Everywhere I Go, There I Am

Friends leave. Sometimes there is no other way. They may choose to leave for various reasons -- job change, death, or sometimes they just run away. Whatever the reason, whatever the purpose, what remains is always the same -- I.

I am.

I am, no matter what happens to my circumstances. Happiness is not found outside of me. If I rely on relationships (or anything else) to bolster my happiness factor, I am forgetting my right to choose. I know I talk about this a lot, but it is so worth repeating:

Happiness is a choice; not something you get.

I observe and I learn. I am learning the art of being me, and it as simple as a choice. All my life I've been searching. That's what I do. Today I am reminded me that I have discovered enough through the years to be, do, and have anything I choose. The Spirit which is in all things, and emits the Love that underpins all that exists is alive and well in me, and my happiness is found there.

Love.

Because of Love, I am able to love. I choose it knowing full well that It chose me first. I am. And everywhere I go, whether alone or with friends, there I will be found. And I am here. Right here, right now. I am a little more awake today, and the sun shone a little brighter today. It is this type of perspective on Life that guides me in the way that is best suited for me. I am a lucky man, and I know it. Thanks for reading :) and may peace fill your soul.

I love you. -- jb

these days

i love days when everything's certain

so why are there days like these?

i can't see the future at all anymore

my crystal ball's broken to pieces

yet when i rest my mind for a moment

i can see that today is still mine

no need for seers, incantations or potions

i can see where before i was blind

i know all is well when i let it

controlling is futile at best

i knew it as soon as i said it

allowing allows me to rest

these days are created for living

no worries, no hurries, no fear

i find that when i am giving

peace, joy and patience appear

let it go, let it out, let it be

live today like tomorrow won't come

remember your choice makes you free

and freedom today wrote a poem

-- jb

i drive myself crazy sometimes by forgetting that i choose how i see it. i see large amounts of abundance, freedom, and peace for these days... there, i feel better already. how do you see it?

I Know Nothing... Nothing!

I don't know about you yet, but I personally don't know a thing when it comes to the absolute truth about everything there is to know about everything that is. In fact, I am so glad of that fact that I am compelled to write about it so you can tell me if I am crazy. I was thinking just now, what would be your job title if your job was to be the One with all the answers? Would you work out of your house? Who would be your boss? (there seems to always be one) And can you imagine your cell phone bill? Oh my...

I was just dwelling on the thought that right now, I really don't know all that much when it comes to all-certain-there-is-no-error-possible type knowing. The fact is, I do not know, and I am actually cool with that. The next thought is really the impetus that started as the thought that led to my rambling in public once more.

So my question of myself is: Why am I not freaked out about not having the remedy for my current state of affairs? Why am I actually finding freedom with not being in control of "how" it all works out until it manifests as what I really want? Is it patience, passivity, complacency, sacrifice? Or is it trust?

Trust.

It matters little to me if you are a Christian, an Atheist, a Buddhist, or a Pimp, at some point you have to trust something, or someone, even if it is yourself. So the question that follows is: What level of control am I willing to relinquish in order for my dream to become a reality?

Place your trust somewhere.

I trust God but I also trust myself because I have learned to trust the innate instinct that comes from being alive and awake in this physical element we call human being. I am aware that animals ran for higher ground before the terrible Asian tsunami in 2004, while humans took pictures. Yet I am equally certain that while you and I are curious by nature, we also possess all it takes to have a trust level in our own instincts that cannot and should not be throttled by the teachings of the ones, whether they be professors or preachers, who would keep you from your completely and totally becoming who you really are.

Who are you really?

One way you can really know is to let go of the fear of asking the questions that are burning in your heart even as you read these words. You know which ones I mean, the ones you know that to ask them and then get certain answers could and would change everything. Just your asking could change everything. If only you would ask.

Here's the deal: It is the awareness of the question that is the hint of truth that there is truth that has not yet been offered. Trust the question and in the asking lies the answer. You deep down already know the answer, and you just need to get it out in the open and decide how you feel about it. There is freedom in asking. There is even more freedom in getting the answers. It is good to ask. It is even better to insist on the truth.

Let the chips fall where they may.

