There’s a gentle, wise tree
With leaves that remind me
The world’s fragility
And I dream of how it would be
If this was my reality
If I could always stay there
Taking refuge in its serenity
CONTINUE READINGDreaming of a Tree
Tag: Mindfulness
Now Has No Fears
Your fears are not here
Now
The last time you met them
They told you:
CONTINUE READINGThe Wild Beauty of Life
Some moments in life make us feel what being alive truly means, in a very powerful way, in all our cells… In such moments, when I stop and take a deep breath, look inwards and then around me, at the sky; the feelings of gratefulness, love and serenity wash over my soul, and make me realize that only this moment exists, and I’m fully present, fully “here”…
CONTINUE READINGThe Journey is the Thing
The journey is the thing.”
This quote by the ancient Greek poet Homer was written on a notebook I bought two years ago – a light blue, thin notebook with sea shells on it. It struck a chord deep within and I always came back to it, especially when I got lost in thought over the future, over the next ‘destination’, over the to-do lists. It always brought me back to ‘this moment’, the moment I was in, and helped me realize that this is all that I have, and all that I ever need.
CONTINUE READINGThe Power of Choice
Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”
This quote by Austrian psychiatrist and Holocaust survivor Viktor E. Frankl, the author of one of the most deeply touching, illuminating and thought-provoking books I’ve ever read, “Man’s Search for Meaning”, never ceases to give me goosebumps.
We all have the innate power within, no matter whether we realize it or not, to connect with our inner core wisdom instead of getting caught in the web of our Ego, to respond with our heartfelt, genuine feelings and thoughts instead of reacting with our habitual defensive patterns and primitive coping mechanisms, to hold space for ourselves and embrace our vulnerability even in the most challenging situations, instead of wearing our armour and denying our humanness and resisting our pain, while unconsciously making it much bigger.
CONTINUE READINGTrue Freedom
Our fears aren’t monsters that we need to protect ourselves from by pulling the blanket over our heads as we used to do when we were little – they indeed have dark sides, but what in this vast universe doesn’t?
When they come to visit us, we may tightly shut the door to prevent them from entering, and start thinking that we’ve escaped them, that we’re free now. But what we may not realize is that we’ve shut the door not only to them but also to other emotions, other feelings that would’ve soon come to bring us light and peace and freedom… When we close that door, we in fact take away our freedom with our own hands that turn the key.
Instead, if we could try to connect with the wisdom we hold by looking within, and choose to take a step towards our painful emotions, even though the ground beneath our feet may tremble at the beginning, we will slowly begin to realize that with each step it becomes stronger. With each step that we take, with our strength, courage and confidence growing inside…
CONTINUE READINGSymphony of Everything
Today, I heard
The song of two birds
A sparrow, and a robin
The song was about being
Here, and hearing
The cat, waking up
The flower, coming to life
CONTINUE READINGİçeriden Dışarıya Doğru Yaşamak
Yazar, aktivist ve Center for Courage & Renewal’ın kurucusu Parker J. Palmer’ın “Living From the Inside Out” (İçeriden Dışarıya Doğru Yaşamak) başlıklı Naropa Üniversitesi Mezuniyet Konuşmasından dilimize çevirdiğim bir bölüm:
İlk olarak, söz konusu kalbin meseleleri olduğunda gözü kara olun.
Aslında demeye çalıştığım şey… tutkulu olun, hayata delicesine aşık olun. Doğal dünyaların ve/veya insan dünyalarının bir parçasına dair tutku duyun, ve onun için riskler alın – bu sizi ne kadar kırılgan kılarsa kılsın… Kendinizi – enerjinizi, yeteneklerinizi, vizyonunuzu, kalbinizi – açık yüreklilikle, cömertçe sunun.
Ancak bilin ki bu şekilde yaşadığınızda çok geçmeden ne kadar az şey bildiğinizi, ve başarısızlığa uğramanın ne kadar kolay olduğunu anlayacaksınız. Sevgide ve hizmette büyüyebilmek için -siz, ben ve hepimiz- cehalete en az bilgi kadar, başarısızlığa en az başarı kadar değer vermeliyiz…
CONTINUE READINGTeachable Moments
Someone who has made a huge impact on my life once told me “There are no mistakes in life. In my world, we label them “fascinating.” Every moment in life is a teachable moment, if you’re open…” Those words really stayed with me and I thought about what they meant quite deeply. As someone who used to try and avoid making mistakes, I’ve come to realize that nearly all the turning points, life changing experiences, unforgettable lessons of my life were in some way related to those “mistakes”.
CONTINUE READINGDoğrunun ve Yanlışın Ötesinde
Doğrunun ve yanlışın ötesinde bir yer var; seninle orada buluşacağız.” Mevlânâ Celâleddîn-i Rûmî
Pandemi süreci, doğru ve yanlışların, yargıların, öyle olmaz böyle olur’ların havada uçuşması ve çarpışmasıyla, tüm yoruculuğu ve beyhudeliğiyle gözler önüne serilmesiyle, o doğru ve yanlış ötesindeki yere bir çağrı sanki.
Her doğru “kısmen doğru” çünkü Thich Nhat Hanh’ın dediği gibi, her yanlış “kısmen yanlış.”
Bilmiyoruz, her zamankinden daha çok “bilmiyoruz”. Ve bilmediğimiz için belki, bu belirsizlikte kalmak zor olduğundan, körü körüne “doğru” veya “yanlış”a tutunmak, bu tutunmadan doğan yargıları oraya buraya savurmak daha kolay, daha tanıdık geliyor. Hiç değilse bunu “bilmek” istiyoruz belki ve öyle insani ki. Ama o geçici iç rahatlığıyla kendimizi kandırmıyor muyuz?
CONTINUE READING
d i l a q u i s 