Once

Well, this Memorial weekend turned out badly - I was not feeling well and consequently was rather unproductive. As a treat before going to bed, almost half-hearted I decided to watch the Netflix film I been ignoring called "Once", and it was irresistibly charming.

What a sparkling little gem! It is powerful in its simplicity; completely unpretentious, it captures your attention and never lets it go. Real characters, authentic emotions, and the music just captivates you.

Why can't we make more movies like this?! Almost with no budget and stars, "Once" is a much more enjoyable film than most of the Hollywood's today. Go see it, you'll be enchanted.

There was this one scene in the movie when the guy and the girl first met and played a song together in a local piano shop. This is possibly one of the most intimate and powerful scenes I have ever seen - it captures that magic moment when two human beings really connect with each other, those precious moments that make all other moments in your life seem dull and lifeless. Yea, those ones, the ones that you really lived and never seem to fade from your memory.

The song they were playing is called "Falling Slowly".

I adore Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova for making this beautiful, beautiful film in a time when watching bad ones is the norm. Bad movies rob you of life, this one enriches yours.

Even though I feel terrible from my sickness, watching this made me smile.

The First Turn

The first turn toward success comes when you remind yourself to relax and find that center of calm within yourself that is always there, always present, always available.

Man and Buddha

Man fancies himself to be the most highly evolved organism in the universe, but in the view of Buddhism he stands midway between an amoeba and a Buddha. And because he falsely sees himself as no more than this puny body, just a speck in the universe, he is constantly endeavoring to enlarge himself through possessions and power. But when he awakens to the fact that he embraces the whole universe, he ceases his grasping, for he no longer feels a lack within himself.

In the Lotus Sutra the Buddha relates that with enlightenment he realized that he possessed the universe, that all the beings were his children, and that he needed nothing more than his begging bowl. He was, in truth, the richest man in the world.

The Brain Is Wider Than The Sky

The Brain — is wider than the Sky —
For—put them side by side —
The one the other will contain
With ease — and You—beside —

The Brain is deeper than the sea —
For—hold them — Blue to Blue —
The one the other will absorb —
As Sponges — Buckets — do —

The Brain is just the weight of God —
For — Heft them — Pound for Pound —
And they will differ — if they do —
As Syllable from Sound —

Poem by Emily Dickinson

Tomorrow

There is no tomorrow.

Tomorrow is a fantasy, an illusion, a figment of your imagination. Don't pin your hopes, dreams, aspirations on that.

Tomorrow does not exist. Anything can happen tomorrow. You could lose your job tomorrow, you could get sick tomorrow, and you could die tomorrow.

The universe could end tomorrow.

You are not defined by what happens tomorrow, you are defined by what happens today.

You are only defined by what you do today.

Are you ready to show the world who you are?

Music for Your Enjoyment