respond so differently and
our life will be soooooooooo different

Before I close my eyes

Today is almost gone

Soon I will go to bed

and close my eyes

I want to, before I do so,

say a warm word of thanks

a word of thanks

to our God,

a word of thanks

to my family

to my friends

to my staff

A very warm thanks

for all  the love that came my way

Thanks

The extra step (sonnet)

Every now and then, we feel satisfied

So satisfied with what we feel and do

We have a good heart and are often kind

Occasionally some charity too.

But my God, my good Creator, today

I want to take at least one extra step 

Or an extra mile on that golden way  

Please God help me to run an added lap 

If every day, a few new steps we take

One more small kindness and a loving phrase 

An enormous difference we would make

Towards a better world in many ways

Let’s commit each day to a little more

Soon harmony will reign on every shore


-------------------------------------------------------
Note:
Sonnets are poems of 14 verses with rhymes
ababcdcdefefgg
each verse contains 10 spoken syllables

I have written three other sonnets (under author name of Aufie Zophy):
My first attempt: The golden key (perhaps the one I still like best)
My second attempt: The song of heaven
My third attempt: The most beautiful poem
I think my first three attempts are more worthy of the name sonnet,
since they contain a bit of a message of romantic love, dedicated to 
my lovely wife, to whom I am married this year for 25 years...

 

Rituals and scriptures

Religious teachings can truly inspire
as long as we do not allow the preachers of hatred
to putrefy our loving hearts, 'cause hatred is like toxic waste,
that kills all the magnificent flowers in the garden of the mind.
Hatred, always coming from the ego of the preacher,
never coming from a majestic omnipotent Creator.
Hatred is trying to lure our hearts into condemnation,
misjudgement, arrogance, a false feeling of superiority.

Enjoy religion but do not hate

Rituals can help us to get closer to the Divine
As long as we do not make them a purpose in themselves.
Blindly following rituals, may flood and oxidize the wires of our mind.
Rusty wires may prohibit everyone of us to tune into the music,
into the divine melodies containing fantastic truths
into the roaring cry of nature
to render selfless service to all humans
and to become truly humble.

Enjoy rituals but do not allow an absurd focus on them
to blind or deafen you from the music of God

Holy scriptures are great guides to human life,
As long as we do not allow the books to petrify
into large rocks inside the stomach of our soul.
Large rocks may obstruct all further nurture
from the manna of divine wisdom
from the nectar of unconditional love
that is found throughout human nature
in the spirit of all humanity and the spirit from above.

Holy scriptures, Rituals, Religious teachings
are great tools for humanity to use
As long as they do not become tricks that are abused
to please our ego and silence our soul

Invisible Thread

Inside our heart
there is some blood
being pushed
under high pressure

Inside our heart
there is septation
valves and
parts of muscles

Inside our heart
there is also
this invisible thread
of love and kindness

That thread that allows us to appreciate
the charm of a pulchritudinous woman,
the appeal of an exquisite bird,
the allure of a statuesque tree

That invisible thread
that allows us to see
not only with with our eyes
but with compassion and empathy

That invisible thread that softens our voice
when anger inside boils
That invisible thread that allows us to give
when our hands want to take

That invisible thread that makes us soft
when we wanted to be tough
That invisible thread that takes away the fear
when we talk try to talk to our God.

That invisible thread
worth more than gold
Thanks, my God,
for this fine invisible thread
that sits inside our heart.

A fable

A man was blind
‘cause he kept his eyes closed all the time
He had not seen any light
He did not believe in light

A man was deaf
‘cause he kept his ears closed all the time
He had not heard any sound
He did not believe in sound

Another man
Kept his mind closed all the time
He had not received any wisdom
He did not believe in wisdom

Another man
Kept his heart closed all the time
He had not felt love
He did not believe in love

Another man
Was not aware of the beauty of his soul
He had not experienced God
He did not believe in God

And then it happened that

The blind man opened his eyes
The deaf man opened his ears
The other men opened their minds and hearts
Connected to their beautiful souls
And all became believers
And the world leaped to harmony

Aufie Zophy

Building on blocks of old

Did you know that Zeno of Citium more than 200 years BC founded the stoicism.
A philosophy with a strong belief in virtue and contemplation
Did you know that around the same time Pyrrho founded Pyrrhonims, one of the foundations of skepticism, a stream in philosophy that stressed the uncertainty of everything.
In the sixth century, an emperor ordered the closing of all "pagan" philosophical schools since there were perceived at odds with Christian doctrine.
How many of us have tried to read the republic of Plato and some of the wisdom of Socrates?
A lot of thoughts and arguments have been brought forward by these intellectuals of more than 2000 years ago. A rich culture of philosophy. 

