Content writing is the process of creating written material for websites, blogs, and other online platforms. The quality of this content is critical to the success of any online business or organization.
Continue reading
Self-awareness is the ability to recognize and understand one’s own emotions, thoughts, and behaviors, and their impact on others. It involves having a clear perception of one’s personality, strengths, weaknesses, beliefs, values, and goals. Being self-aware helps one make better decisions, improve relationships, and achieve personal growth. By becoming more in tune with one’s own emotions and reactions, one can take steps to manage them more effectively and lead a more fulfilling life.
Continue reading
Anyone who knows me can attest that I’ve experienced some major up and downs and rounds and rounds. I am a single mother of five, from four different fathers, and I was a freelance tour guide throughout their childhood. That alone tells you about self-empowerment.
Not only the fact that I’ve lived my life outside of the conventional paths, but I also kept on being independent and pursuing my passion, even with the toughest of responsibilities.
I know about self-empowerment… Else I wouldn’t have survived decades of continuous emotional chaos and terrible mental stress.
I wanted to be responsible with the children, but I also wanted to travel. I wanted to travel but then again, in order to do it, I took on the needs and desires of my passengers on tour.
I wanted to take on my compromises, but a major part of my responsibility, according to my inner core values is to be happy and free.
It was a conundrum, that up till today, I have no idea how to manage. Be happy and free, but responsible and compromised. It sounds like an oxymoron.
The aftermath is as chaotic as the epic tale itself:
I lost my complete inheritance in the process and probably made tons of mistakes in the raising of my children (That is another blog on its own), I became an expert at hurting myself and ended up shielding myself from romance not to lose my mind. However, I’ve lived. Truly, intensely, and grossly at times. But whatever I did, and whatever I do, up until today, comes from a deep unfathomable confidence in myself.
So, I want to write a little about Self Empowerment, because although it has been one of my biggest challenges, it has also been the stepping stone I’ve used for any endeavors.
Self-empowerment begins with self-awareness. It’s about understanding who I am, what I believe in, and what motivates me. As I’ve grown older, I’ve taken the time to reflect on my life experiences and identify patterns in my thinking and behavior. This introspection has given me a deeper understanding of myself and has allowed me to make more informed and authentic decisions about my life.
Read more on self-awareness here.
Another important aspect of self-empowerment is understanding and managing my emotions. I’ve learned that when I understand my emotional triggers, I can make more conscious choices about how I respond to them, rather than allowing my emotions to control me.
This has made me more emotionally stable and resilient and has reduced stress and anxiety in my life.
I’ve also found that self-empowerment allows me to communicate more effectively with others. By understanding my own thoughts and feelings, I’m better equipped to articulate my needs and perspectives, which has led to more productive and fulfilling relationships.
Additionally, I’m more confident in my abilities and less likely to seek validation from others, which has allowed me to build stronger relationships based on mutual respect and trust.
Furthermore, self-empowerment has allowed me to pursue my passions and interests with greater purpose and determination.
I’ve learned to set goals that align with my values and aspirations, and I have the confidence to pursue these goals with passion and dedication. This has led to a greater sense of purpose and fulfillment in my life.
Lastly, self-empowerment has helped me to be more accepting and compassionate toward myself. I’ve learned to extend grace and forgiveness to myself, rather than constantly seeking perfection. This has cultivated a greater sense of self-love and self-acceptance, which is essential for overall well-being and happiness.
In conclusion, self-empowerment has had a profound impact on my life. It has allowed me to overcome challenges, build stronger relationships, pursue my passions, and cultivate self-love and self-acceptance. I would encourage anyone, regardless of age, to invest time and effort into self-empowerment, as it has the potential to greatly enhance one’s life and overall well-being.
This post appeared first in https://blog.ocoteahotel.com/whats-the-allure-of-monteverde
[ez-toc]
Up in the Tilarán Mountain Range, Monteverde is a small community that extends for 11 kilometers from one tip to the other. It has several cloud forest reserves, and it has also developed an exciting adventure hub, with outdoor activities along with several restaurants and pubs.
For decades, I have enjoyed the reserves in both tourist and non-tourist seasons. Whether leading large groups or walking with individual tourists, I have walked the cloud forest trails countless times. throughout three decades working in the travel industry, and every time I leave, I feel a longing in my heart, looking at the treetops moving with the wet winds. The wave-like sounds of the forests call me from a distance.
