Author Archives: Jeff Flesch

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 1:32 pm on December 6, 2020
Tags: 300followers, , , , onblogging, , , ,   

A Blogger’s Diary 12/5/20: On Writing, Books, 300 Followers, and Connection and Communication

Photo by hannah grace on Unsplash

Well, like many places around the globe, cases in Oregon are approaching an all-time high. Difficult. Yet, it is the current reality. For now.

And, as I wrote about in a previous entry, the time I have to write is less today than it once was. Partly due to work, which continues to expand as we serve more and more people with remote education. Lovely.

Though there was less time, I did write quite a bit of poetry this past week. Even submitted a couple to two other national publications, just for fun! Right, so here’s what that looked like.

Writing

  1. Hand-in-Hand
  2. A Dream
  3. Sorrow
  4. Becoming
  5. Sensitive
  6. A Developmental Moment #1: Inspiration
  7. Run

Wow, that was fun. Fun to think about, reflect upon, and write. So much Fun. And this coming week?

Well, I am currently working on three more poems, a new entry for the reflection series, the second installment in the leadership series, and a new developmental moment article. And, you all know that as new insights occur, well, those will also be considered and written about. Happens every week.

Photo by John-Mark Smith on Unsplash

Books

Be As You Are: The Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi, by Sri Ramana Maharshi

What a powerful book. In fact, it is so powerful, I’ve purchased my own copy, which has arrived, so I can read it again. I also watched a great documentary about Ramana last week, called Arunachala Shiva, The Teachings of Ramana Maharshi, which I highly recommend. And, along the way?

Well, I fell in love with a mountain. Arunachala. My life coach spent 5 years at the Ashram at Arunachala, which I had no idea about until yesterday; and when we talked, we talked about how drawn I am to that mountain. I will find myself there in the future. That is known. The book?

I may have more on that in the future. Now? I am taking it all in, reflecting, and meditating upon it. That’s about it for now.

Anxious People, by Fredrik Backman

An excellent read. About? Yep. I believe the book is about compassion, and humanity’s resiliency. Meaning, whether we are aware of it or not, we know far less than is knowable, and, well, quite frankly, that can be painful.

Yet, inside an awareness that there is much more to know about, than we know, there is also beauty, and a joy that comes from this gift. Both pain and joy are possible. It really depends on which one we choose.

Photo by Howie R on Unsplash

300 Followers

Wait, what?! Yep! WOW. I would just like to say two things. Ready? Good. Here we go.

I appreciate you. I appreciate you liking my work, commenting on posts, and supporting me on a regular basis. We’ve had some excellent engagements and conversations. Know that you are always appreciated. Always.

I also want to thank each of you for the lovely community that has developed, and that I have so graciously been welcomed into. Absolutely wonderful. I am so grateful for all of you. I love reading your work. You are all so inspirational and talented.

Photo by K8 on Unsplash

Connection and Communication

This past week, I’ve been very present to connection and communication. Yep, first with the connection and communication I have with myself, and then with everyone else. and then? Yep. The connection and communication I see that everyone else has with everyone else. Does that make sense? Good.

We can in fact call this the connection and communication system, which I’ve also called the relationship system. They are one and the same. It looks like this.

Why am I present to connection and communication this week? Good question.

Mainly because connecting and communicating is harder today. Yet, it is a paradox though. Watch.

Though you may be thinking, well, that doesn’t make sense because technology bridges connection and communication. Yes, this is true. However, what’s often missing is the feeling part.

Let us say that we are also a system made up of the following. Thinking, feeling, speaking, and acting. Well, when you are connecting and communicating almost exclusively through technology, not in-person, the feeling part of connecting and communicating is much harder to manage. It just is. And?

Well, if we are unaware, the connection you have with that person, or people, may become disconnected. Or, rather, less connected. Meaning that connection and communication live along a spectrum, so it’s not connected or disconnected, there are subtle variations.

And, knowing about these variations is important. Sensing them, knowing about them, and then creating contexts to talk about them. Important for our friendships, familial relationships, work relationships, and, well, all relationships. Important.

Alright, before I go, one question.

  • What are some things you’ve done to remain connected and communicative with those you are in relationship with?

I wish you a lovely coming week. Please stay healthy and well.

#300followers, #bloggersdiary, #communication, #connection, #onblogging, #onwriting, #pandemic, #poems, #relationships

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 1:00 pm on December 5, 2020
Tags: , , , miracle, , , , run   

Run

Photo by Jeremy Lapak on Unsplash

You’re me,
So please let it be
As it is all relative,
So why try to flee

From that which you see
A mirrored reflection
No matter the direction
You take, or upon

Which road your fate may lay

It depends not on the fray
Or the delay which you see,
Only on the scene, which will
Play out as a matter of destiny

Hidden
And yet it’s view plain
For all to see

A matter of course
And miracle to most, so
Celebrate each moment
With a true sense of devotion

For the Host, and

Run if you must, yet
Know that when you run,
You are never alone,
As you are a miracle born

With a purpose all your own

Have a lovely weekend, everyone.

