Ramblings, du jour...

Finally accepted realities of life and joined Weight Watchers, but hang in there...talk of dieting bores me to death, so I will spare you any further detail beyond this initial declaration. I have been haunted by some other demons this week...

Lately I've been wrestling with number Three in the Eightfold Path: right speech. Buddha explained right speech as follows:

• to abstain from false speech, especially not to tell deliberate lies and not to speak deceitfully,
  
• to abstain from slanderous speech and not to use words maliciously against others,
  
• to abstain from harsh words that offend or hurt others, and
  
• to abstain from idle chatter that lacks purpose or depth.

This is a tough one, especially if you spend a lot of time with a group of women. My brother has a theory that if you put three women in a room, then send one away, the remaining two women will talk about the one who is not there. He is absolutely right. And, eventhough I am constantly reminding myself of "Right Speech," resisting the tempation to gossip with everyone else is very hard for me.

And, of course, I have my usual "work" demons to contend with: I am going nowhere in this company. Sometimes it bothers me and sometimes I just don't give a darn. This week it's bothering me. While at work, I am haunted by thoughts of other things I could be doing with my life, and it deepens my feeling of being "trapped." I have to remind myself that I choose to stay here. It's so easy to forget that little bit.