Happy New Year 2008
We welcome in the new, pushing the old to the far corners of our minds.
Reach for a new day, and understand that this is your gift.
Love your friends and family, remembering that we are all together on this vast journey called life.
Admire nature, the beauty of the world around us, and respect it.
Take notice of other people’s creations and projects, for that is what builds our world.
by Lauren Sweetland
photo by Lauren Sweetland taken Dec 31st 2007
Categories: Poems · Through my eyes
Sit and wonder,
in mystery.
As the days pass and seasons turn.
Questioning,
anticipating,
precipitating madness through inaction.
Walls closing in.
Chains breaking,
escaping the prison of vacillation.
Emancipation.
by Lauren Sweetland
11 Sept 2007
Categories: Poems · Through my eyes
Green light in front of my face.
Rain drops on my wind shield.
Flags blowing in the breeze.
The night is cold.
I am warm inside my car.
Alone.
Waiting for someone to arrive.
Excitement.
Anticipating exhilaration.
The night has not yet begun.
by Lauren Sweetland
April 2007
Categories: Poems · Through my eyes
A week ago I was driving in down town San Jose. I stopped at a red light.
My attention went to three boys, all about 15 years old, that were waiting to cross the street.
They were all so happy in each other’s company, it looked like they had spent the majority of their lives together.
I then looked closer at each boy.
The first was a tall, skinny, white boy on a mountain bike. He was your typical kid from the suburbs.
Next was a pudgy african american boy with a back pack, reminded me of a mini, younger Ice Cube. He looked cool and independent, had ear phones in and was just chillin with the other two guys.
The last boy was oriental. He had a skate board that he was playing around with. Dressed like a typical scene kid.
Sometimes if you look beyond the news and the hype you will see the reality … that we are all in this together … no matter what we look like or what type of music we listen to.
I want to continue to make this more of the norm in America. If you agree check out Youth For Human Rights.
Categories: Through my eyes
On Saturday I got in my car to drive back from Sacramento.
I usually have music or something that I am listening to. I pushed play to listen to the CD that I had.
Then I just decided to turn it off.
I drove the entire way from Sacramento to San Jose with no music or talking – 2 hours.
I had made that drive at least 100 times.
But this time I saw things and noticed things that I had never seen before. It felt like I suddenly owned the road … funny feeling.
Categories: Through my eyes
Three days ago I realized the value of being able to stop, throw things out, seperate from and MOVE ON.
This is something that has been a difficult thing for me in the past.
I like things to work out one way or the other and feel like I just can’t let go no matter how hard it gets.
Once I saw that I had this problem I realized that I can let go…
and I must say …
It does feel good to just let go every once and a while.
Categories: Through my eyes
Huge life change today … or change of view point about life.
It was one of those things that happens that makes you look back at your entire life and look at it from an entirely different angle.
There are certain ways that you can go through life.
You can run through it, paying attention to only those things that bring you pleasure. Ignoring or pushing out of your way anything that could or would attempt to get in your way.
You can do the exact opposite … putting all your attention on what is in your way and push like hell. I would liken it to trying to push a semi-truck, with a dead battery up a hill hoping to get to the other side so that you can pop the clutch and get the engine started.
Or you can run through life … confronting the things that are trying to get in your way, look at them for what they are barriers and move them so that they will never again be in your path.
So as I said at the beginning of this post today I had a huge change of viewpoint about life. I found a barrier that I did not believe existed and after I spotted that barrier I found a few other smaller barriers that I had put on my path.
It is funny, in retrospect, how we try to make things interesting for ourselves … by putting a lot of emphasis on those barriers.
My advice … Follow that old saying “Keep hitching your wagon to a star!” That way I think the bumps in the road become a little more obvious.
Categories: Through my eyes
I apologize if saying asshole is politically incorrect or offends anyone … but I just wanted to get your attention.
In life you are usually faced with two decisions when dealing with other people that you disagree with or have some problem with.
Should I be an asshole or not.
What does that mean to be an asshole? Well let me break it down for you:
It usually starts with a strong disinterest (which is fine) but then it slides into an irritation and then to a stronger feeling of hate or disgust or repulsion or annoyance. You might even want to physically hurt the person or maybe even worse.
So when you are in this realm there are a few choices that you have.
1. One to sit on your feelings and decide yes this person is an asshole and continue to feel that way, in turn becoming an undercover asshole.
2. To jump down the person’s throat right then and there, out in the open asshole.
What I am about to say is what I suggest that you do:
3. Stop for a minute and look at the person and find ONE thing that you like about them! Decide for yourself that you can come to an understanding with that person’s point of view. Then try to work it out, sure there might be some yelling or tears … but work it out.
Categories: Through my eyes
My thoughts this Valentine’s Day … I am single but I am happy. I know there will be many wonderful Valentine’s Days to come which will be amazing.
Here is one of my favorite quotes on the subject of relationships.
“Even beyond the fathering and bearing and rearing of children, a human being does not seem to be complete without a relationship with a member of the opposite sex. This relationship is the vessel wherein is nurtured the life force of both individual, whereby they create the future of the race in body and thought.”
L. Ron Hubbard
Science of Survival
Categories: Through my eyes
There is nothing wrong in seeing that something is out of place or being done the wrong way and needs to be corrected.
What is wrong is if you are going to stand in judgement of that thing and criticize or if you are going to take effective action in order to help it. To point out the faults in something only aids in making those faults stand out further.
Too often in life we become critical and ignore or use harsh words or attitudes towards the person in an attempt to bring about a change. Or worse tell someone else how we feel about that person or thing’s faults.
We all have our problems and I think the more we can work to improve our own problems and help where we can to improve the problems that we see around us we will help to make the world a better place.
There is an old saying “You have to clean out your own closet before you criticize another for not having their’s clean.”
Take a look next time you feel critical and see if there is something you can do to help or if there is something that you can improve in your own self.
Thank you! Love, Lauren
Categories: Through my eyes
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