A Mystical Elephant: Recent Episodes
Robert K Jones
May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Episode 65 explores the ever increasing risk of loneliness to our health and well-being. Physical distancing and staying at home have complicated an already serious problem. We each have the power to overcome the loneliness contagion. It requires the development of meaningful relationships and connecting beyond our four walls.
There is no doubt that Spring is busting out all over. Despite the fact that most of us have been sequestered at home, the trees, bushes and plants have put on their annual brilliant display. But what about us? Are we blooming or withering? Episode 64 looks into what I call A Culture of Life. It is something we choose. As the poet asks; "What have you done with the garden entrusted to you?"
Our response to the pandemic is changing as our "curve is starting to bend" and things are reopening around the world. It seems a bit daunting to know how to react as some people wear masks while others don't. Some are maintaining social distance and others aren't. Episode 63 is about doing the next right thing. How do we heal, help, and comfort as life modifies once again? It might not be so complicated.
Episode 62 is a love letter for all of our dear Mothers. They were our first friends and our unrelenting champions. Too often, we fail to appreciate their love and sacrifices. They stand ready on the sidelines of our lives, eager mto bind up wounds and offer encouragement...asking little in return. Happy Mother's Day to the women who gave us life. We, your children thank you.
It seems like no matter how much security is layered on, there is still danger lurking. After awhile we find ourselves locked in a virtual jail cell, isolated from reality. Wouldn't it be nice to have a Get Out of Jail Free Card and let go of all the worry? Episode 61 looks at how fear and self interest disempower us and some ways to find freedom. It just might be a survival tool as we continue social distancing and work our way back into the busy world.
We are, each of us, essential in every way. Episode 60 not only honors those who are putting their lives and treasure on the line day-in and day-out but affirms the sacredness of us all. Better Angels are forging a new path right here and now. Can our values shift to recognize this truth and transform us? Let’s look forward to a new awakening of oneness and rebirth of our essential nature.
Episode 59 deals with the significance of these transitional times as the nation and world try to "reopen" and the pandemic seems to be mitigating. This is a kind of land-in-between where we are unsure and tenuous. We grieve what was and worry about what will be. Perhaps this is the place where we take a breath and use our unique opportunity to define what things are most important going forward. It is an invitation to employ what we have experienced and learned in the hard times to celebrate living in a whole new way.
There is something special about being an American. Even the rich and varied landscapes of our country testify to the unique gift we have been given. We rise up from difficulties and overcome forces that would crush our spirits. Episode 58 looks at the humble generosity embedded in our nature which reaches out to "the least" and embraces those who suffer. COVID-19 reminds us of who we are and how closely we walk with God.
Our grandparents used to warn us not to "throw caution to the wind." That advice wasn't heeded by my generation very well. We rushed into the world head-on with notions of creating a brave new world. The results were not always good. And now, as elders, most of us recognize the truth of that sage wisdom offered years ago. Episode 57 looks at the need for prudence and mindfulness as we deal with COVID-19 and breaking free from sheltering-in-place.
Most of us have sheltered in place for over a month in the midst of this worldwide health crisis. Patience seems to be wearing thin for some. Our smaller lives are trying to overtake promises of the bigger experience. Episode 56 is about maintaining or reclaiming the notion that, as Mr. Spock said, "the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few." When we really accept the premise that we are all in this together, let go of our controlling worried fears, and be patient, good things are bound to happen.
Imagine what the world could be like if we kept connecting with such generosity when this pandemic has abated. The love and compassion that is rising have overcome so many of our fears and worries as people reach out to help those who struggle and suffer. Episode 55 looks at a hopeful new world in which God's love transcends our differences and a new creation, woven of one fabric, is born.
From our physical isolation and darkness of uncertainty come the promises of Easter, Even a pandemic of this proportion cannot dim the light of transformation. Good Friday always yields to love. From that, we will never be separated. There is a prayer that springs forth from God and all the angels and saints to our hungry hears. Here I Am. We are never alone in our suffering.
