Imagine trees standing together in a forest. They don’t talk, but they feel each other’s presence. When you look at them, you might say they aren’t doing anything. But they are growing and providing clean air for living things to breathe. Instead of describing sitting meditation as the practice of concentration, looking deeply, and getting insight, I like to describe sitting as enjoying doing nothing. Primarily, sitting is to enjoy the pleasure of sitting, being fully alive and in touch with the wonders of our working bodies, the cool air, the sounds of people and birds, and the changing colors of the sky. ~Thich Nhat Hanh

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When one has the feeling of dislike for evil, when one feels tranquil, one finds pleasure in
listening to good teachings; when one has these feelings and appreciates them,
one is free of fear. ~Buddha

Japanese monk in Leverett, Massachusetts.

The glory of friendship is not the outstretched hand, not the kindly smile, nor the joy of companionship; it is the spiritual inspiration that comes to one when you discover that someone else believes in you and is willing to trust you with a friendship. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Few people know how to take a walk. The qualifications are endurance, plain clothes, old shoes, an eye for nature, good humor, vast curiosity, good speech, good silence and nothing too much.

In the woods, we return to reason and faith. There I feel that nothing can befall me in life, – no disgrace, no calamity (leaving me my eyes), which nature cannot repair.  ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

The motivation of all religious practice is similar:
love, sincerity, honesty.
The way of life
of practically all religious persons is consistent.
The teachings of tolerance, love, and compassion
are the same. ~Dalai Lama

Guard well your spare moments. They are like uncut diamonds.
Discard them and their value will never be known.
Improve them and they will become the brightest gems
in a useful life.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

The motivation
of all religious practice is similar:
love, sincerity, honesty.
The way of life
of practically all religious persons
is consistent.
The teachings
of tolerance, love, and compassion
are the same.

~Dalai Lama

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Guard well your spare moments.
They are like uncut diamonds.
Discard them and their value will
never be known. Improve them
and they will become the brightest
gems in a useful life.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

http://leelavadeeflower.blogspot.com/2015/02/the-brightest-gems.html

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It’s like growing lotus flowers. You cannot grow lotus flowers on marble. You have to grow them on the mud. Without mud, you cannot have a lotus flower. Without suffering, you have no ways in order to learn how to be understanding and compassionate.

No mud no lotus. The lotus flower cannot be there without the mud. Likewise, happiness cannot be there without suffering. Looking deeply into our suffering, we gain an understanding of it, which gives happiness a chance to blossom. Thus, the lotus does not have to reject the mud, and the beauty of the lotus actually gives value to the mud. ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature — the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter. ~Rachel Carson