So in our asking we are making the conscious choice to challenge the system that we have known up to the point of the asking. This choice will lead to the beginning stages of discovering who you really are. Don't let popular opinion make your decisions for you. Don't let anyone lead you away from what your heart tells you is true. Truth is not always the same for each and every person... and that is quite by design. Truth is personal. Think about it.

Think. About. It.

Think! My friend, your opinion is important. It should be heard, for without your opinion there might never exist a reality called world peace. Without your input it might take longer than necessary to get this planet (and its management) on track with what's best for our Earth.

God bless her.

You know, it might ultimately be proven that I know nothing. I may have to adjust my thinking as new information comes along, but for today what I know is that as long as I make an intentional choice to press for truth, never settling for anything that leaves me less than completely satisfied, I can wait for the answer as long as it takes. Time is an illusion anyway, so it may just work itself out overnight.

Peace, love, and happy thoughts...what else is there? -- jb

Hello World! I've Got Something to Say!

I just started trying to use Word Press. Don't ask me why, and it's not because I don't like Blogger. I really like it a lot. It's just that I keep hearing how I can do more, and do it better or whatever. So I was playing around with it and I got tired. See, I had a tooth pulled yesterday, and it hurt so bad I am all wimpy... you know how men are. I am embarrassed to tell you that this is a copy and paste job. I humbly beg your forgiveness :-)

_______________________

My name is Jeff Baker, and I am what I refer to as a philosopher-pontificate(r)-thinker-type person. I know that may sound sort of strange, but you’ll soon see that it makes sense : )

I am here to blog about life and the experiences (most being my own) that can contribute to the better life. I am hopeful that I will soon learn the intricacies of Word Press as I am sticking with Blogger for now. I felt the easiest way to get my first post published was to try a simpler program and apparently Blogger is a lot simpler, but at the expense of some cool things. I like the stuff I see, but I haven’t figured out how to do any of it for myself yet, and even though I want to make the change, I am having a bit of a slow start. I guess I am indeed a writer and would rather do what I am passionate about, and leave the “figuring out how to do everything” to someone better suited for it like my very talented wife/editor/bestest friend in the whole-wide-worldestest, Cornelia. At the same time, this has turned out to be more fun than I ever dreamed, and I will indeed tame the monster that is Word Press… eventually. If I ever get back to it. Right now my tooth hurts :/

Until then, please check to see how I am doing. I am quite the newbie as a writer, but I’ve been told I have real potential to get discovered. I’d like to think so, and I would appreciate your honest feedback and suggestions. I have to be prepared for the critics one day, right? So it makes sense that I would want to experience all that now, and try to make them (you) fall in love with me and my writing before I am famous. Really, please be open to say whatever you like or don’t like about my stuff. I really appreciate it.

You’ll find that I write mostly about the act of exclusion, thus the reference to “them.” We all are connected to the process in some way. I don’t know about you yet, but I know I’ve been picked last, omitted from the e-mail list, ignored by friends, and even shunned by the church. It hurts. But it doesn’t have to keep hurting. We choose, and everything we experience has been given our personal seal of approval to be experienced. Think about it for a moment.

Think. About. It.

I ramble some. You’ve been warned. I cover the gamut, from connecting peace to something like a hurricane, to exclusion being a teacher, along with rock songs, forgiveness, and Alzheimer’s Disease. Experience is our greatest teacher, of course, and sharing our experiences with one another in the form of stories brings us closer together. I love to tell stories, and I love to hear great stories too. I have a passion for being around when someone says, “I get it now!” Oh, before I proceed I want to qualify the term “it.”

It is when you meet yourself again for the first time :O

More on that later, so stick around. I really hope to create dialogue and get us thinking about what we can do about the state of our world. I think we all have differing opinions about what it might look like, but in the end I believe that we will see world peace, because I am equally certain that I have to make peace before I am able to contribute to the cause of peace. Forgive. Allow. Accept. Love. Think. All I am really trying to do is get us to think. The rest will come if we want it. I would be honored if you would join me.

Peace is the way, love is here to stay, and our thoughts allow it to happen today. -– jb

What Are You So Afraid Of?

I was driving around town yesterday and my mind began to wander towards an issue I've been dealing with and I felt it... that unmistakable twist in my gut, and I instantly knew I was going down the wrong road. Do you relate?

