shareware for the soul

[-V-]

i am spirit
my gender, color, and species do not define me.
my "earthware" was programmed with a basic operating system
for survival and reproduction,
but connecting to my true source is the key to unlocking
my advanced features and unlimited potential

i am spirit
my body was born into this time, this country, this culture.
my ego commands that i identify with them,
but i do not have to obey.
my soul is not bound to them,
or to the possessions i will leave behind
when i depart earth's cocoon.
until then,
i will do my best to remember what i was taught to forget;
that i am connected to all things,
and i will not let the un-holy alliance of
my time, my country, my culture, and my ego
restrict me, separate me, or isolate me

i am spirit
i am a citizen of the universe,
guided by my conscience, not the laws of man --
that change over time and imaginary borders on a map

i am spirit
love is my religion, my sexual preference, my currency.
peace is my political party, my ambition.
i honor all sentient creatures' "life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness".
when there is potential for conflict, my greatest defense is no offense.
i do not win unless no one loses

i am spirit
truth nourishes me,
justice gets me high,
happiness is the only measure of my success,
sacrifice is the only measure of my heroes.
compassion and consideration for all living things
is the only custom i adhere to every day

i am spirit
i recognize that humility is cool,
honesty and humor are sexier than clothes or hair style,
friends are more precious than gold,
and family is the best investment money can't buy

i am spirit
lying beneath a tree in my backyard
can be as inspiring as standing on the edge of the grand canyon.
i can not distinguish the beauty of a puppy from a rattlesnake
or the value of the pebbles beneath my feet from diamonds.
both are invaluable --
but for the possession of neither
would i ever spill a drop of blood

i am spirit
i do not live in fear of physical or emotional pain
they cannot penetrate my soul.
i question human behavior, but do not judge human beings --
their soul is as pure as my own

i am spirit
the age of my physical body is marked in years, months, and days
and took millenniums to evolve.
but each morning i can reboot to an upgraded, de-fragmented mind.
today, i release shareware version 50.10.16 to the world --
free for download via email, phone, direct connection in person,
or remote connection via the universe...

-v-

Note:
The above algorithm is free to use and distribute to your friends. If you find it of value, please donate -- to your favorite charity. If you found it annoying, you may need to "de-bug" yourself. The code is "open source". You may contribute your own code here at ProgressivesOnline.com

[Michael DeM]

Wow, that was really deep and meaningful, -V-. Thank you.

[-V-]

"The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don't have any." - Alice Walker

thanks mike. your signature adds meaning. what i wrote is a reminder to myself of who i really am and the way i want to live. it's something i have to work on, because it is easy to be drawn into "the matrix".

in keeping with the analogy, i believe this material world is, indeed, like one big computer program. we are manipulated by the hackers, but are powered by a source outside the matrix. the more we connect to our true source, the more power we have and the less power the "machines" draw from our battery.

i begin each paragraph with "i am spirit" as a constant reminder -- a mantra for grounding -- to resist the hypnotic spell (i.e. bullshit) of our environmental programming. like the character "neo" we can probably do amazing things to if we stay connected to our true self/source, which, in turn, connects us to everything.

imagine how powerful you would be if you were connected to EVERYTHING, but how little you would have to apply that power, because you would be in harmony!

consider how fragile and simple minded a single ant is, but how strong the colony is, how much they can accomplish, and how powerful their shared intelligence is!

[-V-]

btw, i believe man created god in his image, not the opposite, but how ironic for those who believe there is an almighty, judgemental God/Allah/etc.. to hear this on their judgement day:

God:
"you did WHAT for the collection and control of fossilized dinosaur bones (oil) and shiny rocks (gold, diamonds, etc.)?"

God:
"you KILLED your brother over a piece of dirt in the Middle East, in MY NAME?"

Allah:
"you blew-up yourself and a hundred others because you thought i'd HOOK YOU UP with 13 virgins?"

God:
"you ABUSED & EXPLOITED my children because you liked the taste of bacon and a glass of milk when you could've had a V8?"