Like other lovers of the forest, I tend to be a free spirit. When locked in for some time, I begin losing my joy. When the pandemic started, I returned from an extended stay in Mexico City, and, for a change, I decided to move to Monteverde. There were two simple reasons: my daughter lived here, her apartment was vacant and relatively affordable, and I could take walks through beautiful natural habitats without fear of getting ill (pandemic times).
Little did I know that my heart would be planted as a seed in the forests of this breathtaking place.
Monteverde is alluring for a world of reasons: diverse, stunning natural beauty, delicious food, a spirit of sustainability….
And as it is a beautiful cocktail of all these features, I’ll do my best to share with you a little taste of each one..
Monteverde is a gorgeous place. No doubt about it. Wherever you look, there is a picture to take. I could even say it is designed to be photographed.
Its fantastic weather intensifies that beauty. In the mornings, you can see the faraway ocean landscapes and the breeze moving the trees. In the afternoons, it turns dramatic. Depending on the season, you may get to watch distant thunderstorms or marvel at the watercolor sky.
And its name couldn’t be more accurate. In Monteverde, you can spend a lifetime counting shades of green.
To accentuate the range of greens is a rainbow of bright reds and yellows in its flowers and birds. And quite often, you will get a glimpse of the iridescent blue morpho fluttering around. My favorites are the days when the sunny season merges in with the Caribbean gusts blowing through the mountains, and there is a rainbow almost wherever you look.
When walking through Monteverde, I often stop every few paces to take in different landscapes, try to spot a casual rare and pretty bird, or catch sight of the surreal, moving clouds in the sky.
But its external beauty is only the visible symbol of what lies beneath. The true magnificence of Monteverde lies deep within, hidden like a treasure to be found.
Monteverde has existed since the 1920s as a tiny village with a few families struggling to live in a very remote area of Costa Rica, some of them working the land, some of them at the nearby gold mines.
When Quakers came in the 1950s, their presence changed this little community forever, not only for the inhabitants of this region but for generations to come and throughout the world.
In 1951, eleven Quaker families arrived in Monteverde. They chose Costa Rica because the country abolished its army amid the early Cold War. They were looking for a home welcoming conscientious objectors as they refused to participate in the Korean war due to their pacifist views.
Quakers around the World work actively to make this a better world. They are mainly concerned with human rights and believe in the equality of all human beings, social justice, peace, freedom of conscience, and environmental issues. Quakers seek to live simply to reduce the burden on the World and community life and found a welcoming country in Costa Rica. (1)
When you walk through Monteverde, you see these values everywhere. You will notice among the locals’ everyone says hi to you as a visitor. Between them, you will also notice children playing in the plazas -even singing riddles and nursery rhymes! You will undoubtedly notice a sustainability movement that goes from the garbage collection to the number of artisanal products offered in the stores.
Quakers preserved the Monteverde Cloud Forest as a water source, but more importantly, they taught the coming generations to preserve the rest of the forests in the area.
As I said previously, the first thing that may call your attention as you walk in Monteverde is how everybody says hi. Not because you are a visitor, but because you are a human. The Monteverde community values people.
With around 5000 people, Monteverde is flooded with a floating population of younger citizens who work every year in different hotels and tourist attractions. Nowadays, there is also a remote workers population coming to live in the region from all over the country. And, of course, 250,000 visitors a year fill its trails, hotels, and restaurants.
However, Monteverde gets a very particular kind of visitor. We usually don’t get the loud party-goers, and it’ll be extremely unlucky if you find a group of spring breakers making noise anywhere. The people who come to Monteverde are usually nature lovers who enjoy adventure, hiking, and bird watching.
The community is a loving mix of original Monteverde, Quaker families, and many expats that decided that Monteverde is a great place to retire and live a healthy, peaceful life.
Throughout, a vital spirit of service and community drives the town.
In 2010, the residents created the Monteverde Community Fund. To date, the Fund has financed projects in economic, social, and environmental sectors and trained and supported the teams behind them. They support an array of efforts valued by neighbors and stakeholders–from municipal wastewater treatment to reforestation projects to movement and exercise programs.
Since 2012, the Monteverde Community Fund supported 16 grassroots projects and organizations, leveraged more than $80,000 in small grants, and connected Monteverde organizations with ample funding sources and relevant expertise. (2)
This is a place where the inhabitants support each other in many ways, whether they are old or young, elderly citizens or mothers with children, artists and dreamers, and conservationists… all are welcome here.
