mindfulness – Page 20 – The Narrow Path

Lost at Sea.

A ship is lost in the treacherous open sea. The crew grows more impatient each day; the Captain is worried about a potential mutiny. No land in sight.

Will this be the end?

My crew goes weary.

Mumbling & arguing with each other.

Constantly chattering.

The smell of mutiny in the air.

I observe them from my private charters.

One moment they are angry.

The next they are sad.

Anxious.

Depressed.

Fearful.

Will we ever see land again?

A large wave swells up from the depths of the ocean.

Panic.

HOLD ON!!!!!

The ship creaks and moans.

We survive.

A month goes by.

Food short on supply.

Crew sick and diseased.

Birds of prey circle above us.

The end is near.

Until one day I see darkness on the horizon.

LAND!!

We are safe.

Joy & tears flow into the sea.

My crew dances under the moonlight.

No wave can sink me.

No storm will worry me.

I won’t break to my crew’s demands.

For I am the Captain.

I am not my thoughts. I am not my emotions. I am the observer. The Captain of my body & mind. I will honor these thoughts & emotions as impermanent. I will not sink into the darkness.

Gratitude.

I breathe in.

I smile.

How wonderful it is to be alive!

Joy pulsates through my body.

A smile lights across my face.

My heart beats with compassion.

My lungs full of gratitude.

Grateful for pain.

Heartbreak.

My breath.

And Joy.

Grateful to be alive.

I will smile.

I will laugh.

I will dance.

For life is impermanent.

Thank you life.

Thank you impermanence.

Thank you.

Innocent Living Beings.

By just being alive I will cause suffering in the world.

But I strive to negate as much as I can.

I vow to look at all living beings with compassion.

I vow to look at the suffering I cause in the world.

I vow to take action to alleviate suffering in all living beings.

Rape, torture, and death.

I see a tear go down a mother cows cheek.

I hear the last squeal of a suffering pig.

How we call ourselves peaceful while supporting such violence?

Blinded by industry lies.

Cold with apathy.

Myths.

Outdated traditions.

Wake up to compassion.

Wake up to peace.

Wake up to 2018.

A time of abundance.

A time where we don’t need animal products to survive.

There is another way.

A way of peace.

A way of compassion.

A way of love.

Will you join me?

Peace is the Way.

When my opponent shows hatred, I will show love.

When my opponent shows apathy, I will show compassion.

When my opponent shows fear, I will show confidence.

When my opponent shows aggression, I will show peace.

When my opponent is attached, I will let go.

They are not my true opponent.

My true opponent is within.

Within my fear.

My judgments.

My limiting beliefs.

My attachments.

I vow to look at my opponent with full-hearted compassion.

I vow to forgive my opponent.

I vow to show them another way.

The way of peace.

Time.

What time is it?

I glance at my clock.

The time is now.

I must change.

I must grow.

I must let go.

Now.

Impermanence.

The constant flow of time.

A seed grows into a tree.

A baby grows into a young adult.

Dreams.

Love.

Peace.

Compassion.

Joy.

Now.

Breathing in deeply I embrace my impermanence.

Breathing out I feel joy pulsate throughout my body.

I vow to not waste my life.

I vow to live in the now.

For this is not my practice life.

Shore.

A wave flows in & out.

A seagull floats above me.

A crab clings to a rock.

A sand castle withers away.

Nature’s many lessons all around me.

Consistency.

Patience.

Resilience.

Impermanence.

Nature can only guide us so far.

Be still.

Bring yourself to the now.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

Observe.

Smile.

Anchor.

A wave hits.

The wind howls.

A shark lurks in the darkness.

The storm surrounds me.

Will I sink into the darkness?

I throw my anchor into the depths of the sea.

No wave can break me.

No wind can push me.

No shark can hurt me.

No storm will out last my anchor.

Whenever times are tough, I can bring my focus back to my anchor.

My anchor of mindful breathing.

This anchor will be with me until my last moment.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

Happiness is an Inside Job.

Happiness is something to become, not to acquire.

I used to think happiness was something to achieve or acquire. I would think “once I get that promotion, lose weight or graduate from college I will achieve happiness”. I achieved all of these things and found out that I was still unhappy with my life. Happiness was always around the next corner. The next promotion, weight loss, or achievement. Sure, I was very happy the month after I graduated from college, lost weight, and got a promotion within my corporate job on the mainland. This happiness was very short-lived because I wasn’t content with who I was as a person. I was holding onto years of emotional baggage, insecurities, fears, and stories of the past. Stories that only spoke of half-truths, more focused on the negative than the positive. I have learned in the last year that happiness is not something to achieve but something to become through our actions in the world. Happiness is getting out of your comfort zone. Long lasting happiness for me is living in line with my core values instead of what feels good or is more comfortable at the moment. True contentment for me is spending more time on what I’m truly passionate about and less time focused on wealth and status. Through living in line with my values, I have felt more joy than I have ever thought was possible.