DROP AND GIVE ME PUSHUPS FOR 10 EONS!

[-V-]

32 New Exoplanets Found
http://www.eso.org/public/outreach/p.../pr-39-09.html

Scientists announced the discovery of 32 new exoplanets today, increasing the number of known planets outside our solar system to more than 400. With about 70 sextillion visable stars in the sky, the estimated number of planets is millions of billions.

perhaps, our world view need not be limited to the one we are living in -- both literally & figuratively

p.s.
(7 sextillion is a 7 followed by 22 zeros, or about 10 times as many grains of sand on earth)

[Jennifer_SFBA]

-V-, that's the spiritual way I have consciously seen myself since before puberty and continue to see myself and all beings. It's also Jesus' meaning in his teachings. I'm sure he's smiling now as I think about it while writing this with satisfaction that we are getting it, understaning what he said and his purposes in coming to Earth. Everything and everyone is spirit, all that is being from and of the same source, God who is spirit. God who is one with the diversity in life that spirit, God, has made with, and in which all is one, and one is God. How stunningly beautiful and uplifiting all of what we are saying here truely is! How magnificent and precious life, spiritual life really is!

[-V-]

-V-, that's the spiritual way I have consciously seen myself since before puberty and continue to see myself

and that is the way i have always seen you, Jen. your spirit shines through in your writings

[bassgal]

I realize that this is an old post. I have only very rarely been on this site but loved your poem "In Spirit" as it directly aligns with my own spiritual orientation and experience. Thank you for such a thoughtful and succinct expression of reality.

Maybe I will try and return to read more.....There are some very interesting people here. I am marooned in southern rural Iowa although I have lived in many parts of the world. So, Internet is a link to the world.....I sorta fly under the radar often.....as my experiences with spirit....and my beliefs are not mainstream.

Thanks again for you post, V, whoever you are you've a wonderful heart!

Nell

[-V-]

thank you, Nell.

i'm glad you read this post of mine
i can't say i'm proud or sure of anything else i've written here.
the others are corrupted, in various degrees, by my mind and ego

speaking as a representative of your link to the world outside of iowa,
we'd be interested in your experiences with spirit,
and beliefs outside of the mainstream

our new age forum is a place for posts outside the box
http://progressivesonline.com/forumdisplay.php?f=7

[-V-]

In a lecture on teachings from the Tao Te Ching, Dr. Wayne Dyer says that
we come into this world with a round-trip ticket,
destined to return to where we came from.
But, before then, to be free from our earthly body
and connect with our source,
we must learn to "die while we're alive".

He shares this ancient parable from India:

A traveler goes on an African safari where he comes upon a community of beautiful talking parrots and he captures one. He brings it back to India and feeds his pet the best foods and treats him well. Before returning to Africa 2 years later, he asks the parrot if there is any message he could deliver to his friends in the jungle. The parrot tells his master to say that he is very happy in his cage and to convey his love. When the man delivered the message, one of the parrots, with tears welled up in his eyes, falls over dead. Upon his return to India, the man tells his parrot what happened, and, also, overcome with emotion, his parrot's eyes well up with tears and he drops dead. When the man dumps the parrot into the trash heap outside, he is shocked to see the parrot fly up into the tree. The man asks, "why did you trick me?" The parrot says, "my friend in the jungle sent me an important message. That if you want to escape from your cage, you must die while you're alive."

For me, the process includes stripping away the things that aren't real.
I remember a saying that, "if you want to sculpt an elephant, cut away everything that doesn't look like an elephant". To understand who i am, it helps to know who i am not.

Dyer says that our ego tells us:
who we are is what we have and what we do and what people think of us
but remember,
if you grow up believing that you are what you do,
then when you don't, you aren't.
and if you believe that you are what you have,
when it's gone, you aren't
and if you believe you are what other people think of you,
then when other people think differently about you, you aren't

"Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth"
--Henry David Thoreau