My Reflections On...Anything

"Und wenn ein Lied meine Lippen verlässt..."

2011-01-13T12:14:00.002+01:00

"Und wenn ein Lied meine Lippen verlässt,
dann nur damit du Liebe empfängst.
Durch die Nacht und das dichteste Geäst,
damit du keine Ängste mehr kennst."

Nichts ist Unwichtig

2011-01-13T10:39:00.005+01:00

Manchmal denkt man sich: "Ach, komm, es gibt so viele schlimmere Sachen auf der Welt. Und ich beschäftige mich mit meinen Angelegenheiten. Als ob ich mir selber Probleme schaffen möchte..."

Diese Logik kann uns zwar manchmal retten, aber man muss sich im Klaren sein, wie "groß" seine Angelegenheit ist. Besonders wenn sich diese Angelegenheit (meistens hinter der Maske einer Emotion) mehrmals wiederholt und eine erhebliche Menge deiner Zeit in Anspruch nimmt, dann könnte diese Logik auch falsch sein. Dann ist diese Angelegenheit genau so wichtig wie alles andere auf der Welt, über das wir als das Allerschlimmste denken. Du hast jahrelang Probleme mit deiner Eifersucht, während irgendwo der Vater deines besten Freundes im Todesbett liegt. Ich behaupte, dass deine Angelegenheit nicht unwichtiger ist als die deines Freundes. Natürlich, wenn man die beiden nebeneinander stellt und vergleicht, würde jeder - und da bin ich mir ganz sicher - sagen: "Ach, hau ab mit meiner Eifersucht! Am schlimmsten ist es, wenn man an einer bestimmten Situation nichts ändern kann, wenn nichts von mir abhängt. Scheiß drauf auf alles andere! Meine Probleme sind nichts im Vergleich zu denen meines Freundes!".

Ja, das stimmt auf den ersten Blick. Ich behaupte aber, dass es falsch ist, so eine Kategorisierung und so einen Vergleich überhaupt vorzunehmen. Und hier wiederhole ich mich noch einmal: dann, wenn sich eine Angelegenheit lange Zeit hinter deinem Rücken schleppt und dich nicht in Ruhe lässt.

Denn durch einen solchen Vergleich können wir für eine bestimmte Zeit unsere Probleme und Angelegenheiten zur Seite ablegen und damit unterdrücken, als ob es sie nicht gegeben hätte. Sie sind aber da! Und sie werden solange da bleiben, bis wir ihnen keine Aufmerksamkeit schenken, bis wir uns um sie nicht kümmern - wie um kleine Kinder.

Alles, was in unserem Leben passiert, alles, was unsere Zeit in Besitz nimmt, ist nicht unwichtig!

Me & Pelevin (pt.1)

2010-08-18T11:59:00.004+02:00

"[...]

- Че човек донякъде прилича на нашия влак. Той също е обречен да тегли след себе си цяла композиция тъмни, страшни, незнайно от кого наследени вагони от миналото. И да нарича безсмисления грохот на случайната върволица от надежди, мнения и страхове "свой живот". Но подобна съдба няма как да бъде избегната.

- Защо пък? - каза Чапаев. - Има начин.

- Вие знаете ли го?

- Разбира се.

- Бихте ли ми го казали?

- С удоволствие - щракна с пръсти Чапаев.

Башкирецът изглежда само бе чакал този сигнал. Остави фенера на пода, чевръсто се промуши под парапета, наведе се над незримата в мрака връзка между вагоните и бързо заработи с ръце. Нещо тихо тракна и той също тъй чевръсто се върна на малката платформа.

Тъмната стена на вагона срещу нас започна бавно да се отдалечава.

[...]

Останах на платформата сам и известно време мълчаливо гледах към далечината. Още чувах пеенето на тъкачите, но с всяка изминала секунда вагоните се отдалечаваха все повече и повече. Изведнъж ми се стори, че върволицата им много прилича на откъснатата опашка на избягал гущер. Картината беше прекрасна. О, да можеше наистина също тъй лесно, както Чапаев се бе разделил с тези хора, и аз да се простя с мрачната банда от измамни "аз", дето толкова години съсипваха душата ми!"

Me In Front of Myself

2010-07-16T19:40:00.007+02:00

It's time again to take a look at myself. A few months later. And to strike a balance.

I stand here. Pure. Sincere. Transparent.

One of the periods in my life in which I am purely and completely pleased with myself and my life. But don't think it means there's nothing to work on! There is. And there will always be. No doubt. There is no one in this world - NO ONE - who has it all perfect! Thank God! Because if it had been so, then our way on earth would have been through and...it will be time for us to leave this world.

Me.

I am in peace with myself.

I got to know myself even better.

I have become pretty direct with people. Insultingly direct for many of them.

I am at ease.

I am honest. I am at times even scarily honest. And I do enjoy it.

I am in love. I am so sincerely and devotingly in love.

I give. I have the energy to give a lot. But I don't give it gratis. I give it only when I see there is someone who is ready to take it.

I have learned to save my energy even more. Only to be able to use it when I need and when I really want to.

I realize more and more my desire to create children. My children. Our children.

I am not worried. I am in a state in which I can hardly feel worried.

I make the best of my body. I give it what it needs. I have learned to listen to it. I am devoted to it. And my body is thankful for that.

I know exactly why I have the people around me in my life just now. And if one gets out of my life then I would know why it has happened. And I am clear with that.

I know where I'm at.

Clearly.

Да представиш себе си...

2010-06-15T16:44:00.012+02:00

Мислех си за презентациите. Или да ги наречем доклади, реферати - няма значение.
Държа такива ми ти работи от няколко години насам. Слушам по няколко такива на седмица. И си разсъждавам...

Каква е целта на една презентация?

Независимо от съдържанието, можем да дефинираме целта на една презентация като представяне на нещо - имаме задачката да опишем/анализираме/покажем нещо на определен брой хора.

Каква е типичната характеристика на една презентация?

Именно това, че е презент-ация. Думичката идва от латинското præsentare, което означава "поставям на показ", "показвам", "излагам". Това ще рече, че правим нещо не просто заради самото нещо, а имаме за цел и въпросното нещо да стигне до други хора - нашите слушатели. Т.е., нека го кажем по философски: имаме ситуация, в която не трябва да мислим само за себе си, но и за другите.

"А защо пък да не мисля само за себе си - нали е моята презентация?"

Да, логичен въпрос. Така мислят 90% от хората, които слушам всяка седмица. ВСЯКА седмица. И имаме съответния резултат - мнозинството от слушателите не "изтрайват" до края на презентацията и от втората точка нататък си мислят вероятно за всевъзможни неща - от якия секс предната вечер до това какво трябва да напазаруват на път за вкъщи. А онзи отпред си гово-о-о-о-о-о-ри...
Ако трябва да сме честни, всеки лектор има правото да избира дали да прави презентацията само за себе си или да я направи и за другите. В първия случай е доста вероятно да се стигне до гореописания сценарий със слушателите. Във втория случай нещата изглеждат по друг начин.
Аз ясно и твърдо заставам зад втория. И сега ще обясня защо:

1. Отговорност към другите
Често може да се види феномена на егоистичния човек днес. Някой, който мисли само за себе си и като цяло не му пука нито какво ще си помислят другите, нито, ако направи нещо, как това ще се отрази на света около него. Не че малко егоизъм от време на време не е полезен - не ме разбирайте погрешно!
Но след здравословната доза егоизъм идва вече отговорността към другите: "Искам да направя нещо, с което да обогатя другите, нещо, с което ще обогатя поне малко света около мен! Най-малкото, защото, по дяволите - все пак живея в един свят с други хора и ако мога - бих искал/а да им дам нещо."
Научил си нещо, имаш знанията по някаква тема - трябва да ги предадеш нататък! А не да ги пазиш за себе си! Това не е писан закон...но е универсален! Оттук и отговорността към начина, по който ще предадеш тези знания. Защото той трябва да бъде толкова добър, че нещото, което представяш, все пак да стигне до другите.
Това за мен е правилната логика. И ако повече хора биха я следвали по-често, може би светът би бил много по-обогатен и готин. :-)

2. Уважение към себе си
Да направиш добра презентация, с която да дадеш нещо на света, е не на последно място уважение към самия себе си. Подхванал си нещо - ами ако уважаваш себе си, ще го направиш като хората! Ще го изпипаш, ще го направиш и по съдържание, и по вид качествено. Защото вярвам твърдо в това, че ние сме онова, което правим. И преди всичко - както го правим. Не става въпрос да направиш една презентация за това да обереш после всички точки и аплодисменти на публиката. Това може да бъде последствие, но не и първопричина. Разковничето се крие в това да направиш всичко така, че като го погледнеш накрая и да ти се изпълва сърцето - заради красотата на това, което си създал със собственото си същество. И като го погледнеш да си кажеш на първо място: "Гордея се със себе си!". А дали някой друг ще се гордее с теб...има ли значение в крайна сметка? Работата е във вътрешното чувство..
На този, на когото това би му прозвучало като клише, мога само да пожелая един ден да изпита това вътрешно чувство на задоволство!

3. "От мен, с любов..."
Любовта! Дааа, доста хора я забравят...
Любовта не липсва и при презентациите. Тя е неизменна част от всяка една добра презентация. Слушали ли сте някога толкова добър доклад, при който седиш и с възхищение гледаш/слушаш говорещия и си казваш "Господи, колко е добър!"? Е, ако не сте, то ви го пожелавам! :-)
При всеки един добър доклад съм напълно сигурна - той е подготвян с любов!
Всеки е чувал за най-важната съставка при готвенето - любовта. Е, същото е и с презентациите. Трябва да обичаш това, което представяш. Или ако не обичаш самото съдържание, то поне самата мисъл за представянето му, самия процес на подготовка, да обичаш мисълта, че ще дадеш нещо на света. Иначе презентацията ти е обречена. Тогава стигаме до това, че нито някой ще я разбере/изслуша докрай, нито светът ще се обогати по някакъв начин, нито говорещият ще е удовлетворен от работата си (съответно и от себе си) и тогава стигаме до въпроса "Ами, за к'ъв тогава?".
Прави с любов! С това показваш първо - уважение към собствената си личност, второ - обогатяваш другите.

