No Ego!

When there is no ego or selfishness, there is nothing that will destroy nature, nothing that will exploit and abuse nature. Then the external, physical aspect of nature will be able to conserve itself automatically.   —Buddhadasa, “Conserving the Inner Ecology”

One of the most difficult things seems to be recognizing what is ego, and what is not.  Ego is the piece of you that works to keep you safe when you are in situations that could be dangerous to your health.  That is a good thing! 

Then, there is the Ego that gets you in trouble by going into rhapsody over your looks, or voice, or abilities, or what ever.  It exaggerates.  Or, it becomes the voice of dissent.  And, it discourages you from trying new things.

We do need to embrace our Ego, and the let it go.  

Blessings…

Judy

Looking For Signs

The poster lists many words.  The words are as follows:

Acceptance non attachment

Good karma mind of love joy

Breathe free from judgement calmness

Energy dali lama truer love still

Centered be present change quiet

Insight understanding spiritual smile

Imperfect 

Noble truths art of happiness meditation

Sympathetic joy compassion

Out of breath dakkha in the moment

In the here and now oneness

Balance present moment peacefulness bliss

Ancient enlightenment self aware Buddhism

MINDFULNESS impermanence

Tao optimism simplicity philosophy patience truth

Listen equanimity discipline wisdom

Suffering loving kindness awakened

Nothing lasts purify the mind Buddha

In breath beginners mind unconditional

Skillful speech freedom from desire

Ethics serene

We call here and now is all that exists

This moment.

——-Unknown

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When we see these words, we know that we are moving towards the peacefulness that we all crave.

It is often difficult to recognize signs in other languages, and yet, the meaning of the words become clear when we look around and see how people behave.  

We are one.  We can practice equanimity, or awareness, or being quiet, or being still.  It is your choice to  find the signs, the words, the actions that work for you.

Blessings,

Judy

A Home With ME

 

The poster says:  

In the space between my fingers between this breathe and the next in the vacant space of my heart I have kept you marked eternally.  You never had to wonder or worry whether or not I will replace you (never)  you will always have a home within me.  —— Unknown

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When we think of safety, we generally think of “home”.  What does that really mean?  Home can be where we were born, or brought up, or where we feel the happiest such as being at Grandmother’s house.  Or, home can be about the group/tribe that accepts you and wants to help you with all that you do.   It is wonderful to have the feeling of home around you. 

Blessings,

Judy

It Is About Zen

The poster says:  Not thinking about anything is zen.  Once you know this, walking, sitting, or lying down, everything you do is zen. —- Bodhidharma

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Life, I think, is about learning to move through each day with Grace and cheerfulness.  It is about learning to not attach to any things or outcomes.  If we can do this, then life is beautiful and everything flows.  

When we try to control outcomes, the lives of those around us, and when we become inflexible, then life becomes difficult because it cannot flow; we will not let it move easily.   Hanging on to people, to possessions, and to belief systems are going to get in the way of the flow.  They become your personal speed bumps on the way to a peaceful life.

Blessings,

Judy

A Peaceful Place

 

Picture of Elbow River taken off of Highway 66 - J Hirst

For some folks, Autumn, and specifically September is a time of turmoil before things settle down.  For me, September and indeed all of the autumn, is a time of excitement and change.  I love the changes of September almost as much as I love the changes that happen in the spring.

I like to go walking through the woods in the park as the leaves start to tumble down.  I like to crunch them because the sound is like that of crunching up paper to throw away.  We crunch up paper when we are not happy with what we have written, and we throw the page away and start anew.  To me, autumn is the crunching up the paper to start something new.

I have started several jobs in the Fall during my career. The timing has been perfect for me and has always been a positive action.  The energy of autumn with harvesting grain, fruit, vegetables, and even animals (hunting season) lends itself to humans so that things get done. This makes it easier to change from one employer to another.

When I find that life is getting too hectic, I look for a peaceful place to go to so that I can sit and be calm and let pent up energy go.  When that energy is released, my body also releases stress.  I am able to breathe with the flow of the wind through the trees or with the motion of the water.  Sometimes, I can look skyward and see flocks of birds and I will release the energy with the soaring of the birds.   

Each of us has a different idea of what a peaceful place looks like.  The trick is to find the place that speaks to you.

Many blessings,

Judy

Dove Rising

 

When things are looking bleak, I think about the Doves that sit in our Mountain Ash every morning.  About sixteen of them gather to wait for the light to grow brighter before they descend to the ground to eat the seeds that I have spread under the tree.

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We must combine the toughness of the serpent with the softness of the dove, a tough mind and a tender heart.”  ~~Martin Luther King, Jr. 

