“Paper is patient” is a saying in Germany.  Paper is patient?  What does that mean?

When you write or print something on paper, the paper has to show what you print on it, whether it is stupid or wise, whether it is true or a lie.

Paper cannot prevent it that someone writes the most blatant lies on it.  Paper cannot in indignation curl up at its corners or burst into flames.  Paper has to be patient.

The danger is, when something is printed and published, it seems official and is believed to be – mostly – correct and true.

In our times, whole nations teeter at the brink of bankruptcy because their political and economic leaders are corrupt, cheat their fellow countrymen and publish their lies in broadcasts of TV and radio, on the internet and also on paper.  Lies and deceit breed ruin.

When we find out about such public lies and about the selfishness and greediness of such corrupt leaders, we feel disgust and contempt.

But what about us?

What about you?

Are YOU sincere and honest in your thoughts, words and actions?

Or are there “grey zones” in your life where you lie and cheat, a little bit here, a little bit there?  Or where you deliberately “look the other way”?

These grey zones are like poisonous wafts of mist that drift through our societies, polluting and degrading whatever they touch.

Remember that you are an important part of society.  It matters to ALL if you are sincere and honest or not.

When you live a life of integrity, your family, your community and your country benefit from this fresh wind that blows away the poisonous fog of corruption in thoughts, words and actions.

And when such a sincere and honest person as you writes something on paper, paper can be patient – and justified in being patient.

Our life seems to be a continuous flow of moments, as one follows the other, year after year.  Most of them go unnoticed because you did not really live them.  In order to live them, you have to be “there” for the moment, present for the moment, live in the moment.

Have you ever been at a lake or at the ocean when the sun is setting and the sky is all golden and the water reflects this golden light?

A precious moment, don’t you agree?

Some of you might think that this is a moment worth living.  Life should give you more of such glorious moments.  Then and only then you might actually enjoy life.  But, “such a pity,” you might think,  “such moments are rare.  It seems, life is miserly with such precious moments.”

Some of you, as they are standing at the lake or at the ocean, might not even notice such a precious moment as they think of their tax declaration or their dentist appointment at this time and all the glory of this golden sunset is lost on them.  I almost wrote “all the glory of this golden sunset is wasted on them.”  But that is not how life and nature, being part of life, work.  Nature is patient and generous.  More precious moments will be presented to you.  Also, there are no hard feelings in nature if you fail to notice its beauty!

Are only such beautiful moments worth noticing and living?  Maybe you live in a city or in a place far away from lakes and oceans.  What then?  Wherever you are – unless you live in a cave  – you can look up at the sky.  You can look up at the sun, the moon, the stars, the clouds drifting by.  There are precious moments everywhere.

What about ordinary times?  

What about times when you write a report or work at a machine or wash the kitchen floor?  These are not precious moments, right?

Here is the secret: Each moment can be precious and worth living – if you make it so!

The beauty of your life experience depends on your willingness to be aware of your life as it unfolds, one precious moment after another.

Some weeks ago a friend of mine said; “Your hands are beautiful.”  I thought: “Well, friendly remark but hands are just hands.  Nothing special about them.”

Later I looked at my hands, curled my fingers, stretched my fingers, grabbed an apple and started to think about hands.

Hands are ordinary, right?  People have hands.  Of course, there are some unfortunate people who lost their hands in accidents or in the cruelty of war and my heart goes out to them.  I wish that they find purpose and joy in life even though they have no hands.

But we ordinary people have hands.  No, we fortunate people have hands.  Are we not fortunate to have hands?  Are YOU not fortunate?  Think about it.  Your hands open doors, peel potatoes, comb your hair, type on keyboards, pet your dogs and cats, embrace your loved ones.

The more I think about it, the more I love my hands. 

When YOU think about it – don’t you love your hands, too?  They are very cooperative, aren’t they?  You don’t need to be stern to them and command them to pick up an apple.  You don’t have to tell different muscles in your shoulders, arms, wrists and fingers to bend or stretch in order to pick up an apple.  I wouldn’t even know how to do that!  You just intend it and – oh miracle – your hand picks up that apple.  Quite easily, and it does not even reproach you when you don’t say “thank you”.

Most of the time you are lost in the grey fog of your thoughts and completely unaware of the miracles of life which surround you, also, of the miracle of life that you are.  Including your hands.

Silly thoughts?  Or fresh new thoughts?  When you get a new idea, this idea changes you.  As the saying goes: “The perceiver is changed by the perceived.”  Now, you are enriched by a new fresh thought.

Next time, when you look at these things that are connected to your arms via your wrists, you say to yourself:  “Hey, what great hands you have here!”

Look at this branch.  It looks so dry and hard but still – there is this opening in the wood where the soft new leaf is coming out.  Miracle of life!

The leaf that is emerging is perfect in its shape and form.  It looks like other leaves of his particular tree.  It does not resemble the large round leaf of a rhubarb nor does it look like the heart-shaped leaf of a linden tree.

This leaf is as it is meant to be, a perfect part of the tree it grows on.

We look only at the outside of this leaf.  If we could look inside and became aware of what happens on a cell level, we would find much complexity and activity.  This leaf “breathes in” carbon dioxide and “breathes out” oxygen which we need to breathe and live.  Miracle of life!

Also, this leaf takes in the sunlight and – through photosynthesis – assimilates the carbon in the air and turns it into plant mass.  That’s how the plant grows.  Another miracle of life.

There is order and harmony in nature.  You and I are also a part of nature.  We are imbedded in this stream of life that flows and flows and nurtures trees and grass blades, insects and fish, birds and dogs, you and me.  The stream of life flows and shares its energy and harmony with all of us – until we destroy this order.  For the last hundred years we worked hard on destroying this order.  We can no longer close our eyes to this destruction.  It’s time to come back to a natural appreciation of life all around us.  It’s time to admire such a leaf that emerges from the wood and appreciate the miracle of life all around us.

Are you aware of the fact that YOU are also a miracle of life?