Monteverde has a population of 5,000 people. Here you don’t find Ubereats. You won’t find a single Mcdonald’s or KFC. Not one single fast-food renowned brand. But there are so many options to eat it is almost ridiculous! And some of these restaurants offer so many different choices!
In Monteverde, you will find Mexican and Peruvian distinctive cuisine, several breweries, delicious burgers and fried chicken, sushi and oriental eateries, excellent steak houses, and delicious typical Costa Rican food cooked by the grandmas of Monteverde.
Ingredients are very fresh, either because of the multiple organic nurseries in the region or because we are only an hour and a half from the port of Puntarenas, the fishing gateway of Costa Rica.
And you can even download an App “Monteverde En Casa” to order some of these wonders for your room in the Ocotea Hotel.
In Monteverde, environmental efforts abound. This is a place where conservation and “ecotourism” have enabled an innovative development model centered on the collaborative efforts of commercial businesses, government agencies, and foreign partners.
In fact, Monteverde has become a model that leads the Costa Rican environmental patterns.
With support from the Costa Rican Tourism Board (ICT) and the Culture Ministry (MCJ), the region plan for its continued growth include some of the following developments as a way to become a symbol of genuinely sustainable ecotourism:
Together, these efforts protect one of the most precious resources of Monteverde…
Last but never least! Monteverde’s rich ecosystems are one of the most privileged sights in the world. With a richness that can fill your senses at every step, the breathtaking cloud forests are a scenario to stop and behold.
Biodiversity is an inherent feature of the Monteverde Cloud Forest. It is estimated that this area has approximately 50% of Costa Rica’s biodiversity, which is an astonishing 2.5% of the entire World’s biodiversity.
More than 3,200 plant species have been discovered in Monteverde. This is nearly as many plant species as there are in the entire country of Canada. The high humidity levels and dark understory are critical factors for the emergence of epiphytes (such as bromeliads or orchids). Monteverde also has around 700 tree species and 500 orchid species, making it one of the most orchid-rich regions on the planet.
Monteverde
In all, about 10% of the plant species in Monteverde are endemic, which means that they are found nowhere else in the world. A truly special place to visit indeed, and this region has diverse species to match!
Monteverde is also home to 425 bird species, 120 mammal species, 60 amphibian species, and 101 reptile species. A total of 658 butterfly species and 100 dragonfly and damselfly species have been identified.
And there is still much to discover! Other insects, fungi, and microbes have not been as thoroughly researched, and speak to a world still somewhat undiscovered.
There are several different clouds and rainforest preserves in the area, but the most important are:
The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve began in 1972 with 810 acres (328 hectares) of forested area. It now protects 35,089 acres (14,200 ha) and eight living zones atop the Continental Divide.
It is home to around 100 mammalian species, 400 bird species, and 1,200 amphibian and reptile species. As well as the threatened three-wattled bellbird and the gorgeous resplendent quetzal, this is one of the few places left that supports all six cat species: jaguars, ocelots, pumas, oncillas, margays. Visitors can explore over 8 miles (13 km) of trails independently or with a guide.
The Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve was founded in 1989 and is run by the Santa Elena community. It was one of the country’s earliest community-controlled reserves, and it’s a great example of what people can accomplish to protect and learn from their local environment.
It has a similar plant and animal diversity as the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, but it also features spider monkeys, which the Monteverde Reserve does not have. Atop its 765 acres (310 ha), an observation tower offers spectacular views of the Arenal Volcano on clear days.
The “Children’s Eternal Rainforest” has particular importance to the Monteverde community. The Monteverde Conservation League (MCL) started this protected area by gathering funds from Swedish school pupils to buy (and conserve) vulnerable wilderness. The Children’s Eternal Rainforest now covers 55,600 acres(22,500 ha), thanks to partners in over 40 nations.
It is hard to encompass all the wonders of Monteverde in one solid post, especially due to some of the powerful feelings you find as soon as you set foot here.
I hope to share a bit of the feeling of joy, safety, and belonging that happens when you live here. Some people say that Monteverde is a mystical healing place. Mystical or not, I know that hiking through its intense trail network or simply sitting to sip hot tea calms the senses and the mind and reconciles you with everything.
I feel very thankful and privileged to live in Monteverde and hope to stay here for the rest of my days. No matter how far away I travel, I will return home to Monteverde.
