That which is beautiful engenders our love. But when love overflows from our heart, we see beauty everywhere. Those whose love is solely engendered by beauty fail to see beauty everywhere. They view those whose love makes everything beautiful as not truly knowing love. Of course, they are talking about themselves....

Some of us are nearsighted, some farsighted. Hopefully in 2020 our vision becomes 20/20 and everything near and far becomes clear. The above post was published on December 31, 2019. The pandemic was the apocalypse, revealing who we are individually and collectively by our reactions to the pandemic and quarantine. Now everything near and far is clear. If not, our eyes are closed and we'll fall asleep before we know it....

Everything is seemingly experienced twice, in reality and in memory. As to reality, it is what it is whatever it is. However, our memories are a function of our attitude. Our memories and the stories we weave of them we can construct and reconstruct as we wish. There is almost always a way to view our memories as funny/happy stories. Happy stories make for a happy attitude which makes for happy experiences....

"There is no karma in our family line." We can see this world as it is what it is whatever it is, free from the definitions, meanings and stories created by karma. We are all born free of karma but accumulate karma through our experiences of days now past. When we let go of the past, we are free of karma, can experience the present as it is and see what's coming our way....

What Choosing Vanilla Really Says About Your Personality "There are two types of people in the world: those who love vanilla and those who make fun of those who love vanilla. Vanilla lovers could easily gather and share laughs over the dread they feel whenever they order their favorite flavor amongst a group of friends. So often, loyal vanilla zealots are labeled as “boring” or “unexciting” by their peers, and it can really start to wear a person down. It’s possible that your desire to choose vanilla has less to do with your taste buds’ preferences, and more to do with you as a person.  As someone who chooses vanilla, you: 1. Are content. When you fall in love with something, you are happy to be tied to it for a long time without the fear that you are missing out on something better. You’re happy with being happy. You do not always feel the need to change things up just in case there’s something better out there. 2. Are confident. You don’t need the approval of others to feel good about your choices. You know what you want and it doesn’t matter than other people have their opinions about it. You don’t care. 3. Like accessories. If you’re a man, you probably sport a hat or watch on most days. If you’re a lady, then scarves are a staple, and necklaces are never forgotten. How so? As a vanilla lover, you have chosen to start with a simple base and leave room for accessories like sprinkles, chocolate chips, fruit or a variety of candy crumbles. You most likely choose to start your outfits with a basic design and then add bits of flair here and there. 4. Have a sense of humor. As mentioned earlier, you endure a lot of mocking whenever you order vanilla. You will be called “boring,” “dull,” “lame” and in extreme cases, a “waste.” If you couldn’t laugh off the criticism of others, then you would have already become a closet vanilla eater. The fact that you continue to order your favorite simple flavor, despite knowing that the mockery will surely ensue, means that you can take a joke. No one can bring you down. 5. Are loyal. Even after being mocked, joked at and tempted by many to “change it up,” you’re still deeply in love with vanilla and feel no need to stray from it. You know that you’ve found a good thing and don’t feel the need to risk a date with your favorite vanilla treat in lieu of something more decadent. You don’t step out on vanilla just like you would never desert a friend or significant other. 6. Enjoy the simple things in life. It’s not going to take a lot to make you happy, and you really know how to value the small things. Vanilla is as simple as it gets, but there’s something about that simplicity that makes it enjoyable every time.  You don’t need grand gestures or constant entertainment to be happy.  Material possessions and flashy gifts are not your main concern." Ironically, vanilla personality characteristics have some overlap to those of eccentrics, people who are anything but vanilla. Maybe people who go for vanilla are not vanilla....

Almost everything is funny in one way or another. What's essentially funny is how people think and act and when they take themselves seriously. However, when we laugh at people, they often get upset. They don't realize that they too could be laughing if they could see themselves as we see them. Or maybe they do so realize but are afraid to see themselves that way because doing so might irreparably damage their self-image. With their identity lost, they fear feeling vulnerable and lost because they don't know who they are. However, they have nothing to fear since we don't know who we are either....

Illeism is when someone refers to themselves in the third person instead of the first person. For example, my saying "Victor went to the store" instead of saying "I went to the store." In Wikipedia: "[T]hird person self-referral can be associated with self-irony and not taking oneself too seriously (since the excessive use of pronoun "I" is often seen as a sign of narcissism and egocentrism), as well as with eccentricity in general. Psychological studies show that thinking and speaking of oneself in the third person increases wisdom and has a positive effect on one's mental state because an individual who does so is more intellectually humble, more capable of empathy and understanding the perspectives of others, and is able to distance emotionally from one's own problems. Accordingly, in certain Eastern religions, like Hinduism, illeism is sometimes seen as a sign of enlightenment, since through it, an individual detaches their eternal self (atman) from their bodily form." Notable illeists include Mikhail Gorbachev, Alice Cooper, Marilyn Monroe and Jesus Christ. Practicing illeism can be a refreshing and mindful approach to conversation as well as a recognizing that the person we were in our past lives is not the person we are now. Moreover, referring to ourselves in the third person implies we are a character in a play; that life is a play....

We are born as animals but are direct descendants of God with the potential to realize divine consciousness. Our potential is realized when we recognize that each of us is one with God, avatars of wisdom and compassion. As such, treat each other as we treat God, with respect and love. Those who don’t respect and love us don’t recognize us as God because they don’t recognize that they are God. They are animals and need to be treated accordingly....