I heard a Stock-dove sing or say His homely tale, this very day; His voice was buried among trees, Yet to be come at by the breeze: He did not cease; but cooed--and cooed: And somewhat pensively he wooed: He sang of love, with quiet blending, Slow to begin, and never ending; Of serious faith, and inward glee; That was the song,--the song for me! ~~~ William Wordsworth

And there my little doves did sit With feathers softly brown And glittering eyes that showed their right To general Nature's deep delight. ~~~Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Blessings,

Judy

Better By Choice

The poster says:  Your life doesn’t get better by chance.  It gets better by choice. —-Unknown

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There is a lot to be said for having free will!  It allows us to make choices that are good for us.  So many people allow others to choose for them.  This absolves them of any guilt of making the wrong choice.  However, life does not work like that.  If you allow others to choose, then, you have made a choice to take that course of action.  You are responsible.

Blessings…

Judy

Each of Us Is The Universe

 

Each of us has the capacity to see the sky, the Sun, the Moon, and the Stars.  If we have keen eyes, we can see the planets, space stations, satellites, and shooting stars.

We see them because we recognize them.  Each of us has the memory of the Universe in our cells, to draw on when needed.  We know so much more than we are!

Blessings….

Judy

Find the Light With In

Drifting off in meditation, you may find one day that you see a light that seems to be far away.  As you go deeper, the light moves closer.  If you see the light move closer yet,  you may see that it is in the shape of a flower.  If you are quite close to the light, you may recognize the familiar form of the Lotus flower.  

The light in each of us as it grows brighter blossoms into the radiance that looks like a lotus.  It is amazing!  It is right for us to see it.  Sit in silence.  Let the light come.  Do not force it, and see what transpires.

Blessings,

Judy

Whale Of A Time!

The legends speak of how mankind migrated from the sea, birthed by whales and dolphins.  These are legends that seem impossible.  The question that must be asked, I think, is that if you believe this legend, then, where did whales and dolphins come from?   Other legends talk about whales carrying humans from place to place across the ocean, in a manner more quickly than a sailing ship or even an airplane.  Whales, it is said, have the gift of traveling through time and space.  This gift is something that humans crave.  Yet, it seems that while humans work at reaching this level of ability through technology, Whale simply exists in a state of fun and of adventure, and does many things with out effort.  One could say that whales have a whale of a time!

Blessings,

Judy

September 1 2026 Autumn

 

September tells us that Autumn is here.  Indeed, the leaves started turning beginning about August 20th.  It is also the month of the Autumnal Equinox.  

Here is the information from the Farmers Almanac:

The 2026 fall equinox in the Northern Hemisphere arrives on Tuesday, September 22, at 8:04 P.M. Eastern Time (00:06 UTC on September 23). This moment marks the astronomical start of autumn, where day and night are roughly equal. 

Why is September 1 important?  For farmers raising grain, September 1 is the signal that there is a limited time to harvest before the rain and snow starts.  In Calgary, we have had several snows happen in early September.  For ranchers, it is the signal to head out to round up the cattle that have summered in mountain pastures.  Round up is usually the first or second week in September.  On this side of the equinox, the daylight is shrinking.  For hockey players, it is time to get serious about training and lacing on the skates for the pre-season games.  For most children/young adults, schools and universities begin classes.  Some schools even start the last week of August in our area.  Often, organizations start their new fall programs in September for things like bowling, pool, swimming, yoga, qi gong, painting, curling, etc.  For many of us, it is a time of harvesting our gardens, freezing, canning, or making juice.  Generally, we try to be finished by Equinox. 

Upon finishing the harvesting, people gather to celebrate a bountiful year with feasting and socializing.  These events happen at the time of Equinox.  The old name for Equinox was Mabon.. a time of preparing to move from the light of spring and summer into the darkness of fall and winter.  

What ever you are doing this September, remember to take time to give thanks for being here to move into Autumn.  Give thanks for friends and family and all that you have.  

Blessings,

Judy

Merging

“Dearest Ones!  You have forgotten how you all fit together.  The Water that flows through each of you comes from the Earth and returns to the Earth and moves to the oceans where what you were touches the ocean creatures.  The oceans wash up on the shore and flow into the rivers and leave a little bit of themselves behind.  Oceans feed the subterranean waterways that flow under land to soothe the hot Earth.  The humans absorb little bits of the ocean when they eat or drink from products of the Earth.  It is a circle.  It keeps all of you.  Be kind to those in the circle.”

Blessings,

Judy

Set Sail For Something New

Friends are lovely and comforting, however, they seldom push you beyond the comfort zone that you live in.  If you do try to move beyond that zone, often, friends will be the first to tell you, in your best interest of course, that you will fail in this new venture.