Our community invites you to open your heart to the essence of Monteverde and share our delight in its fascinating nature. Contemplate its astounding, diverse ecosystems with us and perhaps share our vision of Monteverde as a possibility for a better world. It is a community and a place that tells us that it is possible to achieve a warm human community in harmony with nature and each other.
Monteverde reminds us that as long as we join efforts, our Earth and humanity can thrive in almost every situation with a wink and a smile.
References:
(1) N.a. “BBC – Religions – Christianity: Quakers.” Bbc.co.uk. 3 Jul. 2009. Web. 25 Oct. 2021. https://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/subdivisions/quakers_1.shtml
(2) Monteverde Fund. “Our Story | Monteverde Community Fund.” Monteverde Fund. n.d. Web. 26 Oct. 2021. https://www.Monteverdefund.org/our-story
(3) The Costa Rica Pacific Slope Pacific Slope Trail Network is a vision to link forests and rural communities along Costa Rica’s Pacific Slope. It begins in the famous Monteverde conservation region. It will encompass a network of trail systems, huts, conservation properties, ecological agriculture initiatives, alternative energy, and wastewater treatment and water conservation projects. SAN LUIS DE Monteverde. “Pacific Trail | SAN LUIS DE Monteverde.” SAN LUIS DE Monteverde. n.d. Web. 26 Oct. 2021. <http://sanluis.or.cr/en/pacific-trail/>
This article was published first in: https://blog.ocoteahotel.com/whats-the-allure-of-monteverde
If there is a bottom line to understand anything I have to say this:
You see, I cannot be an atheist. It is not logical. I think it is even primitive and quite stupidly arrogant to consider that there is no intelligence behind everything we see.
It is so freakin’ evident!
I don’t know where did I hear this (It’s not mine), but thinking that there is no intelligence behind the Universe is like looking at an iPhone and thinking that its design came out of a biochemical or geological accident.
Not logical.
There is such an obvious intelligence in everything.
Like a perfect fractal, this impressive network extends into the microscopic as much as to the telescopic and goes from the undecipherable brightness in the eyes of a child to the indiscernible reason for cruelty to exist in our mind’s perception.
My question is never if there is intelligence or not. Duh! Everything within my reach speaks out loud about an intelligence behind everything, human or not.
The question is
“What the fuck is that Intelligence?”
And from that one question, some are derived, Where does it come from? What is the source?
No, I don’t believe in any particular book to give me the answer to that. Not even the Course.
Nor do I believe in a human-shaped god, or a man in the sky for that matter. I don’t know if Jesus existed, and although there are plenty of records of Siddartha Gautama and Mohammed, I don’t know if they existed either or if they are one more fragment of my all-powerful God’s imagination. I may be It…But I didn’t create my own intelligence. It was preinstalled by the time I was born.
But then that leads me to ask… Was I really born? memories are as imaginative as plans about the future.
So, that leads me to a second question:
“What the fuck am I?”
These, I have found are the only two questions that matter in my life. The rest are pure entertainment.
There are four reasons to write it. The obvious one, SEO, the narcisistic one: my words are needed. the generous one: I want other artists to have a platform. The true one: I want to learn. And I learn when I communicate.
Continue reading![\"Y](\"https://www.olgasaenz.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Prosperidad-Runa.jpg\")
Y entonces yo aprendí a relacionarme con las historias y a interpretar el mundo desde ellas. Aprendí a contarme historias como buena Sapiens y a creérmelas. Por ejemplo, me conté la historia de que yo había sido víctima de vainas, me la creí y viví resentida por un buen tiempo, con mucha gente si, pero sobre todo conmigo misma.
Al final de lo único que fui víctima fue de mi fértil imaginación y la necesidad de ser una heroína épica que sufriera en ésta vida.
¡Ojo! No minimizo algunas circunstancias dolorosas que sucedieron en mi infancia. El problema fue que estas circunstancias las convertí en armas contra mi misma.
Si querés leer la historia completa anda por acá: ¡Salgámonos del closet de una vez!
El asunto es que no importa lo que te suceda en la vida, el asunto es cómo lo interpretes, y los niños, esos maravillosos contadores de cuentos, con frecuencia nos vemos a nosotros mismos como los malos de la película y los culpables de todas las tragedias.
