MORE THAN OKAY

The Art of Living

A wide world of countless possibilities
Requiring life to satisfy these capabilities.
Life is as diverse as its many abilities.
Living seems fraught with responsibilities.

Responsibilities are to be taken seriously,
Otherwise, they could become heavy liabilities
Of how unconsciously we conduct our living
And account for that which is missing.

Each day commences with activities.
Committed events must be completed.
Targeted goals move towards fulfillment.
Ordinary happenings performed with strain.

Why is there strain performing these events?
Unrealistic expectations in commitments,
Unwillingness to move with targeted goals,
Inadequate planning to accomplish all?

Those events are very well intentioned.
And bring with them many contentions.
But can we deliver all as mentioned
Without the ego causing much detention?

The ego thrives on intense competition.
Pitting wills to cause major confusion.
Invariably making strong judgements
Right or wrong its main pronouncements.

Inflexible behaviour is its cause and cue.
Chaotic thinking its reason and due.
Renders inefficient its many executions.
And insufficient its entire acquisitions.

How can we be efficient and sufficient,
And willingly be aware and content,
And consciously focus on the moment
Dealing with the insistence of the ego?

Many issues to deal with constantly
Needing the artist’s creative strategy
To shift, rearrange according to priority,
Disallowing the ego to wreck its beauty.

The artist diligently prepares materials,
Aligning in priority of use and arils
Painters apply paints for best effects.
Singers practise a piece until perfect.

Artists craft out their work for best outcome
Shifting and moulding to what it can become.
The art of crafting is a gift we all share
Through our humanness imbued in nature.

Moulding the art is uneasy and incomplete.
Art is not perfect but true to its form.
The truth of the art is in its individuality
Expressed in unique forms of ingenuity.

Acts of ingenuity affirm fervent humility.
Willing awareness guides errant humanity.
Both linked by the inspired connecting hum
To create the magic art of living datum

The hum is generously loaded with living acts,
Donning artistic expressions in varying darts,
Taking its liberal cue from bounteous nature,
As it copiously distributes to living creatures.

Nature gifted trees and branches to sway
In the breeze and bend with strong winds.
It caused a hierarchy of the animal kingdom
To ensure survival of the fittest of the species.

So too, it requires that humans be flexible
In their dealings with all that is and rearrange
Thoughts and deeds in congruence with nature
To experience the true art of human living.

To be alive and aware is to be truly human.
Physically breathing in the good there is.
Deliberately breathing out negative energies,
Renewing and rejuvenating all our cells.

Renewal and rejuvenation come with promises.
Acceptance of situations as they happen;
Enthusiasm to deal consciously with what is;
Enjoyment of pleasure in the present moment.

Fulfillment of these promises can occur
When we live them in the present moment.
Schooling the ego not to dwell in the past
And not to project into the distant future.

To be fully engaged is the art of living
Extending humility towards all humanity;
Forgiving judgements with flexibility;
Dealing courageously with insensitivity.

When we acknowledge our human failings,
We treat ourselves with gentle kindness
Which responds with compassionate figures
That better understand our human nature.

When we feel the empathy in relationships,
And see others no different from ourselves,
We better express and uphold our human spirit
That furthers within ourselves the art of living.

Art of living suggests connecting with humans,
Holding ourselves as mirrors for each other.
When cracked, signal a broken call to love.
When whole, reflect the light of possibilities.