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Eric Overby Biography

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“The Poem About Taking out the Trash In the vast emptiness of darkness, Stars are being born and are burning out; Galaxies expand, into what I have no idea, And dark matter fills the infinite space That has no bounds and no limits. In the middle of all this, I stand In a single moment and know how small I am. A group of atoms, the size of nothing in comparison. I am the observer of the play on a tiny stage. The onlooker who watches the painting Of a picture that few stop to see. The listener of a song where I hear only a fraction Of a fraction of a note in a song that will be forever sung And that has been being sung for eternity upon eternity, Before I knew breath and sound. I am but dust, stardust, a breath of a life, smoke Rising into oblivion, here then gone as quickly. Under all of this, I take out the trash.”

EmptinessOblivionMindfulness QuotesMeditation QuotesStardustEternity QuotesBreathing In AwarenessGalaxy QuotesInfinity QuotesBreath Of Life
Book:Senses
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“A creation myth lays the foundation for how you got here, where you came from, and what your role is now that you’re here. Depending on the civilization and myth, it can tell you who’s in charge and what they value. There’s something interesting about the power of narrative. How can a story from so long ago influence so many people for so long?”

StoriesPowerMythNarrativePower Of WordsAnthropologyNote To SelfCreation MythsIdeas And StoriesMyth As Narrative
Author:Eric Overby
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“The Accounting of Love and Hospitality - Sermon on the Account Do enough for others that it's impossible For them to keep accounts Of what they owe you Or what you've done. Lose the account yourself, Expect nothing in return. Make a habit of giving things away. Pay for other people's meal, Friends and strangers. Keep no accounts on that either. Take what is offered to you, But expect or demand nothing. Tell the people in your life That you appreciate them As often as you can. There may be a day when you can't. Tell your kids and spouse that you love them, Often and every night. Remind yourself What it is you love about them. Look for ways to be kind and helpful, There are plenty to find. Do things without telling others You've done them. Don't even remind yourself. Do acts of kindness, then let them go. Live a life without clinging to expectations About who you should be. Your friends and family will change, Everything does, you will. Life has a lot of additions and subtraction; Change is inevitable. Spend time mindfully changing yourself Towards kindness and patience. At the end of your life, Which could be any moment, Let the ones that knew you Have lived a better life because you were there. Let your accounts be settled And forgive other people's.”

Life LessonsLife PhilosophyForgivenessBetter LifeHospitalityHow To Be HappyKindness CompassionSermon On The MountThe WayHow To Live
Author:Eric Overby
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“Our lives are constantly in a state of change and evolution. The things that cause you to identify as “you” are temporary, moving foundations. “You” were once just a mere collection of microscopic cells. Then you were a baby, and then a teenager, and so on. I am not the person that I was at 5, 16, or 24 years old (I am so thankful for this). Your attitudes will change; your beliefs will change; your clothes will change; your hair will change; your jobs will change. Everything will change!”

ChangeIdentityImpermanenceNote To SelfIdentifyChange Is ConstantGrowing QuotesWho Are You ReallyWho Am I Quotes
Author:Eric Overby
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“Your mind is this way, open and still. Along comes a thought into the horizon. We rarely stand still long enough to see our thoughts and watch it arise and disappear. We are often so lost in the cloud of thoughts that we don’t have the separation to see them. We think we are them. Yet, it is possible to sit and watch a thought in the same way.”

MindMindfulnessMeditation QuotesThoughts QuotesNote To SelfStillness QuotesWatching Your MindYou Are Not Your Thoughts
Author:Eric Overby
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“The protestor also asked me why I was there, did I have a family member who is gay? He stated, “You don’t just come to these things for no reason”. I replied, “Honestly, I did start going and taking my family to gay pride festivals just to be amongst other cultures. It’s good to get to know people who are different from yourself.” The world’s a big place and you may find that you have more in common with people than you think or, in this case, that you know more gay people than you think. I would like to say the same to you.”

ConversationDiversityGay PrideArt Of ConversationGetting To Know SomeoneProtestors
Author:Eric Overby
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“She wrote his name on a piece of paper and lit it with a match. The letters curled as they turned dark and misshapen until she didn’t recognize them. They were figments of something that she had done in her past, lost into some other form of existence. Where did the letters go now? She tried to find traces within the ash of some resemblance of what used to be. She dug down, her fingers turning black and gray like the depths of her. He was gone. Gone. What was she left with but ashes and darkness once the light of the flame went out? The smell of smoke lingered like a memory of him. Was this the end or could she write a new word? Not a new name, not his name, but could she call a new word into existence? A new piece of HER; a new reason for her existence? Picking up the permanent marker, Amy placed it in her pocket for later. Ashes blow in the creek bed and blend with the stream, moving down like sand in an hourglass.”