Sometimes I wonder how our world would be different from how it is now, if our schools would replace two hours of teaching history or add maths or other subjects with the philosophy of Plato?

The greed of the business men blinded by money and luxury
The vice of politicians and bankers throughout the world
The ignorance of lawyers and sometimes doctors alike...
Would all of the above have been softened if our educational system would pay a bit more attention to wisdom and a bit less to some of the absurdly glorified history of our individual nations winning absurd battles through the most atrocious of atrocities.

I somehow believe that the teaching of philosophy and all the thoughts and opinions that have originated from deep thinkers of old times  could benefit our youth. It could stimulate them to search for truth in this world of materialism. How did we become so materialistic? How many people search sincerely for truth and experience some ecstatic joy if they discover a certain wise axiom? How many of us are enthusiastic truth seekers?

I personally have found some joy in reading Emerson. His texts are not easy to read. They are heavy but by reading a few pages now and then, my mind has been stimulated to think, to search further. I think his essay, circles really contains some huge wisdom about this seeking of truth. Extremism has tried to contain our natural hunger for expanding our horizons of knowledge and spiritual growth. The most atrocious extremists of the past (I think of Spanish inquisition) and even of the present may have been successful in slowing down the growth of humanity and this world into a world of soul and virtue, but they have never been and will never be able to stop it. 

Unity

A wave is to the ocean
as a human is to God.
(heard in a talk by M. Beckwith)

I think this illustrates so nicely the principle of unity.
We all belong to and are intrinsically connected to God and to each other.
If there is no ocean, there are no waves.
If one wave changes direction, it will interfere with all other waves
If the wave after a long journey breaks on the shore, it goes back to the ocean.

One small poem:

Tears Of A Wave - Poem by Aufie Zophy

In a big ocean, not far from the shore
A small wave couldn’t take it anymore
It broke out in panicky tears
Another wave inquired about the worst of its fears

'All waves are breaking on the coast line
We are so near, it is no longer fine.
What is about to happen is awful, can’t you see?
Soon, nothing will be left of us, nothing of me.'

The answer of the companion was this:
'My dear friend, you seem not to know what reality is.
We are just a part of the ocean and forever we will be
Realising this you should not worry for you or for me.'

Flowers of kindness

Flowers of kindness

A small flower in the desert of greed

Sheds some fragrance, sheds a seed.

Two little flowers in the desert of need

Each a bit of fragrance, each gives a seed

Four small flowers growing among weed

Fragrance increases, and yet another seed

Flowers, eight and sixteen and soon thirty two

More and more fragrance and more seeds too.

Sixty four, two fifty six, more than a thousand soon

no more place for weed, crumbling greed and needs,

A million flowers each shed fragrance and seeds

The desert of greed and need and weed recedes

Small acts of kindness, the fragrance will spread

Greed and stress, no more; peace of mind instead

Awareness growing, weed by weed reaches death

Equality an illusion, inequality has no solution

as long as we wait for big shots' contribution

What we really need now is a kindness revolution

It won't be the crooks, the ones who now lead the greed

It won't be the sand in the desert that alleviates the need

Small acts of kindness are fragrance and seed

A billion flowers of kindness, it's easy to see.

A true revolution on its way, as fast as can be.

It depends not on presidents, but on you and on me

Aufie Zophy

Inequality as in the OXFAM report: half the world's wealth is in the hands of 62 individuals.
If 7 billion others maintain it as their biggest dream to belong to the 62 or even to become number 63, greed will just keep spinning out of control. If we manage to put kindness first, that is the only solution. We do not have to give up our longing for wealth, we just have to long for kindness a little bit more than we long for wealth.
Let us make the kindness revolution a reality. Let the crooks suffocate in their crookedness. We can lead by example. We do not need titles or power, just starting to lead the kindness revolution by example :)

A loving heart

If we meet someone with a loving heart,
Does that not count as a miracle?