Happiness is always an inside job. Your job, relationships, money, and material goods are just “icing on the cake!”. You want to make your cake(life) as delicious(happy) just the way it is. No amount of material goods, fast food, drugs, alcohol, or sex will bring long-lasting peace. These are just fillers that mask true happiness and leave us craving more and more until we feel sick inside.

This lesson was truly learned when I moved to Maui last year. I thought going to beach, hiking, and living on Maui would make my life cherry (Local slang for good). I was still not happy and I couldn’t figure why! I had to look myself in the mirror and slowly start to live in line with my values. It hasn’t been easy, but nothing great comes out of being comfortable all the time. By inquiring within, I have shown compassion, forgiveness, and love to myself. By letting go of what was causing me mental stress, I have become more peaceful.

I suggest writing down your core values on a piece of paper or word document. Next, write down what you do all day and cross-reference your values with your actions. You choose your values and you choose to live in line with them. No one is forcing you to live more intentionally other than yourself! Here are my core values and what I let go of(or added) to live inline with my values

Peace- Coffee, Sales job, unlimited data on my phone.

Compassion-Meat, dairy, eggs, and plastic water bottles.

Love- Self-hatred, and judgments.

Contribution-Started a charity:water campaign(https://my.charitywater.org/jonathan-hoffman-1/clean-water-for-all)

Health-Cigarettes, alcohol, processed foods, oils.

I don’t feel deprived at all! I drink green tea, kombucha, and eat healthy anti-oxidant rich plant foods! These are just trade-offs for a more peaceful, healthy, and happy life for myself. Everyone’s journey is different, there are no right or wrong paths but only different ones!

What are you willing to let go of to be at peace? Choose love over fear and you will find that you will be living a life you love instead of a life you fear.

Inquire within.

With Aloha,

Johnny Hoffman

The Path of the Peaceful Warrior.

The path of the peaceful warrior is one of infinite strength. The human heart has an infinite amount of compassion. The Art of Peace is a direct response to the Art of War. If we believe war is always inevitable then there will always be war. The Art of Peace allows the opportunity for another path. The path of peace.

Sadly, we mistake physical strength for emotional strength.

Many believe strength comes from rage, anger, and hatred. True strength comes from mercy, compassion, and love. When someone is hateful, they are in a weak state. They are tense, frightened, and fearful. When we are compassionate, we are loose and free flowing like a strong rivers current. We must show others another way. Not judge or hurt our opponent but to show pure compassion towards them as well.

The peaceful warrior trains his mind, body, and spirit. Eating a whole food plant-based diet trains all three of these. A peaceful warrior does not create more suffering into the world that is unnecessary. By being alive, we will cause suffering but we can do our best to not add more on top of this. There is true strength in showing mercy to innocent animals. We build our body strong through eating this way. It will give us the energy to strengthen our body, mind, and spirit right now and into old age. It will strengthen our muscle of compassion. It will strengthen our message of peace. How can we believe in peace and contribute to animal cruelty, torture, and suffering? This is not the way of the peaceful warrior. Our actions must be inline with peace. Peace is the way.

When my opponent shows apathy, I vow to show compassion.

When my opponent shows hatred, I vow to show love.

When my opponent shows war, I vow to show peace.

When

With Peace,

Johnny Hoffman

How Do I Let You Go?

How do I let you go?

A part of me still wants to be with you.

How can I be the best version of myself and still be with you?

You almost took my life a few times.

I could have gone to jail because of you… But you kept pulling me back.

I made huge mistakes while with you and caused suffering in the world.

Society wants me to be with you even though it’s not in the best interest of my mental, physical, and emotional health. Why is this?!

I see what you have done to others lives.

I spent thousands of dollars on you, putting me in financial stress and debt.

But damn, we had some good times together.

I made some great friendships because of you, but I know its time to let you go.

I’ll always remember you, but it’s time for me to end this show.

After 12 years of love, my attachment to you is no more.

I worked long hours for you for 7 years but I know in my heart it’s the end.

You were part of my journey to this point and I’m thankful for that.

I’m leaving you alcohol.

I know my vision now and you’re not part of it.

How can I alleviate suffering in the world and promote a healthy lifestyle while sipping a jack?

I’m leaving you and I don’t want you back.

Back story; I have been drinking for 12 years now, age 15-27. I worked in the alcohol industry for 7 years, age 20-27. I did many unskilled actions on alcohol in college and high school.

Mahalo,

Johnny Hoffman