"The day the power of love over rules the love of power
the world will know peace."
~Mahatma Gandhi

My daughter sent this quote to me last week. I felt it so poignant with all that is happening in our world. Then I thought, not just in our world but in some cases our communities and even our homes. How much truth does this quote ring to you? 

Today I want to also add an excerpt from Leo Buscaglia's book, Born for Love: Reflections on Loving, page 74. It kind of goes along with the quote above, kind of, especially the last sentence. I'd love to know your thoughts, hear/read your comments but mostly, I hope you strive to radiate love; pure, divine love in your home, your community, your world!

Striving to be Loved, Rather Than Striving to Love

We expect to be loved and are quick to condemn those who do not comply. We believe that life comes with a guarantee that we will be loved. It rarely occurs to us that the degree to which we are loved is directly related to our loveability.

We are all acquainted with individuals who are constantly moody, who look for the dark side of everything, who are fearful of commitment, who shirk from responsibility, who flare up at the least provocation and then wonder why they are not sought after, why they are not loved. Who would love such a person except someone who is asking for unhappiness?

It is when we ask for love less and begin giving love more that the basis of human love is revealed to us.

After re-reading the quote and the excerpt, I had to ask myself and I invite you to ask yourself as well, "How often am I the one who fits the description from paragraph 2 above?" Maybe not constantly moody or always quick to flare up; occasionally I do shirk from responsibility and do see the dark side. Then I asked myself, "How loveable am I? How much do I love myself? Enough to love more?" Should we seek within ourselves first?

In Joy and In Love ~ Julia

The following is a little excerpt from The Art of Relaxation class found in the Genuine You online course. There is so much rich content, loads of ideas and resources, several personal stories (I love story telling); it’s chock full of me, my passion for simply living a beautiful life. But, in Genuine You this isn’t all you get. There are 8 other women who share their passion for life with you too. This self paced online course is designed to guide and enrich your life.

Go to my home page, see it here to your left?  click on Home, then click on the Genuine You image, check out the teachers, our classes, and because I just know you’ll want to join us. I’ll see you soon in Genuine You.

For now, enjoy this tiny little snippet from The Art of Relaxation!

 “There is more to life than increasing its speed.” 
~ Mohandas K. Gandi 

“The world is getting better and better and worse and worse, faster and faster, simultaneously.”
~ Tom Atlee, Co-Intelligence Institute

And so it seems to be that we live in a hurry up, fast paced world which continues to pick up speed. Even if you have mild to no stress, just being among this much acceleration can cause tension.

Remember, though, you have control. While you can’t slow down time, you can slow down and make the most of your time. In so doing, you can center in on what’s important, get yourself grounded, and be better able to focus on any situation or stress you maybe in or facing.

There are many ways to slow down. Sometimes, for me, it might just be going out and greeting the Sun or sitting and gazing up at the Stars.

• Do you recognize when you need to slow down? Begin to recognize when stress elevates, and choose to slow down for a moment.
• In what ways do you slow down now?
• How can being aware of and acting upon the need to slow down be part of your Art of Relaxation?

This picture of TinyCat reminds us to simply slow down and soak up a little Sunshine. Just looking at her stretched out like this is relaxing.  

Happy Equinox. I had a little unexpected extra time this morning and thought why not attempt a V-log, sure, get a little practice in, get a little more comfortable with the camera, so, here's to some silly rambling and sharing all the while keeping it so simple. Enjoy, laugh, venture out into nature....or just think I'm silly, mostly, thanks for being here 

Hoping you enjoy this weeks simple reading. I've LOVED receiving your comments both here and via private messages. Thank you! If you didn't read last weeks except and the accompanying comments, I invite you to do so. Wowsers, there's some great dialog going on there. Deep gratitude to those of you who posted your thoughts.

I've got some exciting things percolating with regards to A Course In Love, a few new collaborations, and upcoming events with KISS. I'm just so stinkin' excited. Hope you stay close so you get the low down as soon as they are revealed. 

Also, Genuine You has begun! Hooray! If you scroll back over, to your left, click on keeping it so simple's home page tab, once it opens, you'll see the Genuine You image. If you click on the image, you'll be taken to the site which tells you all about the cool classes and teachers and you can sign up right then and there too. I'm pretty sure you're gonna want to participate in this fabulous personal development course, so, when you're ready, I totally would appreciate you registering from keeping it so simple's home page. Hoping to see you in Genuine You. Now, to today's A Course In Love! ~ In Joy and In Love ~ Me :) xox

PS - Be sure to leave a thought or comment if you feel inspired or inclined.