#destiny, #life, #love, #miracle, #poem, #poems, #purpose, #run

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 11:07 am on December 5, 2020
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,   

A Developmental Moment #1: Inspiration

How Inspiration Relates to Our Personal and Professional Development

Photo by Mona Eendra on Unsplash

In the article, The Leadership Series Part 1: What is Leadership, and Why is it so Important?, we discussed several leadership characteristics. And, it is these characteristics, which, by the way, are applicable to every aspect of our lives, that we will cover, one at a time, in this new series. Where to start? Let’s see.

Well, let’s start with this past week’s reflections, shall we? Good. Here we go.

Alright, so this past week, I’ve been reflecting a lot upon inspiration. What is inspiration, where does it come from, how can we get more of it, and what do we do if we run out of it. Very important questions. And?

Well, this week I’ve also been reflecting upon the creation of a new series. A series that can encompass a multitude of topics, and, yep, this is it, and inspiration will be the first topic.

Some of these developmental discussions will be longer, and some will be shorter. It will depend.

Alright, for this entry, let’s tackle the first question on inspiration. Ready? Good. Let’s go.

Photo by Melissa Askew on Unsplash

Where Does Inspiration Come From?

I really do love this topic, as it seems so simple, right? Inspiration, well, it’s all around us. Some people say they find nature inspirational, or other people in their lives, such as their friends and family, or coworkers. And, that is beautiful. Truely. Yet, there is something missing here. Do you know what it is? Hm.

It is the viewpoint. Meaning?

That inspiration does not live outside of you. Nope. It lives inside of you. We look outward and place inspiration onto other things and people, yet that inspiration comes from within. Always has come from within, and always will come from within.

Why does this matter to your development? Good question. Here is one, of many, reasons why.

  1. When we know inspiration comes from within, we stop looking outside of ourselves for our own inspiration. Being aware of the source of our inspiration is important to our development, because when we fully realize that our inspiration comes from within, we are not bound to the changing tides of people and things. Simple. And?
Photo by Mick Haupt on Unsplash

Well, we know that change is inevitable. It is part of life. Yep. And, when we get clear on the fact that inspiration does not live in the changing world, that, in fact, it can be developed, and maintained, regardless of external circumstances, we become more powerful. Really.

Does that mean that we don’t ever feel down, or stressed, or sad? No, it does not. We are meant to feel all of our emotions; to feel them, know them, and learn how to talk about them.

And, yet, we can still find our inspiration even during the most stressful times. Why? Because even though we may consider a situation stressful, we know that our inspiration is always there. Waiting for us.

Alright, so what can we do to connect, or reconnect, to our own inspiration? I think there is one thing we can all do that will assist in making our connection, or reconnection, to our inspiration stronger. What’s that?

  1. Make time for yourself. A must.

When we create time for ourselves, to be with ourselves, just for ourselves, we get to know ourselves better. And, the more we know ourselves, the more clear on our own inspiration we become. Really.

Next time, then, when things are really hectic, and you are feeling overwhelmed, stop. Stop doing what you are doing, and go for a walk, sit down under a tree and look around, or look up at the beautiful stars in the sky. Stop and just be.

For it is in this space, where your inspiration will find you.

#clarity, #compassion, #connection, #contemplation, #emotionalintelligence, #emotions, #inspiration, #leadershipdevelopment, #meditation, #mindfulness, #overwhelm, #personal-development, #professionaldevelopment, #reflection, #selfdevelopment, #selfimprovement

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 7:29 pm on December 4, 2020
Tags: , , , , , sensitive, ,   

Sensitive

Photo by Miguel Ibáñez on Unsplash

Some call it a weakness,
A true message of bleakness
Or even a partial meekness

And, yet, what the some fail
To witness,
Is the strength of character
Built upon a true fitness

Of Mind

Balancing the worlds
Shadow
With it’s naturally occurring
And prominent hallow

Born over time

Within each of us
Not covered up, rather
Brought to the light of
The senses, and, yes

There are consequences

Of a raw and pure beauty
Never flailing or failing
Only ever unveiling more gifts of awe

For it is these gifts of feeling, and
Seeing, always ever believing
In that which is there
A true revealing

Of a most precious healing
Which begins
With each of of us, and thus

A natural trust develops
From within you, me, and,
Well, everyone of us, which

Some may call compensative
Surely not pensative, and
Yet my friend,
I simply call it part of being, having,

