What if Your “Self” is An Illusion?

Spoiler alert: it is. But that means it’s easier to shape and change. This is one of my very favorite quotes from Albert Einstein: “Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.” This particular notion is quite deep. But to many, it’s also utterly terrifying. Why? Because it questions the reality and validity of what is. Life is full of contradictions. Conflict. Ups and downs. Good and bad. Predictable and unpredictable. Opposites lie across from one another with

Making The World a Better Place Begins with Yourself

Make yourself better, make the world better. Less than a week into the new year, and already the madness has been seemingly turned up to 11. Really? Bad news on various fronts is how we start 2026? Here’s the biggest kicker about it: There’s nothing you and I can do. You and I can’t change bad decisions, violations of the Constitution, the uber-wealthy salivating at getting even more money and power, or the rest. We can do nothing about this.

New Year, New Path?

Or just adjustments to your path that reflect the new year. Face it. Change is the one and only constant in the universe. Like it or not, change can, will, and does happen all the time. Most, you have little to no control over. That’s because you are not, nor ever will be, in anyone’s head, heart, or soul, save your own. Also, most change just is. It’s not good or bad, positive or negative in and of itself. It

Do You Reset Yourself with the New Year?

Some people use the New Year to implement change. Like it or not, the one and only constant in the entire universe is change. Change can, will, and does occur, whether you are ready for it or not. You frequently can control little to no of the change you experience. But not all change is outside of your control. When it comes to you and your life experiences, you have the power to choose to make changes. Specifically, changing who,

The Challenges of This Season

Not everyone finds this time of year so celebratory. I’ve been tired of the Christmas-themed advertisements and music since they started in early October. Was it so long ago that talk of Christmas didn’t start before Halloween was complete, at the earliest? How about after Thanksgiving? I’ve worked in retail, so I fully understand that stores were doing all their holiday purchases back in June and July. Somehow, the increasing commercialization of the holidays, and Christmas in particular, stretches further

Thinking and Feeling for Yourself is an Act of Positivity

Too many people seem to prefer not thinking or feeling for themselves these days. It never ceases to amaze me how easily people let others think and feel for them. It’s as if the idea of thinking for yourself is inappropriate, challenging, and not at all worthwhile. If that’s not the case, then how else can you explain the idea of “woke” – as in awake and aware – being a bad thing? The problem with this is that nobody

Understanding The Lies Capitalism is Selling Us (That We Keep Buying)

Let’s talk about the reality of the so-called “normal.” I don’t normally go off on economics or politics, save mentions here and there. But this keeps bothering me. I keep seeing memes, posts on social media, and other references to corporate welfare, the “needs” for subsidies and tax relief for uber-wealthy people and businesses, and other lies of capitalism we’re constantly bombarded with. Businesses whine about losing money on properties that are now empty due to work from home and

Appreciation Always Appreciates

Given or received, appreciation goes a long way. This past weekend, I received recognition for certain things I do in my medieval reenactment society. The words of appreciation that went with that recognition got me thinking about how appreciation always appreciates. The recognition I received was for two things. First, for the work I do in teaching others how to do medieval rapier combat (fencing). As a student of the arte of defense, I also love teaching new people fencing

Choosing the Same Path but Changing Direction

Similar, but not the same. I started blogging weekly at the start of 2012. This was my first New Year’s Action (rather than a resolution), and it got me writing more frequently. I began to blog once a week, and Pathwalking was born. Now, 729 weeks later, I’m still creating content and sharing my evolving philosophy on life, conscious reality creation, mindfulness, and more. In addition to Pathwalking weekly, I added many other daily posts. At one point, I was

You Only Must Prove Yourself to Yourself

Make yourself a judgment-free zone. There is an idea permeating the collective consciousness that is, frankly, wrong. That’s the idea that we’re all in competition with one another. What this implies we’re competing for is utter bullshit. It starts with the competition for material things. That to be acceptable, to be worthy, you must have certain things. This car, that outfit, those kinds of items, and whatnot. Worse, however, is the utterly false implication that we’re in competition for the