GIOVANNIANDFRANCO.COM

What does it mean to know what is essential in your life?

 
"Only when we know what is essential can we know what is possible.”  A profound thought from the late Leo Buscaglia that we should all take seriously.

 

One of the most difficult tasks we undertake is to understand what is essential for our goals to come to fruition.  To see the essential ingredients in any process is to see clearly and to distill your thinking to the essence of what is necessary.  When you do this you bring richness to your life that you deserve and should expect for yourself.

 

What then does it mean to know what is essential?  First is means to be complete in your assessment.  Most of all you must bring integrity to this process. 

 

It is very easy to consider as an essential activity something that you do simply because you need positive affirmation for yourself.  This type of behavior can be self destructive and needs to be honestly evaluated to see if it serves a positive or negative purpose.

 

It is also important to consider the time you need for play and contemplation.  We all need quite and relaxing time to remain vital and alive as we reach for our goals.

 

Think of what you need to serve yourself and others. Consider what is essential carefully.  Be honest an open with yourself.  Don’t wait to begin.  The fulfillment you are seeking is waiting for you to embark on the journey.

 

Sister Veronica

 

04/10

 

 

 

.....thoughts on the difficulty of bringing insightful change to our core being.

Brother Franco, headmaster of Pizzaonian Monasteries, was sharing with me some thoughts on how difficult it is for both novice monks and their older brothers and sisters to bring profound change to their lives.  

Here is a brief excerpt of his thoughts on the difficulty of bringing insightful change to our core being. 

Brother Giovanni

 

We live our lives following a habit pattern we are seldom aware of.  We continue to tinker with our schedules and our motivations, but the foundation that it all rests on stays the same.  Many surface things in our personalities change often, but at our core, at the very foundation of our being, change there does not come easily, or often. 

Who we are and how we have learned to protect ourselves from ourselves, and everyone else is where the hardest stone of our foundation rests, and why things seldom change. The reason we seldom change is because we don’t want to change.  Simply said, change at this level would transform our lives dramatically and turn our comfort zones upside down. 

We occasionally get glimpses of the person we could be if we were willing to change ourselves at this core level.  It may be inspiring for a moment, but when the realization of what it would mean to become the real you hits home, it usually takes us quickly back to our comfort zone. 

So the next time you lament to yourself, why don’t things ever really change, find a mirror and ask the person looking back at you.  That person knows the answer to your question if you dare listen. 

Brother Franco

opd 411

When you look back on a life it becomes harder and harder to keep a straight face.

When you look back on a life lived over several years it becomes harder and harder to keep a straight face.  Not withstanding life’s joyful and tragic moments, it is very difficult to miss the absurdity of it all. 

Most absurd of all are those among us who really believe they had a lot to do with their good fortune.  When one looks back on the gifts we are given that ironically seem to show up when we need them most, you have to wonder how all of this works. 

You don’t want to ask too many questions here.  I would simply be grateful for being around.  And maybe that is the best answer of all—gratitude. 

If karma exists, gratitude has to be its mother.  With gratitude, we are able to say thank you more often.  We tend to be more generous and as a result increase our willingness to do good and to be more charitable. 

So the next time you are patting yourself on the back for the blessings bestowed upon you – stop for a minute and say, thank you.  And then go do something nice for someone…….

 

Brother Giovanni

We also recommend "The Pizzaonian"

opd 1015

Related articles

d

 

Hope for a better tomorrow is essential for the American Dream to continue

 

 

Conjectures of a recovering dilettante:  Are we as a people still willing to sacrifice - both individually and as a nation?

 

While this may seem critical, I feel my criticism is based on a belief that the United States is an evolving experiment in participatory democracy.  The greatness of this country has always been its potential.  While its history is checkered with good and bad, it has always held the promise of a better tomorrow.  It is this hope of a better tomorrow that drives the optimism of the American dream.

 

It is also the key to American power and its attraction to millions of people all over the world.  What is so disconcerting about today is the concept of hope for a better tomorrow is waning in the hearts of many the America people.  This is fueled by a political establishment that no longer seems able to lead, but only fuels the pessimism that is beginning to pervade most thinking here.

 

It is hard to understand why this is happening, but one thing always comes to mind.  The spirit of sacrifice which is part of the heart of a great people, no longer seems as strong. Is this temporary, or a symptom of a greater malaise that has become endemic to the culture?  Is the ruling political establishment the cause, or are they simply a reflection of the people that elect them?

 

Regardless of which, both are failing to carry the torch that has been handed to them from the past – a past that kept the American concept of hope alive so the dream could continue.

 

May that dream never die!

 

Brother Giovanni

opd 710

At the heart of all success is not your belief in its inevitability

 

"At the heart of all success is not your belief in its inevitability -- at the heart of all success is your ability to overcome the fear that permeates and surrounds your belief."   Pizzaonian proverb

 

Image courtesy of the Pizzaonian Art Institute, Abe Straction, curator (C)2012

 

"From this life to the next, your courage to simply be will prevail."