И за да не стои всичко просто така, на философски лаври, ето някои неща, които аз лично за себе си следвам всеки път при подготовката на едно такова вълнуващо събитие. (Ако сте от тези, на които само при мисълта за подготвяне на презентация започва да им се преобръща нещо в корема, мога само да кажа: дори и най-неприятната презентация човек може да си я превърне в много вълнуващо и готино събитие - на първо място за себе си, а автоматически и за всички други.)

Не, тук няма да се правя на наръчник за правене на презентации. Такива ги има достатъчно. Има един единствен въпрос, чийто отговори гарантират чисто и просто КАЧЕСТВО:

Ако аз самият слушам тази презентация, как искам да изглежда тя, така че излизайки от залата/стаята да е останало нещо в главата ми и да е докоснала не само мозъка, но и душата ми?

В този въпрос се крие всичко онова, което обясних по-горе - отговорността към другите, уважението към себе си и любовта. Едва ли на някого би му било приятно, например, да отиде да слуша доклад, при който говорещият си мънка под носа, свенливо, свенливо, а той напряга слуховите си рецептори до последно, за да хване оттук-оттам нещо. Ами гарантирам, че такъв човек не само че няма да изпита удоволствие от такава презентация, но и ще псува онзи на сцената няколко часа след това заради пропиляното време. Задаваш си тогава въпроса "Искам ли така да се почувстват моите слушатели?". Ако отговорът е "не", ясно е как НЕ трябва да се презентира.

Друг пример: никой, ама никой не обича да гледа притеснен лектор, който започва да фъфли от притеснение, губи си мисълта, препотява се, пресъхва му устата и в крайна сметка не може да формулира и една ясна мисъл. Задавам си въпроса "Искам ли моите слушатели да слушат и гледат такъв човек?". Ако отговорът е "не", знам какво трябва да направя. Няма нищо по-хубаво за една презентация от човек, който знае защо е отпред, има самочувствието, че неслучайно е там и че знае точно какво иска да даде на другите.
Не стигаме ли пак до горните три точки? ;-)

Така че, мили ми смехурковци, дори и при едно толкова тривиално и не особено любимо нещо като презентации, доклади и реферати намираме чисто и просто още един начин да покажем на себе си колко се ценим, уважаваме и обичаме - да представим себе си не само пред другите, но и пред самите себе си. Дали и те ще го оценят - това не трябва по никакъв начин да е водеща мисъл.

Есенцията на нещата се състои в желанието да направиш нещо за другите, а не в желанието да получиш оценката им...

Alles, was ich brauchte...

2010-03-15T17:07:00.002+01:00

It just suits me so well!

Ich bat um Kraft ...
und mir wurden Schwierigkeiten gegeben,
um mich stark zu machen.

Ich bat um Weisheit ...
und mir wurden Probleme gegeben,
um sie zu lösen und
dadurch Weisheit zu erlangen.

Ich bat um Wohlstand ...
und mir wurde ein Gehirn
und Muskelkraft gegeben, um zu arbeiten.

Ich bat um Mut...
und mir wurden Hindernisse gegeben,
um sie zu überwinden.

Ich bat um Liebe ...
und mir wurden besorgte,
unruhige Menschen mit Problemen gegeben,
um Ihnen beizustehen.

Ich bat um Entscheidungen ...
und mir wurden Gelegenheiten gegeben.

Ich bekam nichts, was ich wollte ...
Aber ich bekam alles, was ich brauchte.

----------------------------------------
(Bulgarian translation)

Помолих за помощ..
и ми бяха дадени трудности,
които да ме направят силен.

Помолих за мъдрост...
и ми бяха дадени проблеми,
за да ги реша
и така да достигна до мъдрост.

Помолих за благополучие...
и ми бяха дадени мозък и
сила, за да работя.

Помолих за смелост...
и ми бяха дадени пречки,
за да ги преодолея.

Помолих за любов...
и ми бяха дадени угрижени,
неспокойни хора с проблеми,
за да ги подкрепям.

Помолих за решения...
и ми бяха дадени възможности.

Не получих нищо от това, което си пожелах...
но получих всичко, от което имах нужда.

Do you believe in...Mama?

2010-03-02T21:48:00.003+01:00

A conversation between two babies in the belly of a pregnant woman.

The non-believing baby:

~ Do you believe in life after birth?

The believing baby:

~ Of course I do. It is more than clear that there is life after birth. The purpose of our stay here is to become strong enough and prepare for life.

The non-believing baby:

~ Bullshit! There couldn’t be life after birth! Can you imagine what kind of life that would be?

The believing baby:

~ Well, I am not acquainted with the details but I firmly believe that there would be more light and that we’ll be able to walk on our feet and eat with our mouths.

The non-believing baby:

~ Bullshit! It is impossible to walk on your own feet and eat with your own mouth! This is ridiculous! We have a navel string which feeds us. Listen to me: there couldn’t be life after birth because our real life – the navel string – is so short anyway…

The believing baby:

~ Nevertheless I don’t doubt that life after birth is possible. It’s just that everything will be a little more different than it is now. Just imagine…

The non-believing baby:

~ But no one has ever made it to come back after birth. Life ends with birth! In other words, life is nothing else but suffering in the darkness…

The believing baby:

~ No! I don’t know what our life would be like after birth but we will definitely meet Mama and She is going to take care of us!

The non-believing baby:

~ Mama? So, you believe that Mama really exists? And what do you think – where is She?

The believing baby:

~ She is everywhere around us, we live in Her, we are able to move and live thanks to Her; without Her we wouldn’t exist.

The non-believing baby:

~ Nonsense! I have never seen any Mama therefore it is absolutely clear that She does not exist…

The believing baby:

~ No. I cannot agree with you. Sometimes, when everything around us gets still and silent I can hear Her singing and I can feel how She caresses our world. I do believe that our real life is going to start after our birth. What about you?

-- author: (does it matter?)

ARE YOU REAL?

2010-02-20T08:34:00.002+01:00

"What is REAL?" asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender. "Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?"

"Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real."

"Does it hurt?" asked the Rabbit.

"Sometimes," said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. "When you are Real you don't mind being hurt."

"Does it happen all at once, like being wound up," he asked, "or bit by bit?"

"It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse. "You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't often happen to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand. Once you are Real you can't become unreal again. It lasts for always."

An abstract from "The Velveteen Rabbit" by Margery Williams

One Body!

2010-01-03T16:39:00.002+01:00

An excerpt from Mike Boyle's blog:

"Imagine you are sixteen years old and your parents give you your first car. They also give you simple instructions. There is one small hitch, you only get one car, you can never get another. Never. No trade-ins, no trade-ups. Nothing.

Ask your self how would you maintain that car? My guess is you would be meticulous. Frequent oil changes, proper fuel, etc. Now imagine if your parents also told you that none of the replacement parts for this car would ever work as well as the original parts. Not only that, the replacement parts would be expensive to install and cause you to have decreased use of your car for the rest of the cars useful life? In other words, the car would continue to run but, not at the same speed and with the efficiency you were used to.

Wow, now would we ever put a lot of time and effort into maintenance if that were the case.

After reading the above example ask yourself another question. Why is the human body different? Why do we act as if we don’t care about the one body we were given. Same deal. You only get one body. No returns or trade-ins. Sure, we can replace parts but boy it’s a lot of work and it hurts. Besides, the stuff they put in never works as well as the original “factory” parts. The replacement knee or hip doesn’t give you the same feel and performance as the original part.

Think about it. One body. You determine the mileage? You set the maintenance plan?

No refunds, no warranties, no do-overs?"

I would add: ONE MIND...as well!!!

За вярата...

2009-12-27T20:34:00.003+01:00

Ето - аз дишам,
работя,
живея
и стихове пиша
(тъй както умея).
С живота под вежди
се гледаме строго
и боря се с него,
доколкото мога.

С живота сме в разпра,
но ти не разбирай,
че мразя живота.
Напротив, напротив! -
Дори да умирам,
живота със грубите
лапи челични
аз пак ще обичам!
Аз пак ще обичам!

Да кажем, сега ми окачат
въжето
и питат:
"Как, искаш ли час да живееш?"
Веднага ще кресна:
"Свалете!
Свалете!
По-скоро свалете
въжето, злодеи!"

За него - Живота -
направил бих всичко. -
Летял бих
със пробна машина в небето,
бих влезнал във взривна
ракета, самичък,
бих търсил
в простора
далечна
планета.

Но все пак ще чувствам
приятния гъдел,
да гледам как
горе
небето синее.
Все пак ще чувствам
приятния гъдел,
че още живея,
че още ще бъда.

Но ето, да кажем,
вий вземете, колко? -
пшеничено зърно
от моята вера,
бих ревнал тогава,
бих ревнал от болка
като ранена
в сърцето пантера.

Какво ще остане
от мене тогава? -
Миг след грабежа
ще бъда разнищен.
И още по-ясно,
и още по-право -
миг след грабежа
ще бъда аз нищо.

Може би искате
да я сразите
моята вяра
във дните честити,
моята вяра,
че утре ще бъде
живота по-хубав,
живота по-мъдър?

А как ще щурмувате, моля?
С куршуми?
Не! Неуместно!
Ресто! - Не струва! -
Тя е бронирана
здраво в гърдите
и бронебойни патрони
за нея
няма открити!
Няма открити!

--Никола Вапцаров

"БЪДИ ЗВЕЗДА ДО КРАЯ"

2009-12-16T10:15:00.002+01:00

Господи,ти си толкова могъщ! Помогни на тези, които се нуждаят от сила на духа и вяра в доброто. Господи!