Death Of A Loved OnePassing AwayLosing YourselfMoving On And Letting GoBereavement LossBreaking Up BreakupGrief And Loss RegretFinding Yourselfing
Book:Hourglass in Grace
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“At 23, I took the example Of Moses and Jesus And went 40 days without food. In the end, Moses saw his god's glory, Jesus overcame the devil, I got a divorce... ...At 33, I've learned it's best to receive life As It comes, let go of how you think it will go. Rumi said to die before you die. If you follow his advice, you will live your life alive, And when death comes you will recognize him As someone you've walked with before.”

Life LessonsJesusChangeBuddhismLetting GoLife And DeathFastingImpermanenceRumiLife Changes
Book:Senses
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“At 23, I took the example Of Moses and Jesus And went 40 days without food. In the end, Moses saw his god's glory, Jesus overcame the devil, I got a divorce. Living in a black and white world, Resembling a silent movie, I'd fasted over 120 days that year And it ended in the death of something. Moses wandered a desert, Jesus was crucified. Buddhists call it Samsara, The circle of life and death. We all go through it over and over In our lifetime. I've learned not to cling To the Mountain of Transfiguration Or the Valley of Death. Our life is filled with both and they are needed. At 33, I've learned it's best to receive life As It comes, let go of how you think it will go. Rumi said to die before you die. If you follow his advice, you will live your life alive, And when death comes you will recognize him As someone you've walked with before.”

JesusBuddhismLetting GoDeath And DyingFastingChange ManagementRumi
Book:Senses
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“The early Christians took this story and used it as the backdrop for the doctrine of ‘The Trinity.’ For me, though, this myth has nothing to do with the belief in the father, son, and holy spirit. Rublev’s hospitality icon is important to me because by receiving the three strangers, Abraham and Sarah further their own narrative. The story of the strangers gets intertwined with Abraham and Sarah and they learn something new about themselves. This icon is a reminder to me to be welcoming and hospitable to strangers. It helps me remember that every stranger has a story. I kept this myth in mind, when a group of young Mormons came walking down the street and knocked on my door. I offered for them to come in and eat. Did I become Mormon? No. I did have them over three times to understand them and learn what it was like to be Mormon and to be them personally. Does this mean that you should let every stranger in your house because it says that Abraham did? No, definitely do not do that. Just like I get to choose what to get out of a myth, I get to choose when to apply it. I am admittedly a nerd and like to discuss beliefs and theology. I like to learn about people and different ways to think and live. This comes with an openness to new people in certain situations. Being open and hospitable to new people and ideas can help you understand yourself and other people. It can further your narrative and expand your viewpoints.”

OpennessHospitalityNote To SelfLearning From OthersMormonsOpenmindedHearing OthersUnderstanding Other PeopleAbraham And SarahStories Worth Keeping
Author:Eric Overby
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“Morning Meditation I used to rise early in meditation, As the ancient saints and mystics, Looking for peace, bliss, and ecstasy. Now I awake as the sun rises. I lie beside her, Her head and the tops of her shoulders Revealed from the top of the covers Where we lay. Her face shines, As the sun rolls through the bedroom Curtains and leave her with a mandorla As if she were the subject of iconography. I lay in silence as I meditate on the artistry Of freckles that are perfectly dotted On her face and shoulders. I venerate the delicate curvature Of her lips and nose. Her eyes closed, Veiled by a composition of lashes That shroud the green mystery underneath. As her hair lays dark and graceful Across the pillows in front of me, I lay in adoration, and know there are none like her. Moses was not even shown God's face, Yet she has done me one better.”

Love QuotesSunriseAdorationMeditation QuotesMindfulness PracticeMorning QuotesMindfulness And Meditation
Book:Journey
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“She wrote his name on a piece of paper and lit it with a match. The letters curled as they turned dark and misshapen until she didn’t recognize them. They were figments of something that she had done in her past, lost into some other form of existence.”

