As the late Spring evening ambles to a close
The birds sing a gentle lullaby to the trees
An equally gentle breeze kisses the green-clad branches
Coaxing one final dance before night closes in
As stillness prepares to descend
All is at peace
All is well
Photo by Arifur Rahman Tushar: https://www.pexels.com/photo/silhouette-of-man-watching-golden-hour-805002/
Photo by cottonbro studio: https://www.pexels.com/photo/white-skull-on-white-wooden-table-5095880/
I came across a very profound piece of wisdom the other day, from a very unlikely source. I’ve long been an admirer of Keith Richards, AKA “Sir Keef”, guitarist with The Rolling Stones. Mainly for his musicianship and the fact that he is a very interesting character. Anyone who can fall out of a coconut tree at age 62 gets my vote all day long! Now in his 80s, he has become more and more of an interesting interview as he has gotten older.
I’ve long been fascinated by the stories of musicians, where they came from and how they made it etc. Anyway, recently I came across a book called, “what would Keith Richards do?” It’s like a collection of “Keefisms” taken from various interviews over the years. Anyone who is familiar with Sir Keef will know that for some years now, any photo you see of him, pretty much always shows him wearing a skull ring. Now, I don’t know about you, but whenever I see images of skulls, thoughts of pirates and gothic horror etc. spring to mind. But Keef has a different philosophy on what the skull ring represents.
When asked about the ring he said it’s got nothing to do with “bravado and surface bull****.” He said that beauty is skin deep and the skull symbolises that we are all the same underneath. Peel back the skin and flesh from any head, regardless of race, colour and creed and you will see a skull.
Nice one Sir Keef.
Look at me
What do you see?
A skull?
Straight out of a horror story
All gothic and gory
But, look again, look beyond your prejudice
I am just like you
Peel away your face flesh and skin, and
You will see that we are kin
I’m acquainted with someone, who in my eyes is a very successful author. Of course, success is only relative, but this writer has reached out to millions of people throughout the world and changed their lives for the better. He shared a story of how he felt (not in an egoistic way) that if he had made such great strides in his spiritual evolution, why was he still getting all the same old negative traits coming to the surface? For example, allowing seemingly trivial things to annoy him and getting angry over what seemed like nothing. He felt that, given where he is today, compared to the pits from whence he had dragged himself up from, and considering his work, why was he not now the equivalent of a Buddha or a Lau Tzu?
He said that he was relating this story to a friend of his as he had allowed the situation to drag him down. As stated, he didn’t think like this because of his ego, it was because he’d had a particularly difficult time throughout large slices of his life and couldn’t understand why he was still struggling given how far he’d come. His friend, a very wise lady, reminded him that if he was off around the world being a Buddha or Lao Tzu, he wouldn’t have been doing his current work and touching the hearts of millions. We all have our own unique purpose for being here on earth and we also tend to have that rather annoying habit of comparing ourselves to others and feeling inadequate; even the best of us.
It just goes to show, that quite often it’s the people around us who see our qualities and achievements. We seem to be blind to the wonderful, positive things that make up our character and it’s left to others to remind us.
I heard you calling me
Tugging at my heart strings
You felt my yearning,
Yearning for your tranquility
You reeled me in; I had no resistance
I sat down, and was immediately greeted by the chatter of magpies
Once again, a chill breeze and the warmth of the sun vied for my attention
The sun tried its hardest to protect me from its adversary
But alas, on this occasion it was no contest
The chill bullied the mighty fireball into submission
By way of soothing song
The birds offered their sympathies
To the sun with the bloodied nose
My fiery friend
You shall surely live another day
To once again cloak me
In the warmth of your loving care
Only in the silence will you hear the voice of Love
When the world seems to be attacking you, all sides
Take a moment…
Retreat into the cavity of your heart
Be embraced by the peace…
That passes all understanding
Let go of the pieces, and
Let the peace do its work
You are only an actor
Playing a part
You don’t have to be a hero
Every day doesn’t have to be a slog
The power of love will nurture you
Without you even realising
Your hardships are your friends
For they cause you, unwittingly
To go on an inner journey
Once you set sail
The Ocean of Love will guide you
So, let go of the pieces
Welcome the peace, and
Be guided by Love
Image by Станислав Кондрашов from Pixabay
Hello planets!
