Thoughts on Thinking, the Empty Mind and Not-Doing

It’s Tao Tuesday – a fun little reminder to think these thoughts, to examine these principles, to engage the spirit and delve into this understanding, or non-understanding as the case may be. One day of the week, as originally instigated by Amy Putkonen over at Tao te Ching Daily. She has a whole list of every chapter and articles or responses to every one. I … Continue reading Thoughts on Thinking, the Empty Mind and Not-Doing

Endless View from Rocking Chairs

What a completely blissful day. These are the new rockers we picked up at a garage sale this weekend, and this is the view looking out onto our back field in Southern Oregon. It goes on and on and we end up with stunning sunsets all summer long. I sat out here and read the first chapter of The Conscious Parent for a new reading … Continue reading Endless View from Rocking Chairs

A Matter of Perspective

  Tao Tuesday – in participation with the Tao Te Ching Daily site by Amy Putkonen.   Chapter 79   Failure is an opportunity. If you blame someone else, there is no end to the blame.   Therefore the Master fulfills her own obligations and corrects her own mistakes. She does what she needs to do and demands nothing of others.   First, I read Amy’s essay … Continue reading A Matter of Perspective

Calm as Water

  Tao Tuesdays: Thanks to Amy Putkonen of Tao Ta Ching Daily. Chapter 78 Nothing in the world is as soft and yielding as water. Yet for dissolving the hard and inflexible, nothing can surpass it. The soft overcomes the hard; the gentle overcomes the rigid. Everyone knows this is true, but few can put it into practice. Therefore the Master remains serene in the … Continue reading Calm as Water

Words and Thoughts that Change our Molecules

I like Aha Moments. I’m an Aha Moment Junkie. I have them all the time, and revel in the ways my mind can become excited all over again about a new idea. And then another one, and another one. I’m like a kid in a candy store of thoughts. They’re all so sparkly and shiny and delicious. Which is one reason I love to read. … Continue reading Words and Thoughts that Change our Molecules

Lessons in Learning

Let me preface by saying that after writing today’s reflection, I feel raw because of how much I have to learn. This motherhood thing is ever changing, constant learning, every day more to understand about ourselves and therefore how we parent. I choose to keep thinking that every day I am trying to be better, but a lot of times, I feel the weight of how … Continue reading Lessons in Learning

Balance – That Damned Word

Tao Te Ching – Chapter 74 – with Reflection If you realize that all things change, there is nothing you will try to hold on to. If you aren’t afraid of dying, there is nothing you can’t achieve.   Trying to control the future is like trying to take the master carpenter’s place. When you handle the master carpenter’s tools, chances are that you’ll cut … Continue reading Balance – That Damned Word

Wild Beyond Wild, Calm Within Calm

We have been Home Schooling for a bit now, and there have been good days and struggling days. My Ben is so much like me that we can butt heads. We are learning how to work together for mutual benefit. In the process of beginning Home Schooling, I let the Homestead fall to the wayside. I started buying packaged foods because I didn’t have time … Continue reading Wild Beyond Wild, Calm Within Calm

Unexpected Up-Side of our Organic-ish Farming Venture

We say Organic-ish, because we do use Wasp Spray. Other than that, we don’t spray anything on our garden, no chemicals, no weed-killers, and it turns out, that’s a really good thing. Our animals love all those weeds. At first we were pulling weeds, now I’m out every morning Clipping Weeds. That’s right, I clip them because I need them to grow back. Our turkeys, … Continue reading Unexpected Up-Side of our Organic-ish Farming Venture

Parenting and The Doorway to the Mysteries of Life

This article is based on a prompt from a blog I enjoy called the Tao Te Ching Daily – which gives beautiful, peaceful, soothing, inviting, mindful advice about living. The Tao, as I understand it, is a philosophy of thought, read and enjoyed by C.S. Lewis among a multitude of others. On her blog, writer Amy Putkonen works through her interpretations of the writings within The … Continue reading Parenting and The Doorway to the Mysteries of Life