Nobody likes having a problem. Nobody likes spending time on a problem. So we prefer a quick fix and cover it with a plaster. But sooner or later that plaster goes off and we’re back where we started. In order to really solve a problem, we need to understand the problem. And to know the entire solution, we need to know the entire problem. And so we need stay with it longer then we might like.

American actor and comedian Milton Berle said: “If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door”. This quote made me smile five seconds, and then think five minutes. If you want to make something happen, instead of waiting and hoping for it to happen, create the right circumstances so it actually can happen. Like a flower needs fertile soil, so does opportunity need a door to knock on. So don’t hide. Go out there. Be creative. Find the right people. Build that door. And opportunity will knock.

To live the life you desire, you must conquer the fears that keep you from living that life. Taking a small step every day, conquering some fear, is what Ralph Waldo Emerson calls: “The secret of life”. Now I think there are more secrets to life than just this. But it’s certainly the secret to living a grand life. Grand, according to your own standards that is. So what is a grand life to you and what fears do you need to conquer to live it? And practically: what fear, big or small, could you conquer today? (Reading this earlier post, might just get you in the mood and start today with really facing your fear).

Here are three quotes on silence: “The temple of our purest thoughts is silence.” “Silence is the language of God, all else is poor translation” – Rumi. And: “Silence is an empty space, space is the home of the awakened mind” – Buddha. To live in silence, if only for a brief moment, you need to attain a calm and quite mind. Find yourself a place to sit. Close your eyes. And let the sounds you hear and the thoughts you have all fade into silence. It may not be easy – but even a second of silence, is a second of deep connection. With yourself, the universe and everything in it. Like Chinese philosopher Confucius (551-479 BC) once said: “Silence is the true friend that never betrays.”

You ponder, you wonder, where to begin? You may start with reason, and force your way in. You might choose for logic or focus on math. But will calculations, predict your path? If you have a dream, it’s nice to be smart. But never forget to follow your heart. ‘Cause nothing is certain, nothing will stay. So try to let loose, and take time to play. Simply feel free, for what you will see, is sometimes you’re right and sometimes you’re wrong. But all ups and downs, will make you strong. So first to yourself, simply be kind. And step by step, you surely will find. It’s not about when, or if you can. It’s not about how, be with the Tao. No need to run, no need to hide. No need for struggle, no need to fight. And then there it is, in the ultimate hour. Your dreams come to life, like a magnificent shower.

The sun goes down, so the moon can rise. If water freezes, it will become ice. One door is closed, to open another. When your dad said no, you went to your mother. If you’re tired of listening, it’s time to start talking. When you’re tired of running, simply start walking. Old becomes new, as new becomes old. You may be shy, but suddenly bold. When a meal is finished, digestion begins. Your wish for a baby, might be granted with twins. When a project is done, you start with the next. First you feel stressed, then you’re relaxed. If you’re done breathing in, you start breathing out. First you where sure, now full of doubt. Fall ends, winter begins. Endings, beginnings, both just a name, do take it easy: they are the same! Look beyond their appearance, and see what that’s giving. Unbound by limits, you will be living. Endings, beginnings, they truly are one. No more duality, no need to run.

Some people spend their entire life searching to ‘find themselves’. Some succeed, some don’t, so here’s an easy and guaranteed successful way to find yourself. Look in a mirror and voila: there you are! If you still don’t think it’s really you, pinch yourself in the arm. Ah, very funny, but what if you want to find your inner self? Well, as I wrote in this post: ‘Getting lost is a great way to find your (inner) self’, because when everything around you no longer serves as a compass to live by, you become your own compass. But getting lost is a little devious maybe, so what else can you do? Well, Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw (1865-1950) had a refreshing point of view. He said: “Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself”. Whereas finding yourself implies that you seek outside of yourself, creating yourself means you start from within yourself and then work to manifest that in the outside world. Once you succeed in doing so, there will be no need to find yourself – you already did. In other words, it’s not so much who you are, it’s who you want to be.