Ако сам изпаднеш в беда,
или губиш в нечестна игра,
недей, недей, недей се предава.
Попаднеш ли в нечисти ръце,
дори да чувстваш, че силни са те,
недей, нагоре не, не оставай.

Бъди звезда докрая
във ада и във рая,
бъди звезда в живота,
бъди звезда във смъртта.

Ако някой подлец отстрани
се опита до теб да върви,
недей, недей, не му позволявай.
Следвай свойта голяма мечта,
вярвай и далеч да е тя,
недей, недей, недей се предава.

Бъди звезда в простора,
сред милиони хора,
бъди звезда до края,
бъди звезда в любовта.

--Георги Станчев

Untitled

2009-12-16T00:31:00.003+01:00

„The tragedy in life does not lie in not reaching your goals. The tragedy lies in not having a goal to reach for.

It is not a calamity to die with your dreams unfulfilled but it is a calamity not to dream.

It is not a disaster to be unable to capture your ideals but it’s a disaster to have no ideal to capture.

It is not a disgrace not to reach the stars but it is a disgrace to have no stars to reach for.”

--Benjamin E. Mayes

"J"-кривата (J-curve)

2009-12-12T19:10:00.005+01:00

Вчера четох за кривата "J" (J-curve). Ето какво казва добрата, стара Уикипедия:

The term J-curve is used in several different fields to refer to a variety of unrelated J-shaped diagrams where a curve initially falls, but then rises to higher than the starting point.

По принцип въпросната крива играе доста голяма роля в маркетинга, бизнеса, политиката и т.н. Не тези неща имам обаче предвид.

Харесва ми мисълта за "where a curve initially falls, but then rises to higher than the starting point". Има май доста общо с това, което преди известно време бях писала в блога - за падовете и възходите. Само че при "J"-кривата отиваме още една стъпка напред: не само че след достигане на най-ниската точка кривата започва да се изкачва нагоре и достига началното ниво, но и продължава и над него - изкачва се нагоре, нагоре, и още по-нагоре... Прекрасна идея! По една или друга причина слизаш до долу, стигаш някакво дъно, след което...ами просто тръгваш нагоре!

Тук може би ще си поставите някои питанки и чуденки, например:

Как да позная кога съм стигнал дъното?
Аз бих казала: ЩЕ ГО ПОЧУВСТВАШ! И след това чисто и просто ще започнеш да се катериш бавно и славно нагоре.

А как въобще да тръгна да се катеря нагоре?
Аз бих казала (пак!): ЩЕ ГО ПОЧУВСТВАШ! И просто някак си ще тръгнеш. В началото може би няма дори да ти е ясно точно накъде или точно как. В началото просто ще вървиш нагоре. И като за начало само това е важното - посоката. Ще тръгнеш бавно нагоре по своята "J"-крива.

И няма да спреш...

The Beauty of Letting Go

2009-12-09T23:38:00.001+01:00

Rather the flight of the bird passing and leaving no trace
Than creatures passing, leaving tracks on the ground.
The bird goes by and forgets, which is as it should be.
The creature, no longer there, and so, perfectly useless,
Shows it was there - also perfectly useless.

Remembering betrays Nature,
Because yesterday's Nature is not Nature,
What's past is nothing and remembering is not seeing.

Fly, bird, fly away; teach me to disappear!

--Pessoa

Chooser vs. Picker

2009-10-13T07:57:00.002+02:00

One extract from the book I'm reading now. So...are you a chooser or a picker?

"Finally, the very wealth of options before us may turn us from choosers into pickers. A chooser is someone who thinks actively about the possibilities before making a decision. A chooser reflects on what's important to him or her in life, what's important about this particular decision, and what the short- and long-range consequences of the decision may be. A chooser makes decisions in a way that reflects awareness of what a given choice means about him or her as a person. Finally, a chooser is thoughtful enough to conclude that perhaps none of the available alternatives are satisfactory, and that if he or she wants the right alternative, he or she may have to create it.

A picker does none of these things. With a world of choices rushing by like a music video, all a picker can do is grab this or that and hope for the best. Obviously, this is not such a big deal when what's being picked is breakfast cereals. But decisions don't always come at us with signs indicating their relative importance prominently attached. Unfortunately, the proliferation of choice in our lives robs us of the opportunity to decide for ourselves just how important any given decision is.”

--B.S.

One of Those Moments...

2009-10-09T08:33:00.007+02:00

Yesterday I experienced one of those moments when you are thankful for such simple things like having legs and arms, for being able to use them and enjoying their ability to function - such simple things which make you forget A-L-L that you consider serious problems in your daily routine.

I was on my way to Hagen. I was all drowned in my own thoughts not paying much attention to the people in the immediate vicinity of me. I was sitting still, lost in reading, when suddenly the woman beside me started to make some strange - almost gymnastics - moves. But even this couldn't get me out of my occupation. Only a moment later she asked me when our train was due to arrive in Dortmund. I explained to her that this train didn't go to Dortmund at all and that she would have to catch other train. She just sighed, then gave me one of the most friendly and genuine smiles I have ever experienced in my life and I got lost again in my book.

Not for long...

The gymnastics moves went on. They were even more impressive than before. With my peripheral vision I could see a foot just a few centimeters from my face and somewhere down there - a head, almost reaching the floor. I turned my head and looked at the woman. She had no arms. A conductor was passing to check the passenger cards and the woman was taking out hers. She was taking it out of her bag which was lying down on the floor with the help of her feet! At that moment I thought of all the "fancy women" who sometimes cannot even take their identity card out of their purse because their manicure is too long and oh-my-God-it-could-get-damaged!.

Reverence!

The woman showed her passenger card to the conductor and started to pack her stuff to get off at the next station. She packed her bag alone - with the help of her feet! - hung it on her neck and got to drag her trunk to the train door (oh right, did I mention that she had a trunk either?).

She would never read this but I can't help saying it:
You made my day! Thank you!

God bless you!

"Живей, приятелю, живей!"

2009-10-07T07:14:00.004+02:00

One of my "guiding-light" poems.
Sorry, again, for not translating it. I just don't feel condign enough to bother this beauty...

Живей, когато имаш всичко,
ала от всичко си лишен
и късаш думите на срички,
за да не паднеш в негов плен.

Живей, когато от тревога
отрониш първата роса
и търсиш утрото в приятел
от детските си небеса.

Живей, когато ти се плаче
или от плач си отвратен
от бели мишки и гризачи,
които ровят в твоя ден.

Живей, когато те разлюбят
светкавици и ветрове
и нежността започне грубо
с метални устни да зове.

Живей, дори да си измамен
от собствената си съдба
и вместо да усетиш рамо -
усещаш нечий нож в гърба.

Живей за всичко! А когато
в живота всичко изгори
вдигни се пак и без остатък
останките му събери.

Живей и всяка адска жега
с капчукова вода полей!
Дори да ти коват ковчега -
живей, приятелю, живей!!!

--Матей Шопкин

The Holistic Approach

2009-10-01T17:20:00.017+02:00

I think I’ve mentioned this not once or twice by now: In recent 2-3 years I’ve changed a lot. And when I say “I”, this refers to my physical, spiritual and emotional world. I started to work out and got interested in stuff like human anatomy, workout schemes and fit-being as a whole (I deliberately don’t use the word fitness – just want to stay away from the conventional, commercial meaning of fitness). In some way I developed a new way of thinking – my view of many life aspects, of dealing with problems etc. The thing is, I started to change in many different aspects but still I had the feeling that they are all very strongly connected with each other although I couldn’t explain why or how this happens to be so.

A few months ago I came upon articles of one of the best authors – by the way, a personal trainer as well – I have ever come to read. In many of his articles I bumped into the word holistic. After a few attempts to ignore my lack of knowledge of the word (you know, in school they’ve taught us not to look up every single word in the dictionary but to catch the overall meaning), in the end I nevertheless looked it up. What was my surprise when finding some kind of a definition of the way I felt about the changes I mentioned above! Here what my dictionary said:

holistic:
1. based on the principle that a person or thing is more than just their many small parts added together;
2. (holistic medicine) medical treatment based on the belief that the whole person must be treated, not just the part of their body that has a disease.

There it was!

Since then I have been keeping myself busy with this topic a lot. The paradox is, there are not so many books or medicine textbooks which carry the word „holistic“ in their titles. So my attempts to find literature which concentrates on the holistic concept were all doomed to failure. But after all – that’s ok! Because the holistic approach is everywhere. Whether you read Shakespeare, your physics textbook, a history book or maybe fashion magazine - you can apply the holistic approach to interpret anything that you come across not only in books but in everyday situations as well.

Here is a short overview of the holistic approach concept. It refers to:
· the connection of mind, body and spirit
· taking responsibility of your own level of well-being and welfare
· treating the body/a situation as something more than the sum of its parts
· the interrelationship between all aspects of who we are and the world we live in
· the concentration on the internal and not the external aspect

There’s a lot to be said on the topic. What I would like to point out to in the end is the thing which fascinates me the most: in the beginning I used to understand the holistic approach as something referring only to the single human organism, to its fit-being and welfare. Now I’ve realized that the holistic approach can be “practised” in all different areas – human relationships, life philosophy, education, dress code, training programs, eating habits, attitude to money and so on and so on...

HA-HA! (Holistic Approach Holistic Attitude)
:-)

"I don't want to be anything other than me..."

2009-09-25T11:18:00.003+02:00

"I don't want to be anything other than what I've been trying to be lately
All I have to do is think of me and I have peace of mind
I'm tired of looking 'round rooms wondering what I've got to do or who I'm supposed to be
I don't want to be anything other than me"

--G.dG.

Good morning, everybody! :)

On Mastering an Art: To Know What You Want

2009-09-24T18:01:00.007+02:00

It is so f***ing, dam* good to know what you want! It is oh so logical and natural!

To know at any given moment, by any circumstances what is going to come your way - not because you have been told so by a fortune teller or by any other kind of I-can-tell-you-what-you-do-not-know-suspicious individuals but because YOU feel it and YOU want it that way! I don't need to be told by anybody what I want - even not by God or any other supernatural force which guides this world.

