Author Archives: John Swinburn

Some days are much harder than others, though I don’t know just why. Some days seem filled with blocks of concrete and lead, piled on my chest so high I cannot hope to breathe. But, then, everything suddenly seems fine. … Continue reading →

My sleep was interrupted by pronouncements, by two alarm clocks, that the time to arise had come. And so I arose, went to the kitchen, started the coffee, and got dressed. By the time I returned to the kitchen, the … Continue reading →

  The sun had long since risen and the clock was poised to announce that the time was 7:00 a.m. when I awoke this morning. For a person who is used to getting up very early—usually between 4:30 and 5:30, … Continue reading →

I got an email from a friend from church yesterday, letting me know she and her husband are leaving in their RV today, heading toward Nova Scotia. Suddenly, I wanted to be in that RV, making the long, intriguing trip … Continue reading →

Several months ago, I suggested that the world would be a better place if every culture would embrace the concept of mid-career “mandatory volunteerism.” I argued that the oxymoronic concept be expanded well beyond the idea that conservatives seem to … Continue reading →

H2O If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water. ~ Loren Eiseley ~ A woman who became friends with my late wife while they both attended graduate school at the University of Texas has long predicted … Continue reading →

Namasté I honor the place in you in which the entire universe dwells. I honor the place in you which is of love, of truth, of light, and of peace. When you are in that place in you and I … Continue reading →

My friends are getting older, so I guess I must be, too. ~ Greg Brown ~ I think of these lyrics on friends’ birthdays, days like today, when we celebrate the formality of delving deeper into geezerhood. Today, a good … Continue reading →

Last night, just as we sat down to watch Season 3, Episode 1 of How to Get Away with Murder, the power went out. Moments later, it came back on. We settled in again to watch the series. But the … Continue reading →

Try to be positive. But beware that positivity may be impossible some days. Some days drip with sarcasm and skepticism. It’s hard to say why. Even after good news, positive experiences, and a good breakfast, the world can slit the … Continue reading →

Zen in its essence is the art of seeing into the nature of one’s being, and it points the way from bondage to freedom. ~ D. T. Zuzuki ~ +++ Yesterday’s post here weakly advocated for minimalism. The quotation with … Continue reading →

The world is full of good people. If you can’t find one, be one. ~ Anonymous ~ +++ I could find all sorts of faults with the structure of—or even the content delivered by—that anonymous quotation, but I think the … Continue reading →

Yesterday was a scramble, beginning in earnest the process of relocating household goods and finding places to put them. But we did not spend the entire day on that undertaking. Instead, around 3:00 p.m., we stopped for a visit with … Continue reading →

If our nature is permitted to guide our life, we grow healthy, fruitful, and happy. ~ Araham Maslow ~ I think Maslow was right, though our natures sometimes hide beneath layers of solid granite formed from cooling volcanic magma. We … Continue reading →

The mind is very difficult to see, Very delicate and subtle; It moves and lands wherever it pleases. The wise one should guard his mind, For a guarded mind brings happiness. ~ Dhammapada ~ +++ When she writes her rare … Continue reading →

I found the following quotation in my little black companion, The Essence of Zen: An Anthology of Quotations, only after I wrote this morning’s post but before I posted it. The quotation seemed so apropos that I could not leave … Continue reading →

Generally, when I consider the stresses of everyday life, I think of matters that put a person on edge; things that cause noticeable changes in one’s frame of mind. I think of those changes easily traceable to mental burdens which … Continue reading →

Le mieux est le mortel ennemi du bien. ~ Charles Louis de Secondat, Baron of La Brède ~ French is one of dozens of languages I wish I had studied and mastered. But I did not. So I could not … Continue reading →

It is not the body, not the personality that is the true self. The true self is eternal. Even on the point of death we can say to ourselves, ‘My true self is free. I cannot be contained.’ ~ Marcus … Continue reading →

My sister-in-law,  my intimate companion (IC), and I sat around the dining table yesterday morning, talking about the accumulated stresses we individually and collectively have experienced during the past year. The conversation led us to explore one of those simple … Continue reading →

Mistakes, impossibly deep and costly, alter the course of the future and bring an end to the illusion that joy is within reach. Nothing can stop the errant, fast-flowing river of time from flooding its own channel, scouring its banks … Continue reading →

Before I try to find sleep again, I must relieve the shaman in my head of his responsibilities. I have to explain to him that he is not real, he is only an idea born of fantasy and fiction; a … Continue reading →

Several years ago—three or four, I think—I experienced an increasing level of debilitating pain on the top of my hand and lower right arm. The pain migrated to my upper arm and shoulder and then to the area around my … Continue reading →

I did not wake up thinking I wanted to write about the horrors of war, nor about how much I abhor the concept of officially-endorsed killing. I did not get out of bed with the intent of thinking about the … Continue reading →

The stresses caused by fierce winds can build up over time. A huge, thick, powerful, mesquite tree might survive monstrous hurricane force winds in successive storms. The tree may lose a few limbs but stand resolute against the forces of … Continue reading →