Innocence

Definitions: (1) free from guilt or sin <especially through lack of knowledge of evil>; blameless; faultless; (2) without guile or cunning; lacking sophistication; ingenuous

Synonyms: clean-handed, immaculate, pure, simple, spotless, undefiled, virtuous

Quotes:
• Innocence is one of the most exciting things in the world. — Eartha Mae Kitt [born Eartha Mae Keith] (1927-2008) American singer & actress
• When men are innocent, life shall be longer, and shall pass into the immortal, as gently as we awake from dreams. — Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) American philosopher

Comment: The quality of innocence is normally attributed to the purity and beauty of a new baby. It is such a compelling quality we are instantly drawn to that bright bundle of pure potential. As time goes on, adding the qualities of sincerity, grace, charm, and wonder to innocence blossoms the personality dynamically into a splendid, mature soul.

Color: white

Symbols:1) sheep; 2) sweet pea & phlox flowers




Integration

Definition: (1) formed, coordinated, or blended into a functioning or unified whole; united; (2) complete, intact, or pure <the integrity of a pristine soul>; (3) able to see how things or people fit together in the most harmonious way

Quotes:
• When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it is tied to everything else in the universe. — John Muir (1838-1914) Scottish-born American naturalist
• At the end of the day, you are solely responsible for your success and your failure. And the sooner you realize that, you accept that, and integrate that into your work ethic, you will start being successful. — Edward Estlin [e. e.] Cummings (1894-1962) American poet

Symbols: 1) a necklace; 2) a sheaf; 3) interlocking fingers




Integrous

Definitions: (1) the quality of being of sound moral principle; uprightness of character; incorruptible; (2) honest and sincere in a professional, intellectual, or artistic endeavor; reputable; (3) integration of self; maintenance of identity; (4) holding steadfastly true to one’s identity-conferring commitments; scrupulously principled; (5) standing up for ones best judgment with proper respect for the judgment of others

Compatible Qualities: complete, firm

Quotes:
• If you have integrity, nothing else matters. If you don’t have integrity, nothing else matters. — Alan Kooi Simpson (1931-) American politician [Wyoming Representative]
• Having a superpower has nothing to do with the ability to fly or jump, or superhuman strength. The truest superpowers are the ones we all possess: willpower, integrity, and most importantly, courage. —  Jason Reynolds (1983-) American author & poet

Observation: A person who has grit, meaning “plucky, spirited, courageous, and resolute” may also be considered to be held in the grip of integrity.

Suggestion: Trust the higher self to do what is right instead of manipulating the ego self to live up to your expectation.

Symbols: 1) a rock or stone; 2) the Lovers (Tarot)




Sensitivity

Definitions: (1) responsive to the views of others; (2) tender or compassionate toward the feelings of others; (3) endowed with sensation; perceptive through the senses

Too Far: critical, temperamental, thin-skinned

Quotes:
• It is usually the imagination that is wounded first, rather than the heart; it being much more sensitive. — Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) American author
• Some like to think that a keen appreciation of art can actually make us better people – more just, more moral, more sensitive, more understanding. Perhaps that is true. — Paul Benjamin Auster (1947-) American writer & film director
     Note: If the art one is appreciating was created by Ma Nature, it certainly is true.




Sincerity

Definitions: (1) being the same in actual character as in outward appearance; genuine; real; (2) simple and straightforward innocence; (3) truthful and honest; without deceit, pretense, or hypocrisy; (4) faithful

Saying: Ex animo (Latin): “from the heart”

Quotes:
• Sincerity is the single virtue that binds divinity and man in one. — Senge Takatomi (1845-1918) Japanese Shinto philosopher
• Mother Nature is always speaking. She speaks in a language understood within the peaceful mind of the sincere observer. Leopards, cobras, monkeys, rivers, and trees; they all serve as teachers. — Radhanath Swami [born Richard Slavin] (1950-) American Gaudiya Vaishnava guru

Comment: The primary quality saving a person from being an out and out fool is sincerity.