But don't mistake the I-know-exactly-what-I-want-in-my-life-principle for I-know-exactly-what-will-happen-to-me. Nobody knows what is up for them on their way through the wonder called "my own life". It's rather a question of following a guideline which leads Your you through Your life. And don't think that your guideline is going to save you! No, it won't! It is you who has to choose to stay attached to it. There might be drifting away or losing sight of your guideline. But it is there! And it is going to be there as long as you believe it and want it to be there.

The secret of being able to recognize your guideline if you haven't succeeded in doing it by now is to know that it IS an art! At some points in life it comes natural but in others you have to seek it. It's not about seeking the art, it is about seeking back your way of mastering this art. The potential is in everyone of us - at any time, at any point of our lives. The question is, are you going to use it?

What my meandering experience has taught me by now is: relaxed, persistent (but not too much!) and last but not least - loving! Loving the art of mastering my own art!

И пак тръгни!

2009-09-11T09:25:00.003+02:00

"И пак тръгни"

Когато си на дъното на пъкала,
когато си най-тъжен и злочест,
от парещите въглени на мъката
си направи сам стълба и излез.

Когато от безпътица премазан си
и си зазидан в четири стени,
от всички свои пътища прерязани,
нов път си направи и пак тръгни.

Светът, когато мръкне пред очите ти
и притъмнее в тези две очи,
сам слънце си създай и от лъчите му
с последния до него се качи.

Трънлив и сляп е на живота ребусът,
на кръст разпъва нашите души.
Загубил всичко, не загубвай себе си -
единствено така ще го решиш!

--Дамян Дамянов

So sorry for not translating it! Its beauty would get lost if I tried to translate it...

"The Turn of the Tide"

2009-08-12T09:58:00.004+02:00

I was rummaging among some of the stuff I have been saving for months and years now. And I was rereading some of the things. This one came just right..

Arthur Gordon tells of a time in his life when he began to feel that everything was stale and flat. His enthusiasm had all but disappeared; his writing efforts were fruitless, and the situation was getting worse day by day.
Finally, he decided to get help from a medical doctor. Observing nothing physically wrong, the doctor asked him if he would be able to follow his instructions for one day. When Gordon replied that he could, the doctor told him to spend the following day in a place where he was the happiest as a child. He could take food, but he was not to talk to anyone or to read or write or listen to the radio. He then wrote out four prescriptions and told him to open one at nine, twelve, three, and six o’clock.
“Are you serious?” Gordon asked him.
“You won’t think I’m joking when you get my bill!” was the reply.
So the next morning, Gordon went to the beach. As he opened the first prescription, he read, “Listen carefully.” He thought the doctor was insane! How could he listen for three hours? Nevertheless, he had agreed to follow the doctor’s order, so he listened. He heard the usual sounds of the sea and the birds. After a while, he could hear the other sounds that weren’t so apparent at first. As he listened, he began to think of lessons the sea had taught him as a child—patience, respect, and an awareness of the interdependence of things. He began to listen to the sounds—and the silence—and to feel a growing peace deep within.

At noon, he opened the second slip of paper and read, “Try reaching back.” “Reaching back to what?” he wondered. Perhaps to childhood, perhaps to memories of joy. He tried to remember them with exactness, and in remembering, he found a growing warmth inside.
At three o’clock, he opened the third piece of paper. Until now, the prescriptions had been easy to take, but this one was different; it said, “Examine your motives.” At first he was defensive. He thought about what he wanted—success, security, recognition—and he justified them all. Yet then the thought occurred to him that those motives weren’t good enough. That perhaps therein was the answer to his stagnant situation. He considered his motives deeply and thought about past happiness, and at last, the answer came to him. In a flash of certainty, he wrote, “I saw that if one’s motives are wrong, nothing can be right. It makes no difference whether you are a mail carrier, a hairdresser, an insurance salesperson, a home-maker—whatever. As long as you feel you are serving others, you do the job well. When you are concerned only with helping yourself, you do it less well—a law as unrelenting as gravity.”

When six o’clock came, the fourth prescription didn’t take long to fill. “Write your worries on the sand,” it said. He knelt and wrote several words with a piece of broken shell; then he turned and walked away. He didn’t look back: he knew the tide would come in!

The ***-persons

2009-08-09T00:29:00.002+02:00

"Watch them! And listen to them! This is what you'll discover:

First, and most obviously, you see a person who likes virtually everything about life. Yep! This is a Liker! A person who is comfortable doing just about anything. One who wastes no time in complaining and wishing that things were otherwise. They are enthusiastic about life. And they want all that they can get out of it."

"They simply deal with what is there."

"No pretending to enjoy but a sensible acceptance of what it is and an outlandish ability to delight in virtually everything."

"Ask them what they don't like - and they're hard pressed to come up with an honest answer."

"Truly, they are likers of life!"

"A ***-person is free from guilt. And all of the attendant anxiety that goes with using up your present moments being mobilized over past events."

"Certainly they can admit to making mistakes. And they can vow to avoid repeating certain behaviours that are unproductive in any way. But they don't waste their time wishing they haven't done something. Or being upset because they dislike something that they have done in an earlier moment in their life.
Complete freedom from guilt will be the shocking behaviour that you'll observe in your ***-person. No lamenting the past and no efforts to make others choose their own guilt by asking such questions as Why didn't you do it differently? or Aren't you ashamed of yourself? and so on."

"You'll never see them manipulating others by telling them how bad they've been. Nor will you be able to manipulate them with the same tactics. They won't get angry at you. They'll simply ignore it."

"[...] Similarly, your ***-chap will be a non-worrier. You'll soon know that circumstances that drive many people to frenzy will be mildly internalized by a ***-person."

"They are not planners and putters away for the future. They refuse to worry when you do. And they keep themselves unmucked up by the accompanying anxiety that goes with worry. You can't drive him or her crazy with worry. They don't know how to do it."

"They love ambiguous things rather than being upset by them."

"They are not postponers saving for a rainy day. And while their culture admonishes such behaviour, they are unthreatened by reproachment. They gather in their happiness now. And when a future now arrives, they gather in that one as well."

"These people are strikingly independent people. They are out of the nest. And while they have a strong love and devotion for family they see independence as far superior to dependence - in all relationships. They treasure their own freedom from expectations. Their relationships are built upon respect for the right of an individual to make any decision for themselves. Their love means no imposition of values on the loved ones."

"They like to be alone at times. And they will go at great lengths to ensure that such privacy is protected. You will not find ***-people in numerous love relationships. They are selective about their love. And those they love are few in number. But they are also very deeply and sensitively loving."

"They are unusually free from opinions of others. They do not attempt to shock others or to gain approval by giving a damn about it on the surface. They are not oblivious to applause and approval. They just don't seem to need it."

"They can be almost blunt in their honesty."

"When you give them feedback about themselves they will not be destroyed or otherwise immobilized if you dislike it."

"No needs to be loved by everyone. No unordinary wish to be approved by all for everything that they do."

"[...] is a person who makes choices that are sensible. Even if they conflict with what everybody else does."

"You will not see a cocktail-partier. Or a person engaging in small talk because it is the polite thing to do. This ***-individual is truly his or her own person. And while they see the culture as an important part of their own lives, they refuse to be ruled by it or to become a slave to it. Not rebelliously attacking but rather knowing internally."

"***-folks know how to laugh and how to create laughter. [...] They are Laughers! They love to help others to laugh."

"[...] often scorned by "normals" for being frivolous at the wrong time. They do not have good timing. For they know in their own souls that there's really no such thing as the right thing at the right place."

"They love incongruence."

"They don't laugh at people, they laugh with them."

"These are people who accept themselves without complaint."

"No hiding behind artificialities, no apologizing for what they are. They don't know how to be offended by anything that is human."

"[...] Similarly, they accept all of nature for what it is rather than wishing it were otherwise."

--Abstract: W.D.

"Вкъщи"?

2009-06-03T20:37:00.003+02:00

Вече не съм сигурна кое място да наричам "вкъщи". Всъщност процесът - на съзнателно или несъзнателно ниво - мисля, че е започнал още с тръгването ми за Германия. Осезаем стана едва преди 1-2 години. Резултатът в момента е, че наистина не знам кое е моето "вкъщи".

Наблюденията ми показват, че използвам думата "вкъщи" и за двете места, които сега чувствам като такива. Зависи от гледната точка. Когато съм "вкъщи" в Германия и казвам на някого, че ще си пътувам за България, казвам "Отивам си вкъщи". Хммм...сега като се замисля - май не казвам същото, когато съм си в България и ме очаква връщане в Германия. Да, определено не използвам израза "Отивам си вкъщи". Но определнео го чувствам така.

Мисля, че това е онзи преходен период между единственото вкъщи от детството - бащината къща - и единственото вкъщи, след като човек създаде свое семейство и има свой собствен дом, в който растат собствените му деца. Но сега ми е малко объркващо.

Не се притеснявам от факта, че имам две "вкъщи"-та. Просто ситуацията ми е нова и все още ми изглежда интересна и я изучавам. С всяко следващо идване в "българското вкъщи" и след това с връщането в "немското вкъщи" намирам някакви разлики. Забелязвам промените, понякога се питам как настъпват и защо. Да, процесът определено е интересен. И който не го е преживял, не може на 100% да си представи за какво става дума. Това е като с раждането - преди ти сам да родиш, може да чуеш хиляди истории на други жени как е преминало тяхното раждане, но докато не го изпиташ сам - няма как да знаеш какво е.

Странно е, и обогатяващо, и израстващо... И вече не ме притеснява. Не търся вече отговор на въпроса "Защо се чувствам така спрямо старото вкъщи?". Приемам нещата такива, каквито са. Прекаленото мислене може понякога повече да обърка, отколкото да помогне. Понякога трябва просто да продължиш напред и да go with the flow...