 

Words posted at the entrance of the chapel for novice Pizzaonians

 

 

opd 110

 

The devil is in the details, Continuation of Third letter to the Pizzaonians

Image courtesy of the Pizzaonian Art Institute, Abe Straction, curator (C)2012

 

The devil is in the details

 

We left off our last letter with this thought: Pizzaonians, I suspect, have developed a more advanced evolutionary response to end the aggressive violence that plagues your entire world. 

 

 It is simply a different way of seeing things.  Much too simplistic for most, I am sure.  But then again, most of the great truths are.  However, in case any of us forgets, the devil is always in the details.

 

What makes Pizzaonian culture different is the concept of empathy.  I say concept of empathy since empathy here is more than a defined word.  Here it is a cultural phenomenon that has transformed this society into a human experience like no other.

 

Empathy can be defined simply as the capacity for participating in a vicarious experiencing of an other's feelings, volition's, or ideas.  The catch here, if you are to understand Pizzaonian culture, is not to understand the word intellectually, but to have empathy with the word empathy.

 

When you live in this state of understanding it will not reduce the friction or conflict that all of us experience on a daily basis.  However, what it does is regardless of how fervent you feel about any subject, you always feel with equal intensity the needs and concerns of those you disagree with. This inevitably ends with a consideration of everyone’s needs and leads to a peaceful solution.

 

Many years ago the Pizzaonian elders realized they were resolving all of their conflicts peacefully and without the need for outside litigators, or for that matter, government in general.  When they considered the staggering cost of maintaining a government they decided on the bold experiment of eliminating all government, local and national, for a three year trial period. 

 

To their amazement, since there were many disbelievers, they functioned as well without government. Many noted with some validity, they actually did much better without outside interference.  They never looked backed.

 

As far as all other services are concerned, Pizzaonians created national, cooperative corporations that are owned by the people.  Since the concept of empathy is operative here, they all function very well, maintaining a very high level of service.  Keep in mind, we are not without problems here. What we are with however, is an extraordinary capacity to solve all of our problems peacefully.

 

Brother Giovanni, Supreme Pizzaonian.

opd 410

Are we happy? Do we dare ask the question to often?

“Life, as it is called, is for most of us one long postponement.” Henry Miller

 

There’s so much written on how to find happiness, I have to suppose a lot of people are looking for it. Are we happy?  Do we dare ask the question to often?  I think not since I suspect most of us are not happy most of the time.

 

Not to get to pessimistic here, but looking for happiness may be the wrong way to find happiness.  Happiness is not a condition that exists by itself – it is always part of another experience or event. As obvious as this is, it seems to escape us. That’s why the expressions “this makes me happy” or “you make me happy” are often used to express the condition when it exists.

 

I sense one reason for our ambivalence is how happiness is packaged to sell products.  Advertisers successfully create the notion you are supposed to be happy all of the time and somehow buying their product is the cause of our well being.

 

We all know this is nonsense. We know there is no one thing that makes us happy.  But tugging at the back of our mind is the notion that maybe someone really is happy all of the time. We are particularly vulnerable to this nonsense when we are going through a difficult period. Advertisers know this and continually exploit it to make their product more appealing.

 

I prefer to use the word fulfillment in place of happiness.  Part of the definitions of fulfillment is “to measure up to, to satisfy, to convert into reality.”  That’s something I can deal with. 

 

No matter what we have to do at any given time, no matter how distasteful or relatively insignificant the chore may be, it usually has a goal or accomplishment attached to its completion. It may be inconsequential or as profound as meeting your family responsibilities or earning a living. As it was once explained to me, “the work is not very inspiring, but it makes for good weekends.” Simply doing something well, can be its own fulfillment.

 

Discipline and the act of completion have a nice feel to it.  No matter what problems are bothering you at the moment, there is something nice about knowing you can get things done.  It creates a sense of well being that offsets what Henry Miller said about life being one long postponement.

 

Life may be, but while we are waiting  - we get a lot done and that’s not bad.  Try it sometime.

 

Brother Giovanni

opd 710

Science made the universe God; religion made humans God, it is time to see both entities, as the same God

Someday, after mastering the winds, the waves, the tides and gravity, we shall harness for God the energies of love, and then, for a second time in the history of the world, man will have discovered fire.   *Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

 

Somewhere in history the leaders of organized, religion got stuck in a time warp.  Fortunately, many believers refused to get stuck with them.  It is hard to grasp how a dynamic living force as God - has been confined to a single concept or event in time by so many of the so-called faithful.

God created a dynamic living universe, but somehow in the consciousness of so many of His believers is a thought system rooted in concrete. And then to add to this insult, they believe this immutability is sacred.

These words are a sacrilege to many, but equally sacrileges to others is not understanding and grasping the significance of a “Cosmic God"*.  If we are to give glory to God as deserved, we have to understand the concept of a living galactic God who is part of all evolving life, including our growth as individual believers.

The difference between those who hold to some immutable, unchanging truth as compared to those who see the ‘sacred’ in the evolving consciousness of the universe depends of whether you trust in the people as the true “keepers of the flame” or believe human nature, by its very nature, cannot be trusted with ongoing revelation.

