When we shut down our honest eye and highest mind, we get locked into the primitive cycle of stimulus-and-response. For every action, we supply an automatic reaction, and nothing can change. Wisdom takes more time than fight or flight impulses, and few of us wait for it in the supposed heat of the moment. I became a better husband when the third or fourth counselor finally got through with the message that I had to stop trying to win arguments and start trying to resolve issues. Think of any conflict on any level with anyone in your life and throughout the world and you will likely find the same thing. Give wisdom time to reach you and destructive cycles can be broken; peace can be attained. Don’t just do something, stand there.

Awakening-standthereDon’t Just Do Something, Stand There

Turn back please late last night
Dim down and cut the glare
out wrong go back in right
Pull me out and feed me air
let me never pick that fight
keep my nose and cut the spite.
Don’t just do something, stand there.

let the bells and paint unpeel
step me off my angry stare
I’ll un-re-invent my wheel
Long before I’m on this tear
I’ll un-shout my think I feel
I won’t spout the same old spiel
Don’t just do something, stand there.

©2011 Words: Corey Keyes Music: David Knight

Awakening Manifesto:

Introduction
Chapter 1: Awakening
Chapter 2: Gladly Sing the Blues
Chapter 3: Four Bells
Chapter 4: I Get Your Drift
Chapter 5: Don’t Just Do Something, Stand There
Chapter 6: Talitha Cum
Chapter 7: Push to Beat the Train
Chapter 8: True Love Is
Chapter 9: The Boy Who Wouldn’t Come In
Chapter 10: Live on Love
Chapter 11: White Road Rag
Acknowledgements