The Cumulative Effect of Our Simple Acts
pg 268

Every act has its consequence. We may not be aware of its importance, but in someway, each event contributes to a bigger picture, the significance of which will be revealed only in time. If we can accept this, we can appreciate the importance of the simple, seemingly inconsequential acts we perform without thought, words we speak without considerations, or hopes we dash without regard.

Oh how my mind was set yesterday heading out for a good spin in that racer chair, I was determined to not get distracted. It’s easy to not be distracted when I turn right out of the driveway; that’s downhill and with a few good cranks of the back wheels, I stretch forward, lean down into the wind and let myself fly. But, it’s the return trip which is all uphill, that tends to distract me.

Of course, my endurance is down, shoulders are weak, and I’m still looking for a groove. Knowing the need to protect my shoulders, I concentrate on using more triceps (which have lost enough tone they about slap me back when I wave) and rhomboid and trapezius (not sure if these are the correct ones but engaging more of my upper back). I breathe into these muscle groups, imagining an increased level of rich oxygen nourishing them, powering me, knowing a good groove will suddenly appear out of this self discipline . And, you know it probably would if I didn't allow myself to get distracted.

I’m not even winded yet when a bellowing momma cow breaks my concentration; looking up I watch two young ones chase each other in the hay-field. Up a little further, George the Dog is running around, barking, inviting me to come on up the street and visit with him and his person. How could I resist. After a friendly chat and several ear scratches for George, I reaffirm my determination, “Really, Jules, how are you ever going to be ready for 5K let alone a ½ marathon if you don’t get your head in the game!?”

It wasn't long before the wild aster, sage, hollyhock, and the mountain bumblebees frolicking among them called out to me. I had to pause and deeply inhale the final fragrant scents of Summer as she makes way for Autumn. Dancing in the breeze these gorgeous blooms seem to be cheering me on, rooting for me, reminding me, once again, it isn't about running the race it’s about enjoying the journey. 

Unlike last weeks post where I didn't encourage or expect dialog, this week may dialog flow. I'm curious what you think about one if not both thoughts on love. They both certainly sparked responses in me, but I'll save my personal thoughts for later. Enjoy today's reads for A Course In Love.

Love cannot exist in peace, it will always come accompanied by agonies, ecstasies, intense joys and profound sadnesses.
~ Paulo Coelho

Love Makes Us More

Love encourages us to venture into places in our minds and hearts never before explored and which would never have been disclosed except for love. In essence, love reveals us to ourselves.

In love we find the security which encourages us to risk, to try again, to find new behavioral alternatives for old ways. We more deeply discover ourselves as we discover each other. From lovers we are presented with a new vision, a realization that the world we have defined for ourselves may have been delimiting and we are encouraged to open up to new perceptions made possible only through someone else's vision.

Love offers us the most fertile soil for growth. We nurture that soil by enriching it with a willingness to give up our old self and our useless preconceptions. In return, we are presented with a broader vision of ourselves and a world of limitless possibilities for our discovery. Love is not blind. It has perfect vision. It makes it possible for us to see as we have never seen before.

Page 120, Born for Love: Reflections on Loving, Leo Buscaglia

I really want to know what you think, what these sparked within you. Go on, get conversation going about LOVE. I would love for you to leave a comment here or via a private message from over on the contact tab or on Facebook. But mostly, take these thoughts and begin dialog right where you are, love is quite powerful.

In Joy and In Love ~ Julia

Yesterday morning was beautiful and finally having a full release from my doctor (okay, as long as I take it slow) I scooted into the seat. It had been almost a year since my last ride. There was some awkwardness settling in, a strangeness at finding a groove, blisters arrived much too soon, and as far as taking it slow, well, my shoulder and bicep let me know it wasn't time to fully bust through. The only disappointment, while rolling out of the driveway, was my IPod was dead and my music isn't loaded on my phone so, I headed out on this return ride with only my thoughts.

So many 'things' have come up over the last several weeks. Memories, including ones long forgotten, current 'things' going on, am I enough 'things, just a whole lot of funky 'things'. You know those 'things' which, hide themselves in the subconscious and, for whatever strange reason, run out shouting, "Surprise!" and it gets you every time.

Leaving the driveway left would be up hill, right down hill, I chose right. Pushing a few hard cranks on the wheels, I stretched forward and let the speed take over hoping the loud rush of wind would, if not drown out the mind chatter would at least blow it away for a space of time. What happened was most interesting. With each curve, twist, and turn taken I noticed my shadow and the shadow of the chair. Seamlessly the shadows moved with me, aligning with light, like perfect dancing partners.