Generally, we humans are not about being safe.  We humans are not about being fool hardy, but we do like our adventure.  THAT is why so many people are willing to try adventure vacations, extreme sports, and all the other very extraordinary things that are out there for us to do.  

Moving beyond safe keeps us alive because, every day, we renew our interest in life.

Blessings to all!

Judy

No Comfort Zone

 

 

It has been important to get out of your comfort zone. It is just as important to take time to be still and let all tension go.

“Even a layman – if he finds a little time to be silent and to be meditative and discovers his self nature in his own home, in the marketplace, he will become the Buddha.” 

Osho, Bodhidharma: The Greatest Zen Master, Talk #8 

Blessings to all!

Judy

Why Travel?

 

The poster says:

If we were meant to stay in one place, we’d have roots instead of feet….. —-Rachel Wolchin

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One of the most valuable teaching tools for adults and children is the action of travel.  When we travel, we learn new things about ourselves:

- our lack of patience or the amount of patience that we have.

-our prejudices against other countries, other people, other food, other customs.

-our need to expand our knowledge because not one city or country holds all the knowledge one needs to be the best person possible. 

-our insecurities show up as do our interpersonal relationship issues with family, friends, and with new acquaintances.

-our limitations if we only have one language.

I am sure that you can think of other reasons to travel.  These are my top five for learning while traveling.  Share what you think in the comments below.  

Blessings,

Judy

Angels On Grief

The message below comes from my angels.  And as with all messages from beyond, it seems very impersonal, especially when talking about grief.  What I am learning is that the grief that we feel is showing the depth of the love that we had for that being - human or animal.  Grief is a process.  When we are in grief, we do feel removed from others because grief is personal.  

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It is clear that in this time of transition, when people are dying and leaving the planet for any number of reasons, that we will feel grief.  The Angels say that grief is the emotion of loss and that loss is an illusion of the physical body; of the degree of separation that one feels from others and from God/Creator/Universe.

Feel no grief at this time.  We are all one.

Many blessings,

Judy

The Power of Prayer

If you are following my blog, you will have read several different posts about prayer.  When I talk about prayer, I am not referring to one specific religion for prayer.  I refer to how you sit with asking and speaking to what you believe in.  Lots of people call meditation a prayer.  It doesn’t matter how you label it, it is about some form of communication between you and the Universe.

While scientists have been trying for years to prove the power of prayer in terms of healing people, no group has studied the power of prayer on the individual.

A quote that I quite like says that Prayer is you talking to God/Universe while meditation is God/Universe talking to you.

Prayer gives the individual the opportunity to speak all of the things that is on one’s mind to a Presence that is non-judgmental, and that is absolutely silent.  This Presence does not recommend different solutions, jump in and try to fix things, or even give you a list of “shoulds”.  This Presence simply fills the space around you and listens. 

Try it.

Blessings,

Judy

Be Your Actions

The poster says:  An intelligent person does not need the robust of heaven to see the merit in good deeds.   -  Author Unknown.

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Preach the Gospel... If necessary use words.  Francis of Assisi 

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We have all heard of the ripple effect of the butterfly gently moving its wings somewhere in South America and the many other actions that exist because of the one butterfly.  We see the effect of the small ripples in the rivers, lakes, seas, and oceans and how the tiny ripples can become huge waves that crash over things and up against the coast line.  

Recently, I am hearing more stories from people who have been touched by small actions of kindness or thoughtfulness, and how that action helped change the person’s life for the better.  If you have the opportunity to do a small, kind action, do it!  You start the ripple.

Blessings,

Judy

Happiness-Freedom

The poster says:  The amount of happiness that you have depends on the amount of freedom you have in your heart. —- Thich Nhat Hanh

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What does happiness feel like?  What does it mean?  Who has the most happiness?

The answer may be, “It depends on how much freedom you have!”

Over the years, I have posted quite a few blogs about happiness.  Here is a short list of some of the posts.

https://www.lightstationwisdom.com/2026/01/happiness-is-spiritual.html

https://www.lightstationwisdom.com/2024/11/be-happiness-engineer.html

https://www.lightstationwisdom.com/2023/07/on-being-happy.html

https://www.lightstationwisdom.com/2025/08/finding-happiness.html

https://www.lightstationwisdom.com/2023/02/on-being-happy-buddhist-story.html

Blessings,

Judy

I Will Benefit Others

The poster says:

Every day, thank as you wake up, today I am fortunate to be alive, I have precious human life, I am not going to waste it.  I am going to use all my energies to develop myself, to expand my heart out to others; to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings.  I am going to have kind thoughts towards others, I am not going to get angry or think badly about others.  I am going to benefit others as much as I can.  —- Dalai Lama

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What a beautiful mission statement to live by!  Would it not be wonderful if more people and more corporations could live in this manner?

Blessings,

Judy