Consideration: There are some crucial qualities, a class of qualities one really cannot do without. First on the list would be sincerity. If you are sincere in your attempt to do the right thing – however you define it – you are succeeding in a very important aspect.

Advice: If you are motivated by, and have a genuine sincerity in what you do, you should never feel guilty. If you choose correctly, it will reinforce the positive. If you choose incorrectly, you will learn there is a better way. And if it is some of both, you will get to experience them both and learn what was right and what was wrong.

Color: blue




Social

Definition: inclined to friendly communication; open to conversing; neighborly; agreeable to a free exchange of ideas

Balancing Quality: Attentive.
     Note: The best communicator is the person who is the best listener; one who is genuinely interested in the views and lives of others.

Compatible Quality: humorous, gracious

Familial Quality: companionable

Too Far: garrulous, nosy

Quote: We take our bearings, daily, from others. To be sane is, to a great extent, to be sociable. — John Hoyer Updike (1932-2009) American novelist




Timing

Definitions: (1) happening, done, or said at a suitable moment, especially in order to achieve a desired effect; opportune; (2) arriving at the appointed time; well-timed; (3) appropriate or adapted to the times or the occasion; (4) a lifesaver

Balancing Quality: Prepared

Adage: Take the time to do it right, or you’ll find the time to do it over. — John Wooden (1910-2010) American basketball coach

Idiom:  There is no time like the present.

Quotes:
• For everything there is an appointed time, even a time for every affair under heaven. — The Bible, Ecclesiastes 3:1
• Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of. — Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) American polymath [eight disciplines]
• Nobody sees a flower – really – it is so small it takes time – and to see takes time, like to have a friend takes time. — Georgia O’Keeffe (1887-1986) American artist
• God … does not recognize earth-time. To the universe, four days is no different than four billion light years. — Robert James Waller (1939-2017) The Bridges of Madison County {1992}
• My hour has not yet come. — Jesus of Nazareth (7 BC-30 AD) Jewish theologian
     Note: Do not be forced into something you are not ready for. Be wise in your judgment of the best time to act.

Affirmations:
• I have enough time to enjoy everything I do.
• I have enough time to do everything I need to do.

Reflection: Your pace is not the same as that of another. Respect the pace of others. There is an ideal pace at which we each should proceed. You don’t want to be going too fast or too slow. Your pace may be restricted by your lack of courage, emotional blocks, comfort patterns, and belief systems. Even so, you can only proceed from where you are.
     You can accelerate your pace, but it needs to be done globally and evenly, moving forward emotionally, mentally, physically, and spiritually. If you ignore some aspect, you will find yourself out of balance and will have to go back to it anyway.

Consideration: Take the time to do it right. Prepare as best you can so you will be able to do your project to the best of your ability.
     When there is a deadline on a job and outside pressures create stress, recognize the balance between efficiency and effectiveness. If you possess a high level of attention to detail, you may have to curb it. Instead of taking the measurement to the fourth decimal, take it to the first decimal. Ask yourself if it is good enough. Good enough doesn’t mean shabby, it means high-quality work under the circumstances. Assess the nature of the job: making cabinets, more accuracy; building a shipping pallet, less accuracy. Know where the boundaries are, but with the awareness of doing it right.

Comments:
• If you are able to see exactly how to fit the luggage into the car trunk, you have a good space sense. Translate your space talent into a time talent by fitting your schedule into the day.
• One of the main reasons to do your best while you’re here, in time and space, is because you can’t go back. You can’t reverse time and do what you should have done previously.
• Since you have all eternity, you can:
     ◦ give yourself a break.
     ◦ take the time to find your right livelihood.
     ◦ find an infinite number of ways to motivate yourself to do your best.

Questions:
• Am I always late or put things off?
• What does it take to have good timing?
     Note: Pay attention to organization, prioritization, focus, and vision. A good way to motivate yourself to be on time is to have concern for the people who are waiting for you. Graciously break off from the current appointment to get to the next one on time. Turn on your consideration switch.

