Words of Wisdom
- Zoltan Mende
- Sep 14, 2023
- 7 min read
What will you do today, knowing that you are one of the rarest forms of life to ever walk the Earth? How will you carry yourself? What will you do with your hands? Tomorrow you could die, but today you are precious and rare and awake. Grateful and awake, ask what you need to know now. Say what you feel now. Love what you love now.
Mark nepo
Hi Jo
Good morning from sunny London!
For many of us in the UK, we have been lucky enough to experience a surprise spell of sunshine and heat which has been both welcome, and unbearable.
We are not particularly geared up for heat exceeding 21 degrees so going out anywhere requires careful clothing choices, access to cold drinks and a pop into an M&S which is always freezing!
I have had to be extra careful because I know when I get too hot it plays havoc with my temper. For me heat = rage.
I begun to realise this when my kids were young and we would be trying to get out the door and I, with my coat already on, would start to lose it.
So now I know to notice when I am starting to get hot and take urgent steps to mitigate!
I have noticed a fair amount of people seemingly more irritable than usual so maybe I am not the only one who suffers with this affliction. Do feel free to let me know if you are with me on this one!
I completely forgot to remind you last week that my September guided meditation is TONIGHT!
I am not able to do the next two Sundays and it has been so long since I have offered it to you, I scheduled it in for tonight. It starts at the usual time of 9pm and I plan to keep it very grounding and relaxing. I hope you can join us.
Also in today’s offering is what I consider to be hilarious human reactions in my something to make you smile video, plus information about an amazing mental health summit and a cat meditation!
I hope there will be something for everyone.
Wishing you all a day of cool serenity, and a Happy New Year to those who celebrate.
With love
Jo 💕
Something to make you smile 😊
I fear that this video may be uniquely funny to me, but it really did have me belly laughing!
One of the things I find fascinating about these video’s is how contagious our moods and actions are. We are so hard wired for danger that we copy the reaction of others without even knowing why. It just goes to show how much we have the ability to affect those around us.
Something to consider 🤔
Philosopher John Macmurray explains one of the dilemmas of life:
"In imagination we feel sure that it would be lovely to live with a full and rich awareness of the world. But in practice sensitiveness hurts.
It is not possible to develop the capacity to see beauty without developing also the capacity to see ugliness, for they are the same capacity.
The capacity for joy is also the capacity for pain.
We soon find that any increase in our sensitiveness to what is lovely in the world increases also our capacity for being hurt. That is the dilemma in which life has placed us.
We must choose between a life that is thin and narrow, uncreative and mechanical, with the assurance that even if it is not very exciting it will not be intolerably painful; and a life in which the increase in its fullness and creativeness brings a vast increase in delight, but also in pain and hurt."
Source: Reason and Emotion
From James clear
Something from me 💕
At the beginning of this year when I took some time to consider what 2023 was going to look like, I got such a strong calling to do this programme.
This is partly because I have two girls, aged 11 and 12, who have experienced their own fair share of anxiety and I have been learning how to best support them.
But also because I am so aware how many young people are affected by anxiety, and the impact this is having on the whole family.
So I have spent this year crafting my mindfulness and ACT skills into being in service to young people and their care givers.
We all need help sometimes, whether that be more tools in our toolkit, more connecting with others who are in the same storm as us, or just more ways to find peace in our lives.
This programme is a step by step guide to accessing our own inner resources, having the strength and confidence to move away from approaches that aren’t working, and develop skills to try new ways of being.
It will support you to make necessary changes so you can be your best self for your child.
These 6 weekly online sessions will be interactive, practical and applicable to every day life.
The dates of this online programme are:
Fridays, 11.00am-12.30pm
September 29
October 6, 13, 20 (27 no session for half term)
December 3, 10
Topics will include:
Understanding anxiety and internal stress, managing reactivity, co-regulation, deep listening and acceptance.
You may know someone in this situation who this could help so please feel free to forward this on to them.
Something to Attend 🧐
This online Mental Health & Well-Being Global Summit put on by Wisdom for Life looks incredible. I have literally never seen a line up like it.
