Know Thyself

Nosce te Ipsum

The greater your knowledge and appreciation of your Self, the greater the resilience you have in times of change. Knowing my Self has really saved my ass on more than one occassion. I reckon that the guy who got rich writing "Chicken Soup for the Soul" was just taking excerpts from his own journal... that those were all pieces of advice he'd picked given himself for how be more successful living his life. Or that guy who wrote "Conversations with God," wasn't he also getting to know himself in the presence of God and the reader?

That's probably the appeal for blogging and tweeting and the like. Who doesn't enjoy talking to them Self? And why not learn things in the presence of others? Martin Buber's philosophy was that God only exists between I and thou. According to him, there is no divine if there is no unfolding relationship. So why not have a super healthy relationship with your Self? And if you believe that we are all ONE, then there are billions of different faces of your Self. Like a kaliedescopic funhouse mirror. "I am you and you are me and we are we, come together right now, over me!"

Today I feel compelled to try and distill all the most valuable things I've learned into 5 or less points. The truth of the matter is I'm doing it just for me. I don't think it's selfish to be Self serving on occassion. Especially if you're the kind of person who cares deeply about others and spends lots of time trying to serve and support others.

1. My experience and emotions change in cycles with the moon and the sun seasons. I like it like that.
2. My roots run deep. If I get plenty of rest, sunshine, fresh veggies, and fresh air then I can handle just about anything.
3. I am vulnerable. Being Hungry, Angry, Lonely or Tired is feedback which deserves instant self-care. If I'm ever any two of these at the same time I HALT and care for myself.
4. The best way to instantly shift a negative emotional experience is to truly feel care or appreciation for someone or something in my life. Facebook has made that really efficient for me!
5. All bullshit is an opportunity to grow. Dig in and turn the shit around. It all makes great compost! Can't grow without it!

There's another thing that I can't seem to boil down to a pithy little statement. It has to do with being real and trusting other people. There are months in the spring and summer when I feel deeply serene and my capacity to love and care for others is really expansive. In fall I'm feeling a natural contraction and movement inward. And then sometime every winter I feel lousy and fragile. Sometimes I am afraid to admit it because maybe the people who love the leafy green summer tree will think the scraggly winter tree is ugly or even broken. But thankfully I've been through this winter thing 35 times and I've figured out that it is okay to be a real person. Hell, it's better than okay because most of the time the people who love leafy green summer trees can appreciate that seasons change and some of them actually enjoy being able to nurture and support a scraggly and wind blown nekked winter tree!

It takes a village to raise a child. A tree needs the whole universe... earth, wind, sunlight, water, moonlight, gardeners, apple-eaters, aphids, worms, termites, owls, bullshit, and even a LOGGER and a CARPENTER now and then!