![\"Y](\"https://www.olgasaenz.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/IMG_8954-e1646695120363.jpg\")
¿Porqué hablo, a mis casi 57, como si fuera aún una niña? ¡Uy! Porque en mi hay una niña indudablemente que con frecuencia está al mando. (Si no fuera así no lograría pintar sin aburrirme).
Y bueh, es que además están las novelas, y las telenovelas, y las series, Netflix y los juegos, todos están repletos de historias con héroes \”sufridos\” -y estoy siendo amable- . Un héroe feliz, que la lleve suave y que no tenga algún problemita de estrés ¿Tiene gracia? ¡Cero gracia!
Entonces bueh, todo esto para decir que me conté un montón de historias y me hice algo adicta a ellas.
Desde muy pequeña aprendí a contarlas, y pasé veinticinco años como guía de turismo, contando historias de un lado al otro de mi hermoso país.
Pero es que a los turistas hay que atenderlos ¿ves? Y bueh, yo tuve cinco hijos y un día me harté de atender gente.
No me malentiendas, no era la madrecita sacrificada que sufría horrores para criar a sus hijos… Pero si. ¡Jaja! Ahora me río mucho pero por mucho tiempo sufrí porque elegí sufrir. Digo, en buena lid no pasó nada realmente horrible, pero si los sufrí, a los turistas y a los hijos.
Y bueh, un día dejé de guiar y otro les dije a mis hijos que me iba de la casa. (La historia es más compleja pero no tengo mucho tiempo y qué pereza contarla toda).
Me conseguí una terapeuta, le dije que quería paz 24/7 y que no iba a soltarla hasta que lo lograra.
Y bueh, pasé 7 años sanando, a lo bestia. De todo. Lloré horrorosamente, perdoné y me perdoné cientos de historias, aprendí a meditar, me abrí a viajar de muchas formas, hice Curso de Milagros a diario, pinté y pinté y pinté, creí que era hora de levantar vuelo y la Vida me devolvió a mi tierra de un pandemiazo, y pasé un par de años más metida en la montaña.
Y un día llegó la posibilidad de viajar, y México de nuevo, y todo se acomoda para que mis pinturas y mis palabras salgan a la luz y ¡Bueh! Tengo que salirme de nuevo del closet, una vez más.
Voy a explicar esto antes de que se vuelen por donde no es… No, no soy les! Me encantaría pero no. Pero quiero darme permiso de hablar una vez más, como cuando escribí el de \”Salgámonos del Closet de una vez\”.
Que soy una señora rara haciendo el ridículo en tiktok… ¿Eso es lo peor peor que puede pasar? Ah ok, entonces de la mano de mi Yo Mayor, voy a seguir hablando. :=)
![\"Inspiración](\"https://www.olgasaenz.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/2-6-e1646595831982.jpg\")
La inspiración artística es una experiencia. Todos la hemos vivido, aunque seas contador y creas que en ti no hay un gramo de artista. Sin embargo, ¿No hay un momento en que estás metido/a en una tabla de excel y el mundo desaparece entre números, coherencias y columnas? La clave es ésa: El mundo desaparece.
Se resume maravillosamente en la película Amadeus cuando Mozart luego de un conflicto familiar re-entra a seguir componiendo y todo el ruido externo es reemplazado maravillosamente por los acordes de su música.
Desde donde yo lo veo, la inspiración artística está anclada en que el sistema del que somos parte es mucho más grande que la suma de sus partes. O sea, puesto en algo comprensible, yo estoy escribiendo para quiénes necesiten saber esta información. Nadie está solo nunca. Eso es imposible. La individualidad es un mito de los sentidos.
No somos individuos, aunque vernos en cuerpos nos haga creer lo contrario.
Y aqui termina. Ahgh. Faltan palabras para lograr el ranking… ¿Viste? Este es un excelente ejemplo.
Todo me impulsa a escribir más. No me queda de otra. Las reglas están hechas de tal forma que no puedo ni queriendo, saltármelas. Entonces pues sigo.
La inspiración artística fluye cuando te callas. Cuando la mente individual deja de gritar y la mente total se comunica sin siquiera hacer el menor ruido. Fluye como agua venida de la única fuente de la que viene todo. Llamalo como querás. Da igual. Y da igual si crees en ella o si crees lastimeramente que tu pequeñez en serio puede crear belleza.