 Let's just think about what a loving heart means?
How did it grow from almost nothing?
How many years of evolution?
So untouchable and so unseeable
and yet so real and so immeasurable valuable!
And yet so many of us take a loving heart for granted.

Today I want to be grateful, so very grateful
for all these wonderful people in my life
who have shared with me a bit of that tremendously amazing love
and that tremendously amazing kindness
that sits in each of our hearts.

And I pray and hope
that I manage to share myself
with many people tomorrow
a bit of that amazing and love and kindness
that sits in my own heart.

A matter of focus

I just heard in a whatsapp video an amazing story.
I think it is such a good story, that I want to share it:

A worker comes out of the factory.
He pushes a wheelbarrow with a small package in it.
The security guard stops him and says:
What is in your wheelbarrow?
The man answers 'a box'.
The guard: I can see that this is a box. What is in the box?
The worker: Sawdust. The sawdust is swept from the floor and thrown away. I need some sawdust, so I want to bring it home in this box.
The guard: Well, open the box.
True enough the box was full with sawdust and the guard lets the man go home.

Exactly the same thing happens on the second day
Exactly the same thing happens on the third and fourth day.
On the fifth day. the man pushes again his wheelbarrow with a small package in it.
The guard asks the same questions and finds again that the box is full of sawdust.
The guard says to the man: 'I have this very strong feeling that you are stealing something. But I don't know what. I promise not to report you, but please tell me what you are stealing. '
The worker responds: I am stealing wheelbarrows.

Sometimes we get so focused on the small things, that we completely miss the bigger picture :)

Get ready

Get ready
Get ready for beauty
Get ready, Man
Get ready, M'am
Get ready boys and girls

Beauty is in the sky
Beauty on the water, under the water
On the ground, in the ground, under it
In your soul, in your heart, in your mind
It is in the eyes, on the face
Beauty is everywhere
Get ready for a beautiful day

Get ready
Get ready for wisdom
Get ready, Man
Get ready, M'am
Get ready, boys and girls

Wisdom is in the sky
It is everywhere on the rise
It lies in the random kind act
In the books, in your smile
On the net, in the work we do
In the prayers we say.
Wisdom is on the rise

Get ready,
Get ready for kindness and love
Get ready, Man
Get ready, M'am
Get ready boys and girls

Kindness is coming
It is in a bullet train, an unstoppable TGV
Millions on board already
Gathering momentum, Exponential increases
The train moves at dazzling speed
With open doors, sucking in more and more people
Soon a billion will be on board
Then it will take only seconds
To envelop the whole wide world.

Get ready for a beauty revolt
Get ready for a wisdom revolution
Get ready for a huge kindness revolution.


Aufie Zophy, Bachok,2012

Space and light and rain

I loved the spouting coconut
It got a special place
I loved the casuarina shoot
It got a special place

The coconut and casuarina shoot
Shared a common garden
The sunlight shone for both
And so did nourishing rain

One grew a thousand leaves
Tiny needle shaped and small akin
One grew a few giant leaves
Majestically waving in the wind

Phenomenal beauty of the casuarina
Its oxygen was shared for free
In perfect harmony with the loveliness
Of the superb amazing coconut tree.

So different, my two cherished trees
And yet loved by God so much the same.
A fully fulfilled potential each
‘cause someone cared, each in a special place

The huge diversity of each of us
Is to be celebrated in every way
But all deserve the care and rights
To reach their full potential day by day

So let's give to all children dear
equal space and 'light' and 'rain'
full potential for each to achieve
Diverse, but how we all would gain!

Home

Few years back my mentee, a postgraduate student married
I wished him sincerely to become the second best husband,
the second best father in the world.

You may ask: why the second best?
Here is the answer:

I want to be the best father in the  world
I want to be the best husband in the world,
the best brother, the best uncle in the world
I want to have a home full of fun
full of love, full of harmony
full of inspiration.

Kindness revolution

The kindness revolution
An exponential chain of increasing acts of kindness
randomly performed by an ever increasingly rapid increasing number of people

It is just around the corner
The crooks will feel only shame
Politicians may be the last to jump on board
But no-one will be opting out in the end

Peace and happiness
are to be found in kindness

Soon everyone will be aware of that
and all will join the....

