The Zen of Attitude Adjustment, Or, Let the Sweet Two by Four of Life Draw You Into the Moment

Last updated on: August 30, 2016 at 9:25 am by James Ford

The Zen of Attitude Adjustment, Or, Let the Sweet Two by Four of Life Draw You Into the Moment 2016-08-30T09:25:20-07:00 James Ford

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Have you ever been mugged and had a friend ask you why you wanted that to happen? This actually happened to a friend of mine. The premise within this exchange is that we are in control of what happens to us. If we’re right with the universe everything we want will be ours. And, so, if we have cancer, we wanted it. If a child is born into a war and starves to death, well. They must have had unfinished business to deal with. If you’re raped. Born into poverty. Have a spouse that beats you. Are rich. Have everything handed to you on a golden platter. Live to be a hundred and two.

All your choice.

I would say something extremely crude at this point, but I like to keep this blog G with just an occasional foray into PG territory. Let me, just for a second cross over to that PG. This view is pure bullshit.

If it were true, then, well, however hard it is, we would have to deal with it. I’m very much up for hard truths. So long as they’re true. But in this case, it’s not.

So, instead, I offer another way of looking at the mess we’re in.

The universe is very big. Very, very big. It consists of many, many different things going on. Each of these things happening are influencing other things. At some point everything is connected with everything. In a last analysis sort of way we are all connected. Like a web of interdependence.

And. You bet. What we think, what we feel and what we do are parts of that great mix of motions that lead to other motions. Back to that everything is connected.

But here’s the sad news. You & I are real, but as temporary as morning dew. Our egos, well, they’re real too, but they’re only there to help us get from here to there. They have no existence outside their moment of usefulness. And. The universe doesn’t give a flying fig that you want to be rich, or healthy, or anything in particular.

What happens inside your skull is important. No doubt. Attitude matters. How you approach things can be very important in your tiny corner of the universe. And we can never know the full extent of the waves caused by our small stone cast into the waters. But that mattering really is almost entirely very personal. Your thing. My thing. Our thing to a limited degree.

And, yes, absolutely, yes, ultimately all connected, even our passing bodies, even our passing egos. But we are not God. We are not the center of things beyond that mysterious truth of the universe where everything is the center. But that truth does not extend to our egos finding the right rhythm and the universe will dance to your tune. What we think, the waves of our actions, are limited. Want some hard evidence? How about somewhere along the line no matter what you think, you will die. And it will be a dead death. And the universe will get along quite nicely.

Thinking your thinking shifts the universe in any significant way is silly. Until you tell someone else their thinking led to their distress. Then it becomes evil. Evil. A hard word. But the right one. And it doesn’t matter who tells you otherwise. New Age pundit. Zen Buddhist teacher. They say you create the universe inside your head in some literal way, and they’re full of fecal matter.

All that said, this is the important point. Look for that which will actually help you to heal your heart and to be fully here in this world. Look to wake up. Open your heart. Open your mind. With that, here’s an attitude adjustment that might actually help.

Just be present.

Adjust your attitude. Let the sweet two by four of life draw you into the moment.

If someone actually wakes up to who they are, they will discover a great and compelling intimacy. With their own hearts. Your heart. With the environment. Your environment. My heart. My environment. You. Me. We are. A great web. Intimate, intimate. And, I’ve noticed, as we discover this truth, we are changed. Our hearts becoming larger. We care a bit more. And our actions can become the work of God. Even if you and I, we’re only tending a tiny corner of the vineyard.

That’s what the ancient teachings were really pointing to. And of vastly more value than thinking positive thoughts to get rich. And blaming the poor sods who don’t.

You’re welcome.

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