Speakers include Wim Hof, Gabor Mate, Deepak Chopra, Tara Brach, Russell Brand, Dan Siegal, and 60 more.
Remarkably, it is completely free.
Dates: September 12 - 18
Something to practice 🧘🏻♀️🧘🏽
This one is for my fellow cat lovers out there…
Canon has released an immersive 180° VR meditation featuring cute rescue kittens playing among soft pastel-colored blankets and toys.
Aptly named Meow-Ditation, the six-and-a-half-minute experience invites you to focus on breathing, relax your body and guide you through a meditation focused on creature comforts.
And finally some good news…
Seeds from a tree that survived the atomic bomb in Hiroshima are being grown in Glasgow.
The precious ginkgo seeds - harvested from the "survivor tree" - were gifted to the city council as part of an international peace initiative.
Hiro Shimai, a curator from Japan, is among staff at the council's Botanic Gardens who are nurturing them.
Mr Shimai's mother, who is now in her 90s, witnessed the radioactive mushroom cloud created by the deadly atomic bomb in August 1945 and recalls giving food to injured people who fled the nuclear fallout.
The area where she lived escaped the worst of the atrocity due to Hiroshima being surrounded by mountains.
Mr Shimai grew up around 18 miles from Hiroshima and moved to Glasgow in January this year to take up the post of curator at the much-loved gardens.
After relocating nearly 6,000 miles, Mr Shimai is delighted to be working on a project of such significance to his homeland.
Mr Shimai, who received the seeds in the mail and carefully planted them with help from a colleague, said: "I am very happy to be part of this project.
"Ginkgo trees are very common in Japan. They are very hardy trees, but we weren't sure if the seeds would germinate when we planted them.
"I was very relieved when the seedlings appeared."
The "survivor tree" miraculously survived the Second World War bombing and continues to grow in the famous Shukkeien Garden.
The international Mayors for Peace project distributes seeds from the tree to cities around the world, to be grown on and planted out as lasting symbols of peace.
The tiny saplings currently stand between 15-20cm tall, and when bigger and sturdy enough, they will be planted out in Glasgow parks.
Mr Shimai added: "Hopefully they will grow to be tall and strong enough to be planted out in Kelvingrove Park where the trees could live for at least 100 years and remind everyone of the importance of peace.
"I hope no one ever forgets what happened at Hiroshima."
On 6 and 9 August 1945, the United States detonated two atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The bombings killed between 129,000 and 226,000 people, most of whom were civilians.
The attacks remain the only use of nuclear weapons in an armed conflict.
Councillor Jacqueline McLaren, Glasgow's lord provost, said: "Glasgow is proud to be a member of Mayors for Peace and we're honoured to receive seeds from the survivor tree.
"It is an extraordinary coincidence that Hiro works in Glasgow and is one of the staff taking care of the saplings. The trees, and everything they represent, are hugely significant and it must be especially important for Hiro.
"I hope the saplings grow tall and strong and can't wait to see them planted out in a prominent place in the city where they will stand as living memorials to all those killed and injured by the bomb and also serve as a reminder about the futility of war."
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Thank you 🙏🏻
Would you like to discover ways you can be more awake, aware, alive and alright? Get in touch by booking a 15 minute discovery call with me.
I offer a guided meditation at 9pm on the last Sunday of every month on Zoom and Instagram. Click here for the link to add 2023's meditation dates straight into your icalendar. Here are the dates for this year: Sep 10, 2023 Oct 29, 2023 Nov 26, 2023 Dec 17, 2023
Here are the zoom log in details for every session: THIS IS THE ZOOM LINK Meeting ID: 836 4402 3922 Passcode: 239597 I offer these sessions freely, with a huge amount of pleasure, so if you ever felt like you wanted to make a donation to a charity of your choice as a gift for attending that would be hugely appreciated. If you are not sure which charity, some of my favourites are Choose Love, The Felix Project and Shelter. Thank you 🙏🏻
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