This week I had the pleasure to take my little girl, Rosanne, out for a couple of long walks in the park. Rosanne, a 2 ½ year old toddler, was joyful and curious about everything she discovered. A spider in a web, a couple of ducks in the water, little twigs on the ground or flowers she could pick. Everything was interesting, nothing remained unnoticed. She was really enjoying herself; and I did too, watching her having so much fun. Watching her being happy.

When we go out for our walks, we walk side by side, talking, playing, laughing and occasionally chasing each other. We’re always having fun! And when she is tired, I’ll put her up on my shoulders so she can rest for a while and to make sure she has a great view of the surroundings.

At one occasion it had rained in the morning and the trail was still wet. Splashing is one of her favorite things to do, so she could not walk by all the puddles, still filled with water, without stamping her little feet in them. We began naming the puddles: big puddles, little puddles and baby puddles. In that moment life was very simple. There was no greater joy than standing in a big puddle. No worries remained about all the unimportant stuff in life, only the puddles mattered. It was a moment of true happiness.

In my opinion we can learn more from children than the best guru or enlightened master can teach us. Children, when they are young, naturally live in the now, in the moment. This is a great teaching. It will keep you young and alert. If you stop for a moment and are willing to be open, a piece of that natural playfulness and awareness will be transmitted to you; changing you forever. Changing your priorities and teaching you what is really important and what is not.

In Zen Buddhism they often talk about a mind which is fresh, playful, enthusiastic and open. A mind that is not conditioned by the outside world: A Zen mind or enlightened mind. A mind like that of a child: A beginners mind.

I look forward to all the walks we can do in the future. I want to feel like a child, be a child. And Rosanne is my teacher, my little Buddha.

If you have not heard of Eckhart Tolle before and would meet him for the first time, your first impression would probably be that of a very ordinary, simple man. You may even find him a bit boring when you hear him speak. But don’t judge a book by it’s cover as this man is one of the most remarkable (spiritual) teachers of today.

His message is very simple: Do not (unconsciously) dwell in the past or the future but stay present in the now, the present moment.

This message is not new, as many people advocate to be more present, or being conscious. But Eckhart Tolle presents this in such a simple and easy to understand way, that if you still do not understand what he tries to convey, you are probably not ready yet for this powerful teaching.

He also talks about people’s unconscious behaviour. This is what he calls the pain body. The pain body is like a hidden shadow which once activated, can take over a person completely. Ever wondered why people suddenly can act like crazy, provoked by one simple word? Well, it’s because they are taken over by their pain body. This is very informative information which gave me a lot of insight about myself and others.

Eckhart Tolle has written two books, The Power of Now and A New Earth. Both very powerful and highly recommended. I would also recommend to check out his numerous audio and video programs.

Loving What is – Byron Katie

Byron Katie was severely depressed and had been suffering for many years. Then one morning she woke up and noticed a shift in her awareness. She found out that her thoughts are not who she truly was. She also discovered that by asking four simple questions she could investigate her thoughts and find out if they are true or false.

Loving What Is, Byron Katie’s first book, explains the process of asking these four questions on stressful thoughts. Loving What Is is full with dialogues between Byron Katie and people touching different topics. From work and money to problems with relationships, these simple questions can bring troubling thoughts back into reality:

1. Is it true?
2. Can you absolutely know that it’s true?
3. How do you react, what happens, when you believe that thought?
4. Who would you be without the thought?

 This self-inquiry process, called ”The Work” ends with turning the stressful thought around.

I had the pleasure of seeing Byron Katie and The Work at a live event and she is truly amazing. The beauty of this simple process is that is shows that most stressful thoughts are not real and made up in the mind. Please visit Katie’s site, http://thework.com for further information and lots of free stuff.