Our Radical Decision to Create A New Life of Simple Living Freedom and A Rare Sunny Day
How we live by faith and following inner guidance in creating a bold new life focused on the truly important things.
STILL MOUNTAIN CHRONICLES #1 Thursday March 9, 2023
Photo Credit: Chinmayan
A Rare Sunny Day Before Another Round of Threatening Storms
It is quite a shock to actually see the sun peeking out from behind the clouds this morning after so many days and nights of truly intense storms.
We follow the weather predictions very closely, so we know this is a rare day of a break between storms.
We are still getting two or three ominous “Severe weather warnings” pinging in our phones every day during this truly historic time of wet weather.
In fact, some of them are downright scary, with major sustained flooding of the cities and farms of the Central Valley predicted from a series of insanely powerful atmospheric rivers about to start hitting within 24 hours.
It’s thought there will be so much rain in such a short time that all the creeks and rivers will overflow and that even the biggest trees are under threat of toppling in high winds and saturated ground.
It is predicted to be so bad that authorities are advising folks to stock up provisions for two weeks and be ready to evacuate if the potential life threatening situations materialize.
Here on Still Mountain, we are prepared mentally and physically for practically anything that nature throws at us, though of course we do not want to be flooded out.
It feels safe here, after all the heavy storms and the damage they can cause that we have already been through.
All our structures, which we reinforced just in time, are still standing.
We count ourselves fortunate that we do have this tiny house, which can be moved with about half an hour of work to undock it, if we really had to flee.
Using The Day to Harvest and Make Firewood
This morning we are loading truck with tools and heading up into the mountains to harvest oak and fir wood to bring back here for making into fire wood, so we can keep helping folks who keep calling, desperate to find seasoned wood to keep their home fires burning.
This late in the season, when winter is usually winding down and because of all the storms, seasoned fire wood is almost impossible to find for sale.
We are taking advantage in the only day in the forecast that will be warm and clear enough to work outside.
We have a man who needs fire wood today to keep his house warm for his wife who is coming home from the hospital tomorrow and another single mom who needs some for their snowed in remote mountain home.
Though both of feel ragged, we are on a mission of mercy, which will also help shore up our anemic financial condition.
Photo Credit: Chinmayan
Later..
It is now the wee hours of the night.
Ani and I did go to the mountains together and through being highly present and focused, harvested a truck load of wood, working side by side, in complete harmony.
We brought it back to Still Mountain’s fire wood production yard, and through maintaining steady focus on taking care of our two client families, were able to produce their orders on time.
It is a joy to see the relief on their faces when our clients come to pick up their fire wood and discover that it is so well and lovingly made for them.
One of the secrets to blissful happiness is to do everything that needs to be done with full presence, focus and love to the highest degree of quality as possible.
Though we were weary, we had the deep soul satisfaction of accomplishing a difficult goal that actually serves others, and knowing that we gave it our best effort and heart.
Photo Credit: Nicola Smith
Our Life Changing Decision to Create A New Life of Living Simply, Time Freedom, Focusing on the Truly Important Things and Working Full Time On Writing and Publishing
It is true that we do not make huge amounts of money from making firewood for sale to our neighbors and friends, but that was never the goal anyway.
We make enough to get by, which means covering Still Mountain’s monthly bills, our food, fuel and operating expenses and with a little extra sometimes for other things we need, like occasional new clothes or donations to our teachers.
I now live by faith in the guidance and provision of the divine to help us on every level everyday…and because I do, our lives get more amazing by the day in every way.
We relied upon our business to provide for us for many years, but since realizing that it was time to build our entirely new life of living simply so that we could focus on the truly important things in life…our focus has completely shifted radically.
I have always felt the call to serve the world through writing transformational stories, poetry and songs every day for the past 60 years.
This new life is being built exclusively through prayer and following the inner guidance very closely.
Though we may not have much money, we do “Time Freedom”, which means we have complete control over our use of time without obligations to anything that is not in alignment with our higher purpose.
I am no longer giving all my precious time, energy and attention to a business, which, however nice and profitable, was never really in alignment with fulfilling the purposes or the mission I was born to do.
Though we have very little money, the divine always provides ways for us to have just enough to be free to focus exclusively on this destined work of writing, creating and publishing this newsletter.
If I did not have the deep, long developed and powerful faith in God that suffuses everything I do…if I was still relying upon the old worldly paradigm and the false truths it teaches, I would probably be stressed and worried and too scared to accomplish anything worthwhile.
But, through prayer I have come to understand that there is a vast difference between making a living and making a life worth living.
Because of my very well placed and I indomitable faith, I do not worry or stress…I trust in the divine and the leading of my own inner guidance instead.
I know with absolute certainty that this lifetime and all its potential and opportunities is simply far too precious to waste trading my time for a few paltry dollars, when I am called to use all the minutes, hours, days, months and years I have left to do this greater work of writing and publishing.
This is what I have been sent here to do, and which I joyously embrace with my full heart and spirit to be the work I will be doing right up to my last breath…
We are just getting started on this long journey of publishing my writings to the world…
But the inner and outer rewards of following the inner guidance and doing exactly and only as the divine recommends are so great, there is no way I would return to any part of my old life, even if I were being paid a billion dollars a day!
No amount of success in the outer world can ever make up for failing to seek, follow and fulfill the will of God for us in our lives.
Now that I am doing so more fully day by day, I can attest to the fact, that there is nothing sweeter, more pleasurable, blissful or satisfying than living the life and doing the work we were sent here to do.
Image Credit: Still Mountain Meditation Center
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