KINDNESS REVOLUTION

A small poem: 

Tired at night, I went to sleep
I slept tremendously deep
I slept a very long time

I woke up in October of 2110
and some history books of then
were laying in that room of mine

How exciting it was, how queer
to read the history of the coming years
I was in for quite a surprise

The heroes of the 2010's history books
were labelled as what they were, just crooks
Heroes in 2110 were nobody else than the wise

There were some wise people, so clever
who brought to us kindness and wisdom forever
these were the heroes of 2110

Among the heroes, prophets and thinkers were found
poets of wisdom, their names all around
Sages and wise ones from way back,2010

In 2110, from what I could read
there was no longer hunger, no more greed
thanks to the poets sharing wonderful words

I prayed to go back to the time when I had started to sleep
I wanted to share that news, so good, so profound and deep
I was happy to wake up in the now, my prayers were heard

So here I share the wonderful news at last
That greed and hunger will soon be a thing of the past
it all 'll have started in 2016 during spring

History books of the future mention a kindness revolution
Starting in May 2016, affecting all subsequent evolution
Isn't that a wonderful thing?

Herbs

I love herbs and spices
I know many herbs have a positive effect on health
I know many herbs can have also a toxic effect on our body.

Not everything that is natural is good for us.
Foxglove is a beautiful flower. It contains chemicals that can have helped heart patients a lot.
In the right dosage, these chemicals are truly beneficial. But if you find foxglove in a field and go and consume it, these same chemicals may cause you to die. The dose is all-important.

This is true for most natural products. Green tea taken in moderation is good for health. Taken in exessive amounts, there are well-documented cases of liver failure.

The wisdom I want to share here is that before you go on and take the advice of those selling herbs for granted, do your own search and do ask your doctor about the potential benefits and harms that such natural products may cause.

Many herbs are sold only for profit, with those selling not caring too much about the science behind it. I know some of the sellers truly believe in the benefit of what they sell, but they may not have enough understanding of science and how the body functions, for you to just take their convictions and explanations at face value.

The body is very complex. Eating natural food is so much better than the extensively processed foods. But do eat most things in moderation. If it comes to supplements, and the so called herbs, do be careful.

Proper research is NOT the testimony of a few (often heavily rewarded) users.
Proper research is NOT the "expert" opinion of someone who has direct financial gains from selling the herbs.

Herbs are natural!
Not everything natural is good for our health!
All mushrooms are natural, some are toxic.
So is it with herbs!!

The first leaf

The living fresh greenness
of the first leaf of spring
Sure a perfect sign she is
of the most wonderful thing:

Soon the whole crown of the tree
will be covered with a luscious bed
of fresh, green leaves for all to see
How much nicer can it ever get?

The amazing moment
of the first bud of a flower bed
unfolding into a full rose
a sign of a wonderful thing:

Soon the full flower bed
will unfold into a feast
of adorable  colours
countless flowers in their full glory

and so is too the living fresh kindness
of the first humane act done today
sure a perfect sign it is
of the most wonderful way:

Soon the whole wide world
will be engulfed in a kindness sea
Quick go and spread the word
Nothing better could happen for you and me :)

Glorious opportunity

Yesterday it was Martin Luther King Jr. day in the USA

Here is a wonderful quote of this extremely brilliant man

a defender of non-violence, an activist with a real passion

with a dream:

"We have before us the glorious opportunity to inject a new dimension of love into the veins of our civilization," Martin Luther King, Jr.

and one more:
"Darkness cannot drive out darkness. Only light can do that. Hatred cannot drive out hatred. Only love can do that" Martin Luther King, Jr.

Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that. "
- Martin Luther King - See more at: http://www.mlkonline.net/enemies.html#sthash.Rty9EVAJ.dpuf

Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that. "
- Martin Luther King - See more at: http://www.mlkonline.net/enemies.html#sthash.Rty9EVAJ.dpuf

Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that. "
- Martin Luther King - See more at: http://www.mlkonline.net/enemies.html#sthash.Rty9EVAJ.dpuf

Have you read his speeches. 

If not, please go and read.

I have a dream. Perhaps the most wonderful speech ever given by any member of mankind

His Nobel price acceptance speech. A gem

The speech before the night of his murder. Superb.

Take a few minutes to read it. 