За падовете и възходите

2009-05-11T23:01:00.005+02:00

Интересно е как след моменти на падове човек се взима в ръце и става двойно по-активен/силен/организиран. Слабите моменти са хубаво нещо. Без тях нямаше да знаем кои са силните, нямаше въобще да можем да ги изживеем. Защото усещането за нещо възниква малко или много на базата на разликата. Усещаме прилив на топлина, когато влезнем в по-топло помещение от това, в което сме били. Усещаме се обгърнати от грижи, когато преди това никой не се е грижил за нас или най-малкото сме се оправяли сами.

Чудя се само кое е нещото, което изведнъж те кара да се вземеш в ръце, да се стегнеш и да излезнеш от летаргията. Понякога е конкретно нещо или събитие, а понякога просто идва - моментът на "връщане към активната реалност" просто идва някъде отвътре. Може би след една определена граница организмът вече не понася летаргията. И колкото безсилен си се чувствал в летаргичния период, толкова след това те обзема някаква незнайно откъде извираща енергия. И само черпиш от нея, и черпиш, и черпиш, и черпиш... И се молиш това състояние да не те напусне пак. И да не се върнеш пак към онова, другото. Тогава разбираш, че наистина всичко е в главата ти. И всичко зависи от теб.

И все пак си мисля, че онова безсилие, онова чувство по време на падовете, когато си мислиш, че просто няма никога да излезнеш от дупката, е нужно. В някакви определени граници е нормално човек да падне малко надолу. Но само, за да разбере после колко хубаво е горе... :-)

grok...

2009-05-09T07:15:00.004+02:00

Това е една от книгите, които преобърнаха виждането ми за света. Или...по-точно то вече си беше преобърнато. Книгата просто дойде в подходящия момент - за да го потвърди!

Мисля си, че не е от особено значение коя е книгата. Затова няма и изрично да я споменавам. Но това, което носи в себе си, е einzigartig! Надявам се искрено да не е единствената такава книга! Надявам се да има още много от тази "порода"! Защото светът има нужда от малко отваряне на очите...и душите!

Ето някои емблематични цитати:

Remind me to write a popular article on the compulsive reading of news. The theme will be that most neuroses and some psychoses can be traced to the unnecessary and unhealthy habit of daily wallowing in the troubles and sins of five billion strangers. The title is 'Gossip Unlimited' — no, make that 'Gossip Gone Wild.'

No, I must admit I don't grok.""You grok," Smith repeated firmly. "I am explain. I did not have the word. You grok. Anne groks. I grok. The grass under my feet groks in happy beauty. But I needed the word. The word is God."

He was not in a hurry, "hurry" being one human concept he had failed to grok at all. He was sensitively aware of the key importance of correct timing in all acts — but with the Martian approach: correct timing was accomplished by waiting.

Anybody can look at a pretty girl and see a pretty girl. An artist can look at a pretty girl and see the old woman she will become. A better artist can look at an old woman and see the pretty girl that she used to be. But a great artist — a master — and that is what Auguste Rodin was — can look at an old woman, portray her exactly as she is… and force the viewer to see the pretty girl she used to be…. and more than that, he can make anyone with the sensitivity of an armadillo, or even you, see that this lovely young girl is still alive, not old and ugly at all, but simply prisoned inside her ruined body. He can make you feel the quiet, endless tragedy that there was never a girl born who ever grew older than eighteen in her heart…. no matter what the merciless hours have done to her.

Jealousy is a disease, love is a healthy condition. The immature mind often mistakes one for the other, or assumes that the greater the love, the greater the jealousy — in fact, they are almost incompatible; one emotion hardly leaves room for the other.

Now comes Mike and says: 'There is no need to covet my wife... love her! There's no limit to her love, we have everything to gain — and nothing to lose but fear and guilt and hatred and jealousy.'

Each sunrise is a precious jewel…for it may never be followed by its sunset.

Share water. Never thirst.

Grok in fullness.

Waiting always fills.

On Giving

2009-03-08T14:50:00.007+01:00

I've been thinking about the process of giving recently. In the past few years I've noticed that I have become the kind of a person who gives a lot. The more experience I gain, the clearer it becomes to me how the whole process actually works.

To give unconditionally is the kind of giving everyone should strive for. To know that you're giving but not expecting the other one to give back is the place where you can be sure you have reached the top. It is not a giving process if you expect gratitude; it is not a giving process if you expect something in return. The best is, you can give no matter your social status, your occupation, relgious views etc. You can give anytime, anywhere, to anyone.

It's all in here...

If You Have Given

by Emil Dimitrov

1. If you have given the hungry one even a crumb of your bread
If you have given the homeless one even a spark of your fire
If you have given your dear one part of your heart
If you have given other people life of your life.

2. If you have given, if you have given,
If you have given something from yourself,
then you haven't lived in vain. (2x)

Ref.:
Nobody can take away people's love from you
Nobody can take away your love towards people
And nobody and nothing will ever take away your trust in people.

Truth, you are sometimes late
but you always come to us.

3. If you have taken away even a bit of someone else's fame
If you have heard a rumour and repeat it even for a second
If you are an enemy to the villain but listen to him even once
If you have eaten from your friend's bread and then forget him.

Were you even supposed to be born? (2x)

Ref.:
Nobody can take away people's love from you
Nobody can take away your love towards people
And nobody and nothing will ever take away your trust in people.

Truth, you are sometimes late
but you always come to us.

Smile! :)

2009-03-06T11:59:00.000+01:00

Are You Going To Finish Strong?

2009-02-08T15:54:00.008+01:00

A few posts below I mentioned the phenomenon I call the at random opened book. Well, it doesn't refer only to books; it refers to everything which comes your way "accidentally" just the moment you need it the most. It happened to me today...again.

It has happened more and more often recently that I don't comment and write much about the items I post. It's just that lack of words, you know... I have to say, this one struck me a lot!

It's about failing...

It's about falling down...

It's about having the feeling you are unable to get back up...

It's about getting back up...

It's about not giving up...

It's about finding strength again...

It's about finishing strong!

What's Going On Down There?

2009-02-03T21:45:00.009+01:00

Something has been going on in Bulgaria for the past few weeks. But I still can't figure out what it is. I read the press, I get only isolated pieces of information but I can't get the puzzle done. More interesting is the fact that no one from the people I have talked to - living in Bulgaria - can really explain what has been in fact going on there. I know it's some kind of a chaos that's taken hold of the whole country but I don't know what dimensions it has already taken. Do we get to see the 1997's January events again - 12 years later?

I'm really curious to find out myself. And will then surely comment on what I'm going to see with my own eyes in the next 2-3 weeks. From what I have seen by now... well, I think I lack the words to describe it. Or maybe I'm just afraid I would draw any wrong conclusions.

Anyway, for now I can only hope that it is not that bad...

"I'm on the run!"

2009-02-02T23:06:00.000+01:00

I woke up with this song today. I hadn't heard it for years. And when I say for years I mean for years. I loved it when I was younger. The thing is, it was at the time when I already spoke English and still I think I have never really purposefully reflected on the lyrics. Today the song just came on (have I mentioned how much I enjoy the shuffle function?) and somehow my sleepy brain got to listen to the lyrics. It's so much in there! I couldn't help posting it... Be on the run! Always!

"Blinded by Science"
-- Foreigner

Blinded by science, I'm on the run
Blinded by science, where do I belong?
What's in the future, has it just begun
Blinded by science, I'm on the run

I worry 'bout the world that we live in
I'm worried by all the confusion
I wonder 'bout the lies I've been reading
I wonder where this madness is leading

Is this a road going nowhere?
Or is someone leading us somewhere?
I can't believe we're here for no reason
There must be something we can believe in

Blinded by science, I'm on the run
I'm not an appliance, so don't turn me on
What's in the future, has it just begun
Blinded by science, I'm on the run

What's in the future, has it just begun
Blinded by science, I'm on the run

I worry 'bout the world that we live in
I'm worried by all the confusion
I wonder 'bout the lies I've been reading
I wonder where this madness is leading

Is this a road going nowhere?
Is someone leading us somewhere?
I can't believe we're here for no reason
There must be something we can believe in

Blinded by science, I'm on the run
I'm not an appliance, don't turn me on
What's in the future, has it just begun
Blinded by science, I'm on the run

Blinded by science, I'm on the run
I'm blinded by science, on the run

25 Random Things About Me

2009-01-31T16:21:00.001+01:00

What is one of the best things to do at 7 a.m. on a Saturday morning? Blogging, of course!

I have just been tagged on a note by a friend of mine in which you list 25 random things about yourself. Here are the rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you.
Well, I am not going to tag anybody, I just thought it would be great to have MY random things about ME in MY blog. Enjoy! :)

1. I grew up and changed considerably in the past 2-3 years. Partly due to some changes which came unexpectedly into my life, partly due to things which I myself attracted and forced to happen. (Тhough, I never know where exactly the one thing ends and the other begins. Don't you sometimes have the feeling that things, which at first sight seem to be accidental and not depending on you, have come into your life just because you attracted them - consciously or not?)

2. I love sports. I can't live without it. I am addicted. I love weightlifting (although I do a lot more things in the gym except for weightlifting, so it is not only about weights). I love the feeling of being alone with the bar - just me and the bar - particularly when I am all alone in the gym in the early night or morning hours. Pureness...

3. I hate shopping! Well, ok...maybe not exactly hate but I do not enjoy it that much. I go shopping 2-3 times a year and that's it! That's why my girlfriends do not call me anymore when they go shopping. It's just that they know I wouldn’t go...

4. I don't like going to noisy clubs and places on a Friday or Saturday night. Instead, I prefer spending the evening with friends at one's place having enjoyable conversations, watching a favourite movie, making a Friends-marathon, playing associations etc.

5. I have been low-carbing for more than 3 years now. And I feel great! My body loves it! Since then my appearance changed a lot. It helps me gain strength, clean my body, reduce body fat.. But people still find it weird and freaky when I say I just had pork for breakfast. *lol*

6. I adore my sister! By the time she was born (I was then 15) it practically didn't matter to me whether I would have a sibling or not. The day she was born my life turned upside down. The feeling was indescribable! But this refers only to my sister. Having own kids is something else (I wonder when my biological clock will start to tick-tack...if it ever starts at all).

