Two all-beef patties,
Special sauce, lettuce, cheese,
Pickles, onions,
On a sesame seed bun.

It’s always been there for me…

Anonymous wrote:Here I sit, same as ever
Took a dump, pulled the lever
The toilet clogged, the water flowed
Look out world, it’s a mother load

Ah, my favorite poem from Kohler.

Thank you. I have found strength in the items shared.

Marcus Aurelius' Meditations. Good on its own but also a reminder that there really isn't anything new under the sun. The ancients struggled with the same problems and questions that we do.

Camus-

My dear, in the midst of hate, I found there was, within me, an invincible love.
In the midst of tears, I found there was, within me, an invincible smile.
In the midst of chaos, I found there was, within me, an invincible calm.
I realized, through it all, that…
In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer.
And that makes me happy.
For it says that no matter how hard the world pushes against me,
within me, there’s something stronger-
something better, pushing right back.

For of all sad words of tongue or pen,
The saddest are these: “It might have been."

"Maud Muller" John Greenleaf Whittier

Mother to Son

--By Langston Hughes

Well, son, I’ll tell you:
Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.
It’s had tacks in it,
And splinters,
And boards torn up,
And places with no carpet on the floor—
Bare.
But all the time
I’se been a-climbin’ on,
And reachin’ landin’s,
And turnin’ corners,
And sometimes goin’ in the dark
Where there ain’t been no light.
So boy, don’t you turn back.
Don’t you set down on the steps
’Cause you finds it’s kinder hard.
Don’t you fall now—
For I’se still goin’, honey,
I’se still climbin’,
And life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.

Here I sit, same as ever
Took a dump, pulled the lever
The toilet clogged, the water flowed
Look out world, it’s a mother load

Even though I'm not Buddhist, I always return to the Ganges Mahamudra when I feel down.

"Mists rise from the earth and vanish into space.
They go nowhere, nor do they stay.
Likewise, though thoughts arise,
Whenever you see your mind, the clouds of thinking clear."
...
"The most majestic of outlooks is free of all reference.
The most majestic of practices is vast and deep without limit.
The most majestic of behaviors is open-minded and impartial.
The most majestic of fruitions is natural being, free of concern."

https://unfetteredmind.org/practice/pith-instructions-on-mahamudra/

Schopenhauer’s essay “On Women” explains a lot of timeless issues.