Symbols: 1) a clock; 2) a river; 3) a spindle; 4) the wheel




Vibrancy

Definition: characterized by energetic activity; vital; vigorous

Balancing Qualities: Vibrancy is only as effective as the mastering of restraint. — Sara Genn (1972-) Canadian artist

Quote: We get to choose how we’re going to live – what level of energy, what level of vibrancy, what level of excitement. — Brendon Burchard (1977-) Personal development author




Devotion

Definitions: (1) zealous or ardent in loyalty or affection; faithful; (2) dedicated with great seriousness <as to a cause> (3) very faithful to a religious belief; worshipful; (4) sincere; earnest; fervent; heartfelt

Synonyms: holy; reverent

Too Far: fanatical

Quotes:
• Values can never be static; reality signifies change, growth. The greater the quality of cosmic adaptation, the more of meaning any experience possesses. Values are not conceptual illusions; they are real, but always they depend on the fact of relationships. Values are always both actual and potential—not what was, but what is and is to be. (100:3.5) — The Urantia Book {1955}
• We invest or devote ourselves because the other to which we commit has, for us, an intrinsic excellence or worth and because it promises to confer values on us. We value that which seems of transcendent worth and in relation to which our lives have worth. — James William Fowler (1940-2015) Stages of Faith, The Psychology of Human Development and the Quest for Meaning {1981}

Comment: One is not devoted unless and until all one’s doubts are removed. We use our powers of logic, intuition, organizing, belief, commitment, and finally faith before we allow ourselves to be enveloped in the fires of pure devotion.

Color: blue

Symbol: lily of the valley




Self-controlled

Definitions: Definitions: (1) able to manage one’s own temperament; self-control; apatheia <mastery of the passions> (2) mental or emotional restraint exercised over one’s own impulses, emotions, or desires especially in the face of self-described negative temptations; (3) able to curtail one’s own appetites <especially restraint in order to keep within (social or moral) bounds>; (4) exercising authority over one’s self or others; in command <able to set things in order>

Compatible Quality: self-forgetful

Poetry:
Give every man thine ear, but few thy voice;
Take each man’s censure, but reserve thy judgment.
— William Shakespeare (1564-1616) Hamlet {1603}

Quotes:
• Rare is the person who can weigh the faults of others without putting his thumb on the scales. — Byron Joseph Langenfeld (1909-1996) American humorist
• Human nature is complex. Even if we do have inclinations toward violence, we also have inclination to empathy, to cooperation, to self-control. — Steven Arthur Pinker (1954-) Canadian-American cognitive psychologist & psycholinguist

Reflections:
• You cannot control the facts of the past. But you can control your attitude toward the facts of the past. You can control your attitude and judgment about the present and what you will do in the future. You cannot control what other people do, or how they think, or who they are. You can influence them, but only if they are willing or susceptible to your example or power.
     Recognize what you actually have control over and what you do not have control of. It is useless to try to control what is not yours to control.
• There is also negative control: fear, torture, sleep deprivation, threats of harm to loved ones, threats of loss of job, or loss of life. If one is to encompass the positive aspects of control one needs to persuade with logic, emotion, spiritual flavor, experience, love, nurturing, and so on, to help others recognize their own values and to move forward at their own pace.
     Christ suggested we love our enemies. If we do, we will help them get in touch with their divine selves, just as we would our friends. We find ourselves within an evolutionary process. Progress is truer if it is focused on the positive. Negative pressure forces warped growth. Besides, people usually put enough negative pressure upon themselves.

Comment: Let go of the part fear plays in your growing process. As you let go of fear, experiences will get more accessible, more exciting, but they also may seem more out of your control. As you change from a material to a spiritual being, you are relinquishing control of the physical in favor of cooperation with the Spiritual; thus growing your soul.

Consideration: Politicians can only tackle the hard problems with laws covering the entire populace. If the individual is mature enough to control their emotions and actions, then there will be fewer problems. Laws, morals, and family rules do have influence in shaping an individual’s choice, but in the end the individual makes their own final choices.

Observation: The person asking the questions is in control of the conversation.

Symbol: the chariot