See here for more info on Philip’s life and work!

This piece is from “The Hours” (motion picture, 2002), but it feels to me brisk, subtle and peaceful like a snow-filled morning.

The kind we have right now, and the kind I hope you’ll have today… :)

Filed under: Savour Tagged: Art, Morning Passages, Mrs Dalloway, Music, Philip Glass, Ravi Shankar, Sounds, The Hours, Virginia Woolf, Winter ]]> http://roxiciopei.wordpress.com/2012/01/23/happy-monday-philip-glass-morning-passages/feed/ 0 roxiciopei http://roxiciopei.wordpress.com/2012/01/17/inspirational-tuesday-2/ http://roxiciopei.wordpress.com/2012/01/17/inspirational-tuesday-2/#comments Tue, 17 Jan 2012 16:07:18 +0000 Roxi http://roxiciopei.wordpress.com/?p=1923 Read More

“Not my problem” is not a philosophy. It’s a mental illness. Right up there with pessimism. Other people’s problems are our problems. If your neighbor is laid off, you may feel as if you’ve dodged the bullet, but you haven’t. The bullet hit you as well. You just don’t feel the pain yet. Or as Ruut Veenhoven put it: “The quality of a society is more important than your place in that society.”

In other words, better to be a small fish in a clean pond than a big fish in a polluted lake.

Eric Weiner, “The Geography of Bliss”, Twelve Books, New York, 2008. page 271.

If you’re interested in reading a journalist’s perspective traveling the world in the search of the happiest places, trying to make sense of this alluring and yet, evasive concept (happiness and the places that could provide it), this is a good book to try out. I laughed out loud and was enthralled by it many times. Having asked myself the same questions plenty of times before, especially since I started traveling extensively beginning with my early twenties, I found the book an eye opener on some countries and cultures I have yet to see.

I also took a photo while I was reading it in Sankt Polten last year, accompanied by a very delicious Austrian snack ;)

You can purchase the book here!

Filed under: Ponder Tagged: Austria, Books, Community, Cultures, Eric Weiner, Getting involved, Inspirational Tuesday, Manner, Manner Wachauer, Me, Photos, Quotes, Reading, Sankt Polten, The geography of bliss, Traveling ]]>

If we do not like where we are at, if we are unhappy, then we owe it to ourselves to try and leave. There is an entire world out there that has something for everyone.

Sometimes, only 2, 5 hours away, by hopping on a train/car and you can reach a different place that is more suitable for you. A different reality altogether. Other times, just a little distance, geographically, can help us put our lives into a different perspective.

Like rediscovering your city by showing it to someone foreign, a stranger; it’s like leaving the map behind when you travel to a new place and having the faith that you will find your way back and that the others WILL help you if you ask. Try it! It is liberating and life changing.

With another new year, what better way to start than by challenging ourselves to get out of our comfort zone?…

Unfortunately, I could not find a good quality video for this song on youtube, but you can listen to it on Grooveshark.

Another fresh new year is here… Another year to live!

To banish worry, doubt, and fear.

To love, and laugh, and give!

William Arthur Ward

We are taking a break from the Monday and Tuesday’s series but will come back in full force with the new year, in January. Do send me your suggestions for both until then.

I have something for you though, something to inspire us when we make our plans and establish our goals for the New Year and when we look back upon the past year.

Life’s Desiderata, written by Max Ehrmann in the 1920s.

It’s a lovely poem that I have posted before, but stumbled upon a couple of days ago and felt that makes due for an encore. Here it is:

 Life’s Desiderata

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even to the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons;
they are vexatious to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain or bitter,
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals,
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love,
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life,
keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

May you all be merry, joyous and blessed this holiday season! Most of all, I hope you all find and feel what you most need and desire.

Then, make someone else happy. Give something away, talk to a stranger, smile first, walk in a place where you haven’t before, try something new, sit with yourself and give thanks for all the things that are going well in your life right now!

Isn’t that what the universal spirit of Christmas is all about?

Most of all, fill your heart with happiness, joy and love!

Roxi

Then those things are most probably part of your calling, part of your growth and self-fulfillment.

And the time to do something is NOW! start with a small step. And go from there. Every day. Replace the excuses with empowering, hopeful thoughts. Start with the end result in mind. Picture yourself succeeding.

If you don’t, someone else will: your parents, friends, relatives, coworkers, politicians…the media. They will shape your world how they see fit. Talk with them! Express your views! With calm and confidence. Let’s make together, a better, richer, joyful world for everyone!

Source for this inspirational board (and others), here! Pinterest is full with amazing DIY ideas, recipes, traveling tips, styling and fashion, photography and much more! It is quite an amazing resource for everything!

Enjoy and do something about one thing you feel passionately about! Anything!

Roxi

Do you have any suggestions for our Happy Monday series? What are the songs that inspire you and bring you joy? Share them with us!

Roxi

As I Began to Love Myself – Poem attributed to Charlie Chaplin (supposedly written by him on his 70th birthday, in 1959)

As I began to love myself I found that anguish and emotional suffering
are only warning signs that I was living against my own truth.
Today, I know this is “AUTHENTICITY”.

As I began to love myself I understood how much it can offend somebody
as I try to force my desires on this person, even though I knew the time
was not right and the person was not ready for it, and even though this
person was me. Today I call it “RESPECT”.

As I began to love myself I stopped craving for a different life
and I could see that everything that surrounded me was inviting me to grow.
Today I call it “MATURITY”.

As I began to love myself I understood that at any circumstance
I am in the right place at the right time, and everything happens
at the exactly right moment. So I could be calm.
Today I call it “SELF-CONFIDENCE”.

As I began to love myself I quit steeling my own time
and I stopped designing huge projects for the future.
Today, I only do what brings me joy and happiness, things I love to do
and that make my heart cheer, and I do them in my own way and in
my own rhythm. Today I call it “SIMPLICITY”.

As I began to love myself I freed myself of anything that is no good for
my health – food, people, things, situations, and everything that drew
me down and away from myself. At first I called this attitude
a healthy egoism. Today I know it is “LOVE OF ONESELF”.

As I began to love myself I quit trying to always be right and ever since,
I was wrong less of the time. Today I discovered that this is “MODESTY”.

As I began to love myself I refused to go on living in the past and worry
about the future. Now, I only live for the moment where EVERYTHING
is happening. Today I live each day, day by day, and I call it “FULFILLMENT”.

As I began to love myself I recognized that my mind can disturb me
and it can make me sick. But As I connected it to my heart, my
mind became a valuable ally. Today I call this
connection “WISDOM OF THE HEART”.

We no longer need to fear arguments, confrontations or any kind of problems
with ourselves or others. Even stars collide, and out of their crashing
new worlds are born.Today I know that THIS IS “LIFE”!

Source for the poem found here and more about its possible origins here. Whoever the author(s) really is, it makes for a beautiful and inspiring poem. One we have much to ponder and learn from.

Do you know of some other poems that inspire you?

Roxi

The bad will wash away easily, with patience, kindness and love, and the good times will become brighter if we add these simple ingredients.

May we all grow wiser and stronger in time, learning to cherish each moment just as it is and as it comes, learning to simply accept them and all their gifts.

Enjoy your moments and make plenty of them!

Before you act, listen. Before you react, think. Before you spend, earn. Before you criticize, wait. Before you pray, forgive. Before you quit, try.

Ernest Hemingway