My husband has returned to work after some time off and I am grateful to be here ... in this place of nest ... able to take some time to reflect and be.
Taking time to sit and ponder, to some of us, might feel like wasting time. This morning my experience of contemplation has brought great riches. One of which is the awareness of how often I simply launch into my day with the fervor of an athlete, and how I often avoid taking morning time to truly reflect—to sit and allow thoughts to come and go. To follow their savory breadcrumbs and go where I am taken. To rest into pure experience ...
Otherwise it is DO, DO, DO. Get things done, checked off the list, back to work and routine so one feels productive. A good contributor, a wise bread winner, someone who is doing something important with her life. Ah, how silly it all can seem when you take the time to be with yourself and sit.
And when I do give myself permission to do just that I remember that this is the "real life." It's not about accomplishing or achieving. Not even about learning and growing. But about be-ing.
And be-ing with gentleness toward myself and my thoughts which can be oh, so reprimanding and "shoulding."
To get to this gentle place (ironically) required some discipline. I did not get here by accident this morning. I had to make my way here through a minefield of computer, messages, potential noise and distraction, deadlines. I had to watch where I placed my mind and feet. To choose wisely what to engage or these precious moments that are now here and serving as my field of awareness would have lost out to "productiveness."
These are the steps I took:
No computer.
Gentle, insightful reading.
Quiet.
Music.
Candle.
Breath.
Gratitude.
Noticing, letting go of struggle, surrender.
Such a beautiful process and one that always opens me to so much more than I ever hope to receive. And, yet, why is there resistance to do this every single day? Why is it that some mornings are harder to "manage the minefield" than others?
Today it was easy to slide into Presence in this way. Tomorrow it might be a tooth and nail fight with my ego to let go into Love.
Nothing else to do, no other way to approach it, than to be gentle with one's self ... notice ... name ... remember ... turn toward ... choose ... navigate thoughts and feelings and habits with steady calm.
Do not resist.
What we resist persists. Let it go and it flows.
Contentment is then ours.
Today, I wish you flow. To go where Love and moment-to-moment experience take you. To give yourself permission to be with yourself as kindly and gently as you would another.
May it be so for you. May it be so for all beings.
~~~~~
Note: Over the weekend I read this most wonderful article: Jon Kabat-Zinn's wise advice for "news junkies." If you are someone who spends a good amount of time reading the news or watching TV news, take heed of this important message.
He says, "That's the word that's often used; we consume the news, we eat it up. And it often consumes us ... "
Here's how to break free of what could be an unhealthy news habit with Kabat-Zinn's help, including a Guided Meditation. Wonderful!
Read more
~~~~~
"What To Do When You're Feeling Blue:
30 Days of Insights and Practices to Change the "Hue" of Your Life"
30 Days of Insights and Practices to Change the "Hue" of Your Life"
Begin anytime, a self-paced class, delivered daily, guaranteed to help you rise above melancholy and embrace gladness—no matter what is happening in your life!
2 comments:
Ahhhhh ... I'm on vacation this week and have lists of things I Simply Must Get Done. Your reminder comes at a good time. I will work hard today and tomorrow and on Friday, I will do just as a you say, perhaps ride my bike down to the beach and sit on the sand just to watch the waves move in and out, in and out ...
Rose, I am very glad to hear you are vacationing. It sounds like you really deserve it! Yes, find the flow and go with it so that you honor what your body/mind needs. All those lists can be quite wearying!
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