When No Wind Whispers

One that makes me think of my friend Jim— 

“When Ryonen was about to pass from this world, she wrote another poem:

Sixty-six times have these eyes beheld the changing scene of autumn,

I have had enough about moonlight,

Ask no more, 

Only listen to the voice of pines and cedars when no wind stirs.”

— R.H. Blyth, Zen in English Literature

Ryōnen Gensō (1646-1711) was a Japanese monk and poet who taught poor children.

The Tree Wise Men

My friend Jim Hampton has a strong affinity for trees, so this morning I asked him what he would say are the wise qualities of a tree. 

He replied, “The immediate words that come to mind are: ancient, sage, quiet, patient, watchful, constant and protective.

“To be more descriptive, I think of something that is wise and powerful, yet discerning. They patiently observe without interfering. Taking in our behaviors so they may increase their wisdom which leads to greater, superior silence.”

“I’m curious as to why you asked.”

I replied, “It’s something I thought of while walking George past my personal ‘world tree’ this morning. You gave good answers. I always think of solidity — the immovable trunk — and yet suppleness, branches that bend with the breeze. And they are satisfied just with sunlight.”

Patricia Highsmith: The Prize Is Privacy

Jim Hampton just gave me this massive volume by one of my favorite authors.

“Privacy,” wrote Patricia Highsmith in September 1957. “An expensive thing in the modern world. How many young writers give themselves a chance? It is considered eccentric to like to be alone. 

“Yet for such a short time, either a stay at a country cottage, or absolute quiet for six hours a day produce more than the trouble costs.

“Take yourself seriously. Set a routine. Once you are alone, relax and behave as you will. 

“Stand still for a moment and relish the novel sensation of knowing that you are utterly alone and will not be disturbed by a ringing telephone, a baby’s cry, an order from a boss, a groan or a whine from a spouse.

“Privacy is expensive. Perhaps it costs somebody else something. Relish it. But don’t feel guilty about having it. Take it as your due.

Arise Before the Stupid Stir

Impressionist landscape by Bart DeCeglie

Jim Hampton wrote: "A cool, early-morning walk in the sunrise does wonders for a person’s disposition.

"The dangerous stupidity of the world isn’t awake yet."

A meme made for me by my lifelong friend Jim Hampton. Thanks, Jim! The point is not to let our reactions to our failures to achieve emotional equanimity push us still further away from it.

Bacall's Bottom Line on Life

Jim Hampton made this meme for me. Thanks, Jim!

Putting on the Brakes, Mentally

A meme by Jim Hampton

As I was driving George Hilton Beagle to McHugh’s to pick up a cheeseburger Thursday afternoon, the brakes seemed sluggish, and they gave out entirely just as I got home, with the car rolling to a stop and the brake light coming on.

Looked like brake fluid on the fresh snow to me. I called Neal Tire and had it towed.

I must say handled the car events with mindful equanimity. I always wonder if I’ll be able to do that whenever the next crisis comes, and lately I seem to have been getting better and better at it.

I count myself lucky we weren’t on the road when the brakes failed completely.

I’m never quite sure if I can really practice what I preach, so I'm tentatively proud when I’m able to do so. With mindfulness, many of these crises CAN be managed, mentally and emotionally, without overreaction or much reaction at all, really.

Something to Keep in Mind about Self-Worth

Thoughts from my great friend Jim Hampton, the one fixed point in a changing age.

The Mindfulness in the Moon

By Hung Su Steve Sampson and Jim Hampton

The night of 9-11, I slept fitfully, dreaming of pursuit, awakening after midnight to switch on CNN and watch the hypnotic orange flames dancing at ground zero.

That was the worst. Your fears are always magnified after midnight, and jitterbug on the walls like giant shadows cast by those hellish flames. Civilization seemed to be burning in that fire, and, for all I knew, maybe it was.

Better, then, that next afternoon, sitting on the steps of the deck, but still feeling as if an asteroid had knocked the planet off its axis.

I'd have been chain-smoking if I hadn’t stopped three years before.

Instead I just sat and looked at the yard, and was quietly surprised.

The birds weren’t migrating in panic, they were just singing. The sky was an untroubled clarion blue. The trees nodded and murmured regally, as usual. The dark green of their late-summer leaves shifted and swayed to form patterns of dappled sunlight, as rhythmically soothing as waves on the ocean.

The world was as it always was. Nothing had changed it. Nothing could. And I thought it was trying to tell me something, if I had the wit to understand.

This juxtaposition — the calm, measured solidity of the natural world standing in contrast to the mad panic of human events — tugged at something in my memory. What was it?

I recalled my long-ago ethics class with Frank Taylor at Eastern Illinois University. Young and eager to know what the greatest human minds had discovered, I'd been particularly impressed by Taylor's discussion of the practical philosophy of the Stoics, people like Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius.

The Stoics were keenly aware that it isn’t events themselves that ordinarily affect us — it’s our emotional reaction to events that rules us.

Emotional reactions, grounded in past traumatic associations, are automatic and often inappropriate responses to new and changing circumstances. If we could govern our reflexive emotional reactions to situations we regard as adverse, we could be calmer, happier. Our psychological and philosophical standard of living would rise.

The lesson was there before me in birdsong, patiently waiting for me to listen.

What Is Synchronicity?

The Universe and the subconscious conspiring to echo an affirmation they want the conscious self to hear.

— Jim Hampton

The Rock and the River

Statue by Celeste Roberge

“I was talking with my good friend Argenis a while back about life’s obstacles and how we deal with them,” Jim Hampton wrote. “As he was talking, in my mind flashed an image of a very ugly, craggy rock covered in uneven, sharp edges. This rock sat steadfast in a river with extremely strong and dangerous currents. I asked myself where the image came from and what it could mean. In a flash the image and what my friend was trying to tell me merged into clarity.”

Click here to share Jim’s insight.

A Shot in the American Darkness

Another act of God, obviously. It's the only possible explanation.
Remember, guns don't kill people. God just shoots them for fun.

A Tribute from My Friend Jim Hampton

In all modesty, I ... oh, the hell with it. I LOVE THIS!!!

Jim Hampton: A Self Portrait

My friend Jim Hampton: The one fixed point in a changing age.

Fan Cruising and Other Revolutionary Skills

My friend Jim Hampton and I have joked about the idea of "fan cruising" for years

From the Mindful Mind of Jim Hampton