Are you trying by your twinkling
To give me an inkling
Of the secrets you hold
Or, are you winking
Or just blinking
Or maybe thinking
That they are not to be told
The planets pondered this strange musing and replied…
We are neither winking nor blinking, but
We are most certainly thinking to ourselves
Why you look to the sky and not within
When all the secrets of the universe are within you
This is our lesson to your species
Do not be distracted by things that glitter
Do you not have a saying…
“All that glitters is not gold”
Do not look to the heavens
When the gold you seek is within you
Introspection, diving deep
Introspection, wake me from this sleep
The road seems so long, and
The journey so rough
At times, this soul feels like he’s had enough
Tired and weary, lethargic, withdrawn
Then all of a sudden
A wonderful new dawn
Creative juices gush forth
Flowers bloom
Ideas flow
Obliterating the gloom
Introspection, diving deep
Introspection, wake me from this sleep
Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay
We are a species very much still in its infancy. A good indicator of this is the fact that we have the word “forgiveness” in our vocabulary. This is probably a lot to do with religions telling us for centuries that we need to be forgiven by their angry god. Forgiveness is of the ego and is born out of the need to either forgive or be forgiven. Our true nature (I know…I sound like a broken record…) is Consciousness, which is non-dualistic, and exists as itself and nothing else. Therefore, in Consciousness there is no such thing as forgiveness.
Of course, everything has perspective within its own context. So, for someone unaware of their true nature, forgiveness most certainly is a thing. It serves as a tool to help them along their pathway to the stage where they realise that it really isn’t necessary. Another great paradox of life; using something that doesn’t actually exist in order to know the only thing that does actually exist. Pure genius from the “proper” God (infinite Consciousness).
Understanding…
Yes, understanding, not forgiveness is what is required. When our species replaces forgiveness with understanding we will know that, collectively, we are finally on the way to a greater awareness of our true nature.
Here is the second of my sea-related verses from my trip to Weston-Super-Mare.
Mighty rock, stone of wonder who or what has hewn you asunder?
Twas the sea, the mighty sea; the mighty sea did this to me.
But she laps so gently, she whispers calm? How can one so serene and tender fashion you thus?
I have no power in her presence, all melt before her. Like a skilled artisan has she fashioned me, with both her anger and her peace, for both are born out of love. Before, I was dull and unsightly, now I am born anew. I surrender to her whims and await my next adventure…
Photo by Pixabay: https://www.pexels.com/photo/two-rock-formations-268455/
For those of you that have been reading my most recent posts, you will be aware that I was inspired by the violent storm that blew during my trip to Falmouth in Cornwall at the end of January. Although it was clearly not the worst storm ever, it was easily the worst one I’ve ever experienced first hand. In contrast to that, I couldn’t believe how tranquil the sea was during my trip to Weston-Super-Mare in North Somerset at the end of February. Once again, I was inspired to write and I came up with two poems/short stories that I shall be sharing this week. Here’s the first one:
I hear you in the distance talking to me; your tranquility speaks volumes. Almost as soon as I sit myself down, the birds serenade me with a symphony fit for a king. The cold breeze and the warm sun hug me in unison as I gaze out across the mud flats of Sand Bay, trying to fathom what you are saying. A sudden epiphany informs me that your message is in your silence.
A silence that transcends the birdsong, the breeze and the warmth of the sun.
A silence that speaks of Love, Love in all its purity, all its glory.
Oh Bristol Channel, I hear your silence loud and clear.
We are at peace…
Author - Richard F Holmes 