The Writer

I’m not a Zen Master or Guru. I don’t profess to have the answers to your problems. The purpose of Enlighten Your Day is the creation of a social media friendly portal for sharing my writing, Art that captivates me, Artists who inspire me, and thought leaders who enlighten me.

I want my one precious life to be filled with inspiration, love, beauty, art, passion, and present moments bliss. At my core: I’m a Dreamer first, a Traveler second, a Writer third, and a Student of life fourth. I want to live a big and bold life: it includes Winning or the peaceful satisfaction of knowing I did my best. When I lose or suffer – I want it to hurt so bad the sun shines brighter. My favorite writer Paulo Coelho said he is a “Man of extremes”, and I relate deeply to that statement. I constantly struggle for balance, and this blog is a gentle reminder to self. Dreams guide my life and writing guides my dreams…

My Manifesto is simple: To Strive for Love, To Seek Knowledge, to Find Happiness, and Yield not to Fear.

(Inspired by my favorite poem Ulysses by Alfred, Lord Tennyson ‘To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield’)

iMnoYogi-ImhereiMNow

My Story: The Writer | Living and sharing in the present moment

It was traveling that first enlightened my thoughts.  The sense of absolute freedom to go anywhere, be anybody, or do anything changed me forever.  The world was alive with an indescribable excitement liberating my spirit.  I wanted to live the rest of my life in that moment, but reality had another plan.  I have been scratching and clawing my way back to the light ever since.

When I was around 12 or 13 years old, I would lock myself in bathroom, turn on the shower and shut off the lights. Opening my eyes to complete darkness, I envisioned an imaginary sanctuary. An opening in the woods with a beautiful moonlit waterfall and tall trees providing peaceful protection from the outside world; with sounds from the cascading water soothing my ears and drowning my worries. I imagined sitting on a tree stump near the falls watching moonlight gracefully reflect upon Mother Nature. Feeling the cool warm wind tingling at my Goosebumps while sitting there to do nothing more then be myself.

I felt the beauty of my dreams in those precious early moments. I had no idea what I was doing, being to young to know what meditation was, but it felt great.  Like something I needed to do without knowing it.  My imagination has always been a sense of wonder.

As I grew older, my imagination continued to gain momentum.   I became possessed by it. My mind dominated my life with past thoughts and future fairytales. I dreamed every moment of every day.  Now I realize, I have been owned by my mind.

Perhaps one day, I will fall over a rock and awaken to the bliss of enlightenment, or walking through a market place I’ll overhear a butcher say “Nothing but the good stuff” and experience a Zen transformation.  Maybe, I will awaken to the song of a bird singing while realizing there is infinitely more light in the universe. Those thoughts are future anticipations for something grand to awaken my mind. Yet, I know this unlikely.

So each day, I struggle to find present enlightenment through the meditations, readings and teachings of others. I’m now aware of how little control I have over my mind; dominating my being with constant thoughts and fears. With my mind living in this unchangeable past and never arriving future, I feel powerless in the present moment. Fortunately, change is the only constant in the world. One day I hope to find myself sitting peacefully on a park bench in utter and complete awe of the beauty around me. Striving only for the tangible; the present moment of life…. 

The Writer:  Jonathan Holmes | Living and sharing in the present moment

Enlightened thinker, Traveler and Writer.  I live in swanky Yaletown; home of the 2010 Olympic Village.  I love all things Social Media and Blog related.  I am a student of life, psychology, Enlightenment, writing and Artistic Beauty.   Drop me a comment below, if you would like to contact me regarding my writing, Social Media relations, or this Blog.   (Emails are never shared)

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My favorite quote:

“It’s the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting.” Paulo Coelho

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Living and sharing in the present moment