Annie Q Syed

July 25th.

“Question for those who cannot live without art.” “Steal” stillness?  Joyful chaos of wedding preparations. What is the cause of our times?

If you would like to know what Still Sundays is about, please take a quick gander here and just read the third paragraph. Thanks.

Some kind people often take upon themselves to wish me “good luck” to steal stillness so as to be able to write this on Sundays. It takes effort to steal. I am not interested in exerting that energy. Beneath the surface calm can lurk violent storms. I am curious to explore stillness inside storms. I enjoy stillness inside the buoyancy of moments.

Some mornings it seems as if there is an undercurrent of constant stillness and it is up to me—us—to take a dip in it any moment. My imagination, ever since I was young, is helpful in that regard. I am here—fully present—yet also see beyond, within, and around simultaneously. Instead of making me crazy, it actually makes me still—that is when the voltage of receptivity is under control.

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This anecdote belongs in the collection Nectar of the Ordinary. The exchange took place in August of 2006 between my college professor and I. I hope it serves as a mediator between the infinite universal queries about love, however you define it, and your journey.

Thanks,

~a.q.s.

Celestial Sap: “Bud on Love”

How many loves in a lifetime?

I first thought of Bud’s words after a trip to the bookstore Barnes and Noble right around Valentines’ Day in February 2010. As soon as I entered, there was the following display of books.

I believe it speaks for itself. I did not mind the rows of poetry books, “love coupons” to spice your marriage, and compilation of quotes to shower one’s beloved. Sometimes another’s words say it better than what we are capable of articulating of our own feelings. I borrow too.

What bothered me was the plethora of books serving as guides on what is and isn’t love: let someone (who is a better authority than you) tell you what love is. I brushed aside my irritation upon the next thought which was that, maybe, some people do need to be told or at least be reminded what love “looks” like, “feels” like, “acts” like etc. given the sea of dysfunctional relationships. Right? Right. On the drive back to my parents’ farm I told my mother how was one to know which “guide” to follow. Every one spoke from their experiences–be it a holistic healer or the likes of Dr. Phil’s self-help. My own parents could not fathom ever loving anyone other than one another. Ever. One love. For life. One of my younger brothers believed, if you could love again then it was never really love with anyone before.

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Value your friendship with the other person first and foremost. Remember it is what you make out of the relating with another. Don’t assume things. Don’t compare things. Communicate and respect each others’ opinions. Always keep in mind HOW things can be worked…without quitting one another…unfortunately, Western media has colored relationships as all sweet and honey with no issues or simply as bitter with conflicts.

Human beings will always stay bonded if they are governed by similar ideologies and a similar value system, despite the fights and conflicts.

An almond seed with sprouts that I found near my parents' farm house. The pollination of California's almonds is the largest annual managed pollination event in the world, with close to one million hives (nearly half of all beehives in the USA) being trucked in February to the almond groves.

The word soul comes from old English word “sawol” which used to stand for “spiritual and emotional part of a person, animate existence.” Sometimes said to mean originally “coming from or belonging to the sea,” because that was supposed to be the stopping place of the soul before birth or after death.

The Arabic word for soul is Ruh or Ruah (pronounced rhhhhoooooooooo). It is the seed within ourselves that we must develop and nurture. It involves giving and learning. My father  has always said that the reward for developing your Ruh is in this lifetime –you don’t have to wait to go to heaven or an after life to see what you are reaping for what you are sowing. It happens in this lifetime NOW.

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There are five kinds of people THAT DRIVE US NUTS! We have all met them in some form or another. Well, now we have a name for them!

This is by far one of the most brilliant articles I have read by Martha Beck. Enjoy!