It may be difficult to see that this global infection is re-forming and shaping us so we might be free from the bondage of self-absorption. Episode 53 looks at the descending road and hardest of times envisioning new beginnings and fresh starts. We can rise from the ashes. Perhaps this is the dawn of A New Greatest Generation.
So many of us have been sequestered at home for several weeks, sheltered in place by this deadly virus. Episode 52 offers up the idea of creating, developing, and recording your personal story. Planting the seeds of legacy by doing this will leave a gift like no other. What a great opportunity for all of us to share our true colors with those we love.
Along with this COVID-quarantine comes so much personal loss and suffering. Episode 51 explores how there might be a gift in our disappearing calmness. The transformation from controlling to powerlessness has long-lasting spiritual implications. Self-reliance gives way to universal reliance and empowerment yields to a higher power. For now, as we are all longing to be close, may we become more aware that God is right beside us.
I think we are all tired of being terrified. Episode 50 looks at the trauma that results from scarcity that goes way beyond empty aisles of toilet paper. There is a sense that we are in trouble, vulnerable, and out of control. This is a great time to take a deep breath and remember that we are surrounded by abundance. And that love always wins.
It’s true that our imaginations can create or destroy. Likewise, boredom can dull us out or inspire. Episode 49 explores how being hunkered down in quarantine can lead us to awfulizing outcomes during this health crisis. We need to reach out to elders, go the extra mile to connect with others at a distance and to maintain a great sense of humor.
The difficult times we are enduring can easily trigger a number of negative feelings and behaviors. Episode 48 is about Quarantine Depression and our ability to find the resilient zone where we are neither reactive nor impulsive. We can overcome the trials we face by making calm and rational decisions. Fear and Panic need never rule the day.
The Glass is only half-empty if you decide to look at it that way. When hard times and crisis situations present themselves, we need to take charge of our perspectives. Episode 47 offers a few ideas about approaching our disrupted lives with a bit of common sense, compassion, and even joy. From grocery stores to family rooms, there are plenty of reasons to acknowledge a glass-half-full.
The COVID-19 health crisis has touched the lives of everyone. Even though we should stay positive, and not panic, it is dangerous to engage in happy talk denial. Episode 46 explores the nature of long-lasting trauma which could result if we maintain the false notion that everything is OK when it is not. We have a chance to reach out while being emotionally honest about our fears, worries, and hopes. The outcome might be a permanent change in how we treat each other.
When other people are suffering we feel a deep stirring to fix things for them. Episode 45 is about what to do when all of our good advice and solutions seem to fall on deaf ears. With chronic trauma and poverty of spirit, perhaps incorporating and befriending our own pain is the way to compassionate oneness and healing.
Episode 44 is about taking the first step toward healing from trauma. Taking responsibility, or owning your part, in whatever has taken place in your life is painfully necessary even when you are an innocent victim. Feelings cannot be changed but our responses to them can. We have the power to be well, to live in the here and now, and to live happy lives.
This is the season we’ve been anticipating throughout a long winter. Spring is ushered in as college basketball heads into March Madness. Episode 43 somewhat whimsically looks at how the game has moved indoors with abandoned hoops dotting home courts once filled with neighborhood kids. Has independent play without adult organization become a thing of the past? Perhaps a revival is just what we need.
Episode 42 is called "What Are You Fighting About?" It explores the difference between fighting for and fighting about. We take a look at standing your ground as well as finding a way to nonviolence. One thing is certain, winning at all costs while weaponizing religion is no way to peace.
We are on our way. Episode 41 is about that journey to and from the headwaters of our Source. James Taylor sang that the secret of love is in opening up your heart. That is the trip worth taking. Beyond personal growth and change, this being-on-the-way is transformational. We will uncover True Self in God. This enables us to reach out and connect with a universal oneness.