Poetry QuotesMoving On And Letting GoLosing SomeoneLetting Go Of The PastDeath And LoveName Of The WindDust To DustBurning LoveAshes To AshesBereavement Loss
Book:Hourglass in Grace
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“Renga with Katie There's no better place Than in each moment with you Traveling through life Regardless of place and time, Or seasons and location, I never look back To a time without you there And wish to return We are each other's constant In an ever changing world On a pilgrimage To no place particular, Destinationless Each moment we're arriving At another sacred place Appreciating, Remembering life before You opened my eyes It's both vivid and soothing Like I'd never had vision Now I see the way, As we travel together The fog is lifted Each sight reveals each other Each step reveals another”

ChangeJourneyHaikuTravelingJapanese LiteraturePilgrimageHaiku On LoveRenga
Book:17: Haiku Poems
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“Most of my opinions are not as informed and well rounded as I would like. I have to be humble enough to accept that I don’t know enough. If my goal is to understand something true, then being challenged is a good thing. We need to be challenged occasionally and to get out of the echo chamber that is your own philosophical group or your own confirmation biased mind. The alternative is to only be able to hear one narrative and for those who oppose that narrative to be silenced, or to have uncivil debate by two polar opposite opinions. Truth is usually found to be hidden in a field of nuance and, as Albert Maysles said, “Tyranny is the deliberate removal of nuance.”

ConversationDiscussionFree SpeechOffendedKnowledge QuotesOpinionsNuanceDebate QuotesEcho ChamberChallenging Perspectives
Book:Legacy
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“A Community in Conversation Last week I went to the Chill Out and Proud festival to sell my books of poetry. It was not my first gay pride festival, but it was Somerset’s. There are a few observations that I had this particular day. My observations have very little to do with morality and more to do with wanting to live in a community that can communicate. My first observation was that my family and I were on high alert and felt a sense of fear for the first time in my life in the town of Somerset. It was not the people attending the festival that left us feeling uneasy, but rather the protestors. My second observation is that there were two groups of what would seem to be opposites, Christians and Neo Nazi white supremacists, standing side by side holding signs and yelling into an otherwise quiet and peaceful group of citizens. I understand everyone’s right to protest and be heard but the method of communicating our differences should be a checkpoint of self reflection. I had a calm conversation with one of the protesters who approached me. I asked him to consider that yelling at people might result in them putting their guards up, increasing the tension, and in turn, people yelling back. It’s a cyclical deterioration where no one hears or understands one another. Anger and fear are the brothers that are born of this kind of relationship. I would say the same to those who yell back at the protesters. We are going to be a community of diverse people who do not think the same or live the same lifestyle, but if we are going to live together peaceably, we need to find a better way to disagree. My last observation is that the protestor also asked me why I was there, did I have a family member who is gay? He stated, “You don’t just come to these things for no reason”. I replied, “Honestly, I did start going and taking my family to gay pride festivals just to be amongst other cultures. It’s good to get to know people who are different from yourself.” The world’s a big place and you may find that you have more in common with people than you think or, in this case, that you know more gay people than you think. I would like to say the same to you. Somerset is a lot more diverse than you think and we have a lot more in common than you think. The only way we will love our neighbor as ourselves is by getting to know our neighbors, even in the midst of our differences. Protesting often times takes a stance of offense; a form of violence that may not always be physical but is a form of violence all the same. Everyone has the right to be heard, but only if they are willing to really listen to others in an attempt to understand. As an atheist, I have never stood outside a church and disrupted their gathering, although I am willing to have a conversation about how my journey brought me here and how you have come to this point. For me to enter a gathering and protest is an offensive move that would cause the people involved to put up walls. It would not be welcomed and I would not do it. It would be a hindrance to us actually knowing and understanding each other. The only way to truly know someone is by being with them, by conversation. We will not agree. There are too many of us and if we agreed on every point of life then that would be another checkpoint for self reflection. I am just asking us to practice a certain amount of hospitality no matter your beliefs about each other, whether gay or straight; whether Christian, Agnostic, or Atheist; whether Democrat, Republican, or Democratic Socialist; whether you’re the protestor or the protested against; in person or on Facebook, let us contemplate mindful listening, empathy, patience, kindness, and the well-being of people who are different than yourself. Eric Overby [email protected]”

CommunityConversationProtestLgbtqUnderstanding OthersKindness CompassionLove Your NeighborPride QuotesDiversity Of ThoughtLetter To The Editor
Author:Eric Overby
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“It is possible to sit still and watch your thoughts arise and then, without grabbing them, watch them disappear. This is the practice of meditation and mindfulness, a practice that you learn to carry with you. The goal isn’t to stop thoughts. Instead, the goal is the practice of seeing them clearly as they come into view and then letting them go. If you can notice anger or anxiety arising at the ground level, in its first inception, then you can easily watch it dissolve. In these instances, it is present sight, not hindsight, that is 20/20.”

Meditation QuotesHindsightNote To SelfSitting StillStillness QuotesMindful QuotesBeing HereWatching Your MindSeeing Clearly Quotes
Author:Eric Overby
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