El personaje jamás crea nada. El personaje puede recibir los aplausos y creérsela. Pero en el fondo, todo artista sabe que la inspiración artística libre y genuina está más allá del tiempo, el espacio o las pequeñas victorias o perdidas humanas.
![\"Inspiración](\"https://www.olgasaenz.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Despeinado.jpg\")
Vincent Van Gogh, por si mismo no tiene la menor importancia. Si se enfermaba, si le gustaban las rubias o si tenía callos en los pies es completamente irrelevante para su maravilla.
Era un tipo que se invisibilizaba para traernos belleza que nadie en su época podía comprender pero que nos enseña, a través del tiempo y el espacio que la belleza y el movimiento son capaces en el lienzo más tieso del mundo. Un artista es un tomador de dictado, eso es todo.
Soltarse en la inspiración significa soltar el control, dejar de pensar, y de sentir, es meterse de cabeza en los colores, en las letras, en lo que está pasando en el momento presente… Ya luego verás, ya luego leerás. No tenés idea. Todo sale. No se entiende, sólo sos un instrumento de la vida para decir lo que sea que la vida quiere que digas.
El mensaje es una flecha y el artista el arquero. No somos capaces de ver desde nuestra pequeñez adónde va a caer lo que lanzamos. Es posible que alguien lo reciba, en alguna parte. Para algo.
No tenemos ni idea. Y esa es la maravilla. No necesitamos saber.
Van Gogh sólo vendió una pintura en toda su vida. La gente y los que manejaban arte le decían que lo que hacía no tenía sentido alguno, que es francamente feo.
Vincent nunca supo lo que su pintura le hizo al arte, pero entendamos sobre todo, que Vincent, el hombre, el personaje no era para nada importante. Sólo su arte lo era, y ése no era de él.
¿Golpe para el ego? ¡Y! si.
Speech eventually has nothing more to tell us: we investigate the silence, for it is the silence that is doing the speaking ~Pierre Macherey.
![\"\"](\"https://www.olgasaenz.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/IMG_20210615_103027574.jpg\")
I am not a religious person. My mother would take me to the movies instead of mass. And I was very happy about it.
However, since an early age, I have been struggling with the same common thing that has had entire civilizations on their knees: The human silence within. A realm that lives there, innocent, impartial, unexplained. So subtle and transcending humans have created huge systems to explain it, humongous external buildings and art that promise us to take us there, into the Supreme Silence. Sometimes successfully, sometimes they merely take us to \”Our Version of…\” as drugs do sometimes. And even sex.
We don\’t even know we crave silence. Silence these days have a strong relation with boredom, and even worse, a cemetery, death.
However, the Supreme Silence, when we find it, either in awe, in love, or in meditation, far from being a grave, gives us an unexplainable sensation of deep understanding, of unfathomable company. Hard to define the undefinable.
And this fantastic quote that I found yesterday in the most unexpected place, gave me a hint about my resistance to the “sacred wording” in ACIM and the word itself: God.
Speech eventually has nothing more to tell us: we investigate the silence, for it is the silence that is doing the speaking ~Pierre Macherey.
![\"\"](\"https://www.olgasaenz.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/IMG_20210615_102829440.jpg\")
We give “God” such a heavy meaning that it crashes us even with three miserable letters. Four in Spanish. Actually, in most languages in the World, divinity is described in a short word. Especially in the monotheistic religions. You can see the whole collection here: https://www.indifferentlanguages.com/words/god
It is all about the meaning. Of course.
I have given all the meaning to those three letters put together in that order.
This small word has put emperors and geniuses to their knees. All throughout space and time.
If their egos were put to the test, how can mine not be crushed under millennia of conditions and laws around it? How can we, in our temporary small identities and time-encased bodies not be threatened by the one thing we can’t avoid ever?: Silence.
Silence makes everything possible in the mind. Makes the perception of time, not to crush all under one sole moment: If music didn\’t have silence, it would be one big mess. It is in Silence where we find our Real mirror and not our projections. In Silence, we find focus, attention, relaxation, rest.
From where I stand, being a student of ACIM for decades already, it addresses a mystery that religions put outside making the infinite fit into human codes and small thoughts.
We have given that Mystery a meaning. A meaning so strong that it has created reactions of all sorts, the most common looking out, either to explain it, or to deny it.
Probably both reactions are the same: utter fear.
Utter fear to what we cannot explain, define or understand. Utter fear to what we are afraid we truly are.