Sometimes we can fall prey to this attack without even knowing it, and before we have a chance to react, we have already made life miserable for others. Today, I am much better because I was able to recognize that deeply internal, egoic effort working at keeping me in a place of uncertainty, which invariably was just another face of fear. So what did I do? I corrected my thinking to reflect the truth of my situation and observed in amazement (once more) how quickly my true feelings about me and my future emerged.

Fear. What a persistently sneaky and insidious illusion. One possessing the potential of destroying everything in its path. Much like the storms of recent weeks down here in my neck of the woods, fear is only as strong as the conditions involved will allow it to be. Considering the indisputable fact that I created those perfect conditions, I just took control of the elements and decided that I was not afraid... and so it is.

These days are seemingly filled with elements that lend themselves to unnecessary confusion, hurt, and pain. There are unprecedented numbers of individuals bent on projecting their fears into the lives of those around them. Remember that old adage "Misery loves company"? Well, it may be a fact, but I am not miserable and I still love company. I love the company of friends that are traversing this beautiful, yet unpredictable path along with me. Constantly supportive, undying in their commitment to me, they are responsible for coming to my rescue when I am unclear or cloudy... or when someone is out to get me... lol.

If you, my friend, ever find yourself dealing with people who seem intent on making your life or the lives of those closest to you miserable, make the choice today to put distance between you and them. Keep in mind that they are lost in their own confusion, and there is no benefit for anyone involved if you just keep putting up with meanness and judgement when there are healthy alternatives :)

You see, we are not alone. We are never alone, and we are in this thing together. Loving these poor souls is the right choice... just do it from a happier place and leave them alone to their private war all by themselves. Eventually they may even wake up and discover for themselves how fear has nullified their potential for good. Offer them peace in your prayers and meditation, but do not allow yourself to be the victim. Again, it is your choice.

Choose to love them and watch their power over you dissolve into thin air. Love them and you can rest your mind about them and get on with living your life the way it is intended to be lived. Free of judgement; free of conflicting emotions, free of fear. Who knows? If enough of us will just let it be, your former "victimizers" might come to the awareness that they have no power over you anymore and they will quietly go their own way.

May you never be afraid, may you always feel loved and accepted, and may you know that no one can make you into a victim. Only you have that power.

Peace -- jb

Contrast - Balance - Choice - Freedom

Not too long ago, I arrived at a place where I was confronted with several questions. I had been rolling merrily along when, suddenly, I didn't know who I was. This came as quite a shock to my system. The kind of shock that is equivalent to a bad burrito. I had no idea what I really wanted, but I knew that I wanted more.

Sometimes on our journey, we pause. We take a moment and we look out to see what we can see. Well, I couldn't see anything. All I had were questions: Where am I? Where am I going? What do I want? Is this all there is? What do I want to do? Where do I want to be? What have I been doing? It seemed to come down to one question in the end. And that question is eternal and universal: Who am I?

When I reflect on those days, there is the advantage of having already passed through and gotten some answers to some of the questions. But back then, for me, it was the most unsettling time of my life. I can see now where I was naive' or out of step with myself, but when I was in it, there was all of this contradiction, irony, and contrast.

This post stems from my continuing self discovery and the ideas that are birthed in the process of my eternal questioning. I want to talk a little about contrast. When I was young, there was a knob I could turn on my television and the image contrast was adjusted. The same was true for other elements of the picture I was observing. I could darken it or lighten it, just by turning a knob. When color came along, I could play with those settings as well and change the colors if I wasn't pleased with what I saw.

It is all automatic today and that is fine. It is nice that some things are taken care of, and I don't have to fuss over a particular setting. At the same time, there are some things in life that are still manually adjustable. I can control the adjustment of some things, but it would appear that there are a whole host of things over which I have absolutely no control. Contrast is one of the terms I use in dealing with and describing the truth of that fact.

There are times when I am so consumed by my fears and my current crisis that I am frozen. Melancholy rules my mood and influences my thoughts. Then there are those times of absolute clarity. All is well. I am clear minded about my purpose. I am loved. I am loving and I am living the life I love. All my thoughts are positive, and there is passion in every word and deed.