Episode 40 is about welcoming and belonging. There's nothing quite like belonging. The welcome we receive from loved ones and never feeling like a guest or intruder is heartwarming. Beyond hospitality, welcoming and belonging are intrinsic elements of love.
How about having a good conversation! Episode 39 explores the difficulty of meaningful connections in the cyber age. Tweets and emojies just can't deliver a real relationship. There is a lot we can do to end the deafness created by all the surface talk. This is a great time to get started.
Episode 38 is about how we measure our lives. Even more important, it's about how we define ourselves. All of the things that happen, and the way others perceive us, combine to create an image of who we convince ourselves to be. But that perception is an illusion of a false self. Who are we really? The voice at the core of our being whispers that we are much more than we think.
The sting of death and depth of loss can be diminished when regrets are minimalized. If we do the best we can under adverse circumstances, avoid leaving one another angry, and forgive mistakes along the way, we will be able to find our way to acceptance. Episode 37 explores our 'if-onlys' and offers a way to think about how you might like to be remembered.
We spend more time looking at things than looking into them and beyond. Episode 36 explores our ability to see angels rather than angles. Too often, the powerfully obscene, sensational and ugly hold us in their grasp. But the beauty of the world seen through a child's eye holds more power than all of the negativity combined. There are more angels among us than we might suspect. The distracting smudges on our windows need not distract us. For once upon a time each of us was a dreamer who believed.
It's February and seed catalogs are arriving in the mail. Some folks are planting inside to grow vegetable starts for summer harvests. This episode of An Elephant for Breakfast explores the need for some interior garden work of another kind. It suggests a way to YES and a realization that the world and all of life is a miracle growing out of God's great love.
Haven't we had enough of all the quarreling and divisiveness to last forever? Episode 34 of An Elephant for Breakfast looks into the one place where separation can best be healed. We turn to our faith systems and religions. Unfortunately, this seems to be the one area where we are most at odds. Yet in the midst of this discord, something wonderful seems to be germinating. Communities of hope are rising from the ashes of despair. Harmony, Serenity, and Unity might just win the day after all.
Wouldn't it be odd to find an Amazon box at the door, leaving it outside and never opening it? Episode 33 looks at this kind of peculiar, yet all too common phenomenon. The wonderful content unexplored represents that true and authentic self that we try so desperately to ignore. Yet the gift is always there and forever waiting to be unwrapped. The choice is yours to make.
Episode 32 whimsically refers to talking frogs. Of course it is less amphibian and more grounded than that. We are exploring dreams, passions and how we think about them. There is so much beauty and mystery to life yet we spend most of our time looking past it toward goals and survival. Are our dreams and passions intact? Is it possible that we have set them aside and settle for less? Stop and take a good look around. Perhaps it's time to reflect and reconsider.
In Episode 31 we look at the unfairness of life. Bad things happen to good people. Trials and tribulations seem to come more frequently than joy and good times. Has God abandoned us to fate or are we often weighing what is just and unjust from a self-centered perspective? Maybe life isn't so tragic after all.
On this Martin Luther King Day, January 20, 2020, I wanted to share reflections from the Civil Rights Museum's MLK50 celebration in 2018. Memphis is a city that is trying to change. The history of racism and the assassination of Dr. King is being reframed through community projects, programs, and by listening. We can transform personal prejudice. bias and racism too. The Special Podcast today is about my own journey and awakenings. There is language in it that is offensive and descriptions of behavior that should be heard through the context of time. It would be wrong to sanitize it.
At one time or another, every one of us has either broken trust or has had trust violated. Episode 30 explores the damage done to relationships after betrayal. The fear, of course, is that nothing will ever be the same. Something sacred has been lost. But is that true? There is always a way to recover even if the relationship cannot be fully restored.
