Many years later, when Kevin was in his backyard with his children, his daughter Ava cried out, “Dad! Josie is cheating at Tag!”
Kevin said just one thing.
“Is that so?”
*Kevin the Complainer
eckhart tolle
Current State of Humanity
“Complaining is one of the ego’s favorite strategies for strengthening itself. Every complaint is a little story the mind makes up that you completely believe in. Whether you complain aloud or only in thought makes no difference.”
Eckhart Tolle
What Complaining is
“See if you can catch yourself complaining, in either speech or thought, about a situation you find yourself in, what other people do or say, your surroundings, your life situation, even the weather. To complain is always non-acceptance of what is. It invariably carries an unconscious negative charge.”
Eckhart Tolle
Presence = Peace
“You cannot be both unhappy and fully present in the Now.” – Eckhart Tolle
Getting it Right
“If you get the inside right, the outside will fall into place.” Eckhart Tolle
Page 15*
“Well, yeah. I’m right…and they are…wrong.”
Kevin felt something in his chameleon gut. It all felt untrue.
Lily just kept eating.
“OK, maybe they’re not completely at fault. Maybe I get hot-headed and too passionate.”
Lily continued to look into his eyes, listening to him.
There was no judgment, anger or fear in her eyes. She was listening to him, completely.
*From my next book, Kevin the Complainer
Page Seven (maybe)*
At last! Recess.
Minji kicked the ball and ran for cover. Carlos got the ball and kicked it toward Kevin. But Kevin couldn’t catch the ball, which meant he was “out.”
“Let’s start over! That was unfair!” Kevin cried out.
Minji and Carlos shot each other a look.
“You know very well everything was fair, Kevin.” Minji took the ball to continue the game.
“Yeah, you’re out,” Carlos added.
“Oh yeah?” Kevin asked.
“Yes,” The other two replied.
*My book-in-progress (Kevin the Complainer)
When I asked the 16-year-old daughter what she thought of this illustration, she said:
“It looks like the two cats are going to eat the chameleon.”
Pleasure vs. Joy
“Pleasure is always derived from something outside you, whereas joy arises from within.”
Eckhart Tolle
Skipping
“If you had everything in the material world (ambition, power, money), would that bring you happiness?
Go back in time when you got something you really wanted. Were you happy? How long did it last?
You can be happy without anything achieved through ambition. So why not skip that step and just be joyous?”
-Byron Katie
Illustration #3
Holding myself accountable for my illustrations on my second self-published book (Kevin the Complainer). Here’s Lily, eating a carrot while Kevin complains.
Kismet 