Traveling
Light
“Imagine
yourself on a long journey through unexplored territory. You climb to
the peak of a mountain, where you enjoy a fantastic view. Still, you
leave the peak to continue your journey through valleys, deserts, and
swamplands. Each place you find is unique. In order to explore this
fascinating world, you must travel light—free of comparisons and
attachments to past events. This is faith: trust in the unfolding
process of our lives.”
Joseph
Goldstein/Susan Salzberg (Insight Meditation)
Ram
Dass said it best, “Be here now.” We were talking about this in
yesterday's spirituality group; about how difficult it is to to carry
the gifts of meditation and prayer into the world. It's one thing to
feel at peace in the safety of your own room, in the midst of
reverence, in the silence of meditation or prayer. Then you hit the
streets, and that other slice of life begins—the chaotic one, the
one packed with drama, and death and unfolding intrigue. No one said
it would be easy.
We
want to stay on the mountain top, where the view is clear and far
reaching, where things are obvious, and plain and beautiful. It's
hard to see where you're going in a swamp, and impossible to see what
you might step on or stir up. But we don't make our experience easier
by yearning for the mountain view. We need all our faculties for
navigating the swamp, or the desert.
We
also need our full attention in every moment in order to take in the
depth, and breadth and sweep of meaning in even the simplest things.
Hanging a painting on a wall is meant not simply to beautify a room,
but is also a sign that we are making it home. Planting flowers in a
pot is meant to bring color and fragrance into our environment, and
is also an act of faith. It connects us to Earth, to growth, to the
future.
Letting
go of what is past in order to live fully in the present assures us
that we will not miss our now. My sons are fond of telling stories
from their childhood when we're all together. Sometimes, I have no
recollection of the events at all. I missed them because I was too
absorbed by the past, or anxious about the future, to be in the
present. I hope you don't make the same mistakes I did.
Whether
you're on the mountain peak, in the desert, or the swamp, or
simply treading the familiar streets of life, be here now. Travel
light. Life's journey is worth living every minute. And exploration
takes full presence of mind.
In
the Spirit,
Jane
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