Sooo uplifting, so beautiful, so inspirational.

here is a link to his speeches: 

http://www.mlkonline.net/speeches.html

I will share here a little (crazy) secret  of my own mind:

In my wildest dreams, I want to give in my life a speech with an impact like his ones. 

In my wildest dreams, I want to have an impact on the love in the world as he had.

I know these are extreme dreams, but somehow these dreams remain alive in me :)

A little comfort

11.30 pm.
I just came back from the hospital.
Counseling parents of a baby with multiple abnormalities at birth.
Sad. So sad to talk about all the problems that the baby faces.
So sad to see the parents holding back the tears.

Tomorrow the father has to leave for a mission with the army
The mother stays in the hospital to be near to the baby.
She was staying a special room for people accompanying patients provided by the hospital.
I know these rooms are not the most comfortable to spend the night.
So I tried to get the mother a bed in our facility for mother and baby, rooming in.
I guess I was lucky, a bed was available for the mother.

There was no smile, but the expression of deep sadness on the face of the mom, showed some relief, at least she will spend the night in a more comfortable place.

Sometimes as doctors all we can do is trying to make it a tiny bit more comfortable..
And just a little comfort in the most difficult of situations can make a difference, worthwhile pursuing.
....

Saying yes

There have been many people asking for help.
Some were genuine
Others were not

Looking back now
The only times I regret
was when I said no.

I do not regret helping the genuine ones
I do not regret helping the cheaters
I do regret when I said no.

Surely sometimes we have no choice but to say no
Sometimes we are not in a position to help
But if we can help, I really think we better say yes :))

Scenarios

If we reminisce about the future,
the future of any aspect of our life
be it work, be it family, be it our community,

many of the potential scenarios for the future seem to be bleak


However there are most of the time an equal or even larger number of lofty scenarios
that are also possible and have also the potential to become true.

While we cannot ignore the bleak scenarios, it may be a good idea
to keep our focus on one of our favorite rosy scenarios.

This will allow us to work positively towards them
If we keep our minds set on what we really want,
our mind will detect opportunities that are sometimes
lying in half hidden corners.

Our mind will focus on the good outcome
and this will arm us with the "sharpest" weapons to fight the doom bringers
I mean her sharp in a very figurative way, 'cause I am a strong believer in non-violence.

So keep our mind focused on what we want.

Keeping our focus on what we want
will increase our chances of getting it tremendously.

The big aim

The workplace is a place where many of us spend close to half of our waking hours.
How important, it is to make the work place a place of joy and happiness and satisfaction.

If we manage to achieve this for us and our colleagues, the chances are great that we will have a smooth running workplace.

Surely some rules need to be observed.
But these rules need to serve the people in the work place
and not the people in the workplace to serve the rules.

Outcomes need to be achieved. 

Leaders need to inspire the people to achieve these outcomes
while enjoying the workplace, where they spend so much time

Many more things can be achieved when people feel they can be creative and actively involved in developing their own talents to contribute the common success of the workplace.

The big aim is to achieve great things, but one of these great things is surely happiness and job satisfaction.

Rat race

I just read
a poem about a mother of 11
dying alone and lonely.

The crazy rat race of greed and desire
makes us forget the true values of life.
Let us get quickly out of the rat race
or risk to remain rats forever.

The above is what my emotions provoked in my mind as initial reaction to the story.
I think the story is a great reminder for all grown up children,

Nature

Today I read again (a part of) Emerson's essay on nature.
Emerson was a great observer and here is a wonderful quote of the essay:

"In the presence of nature, a wild delight runs through the man, in spite of real sorrows."
Isn't this beautiful and so real? Haven't you experienced this too? 

Here is the beginning of the first chapter (the one after the introduction):

"To go into solitude, a man needs to retire as much from his chamber as from society. I am not solitary whilst I read and write, though nobody is with me. But if a man would be alone, let him look at the stars. The rays that come from those heavenly worlds, will separate between him and what he touches. One might think the atmosphere was made transparent with this design, to give man, in the heavenly bodies, the perpetual presence of the sublime. Seen in the streets of cities, how great they are! If the stars should appear one night in a thousand years, how would men believe and adore; and preserve for many generations the remembrance of the city of God which had been shown! But every night come out these envoys of beauty, and light the universe with their admonishing smile.

