12.

Suffering … is not just lots of pain but pain amplified by distinctly human emotions such as regret, self-pity, shame, humiliation, and dread.

If you have not read the works of Michael Pollan, I suggest you work your way into a book store, as soon as possible.

Autumn is here, and I don't miss summer one bit.
Cheers.

78

"Seclusion is the price of greatness."

School has already begun for some of us.
My coffee-induced sleep patterns will be just as whack as it was in the summer.
However, I couldn't mind - autumn is right around the corner, and I cannot wait to buy myself a pair of warm boots!

Breathe a good, long sigh of relief, after finishing up your back-to-school errands. Make this year, a memorable one.

Homes don't matter.

[...] We could live in any home, in any city, in any country, in any century, and be happy, as if the world were just what we lived in.

- Foer, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

cozy.

"As you think, you travel, and as you love, you attract. You are today where your thoughts have brought you; you will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you."

I spent the last weekend and a few days with one of my best friends, right in the heart of Montreal. The idea sparked inside of a coffee shop, and merged into a last-minute-spur-of-the-moment quest. The antagonizing rain and strenuous walking left me begging for home soil, but I got to spend time with a good friend, and the wonderful French culture right inside of Canada.
Needless to say, the adventure was worth the travelling time. The new people we met, from all walks of life, and the different landscapes that blew away my mind; our adventure was perfect for a couple of days.
I wouldn't change this experience at all.

Travel is absolutely vital to human growth.

(l)one(ly)

It made me start to wonder if there were other people so lonely so close. I thought about "Eleanor Rigby." It's true, where do they all come from? And where do they all belong?

- Jonathan Safran Foer, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

the unexplored sea.

Every day we slaughter our finest impulses.

That is why we get a heart-ache when we read those lines written by the hand of a master and recognize them as our own, as the tender shoots which we stifled because we lacked the faith to believe in our own powers, our own criterion of truth and beauty…We are all part of creation, all kings, all poets, all musicians; we have only to open up to discover what is already there.

Henry Miller was a very bright man.

To live is to battle with trolls...

in the vaults of heart and brain.
To write: that is to sit in judgement over one's self.
- Henrik Ibsen

crooked eyes.

"True freedom and the end of suffering is living in such a way as if you had completely chosen whatever you feel or experience at this moment. This inner alignment with Now is the end of suffering. Is suffering really necessary? Yes and no. If you had not suffered as you have, there would be no depth to you as a human being, no humility, no compassion. You would not be reading this now. Suffering cracks open the shell of ego, and then comes a point when it has served its purpose. Suffering is necessary until you realize it is unnecessary."

Every person in their lifetime will experience suffering. It happens on a daily basis. When we make sacrifices for others, or when we give up for ourselves to grow and mature, we are suffering. Though it may seem that suffering is nothing but a painful memory, it is suffering that can be justified as a factor in human growth.
We suffer to grow, we suffer to realize, we suffer to acknowledge what kind of life we have, and how to make necessary changes.

I suggest you all to pick up one of Eckhart Tolle's books on self-realization, and spiritual/emotional balance. It really does turn your lazy Sundays right-side up.

reluctant.

"You, yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection." - Buddha

I am determined that by the end of the summer, I will become more fluent in understanding the art of buddhist philosophy, with regards to their view on anatta, or "insubstantiality of the ego".

To develop one's self, is actually one of the most challenging aspects of self-realization. Although we may be comfortable with our bodies, and who we are, we still face the many insecurities - many on a daily basis.
Personally, I always seem to find anything and everything to stress over; whether it'd be about school, family, friends, or even little events that come on a rare note, stress piles up, and leaves me feeling a little more insecure about myself.

As I sat on my desk and read hundreds of passages concerning buddhist philosophy, I realized that my mind suddenly cleared: It's fascinating how words can play a vital role in manipulating our emotions. Throughout the time reading up Buddhist Philosophy, I came across these words from Thich Nhat Hanh:

"Live your daily life in a way that you never lose yourself. When you are carried away with your worries, fears, cravings, anger, and desire, you run away from yourself and you lose yourself. The practice is always to go back to oneself."

I never realize...

how much I like being home unless I've been somewhere really different for a while.

- Juno

like the sunset.

"Don’t worry about the world coming to an end today. It’s already tomorrow in Australia." - Charles Schultz

Inspired by the rainy weather, I crawled right back into the endless sea of blankets, and swept right into my bed. Here are some of the tracks I listened to.

With artists such as Dustin O'Halloran, it slipped my mind whether I should look outside my window, to see if the skies had cleared up. Instrumental pieces are always soothing alternatives nearing the end of a busy week.

As we speak, I'm baking some wonderful banana loafs with walnuts. The entire kitchen is perfumed by these little cakes in the oven, kicking off Monday morning with a bang. Cheers to a wonderful week ahead.

human identity.

"Pitiful is the person who is afraid of taking risks. Perhaps this person will never be disappointed or disillusioned; perhaps she won’t suffer the way people do when they have a dream to follow. But when the person looks back—she will hear her heart."
- Paolo Coehlo

double exposure

"Thus Something and Nothing produce each other;

The difficult and the easy complement each other;

The long and the short offset each other;

The hight and the low incline towards each other;

Note and sound harmonize each other;

Before and after follow each other"

- Tao Te Ching, Lao Tzu

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Photographs by my friend, Elaine Crisostomo

Quotable Quotes: Moose Bruce

What a silly world, to be so miserable over something this inane.
Molehills to mountains and back to sand again.
But life is a boat and you must row.
Tomorrow isn't there until you are, you know.
And so, a silly world it is.
But still, every day you should know you aren't bored of it.

- BR