Some explanation is necessary here.  At the turn of the last century we began to see the developing belief in a God more consistent with what humans were discovering about their universe.  Many will charge that because many so-called “enlightened humans and their science chose to believe theories not consistent with “old time religion,” they need to be even more adamant about being true to their non-evolving, original beliefs.

What is troubling is how we can see things so differently. From my perspective our original beliefs clearly show us that we are an evolving species.  In addition, we have the evidence of the Universe itself.  If it is not evolving all the time what else is it? Is it possible that the God who created us, also created an environment separate and alien to us?

Somewhere in the past, with our increasing awareness, it was imprinted into the mind sets of many that our spirituality and the world we live in are diametrically opposed to each other. The consequence of this was to separate us from our environment and make us strangers in our own homes.

This is what we need to correct if we are to achieve the transcendence our faith in God, was meant to achieve.

Science made the universe God; religion made humans God, now it is time to see both entities, not as separate, but as the same God, united in glorious Transcendence.

Brother Giovanni

opd 1214

*Pierre Teilhard de Chardin       http://www.ignatianspirituality.com/ignatian-voices/20th-century-ignatian-voices/pierre-teilhard-de-chardin-sj/

We also recommend  "The Pizzaonian"

Related articles

Political reality defined by our rose colored glasses

Reasonable people make terrible politicians. They spend most of their time in negotiations

"We do not see with our eyes but with the sum total of our experience" Pizzaonius

What a time to be

The big issues play themselves out. Even the players in the big arena have little effect on outcomes.

(C) copyright
IMAGE: Pizzaonius addressing novitate monks on the need for small acts of kindness. All images from the Pizzaonian Art Institute collection, Abe Staction,curator

 

The most difficult part of the era we live in is to accept the fact that events have a life of their own and will play themselves out with little help from us.  This may sound pessimistic to most, but this has been the way of events since we began our human journey on this mortal coil. 

Human frailty and egos being what they are, we have a need to believe we can make a difference.  If this makes life easier for you - continue to believe it, but always be aware this may well be an illusion. 

If we have no effect on the big issues, what do we affect?  For one, we can make positive changes to ourselves.  Working on ourselves and changing for the better is something most of us take for granted.  We usually presume in our insulated ego existences that someone else causes our problems. This is our folly when we do so. 

The big issues play themselves out.  Even the players in the big arena have little effect on outcomes.  The redeeming feature in our American system is the system itself.  It survives by allowing the powers to be to continue to exist, regardless of their own folly. Eventually, even if by default, this means creating an  economy that allows all to live well.

This is not altruistic.  Spreading the wealth allows the top to survive. When economic and political events become bad enough the process of renewal begins. It is the cycle of our economic, political and spiritual existence. It works repeatedly and has from the beginning. 

What then can you do?  For one, weed your own garden.  Most of the good in this world is the combined small acts of good that create their own karma.  This may not sound like much, but it is all you have. 

So when you despair of the larger events of this world, do some small good around you.  It does not have to be a big deal. Any small act of kindness will do.  Then let go and enjoy the moment.  You might be surprised at the result.

Brother Franco

opd 412

Pizzaonian National Health Plan - a model for the future

"Merging of Faith and Pizza" by Pizzaonian painting legend, Annavelo Paveli

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FROM:  PIZZAONIAN NEWSERTAINMENT NETWORK (PNN)

Contact:  Publicio Relationio at the PNN office of Public Relations at   PIZZAONIAN@YAHOO.COM

 

SUBJECT:  Supreme Pizzaonian exonerated. Pizzaonian health plan model for the future.

 

The Pizzaonian Council announced today in a brief statement Supreme Pizzaonian, Brother Giovanni, acted in the best interest of all Pizzaonians by rescinding "crap and trade" as an acceptable environmental policy and will now apply to all Pizzaonian diary herds. 

 

“He also showed the respect all Pizzaonians have for woman as equal participants in our culture by the appointment of Captain Eleanori Ramallboati as the first submarine commander in the Pizzaonian navy” said one council member.  The fact that Pizzaonia has no submarines or navy was not a factor in their decision.

 

The council praised Brother Giovanni for his inspired leadership on several issues.  The most important of these was the negotiations with Pizza digogo DiVinci that lead to the merger of all Pizzaonian Monasteries with the pizza giant.

 

The most contentious issue was the adoption of the Pizzaonian health plan for all Pizzaonians.  The health plan calls for all medical expenses up to 2000 Pizzaonian dollars to be treated by the regular medical staff.  Once the 2000 dollar amount is exceeded, the patient is transferred to the faith healing clinic/s for further treatment.

 

After some argument on the merger of “faith and pizza” as a concept, all parties finally agreed on the acceptance of the plan.  As a result of the merger and the new health plan, all Pizzaonian physicians now undergo three more years of training to earn the coveted “faith healer” (FH) designation.

 

Council members declared their faith-based health plan as a model for the United State as well.  As we all know their health plans require the financial backing of their government and what requires more faith than that?

 

opd 210

Related articles

Advertising - To create the herd, you must first create the individual

If you have choices in life, consider yourself fortunate - 150 word reflections

Reality versus intent - Dogma - in a constantly changing world

100 word reflections - It is everywhere - It is pervasive - virtually everyone's addiction to social media