The stars awaken a certain reverence, because though always present, they are inaccessible; but all natural objects make a kindred impression, when the mind is open to their influence."

I love to read Emerson. Somehow he strikes a chord with my own way of thinking, with my own connection to the nature and the universe. Every time I read or reread one of his essays or addresses, I discover some new truths, some new ideas in them. His writing style is not easy to understand, at least not for a person with English as second or third language like me. But upon rereading the same thing often a hidden truth comes clear. 

The first paragraph of his introduction this essay is also something that contains some superb wisdom: 

" Our age is retrospective. It builds the sepulchres of the fathers. It writes biographies, histories, and criticism. The foregoing generations beheld God and nature face to face; we, through their eyes. Why should not we also enjoy an original relation to the universe? Why should not we have a poetry and philosophy of insight and not of tradition, and a religion by revelation to us, and not the history of theirs? Embosomed for a season in nature, whose floods of life stream around and through us, and invite us by the powers they supply, to action proportioned to nature, why should we grope among the dry bones of the past, or put the living generation into masquerade out of its faded wardrobe? The sun shines to-day also. There is more wool and flax in the fields. There are new lands, new men, new thoughts. Let us demand our own works and laws and worship."

Ignoring the wisdom of our ancestors would be something that pushes us back into the stone age, but ignoring our own conscience and insights and poetry would limit our own development and progress so much, it would be like neglecting the purpose that our Creator gave to  our own lives. 

The essays of this very clever philosopher are freely available online.

In our head

Are you tired?
Are you tired right now?

Thinking about being tired can make us tired.

If you feel tired, try to take a deep breath and say silently:
I am full of energy
I am full of energy
I am so full of energy that I will do what I am doing right now,
not only in a good way,
but in the most excellent way possible

I do not deny that sometimes we are genuinely tired,
but even then with a deep breath and a small self talk
we can get amazing boosts of energy!

I am so full of energy now,
that I will read another ten soul sprinkles :)

Why is it so difficult

(inspired by M. Williams)

Why is it so difficult to forgive and forget?
Somehow the ego has been hurt
and somewhere it feels good to us to hold on to this hurt.
If we release the  hurt, it looks like we lose the right to something.
As long we hold on to the hurt, we have the imaginary right for revenge
As we hold on to the hurt we have the right to complain,
and receive the pity of other friends who are close to us.
The right to hate, to be angry.

Now, is the right to revenge, to complain, to receive pity, to be angry,
is this right a game of the soul or a game of the ego?

If we give up the hurt, if we find it in our heart to truly forgive and forget,
we 'll give up all these nasty ego-rights and privileges.
The ego is not too happy about that and calls out: "NO".

The hatred, the complaints, the revenge hinder our own progress, our own growth.
The ego does not care too much, as long as it can have its own perceived dominion.
The hurt we cling onto has the potential to make the culprit feel guilty
If the culprit does not feel guilty, we can search revenge and make him or her feel sorry.
Our ego feels superior, feels good if it can make someone feel worse than itself.

Hatred never heals. it continues as a negative emotion to damage our peace, our own happiness.
So is with revenge, and the right to complain.

What does our soul want?
It is time, high time to sit quietly, think about all our grudges, all our anger
Have a small fight between soul and ego and then,... let go, just let go of the right
to all these nasty things, let go and forgive, let go and forget.
Start anew and experience the friendship.
Start anew and get true peace of mind,
that very essential component of happiness.

Have you with your whole heart and soul ever forgiven?
How did that feel at a soul level? at a heart level?
If you are like other people, it will make you feel great, relieved, filled with peace of mind.

The negative emotions burn our skin, our mind, our heart and soul.
I wrote a small poem about this for my two sons:
dont-touch-it (You can click on this previous post in the blog or read it below)

 

Have you seen a fire?
I mean a big one with high flames?
Any human touching it
Will suffer intense and lasting pain

Such is the law of nature
Nothing else could happen or be
Touching flames causes pain
Isn't that easy to see?