Ifs and Almosts are the subject of An Elephant for Breakfast Episode 29...If you loved me...If you do this I will do that...If only things could be different. These statements limit relationships and make them conditional. Then there are those regret-filled Almosts. I almost took Scuba lessons. I almost applied for that job. I almost took a chance. Both Ifs and Almosts take the flavor out of life. What might happen if we eliminated both and threw caution to the wind? I have a hunch that this adventure would be a lot more fulfilling.
This episode is about the good news that each of us is blessed and has been since we were conceived. The bad news is that most of us don't believe it. The basis of an authentic spiritual journey has four themes or movements of love. The mission of your life-time awaits you.
This episode of An Elephant for Breakfast takes a fresh look at the nature of tolerance. It asks if we might explore the option of a new pair of glasses when it comes to our fear and mistrust of others.
As our holidays in the United States come to a close, many people around the world are just starting. Epiphany and The Twelfth Night usher in a whole new season of joy. It is also a time to reflect on our awakenings...those Ah-Ha moments that shape hour lives. Deep spiritual experiences of connection with God and one another shed light on our mission and purpose. Let's start this year off by being open to such possibilities and by continuing the celebration of life.
Episode 25 is the first of 2020, the new year and decade. As we resolve to do better, to be better, and to shape how things might look in the days and months ahead we might consider what is most important. Here are five simple resolutions that, if practiced, are guaranteed to rejuvenate life.
The subject of our podcast today comes on the Fifth Day of Christmas and contains a gift of five golden rings which point us toward a more enlightened way of living. May your days be filled with treasures of new beginnings and rich blessings for the year and decade to come.
Episode 23 comes on Christmas day 2019, It is a story about my experiences at the home of my Aunt and Uncle, Helen and Wendell Trenchard in Deland, Illinois. My grandfather, Roy Jones, his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren gathered each Christmas to celebrate the great love of family with traditions from a sleigh bell parade to ghost stories around the fireplace. It is an era lost to time but which still warms hearts generations later. May your own memories bless you today and always.
With the holidays upon us, this is a perfect time to take a breath and reflect if only for a minute. Overwhelming pressure to get everything right can destroy any sense of the peace we are supposed to find at this most joyful season. Recall some of the happiest moments from days gone by and people who brought the gift of peace to our gatherings. Carry that thought through the following days. It will make a world of difference in how we will fondly remember this year's celebrations.
Final Preparations for Christmas and the other seasons of light are in full swing. Gifts are being wrapped and mailed, menus are under scrutiny, and travel plans have been made. Maybe a good snow would slow us down reminding everyone of what is most important. We are celebrating the fact that God is with us. We are never abandoned...and we are never all alone.
Joy seems to make a triumphal entrance during this holiday season. With lights, parades, colorful decorations, gifts and gatherings of loved ones, it vanquishes the ordinary and mundane. Like a beam of light refracted through a prism, joy is an experience of awe. As we celebrate this holiday season, the miracles, kindnesses, and love can bring about something which has the power to change everything.
Sharing our stories and memories is one of the most important things we can do...especially during the holiday seasons when vivid recollections come back to us with such clarity. Our struggles, triumphs, stumbles, and successes can provide just the hope and sense of possibilities that family and friends need to light their own paths. This is our legacy.
There is a longing that descends during this season of celebration. All of the hardships and struggles of life seem heaviest as we consider what we might have lost on the journey. But then a light flickers and a single star shines. There is always a way back home.
The grace of unknowing is the source of wisdom, growth, and transformation. As the season of light presents itself again this year. It is important to recognize that for some, a poverty of spirit obscures the festivities. Setting aside our busy schedules for being present to those who suffer can carry lifesaving comfort. When allowing ourselves to be transported from wellbeing, certainty, and control into the gloom of another person’s shadows, it becomes possible to experience the grace of unknowing.
Episode 16 explores the beauty and magic of our holiday seasons. A Power Greater Than Ourselves seems to guide our giving and open our hearts like no other time of the year. Joyful anticipation Increases and happy memories come to mind as we wait and prepare for The Wonderful. There is a basket of goodies ready for you. Reach in and find a miracle or two.