Clearly, we would all prefer the life of clarity and passion. We do know the difference. All of us want to go through life with little or no resistance. We want cooperation from everyone. We want abundance... no lack and no insufficiency. We want happiness and balance.

Enter contrast. I am beginning to think contrast, in and of itself, is just another form of balance. Why is there ever a time when I am seemingly out of sync? Why is it sometimes famine instead of feast? Who decides when it shifts? Why does it happen? Without contrast am I able to really see? If everything is perfect, do I appreciate? Do I grow lazy if no challenge ever presents itself?

Do you think about that?

I am sitting here in front of this screen, pecking slowly away, and I am not completely free or abundant physically - at least not at this precise moment. In fact, I have a stray thought of melancholy lurking here and there. I even found myself frozen once today... but only for a second. And I wasn't driving, thank God.

At the same time -- and this is why I blog -- I have this knowing. This inexplicable certainty that it's all good. I am loved, loving and living the life I've chosen. If something isn't perfect about my present situation, it is ok. I am right where I am. I am right where I am supposed to be. I don't need to "see" the work being done or the stage being set to know that. I just know. You know? I want you to know.

I remind myself that I am the one observing myself and the situations I find myself in. I am free to interpret what I see in any way I choose. In fact, It is this choosing that makes all of it ok. I am the one who makes the choices. There is no one to blame if I don't like what I see.

Here's the deal: As soon as I place myself in the place of contentment, I have saved myself from myself. No more thoughts of despair because I can't control or predict an outcome. And I don't have to give up on my dreams while I am being content. I never set aside my goals. I never quit dreaming. I just accept what I have now. It is ok, right now. I have found that the sooner I allow what is happening to happen; as soon as I give up trying to control what is happening; and as soon as I give myself a break from trying to predict the outcome of what is happening, the sooner I allow myself to see that right now is really good.

Joseph Campbell said it better than anyone when he said, "Follow your bliss." Don't forget that the abundant life is a promise, not a pipe dream. Seek, find, ask, believe, receive, knock. And if need be, knock some more. Doors are opening all around us. Doors leading to the life of our dreams. This is a truly blissful life if I choose it. I can choose to see a myriad of reasons to be hopeful, to be happy. I can choose right now to be ok with myself, my situation, and my dreams for the future. I choose. I choose to see what I choose to see and I like what I see.

How about you? Let me hear from you today. E-mail me at Hearme@JeffBakerTalks.com and then come on over and Join my blog network on Facebook Blog Networks.

Well, so what?

Ever had one of those days when everything goes really, really well?

I have had that kind of day and I started thinking: So what?

So what?

Think of all the days that we have had that we categorized as bad. What's the difference?

Well, for me it all starts as I am waking up and gathering my world. This is where daily choices begin. Do I choose life or do I choose death. You can replace those words with whatever floats your boat... happy/sad, grouchy/cheerful, etc... it doesn't matter how we phrase it. The fact is, we choose everything. I guess I chose to have a really, really good day today.

So, you might say, "JB, that's too much of an oversimplification." So what? It's my blog... just kidding. But we do choose, man. It's the most beautiful thing when you stop and think about it. It's like saying, "I am the master of my universe. It is up to me." And if you said that, you'd be right!

When you have a rotten day, what do you do? Look for someone to blame? The guy who cut you off in traffic; your kid who left the bigass truck outside your bedroom door that you tripped over; God; your wife; your boss... get the picture? We like to blame. It takes the attention away from me and my actions. ok... I'm rambling.

Here's the deal -- Even if your day starts out on the wrong foot, stop! Don't let another second pass until you remind yourself that everything else about your day will be a result of how you react to the start of your day. You have the power to ignore the illusion of a bad day and choose to make the day what you want it to be. Unless you want to have a bad day, in which case I am certain that you need to visit a different blog. :-)

My friends, I have convinced myself that if I start my day with love for myself, the guy that will cut me off in traffic, my kid (he's actually away at college so I need a different example here), God, my wife...(they're not one in the same), my boss (I don't have one but you might, so the example is sound), whomever!!! -- If I start each day from LOVE, there is a really good chance that the world can change "in the blink of an eye."

Put that in your pipe and smoke it -- peace for now.

jb

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