“YENWhat happens if you take a cup? Put it to your lips. A cup of desire. Of dazzling colour. Of intoxicating aroma. You can't resist. Drink. And in the bottom of the cup. There is a fish. And the fish says "You have uncovered me! Now I am condemned. To die."What happens if you find a box? 35mm by 35mm exactly. And are curious. You open it quickly. Of course. And inside there is an eye. And the eye seems to think that the box is its exclusive property. And fixes you with a terrifying glare.What happens if you catch a soft sound? A voice whispering in the air. Above the tree tops. And you can't quite hear what it is saying. But you have to listen. So you float up. Then you find you can't come down again. When the conversation is finished.”
Jay Woodman“Green and living jewels drip into my eyes" from the poem "All Green and Living Things" in the book "Terra Affirmative”
Jay Woodman, Riding the Escalator and Terra Affirmative“I never think of myself as an attacker, only as a defender - usually of rights - mine and others.”
Jay Woodman“I don't have to be safe to feel safe, I always feel safe at my core.”
Jay Woodman“We are the wilderness withinScreaming out for true expression.Even when we’re sleeping,There’s no escape from this obsession.”
Jay Woodman“be the calm eye of the storm where nothing phases you, focus on your centre to remain balanced, let your life flow like a stream of wind”
Jay Woodman“Don't be afraid to be authentic, show up in the world as you truly are.Be as you mean to be, but be light with it. Love it, give it, share it, laugh at it, walk everywhere with it.Be in the world but not OF it.”
Jay Woodman“Spiritual counselling is helping people find the deep root of stillness in themselves, which is also a connection to everything else.”
Jay Woodman“Fly (poem from the book Blue Bridge)Delicate, / butterfly winged, / we vainly push against the sky, / each trying to find our place.Yes, we are going to die, / let's not beat about the bush. / Maybe today, maybe tomorrow, / maybe even years from now. Meanwhile, / we have someone who loves us, / someone to love. / Surely there is no need to hesitate.”
Jay Woodman“Sometimes it's better to show our vulnerability / pain / regrets so others don't think us impervious / unapproachable - be real / open”
Jay Woodman“I honour the clarity of the present moment, and the stillness at the centre of being (mine & others), even in the midst of so much doing.”
Jay Woodman