7. I love making people smile!

8. I love to go for walks early in the morning. Most often I go somewhere where I can hardly meet anybody. The last time I did it - just yesterday.

9. I still find it difficult to go to bed early. But once I've done it I then really enjoy the feeling of getting up early in the morning and doing my stuff when the world around me is still asleep.

10. I love the Balkans! I am so fond of them! I love their (our) history, I love examining psychology of the Balkan people, their (our) character and temper. Even if I don't live on the Balkans in the long run I would make anything possible to travel "down" as often as possible! Thrilling!

11. I hate politics!

12. I love holisticism!

13. I do not sleep in the afternoon hours. I must be really tired to force myself to take a nap. Even if it happens, it is not more than half an hour of just lying in bed.

14. I am addicted to the ring on my right thumb. It is my second one. When I lost my first one I felt terribly for days. A part of me was missing...

15. I adore slavonic languages! It seems I cannot get enough of them! My last passion is Ukrainian. My Russian sucks but I know I'm going to speak it perfectly one day. (Blood is thicker than water!) My heart belongs to Serbo-Croatian! I’m also planning on starting to learn Macedonian.

16. I am passionate! In some situations it is so obvious! In others I just do not show it that much and people think I am really mature and thoughtful. It's not that it isn’t true but still there is the vital-child's-passionate thing inside me which has the lead.

17. I cannot live without music. I can and do live without TV but my soul begins to slowly fall into pieces if I don't hear - and feel - music. I am in love with the Rhythm!

18. I hate spending hours on end sitting on a chair or lying in bed. My body needs to be active and to feel the dynamics. I always strive for the balance between mind and body. If I spend 2-3 hours in learning or reading I then need to devote a few hours to my body.

19. I love reading literature! But I hate analyzing it (except in my mind, of course).

20. As a child I was so impatient. I then learned how to be patient.

21. I am not sure I want to marry.

22. I adore my friends! I am talking about the few ones who have known me for years and are now spread all over the world. It is a bond that has passed through a lot but will never break! I am so lucky to have them!

23. I used to make plans. But then I got rid of this habit. I am now open to any new opportunities which enter my life. I don't know where I'll be in few months and I always reject questions like What are your plans in the long run?. The truth is, I don't have any.

24. I rarely spend my holidays at the seaside. I love watching the sea and spend a few hours every year just sitting on the beach and watching it. I am actually in love with the mountains.

25. I love shining! :)

On Reading The Signs

2009-01-24T09:46:00.000+01:00

A few days ago I strained a tendon in my left foot. The result is that I have been limping for a few days now. Oh, yeah - and I had to spend the first two days after the injury in bed! When something like this happens to people like me, who are not used to spending days on end lolling around and not having the will even to move their ass for a short walk in the neighbourhood, such a situation seems like a real disaster. I don't know how long it will take until I am able to walk again normally without feeling any discomfort in my foot. And I have really no idea when I will return to my 55kg.-squat and 70kg.-deadlift. Does that make me a bit sad - yes! Am I sorry for what has happened to me - hell no!

The moment something like this happens to you it seems like an obstacle, like something which prevents you from keeping up with your daily rhythm and brings a little – or not that little - mess in your life. Think of all the times something unexpected and undesired has befallen you and has brought a string of changes into your life. The first reaction sounds often like this: How could it happen to me?, How could it happen just now (when I have so much to do)?, Damn it! Not exactly now!

But have you thought of it otherwise - I mean, not from the Damn it! point of view? Have you thought about following things:
a) why did it happen just now?
b) could it mean something?
c) what does life try to tell me?

I dare saying that such "happenings" do not come about by accident. I dare saying that such "happenings" come just in time - when you have missed to learn or understand something, haven't noticed it or are just much too much in a hurry. This is Your Life's way to tell you Slow it down a little! Take a halt, damn it!. So instead of cursing or asking stupid rhetoric questions, just take a look at your life and find what you have missed to learn or what more you have to learn. I have drawn the conclusions from what happened to me. I know now what I did wrong, I know that I will not do it wrong the next time; I had enough time to remind myself not to be in a hurry but to be consistent, more cautious and paying attention to details.

So next time something "bad", "unexpected", "unplanned" or "why-exactly-now"-thing happens to you, remind yourself that it is happening just at the right moment. Instead of trying to figure out how to deal with the "problem" wiping it off as quickly as you can and concentrating on its negativity, have a look into yourself and try to figure out the point you should take a few steps back to, change or learn something and only then keep going further.

On Mixing Languages Up

2009-01-20T10:57:00.000+01:00

The other day it happened again. I’m sick of mixing languages up! It’s so pathetic! And it has been happening to me since...well, since I have to do with 5 languages now. The worst of all is that I deal with almost every single of them every single day so my mind just cannot concentrate on one or two of them and therefore mixes them up all the time. Really pathetic!

It’s embarrassing to talk to an English native-speaker and build the following sentence: I don’t know, ob du das schon... Horrible! And every time after throwing up such a nonsense I get to the point when I have to apologize how I deal with several languages and how none of them seems to find its box in my head where it settles down once and for all and does not come out from it mixing up with the contents of the other four boxes. I sometimes imagine these five languages as disobedient, unruly and mischievous children whom I have to take care of, constantly looking after them and calming them down.

It is, of course, not always like this. If I stay longer in a monolingual environment then it is OK. I get into the language schemes and structures and just drown in them leaving all other languages as well as all their lexis, syntax etc. aside. The result is, the language-responsible centers in my mind feel at ease, completely comfortable with the situation and not having to struggle with each of my five naughty kids. Perfection! But if the situation changes and at least two of them get involved in the same game, at the same time – uh, then I do have a problem!

I still do not know how to cope with such situations. I haven’t found the golden rule yet but I keep searching. The paradox is, if you think that the more you have a command of a language, the rarer you would mix it up with the others available on your ‘language-hardware’ – you’re wrong. It is more often than not just an illusion - particularly if you have spent weeks or months in a monolingual environment. The master-and-commander feeling comes over really quickly but as soon as you leave the mono-environment you’re done with the convenience.

And still I find it interesting. The whole process of taking hold of your own knowledge and making it obedient has some hidden charm. It reminds me of the omnipresent truth that theory without praxis, knowledge without knowing how to implement and deal with it, has little to do with the real world.

Practice!

...be a Man, my son!

2009-01-15T14:23:00.001+01:00

It seems, recently I have been stumbling across magnificent lyrics. It's not that I have much time to read - no, unfortunately not... But I seem to come across the right thing - at the right place, at the right time (I call it the at random opened book phenomenon).

This poem is one of those I ‘accidentally’ hit upon. I would not like to add or comment anything about it....just having fear of spoiling its beauty! Enjoy it! It's worth the reading all the way!

[IF]

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:
If you can dream--and not make dreams your master,
If you can think--and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings--nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much,
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And--which is more--you'll be a Man, my son!

--Rudyard Kipling

'My Vision'

2009-01-12T10:42:00.000+01:00

I feel like the sun
I feel like the rain
I feel like I just found reason for living again
'Cause what I've been dreaming
I know that it's real
I know there's just no changing the way I feel

(...............................................)
I feel like I've just found reason for being alive
And I have a secret I think you should know
I feel like I just can't keep this deep within me and I feel like I'm losing control

Can you see my vision
(.......................................................)
(.......................................................)
With no indecision
We were turning that key inside
To get in the moment

You're living a dream
(...........................................................)
I feel like all my fears are fading away
(............................................................)
(............................................................)

And I have a secret I think you should know
I feel like I just can't keep it
It's deep within me and I know that I'm losing control

Can you see my vision
(............................................................)
(............................................................)
With no indecision
We were turning that key inside
To get in the moment

--Seal

vision
sun
rain
real
being alive
no changing the way I feel
no indecision
living a dream
fears are fading away

Interesting things arise by putting the intimate love context aside and replacing it by love in the wider sense of the word... Duende!

Rules of Life

2009-01-10T11:01:00.000+01:00

I couldn't help but mention this one:

Rules of Life

1) You will receive a body. Whether you love it or hate it, it’s yours for life, so accept it. What counts is what’s inside.

2) You will be presented with lessons. Life is a constant learning experience, which every day provides opportunities for you to learn more. These lessons specific to you, and learning them ‘is the key to discovering and fulfilling the meaning and relevance of your own life’.

3) There are no mistakes, only lessons. Your development towards wisdom is a process of experimentation, trial and error, so it’s inevitable things will not always go to plan or turn out how you’d want. Compassion is the remedy for harsh judgement - of ourselves and others. Forgiveness is not only divine - it’s also ‘the act of erasing an emotional debt’. Behaving ethically, with integrity, and with humour - especially the ability to laugh at yourself and your own mishaps - are central to the perspective that ‘mistakes’ are simply lessons we must learn.

4) The lesson is repeated until learned. Lessons repeat until learned. What manifest as problems and challenges, irritations and frustrations are more lessons - they will repeat until you see them as such and learn from them. Your own awareness and your ability to change are requisites of executing this rule. Also fundamental is the acceptance that you are not a victim of fate or circumstance - ‘causality’ must be acknowledged; that is to say: things happen to you because of how you are and what you do. To blame anyone or anything else for your misfortunes is an escape and a denial; you yourself are responsible for you, and what happens to you. Patience is required - change doesn’t happen overnight, so give change time to happen.

5) Learning does not end. While you are alive there are always lessons to be learned. Surrender to the ‘rhythm of life’, don’t struggle against it. Commit to the process of constant learning and change - be humble enough to always acknowledge your own weaknesses, and be flexible enough to adapt from what you may be accustomed to, because rigidity will deny you the freedom of new possibilities.

