Pax

Wonderful.

Understood, I do the same thing with The Daily OM on another site.

Beautifully said Blasto, I have little opportunity to get far out into nature but do manage to connect with the little bit that is my back yard.

Lauryn Hill - Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You I love the way she makes a song her own.

Innerspace - how did yesterday go?

Yup. I pack a light lunch and bring a thermos of coffee or tea(winter)/iced tea or water (the rest of the year) to work. It takes some discipline but after a little while it becomes a regular habit. I stopped drinking soft drinks a few years ago by making other choices, I drank a lot of iced tea and water with lemon initially...then stayed mostly with water except for a cup of coffee in the mornings.

My cell phone is the bane of my existence...and my link to my beloved while we're dealing with large family health crises in different cities. To our credit, the phone plan for three people is 450 minutes a month and we've accumulated 4000+ rollover minutes. My hope is, once the crisis is over, to discuss the option of canceling the cell plan and living without.

Very nice, thanks for sharing that.

Thanks so much for posting this, especially the part in Step one about stretching the breath...most helpful

That's exactly what I was looking for when I was bed shopping a couple of months ago, all I could find were crappy 1/2 foam knock offs. I ended up settling for another coil spring mattress to the tune of $600...crap!

The three jewels in Daoism as I understand them are: Compassion, Moderation and Humility. As I've said before, I'm very new to the path and am striving diligently to learn and live the basics. I find the three jewels a wonderful place to start as the represent following the middle way so well. I was wondering how my fellow bums feel about them, do they matter to you, do you actively contemplate them as you move through your day, and in your interactions with others?

Thanks Craig, that's a very different view from my own...I'll have to give it further thought.

I understand what you're saying about correcting an untruth...I'd just do it with a little less "fanfare" these days.

Without thought on the question my first impulse is NO, Taoism is not a religion! This reaction is based in my almost universal dislike of the religions I've encountered. However, using the definition supplied by Stig, it would seem the little I know of Taoism does touch on all three...although I'm not well enough informed to reach a conclusive opinion. I'll enjoy watching this thread to read from others more learned on the subject.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts Marblehead. I've been finding myself being more and more mindful as I move through my day, someone will be talking out their ass and instead of my usual impulse to call them on it, I'm letting it go. Thinking more along the lines of "does this really matter, my being right OR even more...letting them know they're wrong". Showing more compassion and judging less make for a much more peaceful coexistence. I'm curious, if others feel the importance of these treasures, how do you go about manifesting them in daily life?

I especially like this part of your post, empathy is desperately needed in our interactions with others, being open to the shared human experience is key.

I've ordered white teas from Teavana and found them tasty but with a slight perfume aftertaste. Primarily I drink black tea in the mornings and green tea in the afternoons...I loves me some tea!

My apologies Blasto. This topic is indeed fascinating and I will remain on topic in the future.

Hmmm, fairly incorrect assumption here, I'll chalk it up to cultural differences. Keeping the kids off the radar doesn't mean they're being secretive/naive/silly, it simply means they are listed with the state as "home schooled", however, if a child is registered in the public school system and then removed for home schooling the motives are suspect and the family is then subject to frequent mandatory visits from school social workers and truancy officials.

I have a co-worker whose children are being homeschooled this way. The trick is, never enroll them in school in the first place, that way they are out of the loop of awareness of "the system". Her husband stays home during the days and the kids follow their interests, he exposes them to all manner of new ideas and choices...they can read and complete math problems years ahead of the traditionally schooled peers. When they want to learn about the natural world, their dad loads them in the van and they spend their days at the river or studying a meadow. Both children were taught to meditate and do so now on their own. They are nine and ten years years old and lead full, interesting lives...I dearly wish I could have been educated this way.

Practicing compassion daily in my interactions along with regular Loving-Kindness meditation seems to work best for me. From my limited understanding of Daoism, being female imbues me with more Yin to begin with so being compassionate feels very natural. I cultivate Loving-Kindness in order to extend that compassion to people less "deserving" of it if that makes sense?

Very similar to the education system described in Marge Piercy's 1978 book Woman On The Edge Of Time. Children are given the opportunity to find their own path in life and pursue their own interests, everyone takes a hand in raising them and offering guidance.

Outdoors-woman here, I've been camping and hiking my whole life. When we moved to Europe when I was a kid my folks didn't have much money, so they bought an old VW mini bus, filled it with surplus camping equipment, and off we went. We had the GREAT fortune of seeing Europe for four years from that bus. When we came back to the States we continued the pattern here.

The average lifespan in the Middle East in Muhammads time was around 35 years. The elite classes could live longer however.

I think if we look at the way it makes us feel the very first time we try it we'd see it really doesn't feel all that great...first cigarette = choking burning sensation...first drink = shudder and slight gagging...first cup of coffee = shudder and wicked bitter taste in our mouths...etc. We seem to push past the nastiness in order to be cool, get a buzz, and get pumped up to stay awake.