Life is a Ride...

   Life is a ride.  The day will come for each of us when we must look inside ourselves and realize that it is not about us.

   Ask anyone who has truly lived, they will tell you that the moments of greatest impact in their lives, the moments of greatest joy and love have all occurred when they where focused on doing something greater than themselves.  Whether it is a simple act of kindness or being part of some greater cause or assisting someone else to believe in them self or to helping them to see the bigger picture or even helping them take care of their basic needs so that they no longer have all of their attention on poverty of spirit or means.  This is when fulfillment happens.  When we become what we are created to be.

   The greatest gift you can give to anyone is being completely present when you are with them.  Presence is a marvelous thing that defies the laws of physics and fulfills the laws of spirit.  The more you give it away and share it with others, the more of it you have!  The more it grows the more it becomes contagious and blesses all who experience your presence, even if they themselves are not yet ready for it.  It's like planting seeds. The seed is now there until the day that they are the fertile ground for it to grow and develop in.

  That is the beauty of being on this ride.  There is a song that Garth Brooks sings called "The Dance".  Some of the lyrics of the song expresses for me how much of an incredible ride this life can be.  Being a ride, we cannot know the outcome or where it will lead us, we simply choose to either enjoy it or not.  I know which I choose.

And now I'm glad I didn't know

The way it all would end the way it all would go 

Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain 

But I'd of had to miss the dance 

   This particular song was at the top of the charts when our first daughter was born.  She did not stay with us for the whole day before she left.  I still have a hard time listening to this song in public.  I am sure glad that she came and blessed our lives with her presence, no matter how brief.

   Some of the greatest blessings of my life have come from her visit.  I began my path to greater awareness of  presence and inner peace because of her influence and the not always gentle nudges that life has given me.

   I am thankful for every breath!  I am grateful to know presence!  I love life and could not, not live it having the perspective I do now.

   May you live a fabulous day!  May you be grateful for all you meet this fine day and may you share this gratitude with someone who needs to feel it.

Grace and love to you,

Billy B.

Getting more than you imagined.

   A tweet inspired me today.  "You can be self centered and get what you want or you can be non-egocentric and get more than you imagined."

   I have been asked to give a short presentation to a group of Technologists today about how technology is no excuse for poor people skills.  As I have prepared for this little presentation, I realized that sometimes our poor people skills is caused by us listening to the wrong voice within.  Meaning that being self serving, (intentionally or unintentionally) we assume that others know what we are thinking or see things just as we do.

   You know what happens when we assume, we make an ....... out of "u" and "me".

   I agree that technology has become very important to us all whether we realize it or not.  The question is, do we allow it to complicate our lives or do we use it to allow us to focus on what matters most.

   There are people who will get attention because of what they will do for it and there are people who will get attention because of what they do.  Do we understand the true measure of intention?  Do we realize that the true rewards we receive is determined by our intentions?

   When self serving, we get our own reward immediately.  Just as Jesus said of those that pray on the street corners, they get exactly what they wanted.  Instant gratification in essence.  When we serve others with real intention (not simply as a hired hand or by obligation) then there are rewards that come from sources you could never access through self service.  Such as love, appreciation and loyalty, these are the rewards and blessings that come through selfless service.

   I am not perfect, nor would I suggest that I know more than anyone else.  I have learned from my own experiences that when we look beyond ourselves and seek the well being of others, our eyes are opened to a life that becomes a magical work of art that can stir the souls of men to even greater causes and greater good.   To put it another way, selfless service creates big picture thinking and big picture results.

   Who wouldn't want to be part of something bigger than themselves?

   May you find yourself in the service of others this day.  May you see the canvas of your life intermingled with the greater cause of humanity.

   Peace and Big Picture living for each and every one of you.

Billy B