6) “There” is no better than “here”. The other side of the hill may be greener than your own, but being there is not the key to endless happiness. Be grateful for and enjoy what you have, and where you are on your journey. Appreciate the abundance of what’s good in your life, rather than measure and amass things that do not actually lead to happiness. Living in the present helps you attain peace.

7) Others are only mirrors of you. You love or hate something about another person according to what you love or hate about yourself. Be tolerant; accept others as they are, and strive for clarity of self-awareness; strive to truly understand and have an objective perception of your own self, your thoughts and feelings. Negative experiences are opportunities to heal the wounds that you carry. Support others, and by doing so you support yourself. Where you are unable to support others it is a sign that you are not adequately attending to your own needs.

8) What you make of your life is up to you. You have all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them is up to you. Take responsibility for yourself. Learn to let go when you cannot change things. Don’t get angry about things - bitter memories clutter your mind. Courage resides in all of us - use it when you need to do what’s right for you. We all possess a strong natural power and adventurous spirit, which you should draw on to embrace what lies ahead.

9) Your answers lie inside of you. Trust your instincts and your innermost feelings, whether you hear them as a little voice or a flash of inspiration. Listen to feelings as well as sounds. Look, listen, and trust. Draw on your natural inspiration.

10) You will forget all this at birth. We are all born with all of these capabilities - our early experiences lead us into a physical world, away from our spiritual selves, so that we become doubtful, cynical and lacking belief and confidence. The ten Rules are not commandments, they are universal truths that apply to us all. When you lose your way, call upon them. Have faith in the strength of your spirit. Aspire to be wise - wisdom is the ultimate path of your life, and it knows no limits other than those you impose on yourself.

--Cherie Carter Scott

One Art

2009-01-03T16:10:00.000+01:00

One Art

The art of losing isn't hard to master;
so many things seem filled with the intent
to be lost that their loss is no disaster.

Lose something every day. Accept the fluster
of lost door keys, the hour badly spent.
The art of losing isn't hard to master.

Then practice losing farther, losing faster:
places, and names, and where it was you meant
to travel. None of these will bring disaster.

I lost my mother's watch. And look! my last, or
next-to-last, of three loved houses went.
The art of losing isn't hard to master.

I lost two cities, lovely ones. And, vaster,
some realms I owned, two rivers, a continent.
I miss them, but it wasn't a disaster.

---Even losing you (the joking voice, a gesture
I love) I shan't have lied. It's evident
the art of losing's not too hard to master
though it may look like (Write it!) like disaster.

(Elizabeth Bishop)

Funny... Do you know how to lose, guys? Do you know how to handle a situation in which you have lost something? Have you mastered this art? Because it is an art.. I have mastered one side of it: the losing of material things. Man, it's great! I remember as I used to freak out months and years ago everytime I lost something. I needed hours or even days till I go through the whole thing. Sucks! Then, bit by bit, I began trying to figure out why it is so hard for me to lose things. Even when it was not about losing anything particular. I just didn't feel comfortable losing things..

And then I started to lose; I started to lose intentionally and absolutely on purpose. I just wanted to learn how to lose. Just a simple example: I had so many songs on my laptop which I didn't listen to anymore. And they took so much space of my HDD! And for a long time I didn't have the courage to delete them. You know why? Because these were all songs from my childhood or, rarely, bound to a particular moment or experience in my life. This is not bad you would say. No, it is not! But, man, I never ever listened to these songs! And I needed my HDD space!

I just began deleting them, losing them. At first it was hard! Damn, it was hard! But I have mastered the art of losing to a degree yet when I'm not afraid anymore! Because it is the emotion which remains. And the emotion has not to be necessarily attached to an object. To cherish the emotion although having lost the object it was attached to - that's what this art is all about!

Do you know how to lose, guys?

"My Heart Won" (engl)

2008-12-28T19:24:00.000+01:00

There is a song I like very much although it's not that popular. It is performed by a girl who sang some years ago Come along, come along with me... So, this girl has another song which I like even more. It is, well....a love song. But if one puts the love context aside and just listens to the refrain – the wonderful words: I fought my heart but my heart won, I fought my heart but my heart won.... It’s a total love tragedy and drama at first sight! :) But I listen to it from another point of view which lets me look at it from a different perspective...

Do we listen to our hearts? Or, if we take one step back – do we know how to listen to our hearts? I’ll leave the ‚learning’ part aside for now. Let’s assume we have attained a level when we know what out heart desires. The logical question then would be, do we give to it what it needs?’. And if not, then why not? Inhibitions? But why?

I started to write this due to a conversation I had with a friend of mine a few days ago, although as I think back, I had this conversation so many times with friends of mine. Her problem: sex on the first date. My God, such a problematic topic to so many girls I have talked to! These conversations have always swirled around: What? How's that? What would it lead to? What happens if he leaves me after the first f*ck?. I would say, Well, anything is possible if you look at it this way.

Let’s get out of the common ‘he-loves-me-he-loves-me-not’- matrix and look at it from another angle – from the angle of awareness and maturity. We talk here about self-consciousness, self-awareness, self-confidence. And what is more important – clarity about questions such as Do I know myself, do I know who I am?, Do I know what I want?. To me a self-aware and self-confident person, whether they be a man or a woman, would not even think about how to act in such a situation if the right moment has come and the vibe is there.

Sex, dear boys & girls, is a vibration! Sex is a resonance with the other person, with his/her body, with his/her soul, with his/her impulses and emotions. Have fun - at this very moment, here and now. If you are both aware of that fact, if you have reached the point where you absolutely consciously realize the nature of sex, understand its beauty, fascination and spell, then no questions are needed. There is just he and she, here and now...and the vibrations! Things are simple! (you can look a few posts down) The whole "drowning into love dramas" has no place here. Here we have two self-aware human beings who do not just have sex with each other but use it as one of many other ways in which self-aware people communicate with each other when the vibe is there. Any other deeper reflection on the subject would rather mean that at least one of you is not clear about his/herself. And I do not mean that you do not know what you want from life or your potential partner, but rather that you are just all mixed up.

So, remember - no matter if we talk about sex on the first date or any other situation in which you doubt following your heart: the ‚concept’ of „My heart won“ does not imply a lack of responsibility or a refusal to take one. It doesn’t mean to drift downstream without any inhibition, according to the seize-the-moment-at-any-price principle. To let your heart win means you need to seize the moment, the vibration and the impulse and let yourself be completely aware of who you are. Then everything else can be left behind...

There is no need fighting your heart when the process of being self-aware takes its normal course...

Metabolic Circuits

2008-12-26T11:17:00.000+01:00

I have recently discovered the metabolic circuits. Or, better to say, I re-discovered them as I found about them two years ago or so. And I have been practising them, in fact, ever since. But the last few months I got much deeper into the idea of metabolic circuits, spent much more time in analyzing them, in analyzing how they work and can be implemented into a strength training, i.e. weight-lifting training.

I've bumped into different types of metabolic circuits. The last two articles which I read on the topic, for example, perceive metabolic circuits in two different ways: in an article by Alwyn Cosgrove they are presented as a combination of exercises combined in circuits using an additional weight (a dumbbell, a bar, a kettlebell etc.). Rachel Cosgrove, on the other hand, suggests only body-weight circuits. I personally do more often than not a combination of both in my training. So I have circuits which are either only body-weight oriented or include both body-weight exercises and exercises with an additional weight. I do not use Alwyn's model (circuits with an exclusive use of additional weight) as I do the circuits not as a separate training but as a supporting part to my basic weight-lifting trainings. Metabolic circuits add just an interval cardio touch to my basic.

Why have I chosen to include the circuits in my training? Well, first of all, I have long recognized how ineffective and unproductive "common" cardio trainings are. The problem is, these aerobic workouts are based on old theories which have been now refuted by science but they are still considered as the best "fat-burning" and "stay-fit"-method (especially by women). Totally wrong but...ok, I still hope that this trend will be turned upside down pretty soon.

But back to our metabolic circuits. What do they look like? (at least in the way I implement them in my trainings):

interval-style workouts which include 4-6 exercises using only body-weight or/and an additional weight

as it is an interval workout a circuit's goal is to increase the heart rate which is then followed by a short pause-period then increase the heart rate again etc. (high-intensity period - low-intensity period - high-intensity period - ....)

metabolic circuits can be based either on time or on reps, that is, you may either set a work-period of 30 sec. for example in which you have to do as many reps of each exercise as possible or you may set a certain number of reps for each exercise regardless of the time which they would take to be done

it is recommendable to alternate exercises as you constitute your circuits as to emphasize different areas or muscle groups (I always take into consideration what muscle groups I have emphasized on during the weight-lifting part of my training)

here is an example of a metabolic circuit of mine just to illustrate what I am talking about:

Sample:

- 30 jumping jacks

- 10 squats

- 5 side lunges (with a bar)

- 5 overhead reverse lunges (also with a bar)

- 5 burpees

These exercises have to be performed without pausing between them. After completing the circuit I pause for usually a minute and repeat the whole circuit from the beginning. Most times I do 3 sets of a particular circuit.

What are the benefits from metabolic circuits?

well, they are definitely not boring like common cardio workouts :)

you don't need special equipment for performing them

they increase work demand

they increase caloric expenditure

they increase the afterburn effect massively

they require a total-body involvement

you can design your own circuits based on your own needs

What I would like to point to one more time is that metabolic circuits do not replace my basic weight-lifting trainings. They just support it by adding the cardio element which my body needs. Unlike others who concentrate either only on the weight-lifting part or only on metabolic circuits, I see now that my body responds best to the combination of both. :)

"My Heart Won"

2008-12-25T23:48:00.000+01:00

Има една песничка, която много обичам. Не е особено популярна. Изпълнява я едно девойче, което преди ехееее колко години пееше от телевизора/радиото "Come alooong, come along with me..". Та това същото девойче има една друга песничка, която слушам доста по-често.

