“Live in the now, and never worry alone.” – Anne Nash

Whenever I read this quote I am reminded about how my time on Earth is limited. And, it is precisely *the truth of this statement* that propels me to thrive and connect with the world while I am still here.

This quote makes me think hard about what I am doing, what am I processing emotionally, and most importantly, how I can halve my burden and double my joy through connecting with others.

Worrying is best done with a friend. Our hearts, when aligned, allow for more joy. Our minds, when in tune, move with more grace. And our souls, when allied, spread love not just to our allies, but beyond our own boundaries, indiscriminately, to everyone.

So it is, with this in mind, that I offer this note: As a way of honoring those that *refuse* to leave us alone. Let us give thanks to our friends and loved-ones, those that help us to think, to thrive, and to live in the now.

So close, no matter how far
Couldn’t be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
and nothing else matters

Never opened myself this way
Life is ours, we live it our way
All these words I don’t just say
and nothing else matters

Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us something new
Open mind for a different view
and nothing else matters

never cared for what they do
never cared for what they know
but I know

So close, no matter how far
Couldn’t be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
and nothing else matters

never cared for what they do
never cared for what they know
but I know

Never opened myself this way
Life is ours, we live it our way
All these words I don’t just say

Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us, something new
Open mind for a different view
and nothing else matters

never cared for what they say
never cared for games they play
never cared for what they do
never cared for what they know
and I know

So close, no matter how far
Couldn’t be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
No, nothing else matters

It was a song by Filter that sprung this following most productive line of thinking into my head just a few days ago. If you wish you can jump to *the song at the end of this silly article*.

It was a journal entry, Journal Entry #5,556 to Everyone, which sported the fresh thoughts on relationships and mutual respect. The prose was simple and conformed to all of the extravagant principles of multiplexology. It was allowed no rhyming and had a paragraph limit of three sentences each. The text follows this colon:

Dear Everyone, I found some things out. People don’t like those that are fake, and we all know there are already far too many of them. Also, I realized, you should never force anyone to think about their own personality using any kind of psyche behavior mirror.

Psyche behavior mirrors don’t paint you in a pretty light. People wanna be themselves, which is comprised of their average best highlights from their unofficial life resume. People wanna be themselves without showing you their resume.

People don’t wanna see your unofficial life resume either. Unofficial life resumes include too many self-compliments and sob stories. They are no fun to read.

There’s nothing better than entering into a mutual friendship without having to exchange life resumes — life resumes suck. It’s all a pack of pretty lies on the fanciest, thickest paper you could afford at the time. But I’m sure you’ll have a job soon and then you can save up for even thicker paper and revamp your micro-spiritual proselytizing strategy.

But be careful; micro-spiritual proselytizing strategies are not really all that good. At best they are attempts at behavior modification using the intellect; at worst, invasive mind hacking operations. The intellect should not be used for such ignoble things.

Let’s face it — lies of guilt-ridden-self-pitying-bullshit have fallen out of favor. Will truth make a comeback? There’s no telling when the monstrous lack of self-forgiveness will decay into progress.

It’s like the Japanese phrase: 心が伝わるといいね = “Here’s hoping our hearts connect!” (roughly). The way you say it is “kokoro ga tsutawaru to ii ne”. No, no, it’s “cocoa-row”, say “cocoa-row”…

And why is everyone all of a sudden an agent of self-actualization? I thought that stuff went out the window with new-age-ism last millenium… You know what they say — old security blankets die hard, but not before they get moldy and stink up the place.

It’s official: there is no more reflection that needs to be done. Put down your psyche mirrors, and your life resumes. Put down your neighbor even; if that’s the only way you can speak your mind you must; you only have one mind, and it’s getting full of marginally useful stuff and spent coping strategies, and we live in the information age in which you’ll probably run out of storage space, and you definitely don’t wanna do that.

There’s a song on the radio. It’s The Wake by Filter. I think I’ve heard this one before.

where am i is beyond me
words don’t really serve me now
arbitrary cliched expressions betray me
spacious, anxious, close, warm
these words approximate it
but don’t get to the essence
of where i am with you

where am i tho, seriously
this is new territory
not just sensory
an intriguing story

what will our story be?
we are both holding the yarn
enough to start a tapestry
telling the time topography
weaving our what and where
i know who
and the why is in the art
intrinsic and inexplicable

i hesitate to even form questions
questions for you
i am conflicted
seeing myself stringing together the words
that would sew the colors of doubt, fear
vulnerability
into this side of the blanket

but maybe we are resonating
taking it as it comes
as it is
taking it in and sewing our story
realizing that our yarn is a symbol
for something broad and deep
as if we could see the streams
and float in the river
as if we could see the trees
and feel the forest

where am i tho, seriously
i may be lost
so why don’t we wander
in comfort and curiosity
this is new territory