the yak occidental

Just two good ones, really. Painting above: Poppies by Georgia O'Keeffe, 1950 To be courageous is not necessarily to go anywhere or do anything except to make conscious those things we already feel deeply and then to live through the unending vulnerabilities of those consequences [...] To be courageous is to stay close to the way we are made. - from Consolations: The Solace, Nourishment, and Underlying Meaning of Everyday Words by David Whyte To live our lives based on the principles of a love ethic (showing care, respect, knowledge, integrity, and the will to cooperate), we have to be courageous. Learning how to face our fears is one way we embrace love. Our fear may not go away, but it will not stand in the way. Those of us who have already chosen to embrace a love ethic, allowing it to govern and inform how we think and act, know that when we let our light shine, we draw to us and are drawn to other bearers of light. We are not alone. - from All About Love: New Visions by bell

Here is a selection of memorable quotes from a ll about love: new visions by bell hooks. Many people want love to function like a drug , giving them an immediate and sustained high. They want to do nothing, just passively receive the good feeling […] When the practice of live invites us to enter a place of potential bliss that is at the same time a place of critical awakening and pain, many of us turn our backs on love.  p.114 Living simply makes loving simple. The choice to live simply necessarily enhances our capacity to love. It is the way we learn to practice compassion, daily affirming our connection to a world community.  p.125 Giving is the way we also learn how to receive. The mutual practice of giving and receiving is an everyday ritual when we know true love. A generous heart is always open, always ready to receive our going and coming. In the midst of such love we need never fear abandonment. This is the most precious gift true love offers - the experience of knowing we alwa