And holding a life that is sensitive

#gifts, #healing, #life, #love, #poem, #sensitive, #trust, #writing

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 9:45 pm on December 3, 2020
Tags: , , , , , , , , ,   

Becoming

Photo by Ravi Roshan on Unsplash

When we are fixed
In place
Without a trace

Of imagination
or contemplation

The consideration
Of more
Isn’t something
We really explore

Rigid and timid

Become more
Than happenstance
As we close ourselves
To the very truth

Of our existence

Which is more
Than we can possible implore
Ourselves to know, yet

When we are flexible
And bendable
Like a green sapling

We let go of our grappling
For more,
As we begin to explore
The more we implore

Ourselves to know,

Which is a becoming
Of something already there,
Done without any fanfare

Only our Source of prayer
As we become
That which
We’ve always already known

An uncovering
Of Truth, and

A sublime recovering
Of that which
We’ve always been becoming

#becoming, #existence, #flexibility, #flow, #growth, #life, #love, #poem, #poems, #truth

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 8:31 pm on December 2, 2020
Tags: , , , , , release,   

Sorrow

Photo by TOMOKO UJI on Unsplash

Sometimes we borrow
From tomorrow
To forget our sorrow

Covered up

And forgotten,
Unlike something
Begotten

Yet, what we miss, and
Let us not be remiss

Is the joy that comes
When we stop borrowing
From the morrow
To cover up our sorrow

Facing it instead

Is the only real way
To live
A life filled with peace and love
Instead of dread

Let the tears come,
I say
As we face things
We once ran from

In the end,

Running
Never really gets you far,
As the sorrow buried deep inside
Of you, is, yes,

A part of you,

And is also looking for
Release
From the cage
Full of bars, which

We created
under different stars

It’s now time to play, so
Release the sorrow friend,
And welcome
The dawn of a new day

Filled with peace and love
Awaiting your caress,
Yet first
We must face our sorrow,

By always paying back what we borrow

#life, #love, #peace, #poem, #poems, #release, #sorrow

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 8:07 pm on December 1, 2020
Tags: , , , , , , ,   

A Dream

Photo by Cosmic Timetraveler on Unsplash

They come,
And sometimes
We run away

Looking for a bright
And shiny nether day
Or return
To our birth, which is

A place of renewal

Created
With all the splendor
And accrual of a
Very fine mural

Where we see
All that was before, and
What’s to come, displayed
At the door, present

To the very eyes we adore

A history of a life lived
In kind, not rewind,
And yet we sometimes

Anxiously await a return
To the past
Even though we know
The moment won’t last

We still envy that space
Delivered, and
Yes, we even sometimes
Quiver with anticipation

An emancipation

From times
That can feel scary, and
Even withdrawn where
We may become quite wary

Remember that life
Is but a dream, lived
A gift and true sublime trist

With all that we see and feel
Both we may call real

Sometimes it may be easy, and
It may also make us feel
Quite queasy, and unsure

Yet please be reassured
That both
Are at opposite ends
Of a single spectrum

A dream, I reckon, yes,
And shall I progress?

Alas, I’ll digress
For the moment, and
Finally say
To let come what may

Because in the end
All is needed
Even when
We can’t quite concede it

#poetry, #dream, #dreams, #life, #live, #love, #poem, #poems

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 8:16 pm on November 30, 2020
Tags: , friendship, , , , wdys58,   

Hand-in-Hand

Cheryl Holt @ Pixabay

They walk hand-
In-hand, a dance
Till the end

Just starting out, and, yes,
They’ll figure it out

One step at a time
Through the daytime
Until it’s finally bedtime

Day after day
Friends forever
They’ll say

And, yes,

As they age
Life will pull them apart
Yet they’ll always have each other
When they finally depart

This plane

They’ll have shared
A life full of love
Declared
For the very first time

When they were little
During that first summertime

Walking hand-in-hand
Through the field
Flowers blooming all around

Their souls intertwined, and
Together bound
Just like when they were little

Walking hand-in-hand
When their love was first found

In response to WDYS #58 from Keep it Alive, by Sadje.

#friends, #friendship, #lifeandlove, #poem, #poems, #wdys58, #writing

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 6:43 pm on November 29, 2020
Tags: , , , , laozi, , , martinlutherkingjr, nelsonmandela, noraroberts, petersenge, ,   

A Blogger’s Diary 11/29/30: On Writing, Extreme Risk, and Our Head and Heart

Photo by Jane Palash on Unsplash

As I reflect back upon this week, it occurs to me that, yes, it too was a busy week, as, at work, we prepared to publish and send out our fourth completely remote digital schedule of classes. Wow.

