Everything happens in the now. Nothing happens in the present (the pre-sent), the time before time begins in the now; the place where everything is before it is in the now. As everything taken together would be overwhelming, we need sort everything out by generalizations, categories and stories. This is the purpose of the mind. Though even in manageable form, we are still very much engaged by the now to the point we are oblivious of the pre-sent. At times our experience of the now has us feeling good, at times not so good when our needs (food, shelter, security and health) or desires (everything we feel we need but truly don't) are not satisfied. Regardless of whether times feel good or not so good, for realizing our purpose in life we cannot forget the pre-sent. For in the pre-sent, everything in the now is a wonderful play, Terrific, a comedy of the human experience, and we are the Gods watching everyone in the now as actors in the play. Moreover, in the pre-sent, as time does not exist and everything is the same thing, God, before it is what it is whatever it is, we realize our infinite and eternal nature; hence, we do not suffer death. Through meditation we enter the pre-sent....

Early on in Act 1 of the play of life, we find ourselves with many others peering into a black hole. Then, our elders give us a map of social constructs, beliefs and roles to guide us through the rabbit hole of the human experience, hoping we are among the fortunate few to ultimately find passage from underground to the light to see the majestic universe above that's beyond imagination. Yet, forsaking the map held in our hands, we can look up, see the universe and realize we are not rabbits but are whatever it is we see....

A new house that's for sale has its desirability variously described but it's never described as "charming." Charming is a word reserved to describe an old house that one would not buy from a practical point of view. When we fall in love with a charming house (or anything for that matter), we can't assess it practically relative to others. When we love all houses for the safe shelters they provide, we can easily pick the house that suits us from a practical perspective and not have future regrets. The foregoing is also true about our relationships with loved ones or others who charm us who we treat "special," but often ultimately to our regret. Yet, in the short-term, as we love the charming, whatever practical problems arise are easy to brave....

Nothing is every-thing before it is what it is whatever it is. As nothingness, every-thing is one indescribable thing, In the stillness and quietude of meditation we can experience the nothingness of everything. Otherwise, we are overwhelmed by the infinite things that make up everything, so we organize things in containers; words, descriptions, generalizations, categories and stories describing many seemingly similar things. However, as every-thing is unique and ever-changing, no thing can be containerized. Thus, the containers are empty. Anything within them is an illusion. Likewise, the Self is an empty container. However we describe it is an illusion. The soul is the nothingness from which every-thing springs....

Having presence is the greatest of presents. To a party, those without presence need to bring presents. Those who want us for our presents, not our presence, will eventually have neither....

Why I loved my father is why he hated me. I thought it was funny when he got angry, but he didn't get the joke....

"When you believe in Santa Claus you can get lots of presents because there is always someone who wants to be Santa." It's easier for us to find Santa than for Santa to find us. If we work to find Santa, it makes it easier for Santa to find us. Practically, if we work and socialize with wealthy people we have a good chance some of them will be our Santas....

Just look at the night sky, the infinite number of brilliant stars that number more than all the grains of sand on Earth. Who are we in all this? The stars, the space between the stars or everything....

Empathy is selfish, soulless. Compassion is selfless, soulful. How we think and feel defines who we perceive we are in this life, our self. How the self experiences life as it unfolds in the now is a function of stories, generalizations and categorizes our self has created. What we experience is not the now but our stories. Moreover, our self perceives us as apart and separate from everything that is other than our self; thereby, our self denies the existence of the soul, the common progenitor of everything. When we are freed from the world according to our self, we are selfless. Selfless, we experience life as it is, through many perspectives, not solely our own personal perspective based on our stories and generalizations. This is wisdom. Moreover, as selfless, we are the epitome of compassion as we treat others as we wish to be treated because they and us are one, not apart and separate. Without the self, all that remains is us as an expression of the soul. The soul is the essence of everything, every-thing before it is what it is whatever it is. For example, crying over spilt milk is selfish. Once the milk has spilled, it is now no longer. There is no reality to the milk but as it exists in our mind, the self. Our crying is in reaction to our self's illusion that the milk existed and is now lost. Having empathy for someone crying over spilt milk implies the empath is also selfish, taking the illusion created by the self as real. This reinforces the self's existence. Alternatively, when we are selfless, we are soulful. We dismiss someone's crying over spilt milk as nonsense. Instead of empathy for the person crying, we have compassion. We nurture their soul to expand its expressions. We do so by helping them see many perspectives as to how to make the best of their current circumstances. We focus on ways they can make fresh milk or other things, like babies, that expand the expressions of the soul. Likewise and simply, empathy is when we commiserate with someone who is distraught after having lost their job. Compassion is helping them get a new job. In consequence, as empathy is selfish we are oblivious to gratitude, a key to happiness; while compassion fills us with optimism and gratitude for all the opportunities before us. Hence, comforting someone with empathy prolongs sadness, while compassion leads them to happiness....