Image by kenne
I’m now in the process of doing some reading on the Clock of the Long Now, which I will do a posting soon. However, before doing so, I would like to share again a poem my poem titled, The Now, and The How of Now, which is my take on living the now — Lessons for The Now.
We live in a world in which our thinking is “here and now,” focusing on how to make things faster and cheaper. The now needs to involve long-term thinking, focusing on slower and better.
The Now
(In the Zen of the now,
past and future exist as one.)
Living for the moment
Creates a false state of being,
Of setting you free.
Forget the moment, live for the now.
Being in the moment is to
Have a beginning and an end,
Boundaries where you cannot be free.
Forget the moment, live for the now.
Having a beginning and an end
Is to not have a past or a future,
Without which you cannot be free.
Forget the moment, live for the now.
Self-fulfilling nature of the moment
Creates a fear of the unknown,
To fear the unknown is to not be free.
Forget the moment, live for the now.
Experiencing the now is to
Know the past and learn of the future,
Releasing fear and setting you free.
Forget the moment, live for the now.
Learning takes place only in the now
Containing life’s recipe (the past),
And future directions to being free.
Forget the moment, live for the now.
Giving of the now
Is to create a future,
In which you can be free.
Forget the moment, live for the now.
Living for the now is to give worth
To the past and value to the future,
A future of being free.
Forget the moment, live for the now.
Living in the now is to experience
Love and life’s peak experiences,
By which others can be free.
Forget the moment, live for the now.
kenne g. turner (December 2000)
— Everything exists in the now. Live it!
The How of The Now
(Everything exists in the now. Live it!)
You are born with the ability to live for the moment, but you must learn to live for the now — The learning is easy, the living is not.
LOVE
· Love what you are doing.
· Love is present when needs are met.
· Love is necessary to live in the now.
· Love involves responsibility.
· Love that is responsible is empathic.
· Love abhors waste, especially waste of human potential.
COMMITMENT TO PURPOSE
· Anything worth doing is worth improving.
· To get what you want, you must do what it takes.
· You are truly the results of our efforts.
· Change is a constant — to improve, things must change.
TRUST AND ASSERTIVENESS
· Trust is a basic to living in the now.
· Trust is based on assertive behavior.
· Assertive people are:
· Direct
· Honest
· Loving
· Trustworthy
· Caring
Sharing
· Purpose Driven.
COMMUNICATION/LISTENING
· Encourage people to question and make suggestions.
· Share information and clarify expectations.
· Access to information helps improve the process.
· The quality of the now is determined by the quality of your communications.
· Acknowledge the need for feedback.
· If life is a game, share the rules.
CRITICISM
· Avoid at all cost…it doesn’t work
· Criticism tends to make people feel inferior.
· If you blame other people, they blame you.
· Avoid the use of labels.
· Avoid being judgmental.
GIVING CREDIT
· Praise before criticizing.
· Recognize those who make an effort.
· Don’t take a good effort for granted.
· Give credit only within a context of listening to and caring about the person.
COOPERATION
· Cooperation is making others feel that they count and that they are important.
· Move people from the position “me” to “we.”
· Cooperation reduces barriers, rivalries, and distrust.
· Common struggles for others not separate struggles for power.
RESPECT
· Respect is based on the concepts of caring and sharing.
· Respect says one has worth.
· The individual is the source of all significance, all meaning, and all value.
· One’s true significance is in living life is to actualize the now.
VALUE AND THE ART OF GIVING
· When people feel valued, they rise to the level of giving.
· Always practice the principle of lighting candles.
· Give without conditions.
BOUNDARIES
· You can’t put the now in a box.
· Avoid imposing boundaries on others.
· Individuality cannot be subject to limitations and restrictions.
· Boundaries put limits on improvement
· “Conformity is the cup which holds the tea, and the shape of the cup does not determine the taste of the tea.” — Clinton R. Meek
INVOLVEMENT
· The absence of involvement produces a “them-against-us” mentality.
· Always look for things in common.
· Involvement is the practice of caring and sharing.
QUALITY
· Focus on the now
· Unity of purpose
· Looking for faults in systems
· Teamwork
· Lifelong learning
Lessons for The Now
Kenne G. Turner
December 24, 2000
Reblogged this on Becoming is Superior to Being and commented:
In July of 2011, I shared two things written in 2000 (Pre-blog) on “The Now.” This morning I thought it was time to share again. — kenne