Hatred is also like fire
It burns upon every touch
Pain is intense and lasting
Excruciating destruction, so much

Such is the law of nature
Nothing else could happen or be
Touching hatred causes pain
It is not difficult to see

And so is also anger
A blaze of uncontrolled heat
You touch it and bad burns
Are the only outcome to meet

Such is the law of nature
Nothing else could happen or be
Touching anger causes pain
It is not difficult to see

Lies of any nature or kind
Like smouldering ashes so hot
Touch lies and you suffer
Lies may seem OK but they're not

Such is the law of nature
Nothing else could happen or be
Touching lies causes pain
It may not be easy to see

Honesty love and kindness
Are like a cool breeze on a hot day
My boys, these laws of nature
Are here forever to stay

Light

If everyday in this promising new year,
we manage each to give to at least one person a little light,
I think we will have all a wonderful year.

The beauty of giving light,
is that we do not lose anything in giving it.
Lighting a candle of a friend,
makes two lights, it just doubles.

Imagine the doubling every day.
Can you see the enormous effect by year end?
2 to the power 365 is exactly
75153362648762663292463379097258784876021841565066235862633311089030688803667470 190838367948312598497021919232
that is how many lights we can expect if we double up each day!!!

I wish you a fantastic 2016

Powerless, evil or good?

Scary Perfect World

So many people deny the existence of God
Based on the misery and cruelty displayed on TV
If He would be good, power He would have not
If He would have power, how evil He'd be?

The answer lies according to me
in imagining a perfect world.
How scary would it be
to live in a perfect world!

By whatever we 'd do or act.
It'd become less perfect

Creativity, motivation,
lending a hand to a person in need
Charity, helpfulness, inspiration
all suddenly absolutely obsolete.

Can any of us imagine how dull it would be
to live if all was perfectly nice.
Animalistic indulgence for you and me
In an extremely boring paradise.

Somehow we were given the power of creativity,
we were allowed to co-create something nice
Somehow God gave us power to think with positivity
to love and help and self-sacrifice

These things give us perfect peace of mind
We get that feeling of happiness, so great
Through being loving, helping and kind
Admit it, that is just how we were made

Aufie Zophy

--------------------------------------------------------------------
 
I love the world.
I think a perfect world would be extremely scary...
We may not understand everything
But if God would have made a perfect world
We would be just puppies.

I believe in God
God is good
God is forgiving
God is all powerful
Our mind is too small
to understand all things happening


Some time ago, I wrote a reflection on a perfect world. I think it was the third reflection listed on this blog. It was posted sometime in April 2014. Today I read a poem on PoemHunter and this inspired to write on the very same topic the above 'rhyme'

Down

Down syndrome
Today I met parents with a young child with Down syndrome
I went on to explain to them as good as I could what it was all about.
An extra piece of genetic material that really disturbed the development
of almost every part of his body.
This includes his brain which will never be able to function like yours and mine.
And yet these children can walk and talk and be very affectionate.
They can give a lot of love and are  generally happy
the more love they receive the better they may be able to function in this world.

I find it always hard to explain Down syndrome to parents who just got a baby diagnosed with it.

In the afternoon I had a session with students and a student presented a case of Down syndrome (another child).  I went on to ask them why it was so common here, in Kelantan.
The answer was because mothers go and deliver here until they are close to and above 40.
And the second part of the answer is that these babies tend not to get diagnosed antenatally and do not get aborted.
The case of antenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome and abortion seems another very hard aspect about Down syndrome. It is easy to condemn abortion but the issue is really much more complex than simply be against or for abortion. Surely our children with Down syndrome have a place in our society, they are happy children deserving all of our care. If on the other hand I try to think form a parents' point of view my mind seems to understand, at least a bit, the parents choosing abortion as well. My heart seems to say: "no mind, you have gone nuts", my mind seems to answer: "no heart, you do not think" ...
A huge ethical issue!

Written In The Sand

It is written in the sand

The purpose of our life

Millions of grains of sand

If the sea‘d have erased it from the shore

The grains will have whispered it to the drops

And waves, the braking waves will sing

The purpose of our life

If the heat of day erased it from the surf

Evaporating mist ‘ll carry it to clouds

Where they will paint it in amazing skies

The purpose of our life

The clouds will rain and 

Diamond beads will ornament the rose

The rose’s scent will tell it

The purpose of our life

But if we fail to find it

In the sand or song of waves

In the clouds or scent of roses

The purpose of our life

We may have to make it quiet 

And look deep within our heart

Where it will be dancing all around

The purpose of our life.

If we do not find it in our hearts,

We may have to return to sand

It is written in the sand.

Aufie Zophy