![\"\"](\"https://www.olgasaenz.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/IMG_20210615_102859276.jpg\")
In the East, they knew it a long time ago. In the West, science for the first time made an experiment and could finally see an important character in the play of perception… “OMG! There is a perceiver!”.
The idea of the perceiver, the unknown observer is the ultimate frontier. The one that is there to set us free. The last door to the ignored but ever-present Silence within.
The one that doesn’t follow the rules. Any rules.
The unperceivable perceiver.
That which perceives the perceiver but is itself unperceivable
The one we are behind all our names, labels, and masks, without time, age, or gender.
Serious meditation knows it. Anyone who enjoys solitude knows it.
There is something about it. There is a beautiful sensation in the Presence. A belonging sensation that doesn’t react to the “outdoors”. Not even a perception, it is so subtle I could only call it an experience of it.
If we get the word \”god\” out of perception and look at the Silence within. If we get the letters “G. O. and D.” out of all meaning and shape.
Blow the meanings, all the meanings. And just stay there. In the Content we are. Shapeless, ageless, timeless, spaceless.
We are not identities, we are not “beings”. We are the shapeless experience of life itself.
We are Silence.
![\"\"](\"https://www.olgasaenz.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/IMG_20210615_102926108.jpg\")
Thank you for reading.
![\"The](\"https://www.olgasaenz.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Untitled-design-3.png\")
And I feel the need to elaborate because the text is pretty wrong from my point of view.
I think it\’s not defining a strong woman. I think it\’s defining a person who somehow, for whatever reason, doesn\’t set boundaries. And much worse, she thinks that actually not putting limits is the definition of goodness, strength, responsibility, and all the like.
Somehow, we humans buy into the idea that suffering for others is super meritorious. And that this heroism deserves recognition. And that this heroism is leading us to Love.
Hmmm … no.
Let\’s start by looking at a small detail: Heroes, by definition, are dead.
And let\’s finish by saying that those who do not set limits are extremely angry and do not dare to express it.
So I am to rewrite here, each and every sentence of what was written. And I can\’t help thinking that the name is made up).
(And, although I think this applies to men, women, dogs, cats, and parrots, I\’m going to stick with the \”strong woman\” thing because we women buy into that little speech with embarrassing frequency).
The strong woman has needs and desires and surrounds herself with people with whom she can express them. She knows that she can talk, take care of herself and ask for help if needed. And she knows how to pamper herself.
The strong woman knows how to help without having to be heroically crucified for it. She knows how to set limits and say no without feeling guilty. And she may look for someone to talk to and listen to her. She has no problem, in any case, with paying for therapy, if necessary.
The strong woman, if she is tired, knows how to say \”I\’m tired, I\’ve come this far\”. She knows how to look for help if she is falling, and to ask for it, if necessary. And she knows that she can fight, even with the guilt of not feeling \”strong\”.
The strong woman knows how to forgive herself. She knows she can lose her temper from time to time, she knows she can leave control in the hands of others and enjoy the scenery.
And hey! She knows that what others think is their problem and not hers.
The strong woman doesn\’t need to be recognized permanently. She knows that love and recognition are two different things and can tell the difference between one and the other. She may even prefer a low profile.
The strong woman knows for sure that she matters to a lot of people. She knows that she doesn\’t need to do anything to be loved because Love – if it is Love – doesn\’t set conditions. Period.
And she doesn\’t keep telling herself that nobody cares! That\’s what someone who plays the victim does. Not a strong person.
Original Text:
When they see you a strong woman they think that you have no need of anything or anyone, that you can endure anything, that whatever happens, you will get through it, that you don\’t mind being listened to, cared for, or pampered.
When they see you as a strong woman they look to you just to help them carry their crosses. They talk to you thinking that you don\’t need to be listened to.
A strong woman is not asked if she is tired, if she is suffering or falling, if she is anxious or afraid, the important thing is that she is always there: a lighthouse in the fog or a rock in the middle of the sea.
Nothing is forgiven to the strong woman. If she loses control she becomes weak, if she loses her temper she becomes hysterical.
When the strong woman is missing for a minute it is immediately noticed, but when she is there her presence is taken for granted.
But the strength it takes every day, to be that kind of woman, no one cares.
Honor, recognize, respect, and thank the strong women in your life, because they also need to be contained, loved and feel that they can rest in you.
Text: Jallalla Ubuntu
Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