In some ways, it’s hard to believe that we’ve now been creating and delivering completely remote classes and training for 10 months. Phew.

And, in other ways, not so hard to believe. Because, some days it feels like we’ve been living inside of this pandemic a lot longer. Keep breathing everyone. Really.

Writing? Sure. Here we go.

Writing

More writing this week, which was a blast. Here’s what that looked like in case you haven’t seen them all yet.

Another wow. Lots of writing this week. Fun! And, next week?

Hm. I’m a little more unsure about my writing next week than usual. I know, I know, I actually write that quite often, or something like that, maybe in a different way. Why?

Because I am truly unsure how it will go. Much of that has to do with how much time I’ll have to write. It’s different every week. And?

Well, here’s the plan anyway.

More poetry? Oh, yes, of course! I am having such a great time writing poetry. I am working on several pieces right now! Much fun.

I will also be working on the Leadership Series this week, on installment, well, 2.5, which is the other half of the second installment on developing the self. More fun!

I’m sure I’ll also have a reflection series post this week, though last week that did not occur. We will see. And, you know, for me, that’s part of the fun.

Seeing what comes. What insights happen throughout the week, and how they, sometimes, turn into poetry or another post. The creative process is quite beautiful. Wouldn’t you agree?

Photo by Kyle Ryan on Unsplash

Extreme Risk

In last week’s entry, I wrote a little about the 2-week freeze the Governor put Oregon under, which expires, I think, this coming Wednesday.

Yet, not really. Why?

Well, it turns out the county I live in, and the county I work in have been classified as extreme risk. Meaning?

Continued restrictions. Difficult. And, yet totally understandable.

Last week, my oldest son told me that University sent everyone home over the Thanksgiving break, and told them not to return until winter term, which starts in early January.

Like I’ve written, it is hard right now, for everyone, everywhere. Hang in there.

Photo by Langa Hlatshwayo on Unsplash

Head and Heart

The Monday message I scheduled to go out to the team this week was created specifically because of how hard it is living inside of the pandemic right now. Has been hard, and is still hard. That is our current reality.

And, inside of that reality, it is important for each of us, all of you, yes, and me, to remember to take care of our head and our heart. Really important.

I’ve written a lot about how I take care of my head and heart, so will simply write here that however you do that matters less, than doing it. Taking care of yourself. Being with yourself. Caring for yourself. Important.

When we care for ourselves, we can care for everyone else that much more. It works that way.

Please remember to take care during this terribly stressful time.

And, lastly, I wanted to share a couple of quotes that are also part of the Monday message scheduled for tomorrow. Why?

Well, because I think they are inspirational, just like each of you. Here we go.

“One day we will learn that the heart can never be totally right if the head is totally wrong. Only through the bringing together of head and heart-intelligence and goodness-shall man rise to a fulfillment of his true nature.” -Martin Luther King, Jr.

AZ Quotes

“A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination.” -Nelson Mandela

AZ Quotes

“People with high levels of personal mastery…cannot afford to choose between reason and intuition, or head and heart, any more than they would choose to walk on one leg or see with one eye.” -Peter Senge

AZ Quotes

“Knowledge is a great gift, and the thirst to seek it even greater. Use what you know…Head and heart…You are not made to give greater weight to one than the other.” -Nora Roberts

AZ Quotes

Love is of all passions the strongest, for it attacks simultaneously the head, the heart and the senses. -Laozi

AZ Quotes

Love those. Beautiful. Alright, that’s all for this week.

As I’ve already written, keep breathing, keep moving, keep loving, keep learning, and keep living.

You are needed. You are an inspiration.

Have a great week, and be well, my friends.


#bloggersdiary, #covid-19, #diary, #headandheart, #laozi, #life, #love, #martinlutherkingjr, #nelsonmandela, #noraroberts, #petersenge, #quotes, #writing

Unknown's avatar Jeff Flesch 6:19 pm on November 28, 2020
Tags: , , , , , ,   

The River

Photo by John Salvino on Unsplash

The river flows
Just as the wind blows
And the streams
In our veins grow

With life

A beautiful and tranquil
Existence
Of a long, and
Adored magnificence

Bending to the right
A mighty flight
Of fancy

Even prancy with delight

A memory of times
Gone by, yet
Filled with light

Luminous

And sparkling
As the sun shines
And the water dances
For the heavens, and is

Now beckoned

To the left
Never bereft
Only filled with
Sweet and blessed

Presence

Of Mind
Which is sublime
Each and every

Moment at a time

Breathe in deep, then
My friend, and
Take each
And every moment in

As their magnificence
Is a mirror
Of your very existence

#life, #love, #mind, #poem, #poems, #presence, #river