Joe Sample & Lalah Hathaway - When Your Life Was Low - (I WISH THIS WAS A LOVE SONG)

BE OF PRESENT MIND...

Be of present mind...

So I’m in a maxi-cab or whatever they are called. It’s after work, it’s getting dark. I have decided to take this time to write and offload. Its uncanny how when I didn’t drive I would have given a limb (as long as it didn’t hamper me from driving in the future) to be in traffic, in my own car, rocking my favourite tunes – driving home. Now that that is possible I take it for granted. I now want a better car, I now want to work from home, I’m aspiring for to sit at the back of my Rolls Royce with the newspaper and have a white blonde good-looking man drive me around, to afford never to be stuck in traffic. Be aware that I’m not where I thought I would be, there’s still a great distance between where I am and where I had planned to be. There is still a lot to be done, more to be said and to be observed.

With all this said, I acknowledge that in my head I’m living in the future. I dwell on how I hope things will be and merely visit what they actually and realistically are. I can hear you say – there’s nothing wrong with dreaming, aspirations can never be sins. True, yet there is a definite magic in ‘being present’ or rather ‘being of present mind’. I find that I’m missing the splendour of what now carries by being pre-occupied and restless about what the future might hold.

I liken it to walking on plush green grass, with budding, fragrant and stunning roses on either side but never noticing it because you are staring so far into the horizon, focusing so much on where you are going that you forget to really feel the comfort of the grass on your feet, you don’t notice the colours and beauty of the roses, you don’t hear the singing of the birds of the present but in your ears rings the orchestra of the future. Suddenly, you trip on a rock that was right in front of you – that you failed to see. Now you are forced to stare blankly at the very grass that was in front of you, the very same green that carries you to your beautiful orchestra, that delivers you to your supposedly bright future. Yes, my dear friend, it’s the very same earth that cushioned your fall. That grass is the now. That lawn is the present.

Now we’ve all heard the old sayings – ‘save for a rainy day’ and ‘the best days of your life are ahead of you and not behind you’. How about we say :enjoy the fruit of your sweat, tears and hard-earned education whilst you still have the teeth to look in the mirror and smile at your achievements. How about we say: the best days of your life are right now but you too busy  zooming in on the mistakes of your past and putting undue spotlight on the prospects. More simply put: BE OF PRESENT MIND.

As you read this, you have internet access, probably have two cell-phones, an above average roof-over your head, a degree or two, a cupboard full of designer clothes and a mode of transport to you to convey you from one hot spot to another. Eintlik, you can easily be referred to as John Blaze (or Jo-Anne Blaze for political correctness). Take stock of the now, the tomorrow isn’t cast in iron, yesterday might as well be a drop in the sea. Now is what you know, it’s what you are, it’s what you have become, its guaranteed for it IS happening. BE OF PRESENT MIND.

Being of present mind is about applying your mind, your being, your heart, your actions and all the components that sum up your being to what the universe had landed in your lap right now. I’m of the opinion that if you do this, then your tomorrow will be just as you expect and maybe even more. Pay attention, notice the colours, smells, auras, textures, the timing, the feelings, the posture, the temperament and other elements of your environment that allow you to be more receptive. Acknowledge the people around you now, pay attention to who they are, what they prefer and what currency they trade in, what they say – even what they don’t articulate. Do not have a conversation with someone whilst your mind is on your next appointment. Cherish the partner you have now and stop fantasizing about the phantom you’ve created in your mind for your pseudo existence in ten years time. Does that not allow for better relations, which will inevitably lead to prosperous dealings? Love what has been granted to you now - BE OF PRESENT HEART.

We often pray for this, that or the other but then we move on to the next request without being still and paying attention to the what type of answer God sends our way. We wait for lightning bolts from the heavens. Whilst the solution to our anguish is right in front of our wondering eyes. It could be the cleaner you refuse to have a conversation with in the lift ( he’s just not your type girl, he isn’t in the same LSM level) or a piece of paper you come across but never read as it’s not written in Sussex or UCT language, (neither is it presented in glittering sexy font) that may contain or offer the information we need to carry us to another glory. Be spiritually aware to hear from God, in order to do this you need to pay attention. In a nutshell – BE OF PRESENT MIND.

You’re loved

M.M

India Arie-Heart of the Matter

What I know for sure ....(Part2)

I know for sure that we are all striving for some type of significance, we have a need to be important to others, a need to feel needed and appreciated. I know with some degree of certainty that the very humans we look to for significance and acceptance don't always grant it to us as easily as we expect them to. They are often seeking the same that we seek from them elsewhere. What works is for you to be 'self-significant', accept yourself - warts and all with the same degree of expectation that you would command from another human.


I know for sure that we all have a child inside, sometimes we have to search through puddles of blood, scars sweat to find that giggling, chubby faced, inquisitive child whose arms are wide open asking to be picked up. That child comes out when we giggle, when we actively chase our dreams and inquire about our surroundings. That child shows his/her face when we crawl into foetal position and cry ourselves to sleep after being rejected. As TD Jakes so well puts it - What we call intimacy as adults is really allowing some other adult the privilege to see the child we hide under adult flesh.


I have recently learnt and now know for sure that sex doesn't have as much power as we grant it. It all starts in the mind. Our God-granted minds are way more powerful than the body. The body's might is all controlled from the mind. Sex and all things that claim power over us must be managed and controlled from the mind which has the power to differentiate between right and wrong.

What I know for sure....

The more I learn, the less I seem to know. I have had to re-learn everything I thought I knew about love, life, relations and peace of mind. What I know for sure is based on my background and experiences.

I know for sure that God is alive and that His plans are to prosper me and take me from strength to strength. He guides my steps, but only when I'm willing to make a move. He protects me. I also know that ALL my prayers are answered, and not necessarily in the manner I expect...that a NO from God is still an answer.

I know that there are no guarantees in life - nothing is for sure. We do our best to have insurances and soft landings, what we fail to see is that its not in our hands. Sometimes we have to close our eyes, take a deep breath and go for it. If nothing moves, we can be assured that it will shake - if that doesn't happen, we know for sure that something will be stirred on the inside of us.

I know for sure that forgiveness is liberating, if frees you of the burden of rage and condemnation. I also know that the person/s who have hurt need not be apologetic or even ask for forgiveness for us to forgive. You don't need their consent to free your soul, you don't need their permission to liberate your mind. Forgiveness is of God, so when it is hard to do, kneel and ask for a forgiving spirit - it will be given unto you.