Even in the darkest times, there is room for counting our blessings. In fact, making that room is essential for healing. When we step aside, even for a few moments, from our troubles in favor of gratitude and hope, a light will peek through the shadows.
Thanksgiving brings us together in good times and bad. Regardless of the kind of religion we might practice or political affiliation, this American holiday is a perennial reminder of our oneness. It is a day of open hearts, gratitude, and a recognition of our many blessings. Thanksgiving should inspire and provide us with great hope.
What will we do this Thanksgiving as our loved ones gather around the table ready to launch into political or religious diatribe? This year it is entirely possible that our uniquely American holiday could have landmines of discord hidden in the cranberry salad. Rather than launch into discussions that might cause permanent divisions and hurt feelings, there is some old guideline handed down from The Greatest Generation. Listen in our podcast before the first round of appetizers. It might just save the day.
When life has handed us too much there is a tendency to give in or give up. With each new mass shooting and ever-increasing incidents of racial, political, religious, or other hate speech we disconnect just a little more. But there is another choice. And it is the right one. In tales told for millennia, the message is clear. We must persist and overcome. Even when most difficult, we must stand our ground.
Our perceived differences can get in the way and cause us to feel superior or inferior. What might it be like if we understood how similar we really are? Just Like me explores the baggage we carry around which prevents us from connecting and points us in the direction of interconnectedness.
This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
Those who go to battle for freedom return home with secrets too big to share. They are kept inside because bringing them to light and giving them words might be worse than hiding them. On this Veterans Day, as we honor the men and women who sacrificed more than we can imagine, let us pray that awful secrets lose their power. And may we go to war no more.
The subject of Faith can stir up all kinds of interpersonal ire. Confused with religion and politics, issues surrounding faith are dividing us in ways that could irreparably harm our relationships and even our democracy. Maybe if we began to recognize that Faith is indistinguishable from Love, we could find a way to forgive one another and find the common ground wee seem to have lost. This podcast explores matters of Faith and Love while also offering a peek into my own journey with lessons from my parents.
When people in our lives are struggling or in crisis, their needs and demands can become overwhelming. So where do we draw the line? How much is too much...and how much is not enough? These questions plague each of us at one time or another. Radical Availability is an answer. It might not be the one we want to hear. But it has often proven to be just what the doctor ordered.
We seem to be overwhelmed by worries about running out of things. What if there is not enough to go around? This worldview of scarcity leads us to systems of greed. Fueled by fear, we plunge headlong into protectionism. How we share our abundant goods and services with one another could solve many of the world's most serious problems. After all, the best things in life are free.
Heroes and Villains don't always wear white or black hats. So, who are the good guys and who are the bad guys? When we start drawing lines and separating into groups, it becomes a little sticky. Maybe we should rethink our positions.
Most of us lose sight of who we really are. The authentic self is hidden inside by a false persona developed over the years to protect us from fear, doubts, and insecurities. But our protected secret identity is really where all of our superpowers reside. How can we let go of the survival behaviors we have developed in order to let our true selves shine through?
When trauma sweeps in to leave havoc and chaos, the suffering leaves emptiness left in its path. Questions fill our hearts and minds about the meaning of life. What is the purpose of it all? Our column today deals with rediscovering direction in the wake of horrible circumstances.
There are big challenges in forgiving and forgetting. But it is the only way to be fully present Here and Now. Episode 3 examines this troublesome process through the eyes of a Firefighter and in the writing of a wise friend.
Saying goodbye to self-pity requires a change of mind about what we think we are lacking while actively seeking and developing an attitude of gratitude. This is what opens the door to delight.
This is our very first episode. Our beginning. Our inaugural startup. We are commencing today. Do you ever think that we are taking ourselves just a little bit too seriously? Most all of us rush from place to place with a full agenda, determined to get the job done. But what happens if we inject a little playfulness? This week let's take a look at why it is a good idea to do just that.