As I continued to notice this fluid dance, I became increasingly aware that my shadow parts are no more separate from me, their source, than my light is separate from me. And, here's the kicker, the real shout, "Surprise!"; with as uncomfortable as I have been lately with these shadow 'things', I am just as uncomfortable with my light 'things'. In fact, I tend to hide from my light as much as I hide my shadow.

The parts are never greater than the sum. And it's all the parts, light and shadow, which make up the whole, but when light and shadow are given the okay to dance their dance...wowsers, magnificence is magnified.

Thoughts and ideas came forth about why and how to meet these surfacing subconscious 'things'. There is purpose in the, "Surprise!" and to allow the integration of light and shadow to take center stage as they simply, seamlessly know how to dance.

Dimming our light mutes our shadow! 
Dimmed light and muted shadow dulls our brilliance!

For this weeks 'A Course In Love', I switched things up a bit and decided to share a portion of the 67th Verse of the Tao taken from Change Your Thoughts-Change Your Life, Living the Wisdom of the Tao by Dr. Wayne W. Dyer.

I have three treasures, which I hold fast
and watch closely.
The first is mercy.
The second is frugality.
The third is humility

From mercy comes courage.
From frugality comes generosity.
From humility comes leadership.
Now if one were bold but had no mercy,
If one were broad but were not frugal,
If one went ahead without humility,
one would die.

Love vanquishes all attackers.
It is impregnable in defense.
When heaven wants to protect someone,
does it send an army?
No, it protects him with love.

These words are powerful, thought provoking, deep and yet quite simple. I encourage you to breathe them in, whisper them to your heart and ponder.

• Do you have these three, mercy, frugality, humility?
  
• Do you hold fast to and watch them closely? Why?
  
• Where is the seat of mercy? Are you merciful and how can/does courage come from this place?
  
• When you are frugal, is it out of a sense of necessity or generosity? What is your attitude in the state of frugality?
  
• How do you arrive to humility? Why is humility a good leadership skill?
  
• Would one surely die? What dies?
  
• Heaven has sent Love. How have you received heaven's Love? What depth of Love is spoken here? 
  

I've pondered this verse for a few days now, from my wide view Christian perspective, as a spiritual, spirited woman who oozes with humanness, and one who has a very personal relationship with God. 

I really don't expect many private or general comments to this sharing of my intentionally limited thoughts, the questions posed, and this portion of Verse 67 of the Tao. What I hope is this evokes thought especially in light of so much going on in our homes, communities, nation, and our world, not only with mankind but nature and the animal kingdom too.

In Joy and In Love, Blessings.

When was the last time you looked up into the night sky and really saw the stars? How about the creamy spray of the Milky Way? 

Saturday night I happened to stroll outside and look up, as if being called, and the vista took my breath away. So impressed with what I saw, I had to bring my kids who are home with me out to take a look. For a few moments the three of us, with heads tilted back, spun around taking in as much of the domed landscape as possible. A innumerable amount of stars and the creamy splash of more star light within the clearly visible Milky Way band. Oh so beautiful. What was seen and unseen sparked brief conversation and lingering thoughts for each of us.

When one really looks up and takes in the vista of a star filled night sky wonderment can not help but enter the conscious and subconscious mind. And, those thoughts usually can be peeled back to a sense of significance or insignificance depending on which course they take.

With gratitude and hope I take the course of significance. Significance in that I have been sent to this earthly realm not to merely muddle my way though alone but thought woven connectedness to experience this divine journey, a journey which is only a part of a greater whole, an eternal journey...so much thought, so many reminders, so many questions, all brought anew with one look upwards to the heavens...and mixed in is a sense of longing, a homesickness, a peek at the tapestry of life...

Last night, again, the stars called out to me (actually my daughter called me out, "Hey momma, I've never seen the Big Dipper look this large before, come check it out.") 

So our perspective has shifted, changed a bit, our view expanded and larger, as the Big Dipper, which was amazingly huge last night.

There is a restlessness deep within my bones and I'm being called. Do I follow the course of significance in the call and the restlessness or pass it off as insignificant? Tonight, I shall allow the stars to pull me outside again knowing it is also a pull inside to wonder and weave, to question and know...

Can you hear the stars calling you outside too? 
Is it time to recognize the significance of a restlessness inside of you?

I invite to follow the pull.