Та...тази песничка си е, направо да си го кажем, любовна. Но ако човек се абстрахира от основната идея и се заслуша само в припева - аххх, в припева е истината: 'I fought my heart but my heart won, I fought my heart but my heart woоооn..". На пръв поглед жива любовна трагедия и драма! :) Аз обаче я слушам в един по-друг контекст, в който мислите поемат една малко по-друга посока..

Слушаме ли сърцето си? Да започнем една стъпка по-назад - знаем ли как да слушаме сърцето си? Ученето ще го оставя засега като тема. За това друг път. Но да речем, че сме стигнали момента, когато сърцето знае какво иска. Въпросът е "Даваме ли му го?". И ако не - защо не? Какво ни пречи? Задръжки? Но защо?

Да вземем най-простичък пример - секс на първа среща. Въпросът е особено проблемен при девойките. "Не! Ама как може такова нещо? Ами после...като те остави още след първото е****?" Напълно възможно. Иска ми се обаче да излезна от "обича ме-не ме обича"- контекста. Иска ми се да погледнем на това от един друг ъгъл - от ъгъла на осъзнатостта и зрелостта. Говорим си за (само)съзнание, увереност и преди всичко яснота по отношение на въпросите "Знам ли кой/я съм?", "Знам ли какво искам?". За мен един осъзнат, сигурен в себе си човек (независимо дали жена или мъж), не би трябвало въобще дори да се замисля над този въпрос, ако моментът е дошъл и импулсът/тръпката е налице.

Сексът, момичета и момчета, е вибрация! Сексът е резонанс - резонанс с другия, с неговото тяло, с неговата душа, с неговите импулси и емоции. В този момент - тук и сега. Когато двама души са наясно с това, когато са достигнали онзи момент, когато с пълното съзнание разбират същността на секса, "разбират" красотата и обаянието му - тогава място за въпроси няма. Има само той и тя, тук и сега...и вибрациите! Потъването в любовни драми е за други филми. Не и за този, в който две осъзнати човешки същества не просто правят секс, а чисто и просто го използват като един от редицата начини за комуникация между двама души. Всяко друго мисляне и премисляне означава, че поне единият не е наясно със себе си. И нямам предвид, че не е наясно какво иска от живота или от потенциалния партньор, а по-скоро, че не е наясно със себе си.

Така че концепцията "My heart won" (независимо дали става въпрос за секс на първа среща или за каквато и да е друга житейска ситуация) не означава безотговорност или отказ да поемеш отговорност, пускайки се по течението без задръжки и на принципа "seize the moment at any price". Да оставиш сърцето си да победи означава да уловиш момента, вибрацията и импулса с ясното съзнание за това кой си. Всичко друго остава в 'beyond'- равнината..

Няма нужда от 'fighting the heart', когато себеосъзнаването и себепознаването функционират както трябва. :))

On Meeting an 'Else' (engl)

2008-12-22T20:05:00.000+01:00

What conclusions have I come to these days?

It turns out that people pretty much differ from each other. Perhaps I do not have to expect someone else’s point of view to always coincide with mine - even when I wish to or when it seems so. I’ve spent the past 2-3 days pretty much in pondering and reflecting on why it sometimes turns out like that in people’s relations. Then I talked to a friend of mine who turned out to be the perfect “advise-giver” at that point and our conversation made me sit down and just think over the situation. But what was more important; to think over it out of the influence of any kind of negative emotions; to think completely sober and clear!

I still think that life has made me come across this particular person who is, well... just a different sort of person (I have to get used to the thought that I would come across all sorts of people in my life!!!). And I am thankful for that! Because just when you think you know more or less everything about people, that you have already got an idea of how interrelation and communication between people goes and there comes the BANG!!. It seems as if Life slaps you in the face telling you ‚So what? Did you possibly think that you know it all?’. Man, Life rules! How can one come to not loving it? :)

There is something unique in relations. And still, in the given situation I have also come to a second conclusion (except the one that people DO NOT always see things as I see them). It goes:

You have to approach with good. Even when it feels like you can’t show understanding for the other side. If you really feel that you are not yet able to show understanding – leave it aside! Just start with goodwill. Just be good. Respect the other side’s point of view – no matter what it is, no matter if you like it or not. Goodwill and goodness are the starting point. And the starting point is the most important one of all. You know why? It is just because all other points on the line of people’s relations depend on this very starting point. And if you screw up that first one, if you set on it any other emotion, rather than goodwill and well-wishing, then you are destined to fail, and nothing but non-constructive communication and relation with people.

I see it so clearly now! And I fully believe in what I’ve just written.

Be good !!

За другостта/ On Meeting an 'Else'

2008-12-22T15:50:00.000+01:00

До какви заключения стигам тези дни?

Хората очевидно са различни. И то доста различни понякога. Май не трябва да очаквам, че по отношение на едно и също нещо друга човешка гледна точка трябва да съвпада с моята, колкото и да ми се иска и колкото и може би на пръв поглед да изглежда така. 2-3 дена прекарах в ядосване, мислене, премисляне защо така се получава в човешките взаимоотношения. Поприказвах си после с подходящ човек (благодаря на ангелчето ми хранителче:) ) и това ме накара просто да седна и трезво да помисля върху нещата и то извън обсега на всякакви негативни емоции, да мисля трезво и ясно. Все още считам, че животът ме среща с човешко същество, което е Друго (да свикна с мисълта, че това няма да е последният път, когато животът ме среща с различни типове хора!!!). И започвам да съм благодарна. Защото когато си мислиш, че малко или много вече познаваш различни типове хора, мислиш си, че малко или много си навлязъл в човешките отношения и тогава...БУФ!! (от живота ). Все едно ти казва: "Абе, ти, какво - мислеше си, че всичко знаеш?" Кърти отвсякъде! Как да не го обичам?

Има нещо уникално и неповторимо в човешките взаимоотношения! и все пак (пак благодаря на хранителчето ми:) ) в дадената ситуация съм стигнала до сега и до един втори извод (след този, че хората НЕ ПРИЕМАТ нещата задължително като мен):

Трябва да се подходи с добро. Дори и когато ви е трудно да проявите разбиране. Оставете разбирането на страна, ако чувствате, че все още не можете да го проявите. Започнете с доброто. Просто бъдете добри. Уважавайте другата гледна точка, каквато и да е, независимо дали ви е приятна или не чак толкова. Добротата е изходната точка. А изходната точка е най-важната. Защото после от нея зависят всички останали точки по линията на човешките взаимоотношения. И ако вместо доброта на стартовата позиция имате друга емоция различна от Доброта просто сте обречени на неуспех, на негативни емоции и на нищо хубаво и конструктивно.

Много ясно го виждам сега и вярвам в горните редове! :)

Бъдете добри!! :)

On Simplicity

2008-12-11T09:50:00.000+01:00

Something I have written on 10th October:

"Things are simple. Things do not have to be done hard. What would be that for? What does it bring? Things are more often than not simplier than we think them to be. There is a saying, it says: "Simplicity is primary". At the very moment when you start making things harder or more complicated than they actually are - it is NOT working...and it will never work!

I love simplicity! And I'm glad to have people around me who do know (consciously or not) that simple things are those which bring happiness.

It's all about simplicity!

It's all about pureness of the things we make/do/invest time and energy in.. It's all about this natural process of...well-being! :)

On Communicating

2008-12-10T08:49:00.000+01:00

Осъзнаваме ли комуникацията? Осъзнаваме ли, когато човекът срещу нас седи и ни говори? Независимо дали споделя, търси съвет, пита или просто си "дърдори". Вслушваме ли се в думите му? Каква информация получаваме от казаното? Чуваме само онова, което излиза от устата му под формата на думи? А има ли нещо повече?

Замисляли ли сте се дали не можете да узнаете повече, така да се каже - да прочетете между редовете? Имам чувството, че хората забравят все повече как да комуникират помежду си. Не, не говоря за автоматичното "чувам какво ми казваш и мога дори да го повторя". Става въпрос за едно по-високо ниво на комуникация: да следиш мимиките, жестовете, промяната в лицеизражението, да се опиташ да проникнеш зад думите - дотолкова, че да се вмъкнеш в мозъка на другия и да се слееш с мислите му. Може би не е възможно, но с тренировки със сигурност има напредък. Тренирането на комуникирането е ключът към нещата.

Важното при това е всичко това да става съзнателно. Пробвайте следващият път, когато отидете на едно лежерно кафе с приятели да си поставите за цел да слушате. Имайте съвсем ясно тази цел в главата си. Може би изглежда малко натоварващо на пръв поглед и ще си кажете "Какво по дяволите да се концентрирам сега вместо да се наслаждавам на лекия разговор?". Пробвайте един, два, три пъти и с всеки следващ път ще става все по-лесно. Докато в един момент ще видите как Комуникацията става автоматично, как автоматично слушате на едно по-високо и разбиращо ниво.

Чувството е невероятно! Резултатът в повечето случаи е положителната енергия, която хората срещу вас ви връщат след проведения разговор. И дори да не го осъзнават напълно, положителната енергия от тях към вас я има, тече! Този "energy flow" е нещото, което целим и което ни зарежда с невероятно много енергия. И ако си мислите, че усилията, които влагате, за да чуете другия са само и единствено в негова полза - лъжете се. Това, което се връща към вас, е нещо много силно, много зареждащо и красиво!

Само трябва да се научим да проправим пътя към него! :)

The 1st

2008-06-15T19:35:00.000+02:00

It's the beginning. It's the beginning of my blog. I'm doing something like this for the first time in my life and it feels...hmm..strange :) But it's fun. It's like a place where you feel home - all by yourself and at the same time in one with the world.

...And I love the feeling of feeling in one with the world. It's such a pleasant feeling. And it brings so much joy!

I've had the idea of creating my own blog for a long time for I know people who have their blogs which I read from time to time. But I did not create my own blog. I just waited...don't know what exactly for...but I waited.

And now is the time. I'm just loving the idea of having my own place and space (have never thought of the likeliness between these two words ;) ).

It's My Way...and My Way of walking it! :)