January: On Existence

January 21

Today's reflection was inspired by a quote from Alan Watts, specifically from Eastern Wisdom, Modern Life: Collected Talks 1960-1969.

We're all rushing around in a great panic, aren't we? Worried about achieving something great, leaving a lasting impact, or gaining the adoration and respect of the masses.

But how much do we lose of ourselves in this pursuit of achievement? Is it ever enough?

What if the point of it all was a lot simpler than all of that? What if the point of it all was to just . . . be?

• Reflection title: So Obvious, So Simple, So Difficult to Grasp
• Creative inspiration: Alan Watts, Eastern Wisdom, Modern Life: Collected Talks 1960–1969
• Reflection Question: What am I letting control my thoughts and actions? How can I let it go and just be?
  
  

January: On Existence

January 20

Today's reflection was inspired by a poem from Nazim Hikmet called "On Living."

How easy is it to consider ourselves as separate? As individuals? Not connected to everything from the sparrow's egg on the porch to the dead deer on the side of the road to humans experiencing tragedy across the globe?

It is easy, but it is dangerous business to do such a thing, because, you see, we are all connected.

Today we explore this further and what it means to love all of these things as we love ourselves and to grieve them.

For one day they, we, and the earth will grow cold, so let us love them now while we can.

• Reflection title: All Will Grow Cold, but Will You?
• Creative inspiration: Nazim Hikmet, "On Living"
• Reflection Question: What will I love today? What will I grieve?

January: On Existence

January 19

Today's quote comes from . . . me. And I wrote it down specifically for this book/podcast, so you won't find it in any of my comics or novels.

We are sold the idea that we need so much in this world . . . influencers will have us believe we need a new gadget or device, software, supplement, whatever, to help us become strong, smart, and beautiful like them.

Clever marketing campaigns will have us believe we need certain clothes to look good, certain drinks to have fun, or certain machinery to be efficient and productive.

And we might lie to ourselves, declaring we need the approval of others to be happy, that we need permission to make art, or that we need to be an expert or have an opinion on everything.

But we don't need these things.

The question is, then . . . what do we actually need?

• Reflection title: What Is It You Need?
• Creative inspiration: Eastin DeVerna, The Everyday Human
• Reflection Question: If I do not need these things, then why am I doing them, and what is it I need?

January: On Existence

January 18

Today's reflection was inspired by a poem from Emily Dickinson.

The stars and the cosmos are vast. And it's easy to lose ourselves in their eternal splendor and mystery. But there is a vastness just as deep within us--in our hearts and minds and souls.

The spectrum of emotions we are capable of experiencing is nothing short of astonishing. In this episode, we explore what it means to embrace them--the love, joy, pain, and all the rest.

• Reflection title: The Life You Have Is—
• Creative inspiration: Emily Dickinson, The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson.
• Reflection Question: When was the last time I looked up at the stars? When was the last time I looked into the infinity of my heart?

January: On Existence

January 17

Today's inspiration comes from a quote by Kurt Vonnegut and his book A Man Without a Country.

Despite what the news or social media algorithms might have you believe, there are so many beautiful moments in your life and all over the world happening right now. (This is not to downplay the terrible things that are happening simultaneously.)

But are you recognizing these beautiful and happy moments while they are happening? Or are they slipping by unnoticed?

If given the chance after death, which moment would you return to?

• Reflection title: Is This the Moment You Came Back For?
• Creative inspiration: Kurt Vonnegut, A Man Without a Country
• Reflection Question: What moment would I come back for?
  
  

January: On Existence

January 16

Today's reflection was inspired by a quote from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's Letters to Natalie Paley.

Heads and tails of a coin. Crest and trough of a wave. Light and dark. Sound and silence. Good and evil. Love and hate. Life and death. You can’t have one without the other.

And the fact that we will hurt those we love, and the fact that we will also hurt ourselves at points in our lives, is no exception.

But we, as humans, have the ability to temper this dichotomy with choice.

We are able to choose to be more present and less absent. We are able to choose to love more and hurt less.

• Reflection title: Two Sides of a Coin
• Creative inspiration: Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Letters to Natalie Paley
• Reflection Question: What side of the coin have I been on lately? If I am on the side of hurt, how can I flip it to the side of love?

January: On Existence

January 15

Today's reflection inspiration comes from an instrumental song by Amos Roddy called "The Tunnel Through" from the video game "Kingdom Two Crowns."

We all find ourselves in tunnels at some points in our lives--no matter how short or long. Those times when we are shouldering pain, sorrow, anxiety, fear--whatever it might be.

But every tunnel has an end. And there's a light there, just waiting for you to make it through.

• Reflection title: This Too Shall Pass
• Creative inspiration: Amos Roddy, "The Tunnel Through"
• Reflection Question: What tunnel am I in? Can I see the light, no matter how faint?

January: On Existence

January 14

Today's reflection gets a bit personal.

And just as a heads-up, I focus on the topic of miscarriage for a fair portion of it.

The quote that inspired today's episode is from the movie Mad Max: Fury Road.

Loss is an inevitable part of existence.

We all deal with it in one way, shape, or form. After we've felt our grief and processed it, it's how we pick ourselves up and keep moving that matters.

But who would you be if you just . . . stopped?

• Reflection title: Mad Max and Miscarriage -or- You Keep Moving
• Creative inspiration: Mad Max: Fury Road
• Reflection Question: How will I remind myself to keep moving? What will I move toward when the time inevitably comes?