We have lived,
not in proportion to the number of years that we have spent on the earth,
but in proportion as we have enjoyed
Henry David Thoreau, Journals
Category: Be fully present
The end of the year: Allowing things move on
We may think that letting go means not having, or getting rid of something; but actually we can just allow it to go, rather than holding on to it or trying to throw it away. Sometimes just accepting and recognising is enough. It is a way of letting go of the aversion, the negativity. Like every other condition that we experience: if it arises, it will cease. And usually it ceases much more quickly if we can really let it go. Sometimes people use the expression ‘just letting be’.
Ajahn Candasiri, Simple Kindness
Just one obligation
We are born with only one obligation – to be completely who we are. Yet how much of our time is spent comparing ourselves to others, dead and alive? This is encouraged as necessary in the pursuit of excellence. Yet a flower in its excellence does not yearn to be a fish, and a fish in its unmanaged elegance does not long to be a tiger. But we humans find ourselves always falling into the dream of another life. Or we secretly aspire to the fortune or fame of people we don’t really know. When feeling badly about ourselves, we often try on other skins rather than understand and care for our own. Yet when we compare ourselves to others, we see neither ourselves nor those we look up to. We only experience the tension of comparing, as if there is only one ounce of being to feed all our hungers.
Mark Nepo, The Book Of Awakening
At ease where we are…
When we learn to be where we are, we gain perspective on life. Yesterday loses its hold on us and tomorrow loses its allure. Where we are becomes the ground of our salvation, the reason for our joy and the acme of our salvation…..Mindfulness calms the storms of life and gives them meaning. [It] makes the present, present and gives us back the energy that endless worry and countless calculation drain. It concentrates what has become scattered and brings us home to ourselves.
Joan Chittister, Wisdom Distilled from the Daily
Being with, giving attention
What are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them. Psalm 4
Mindfulness is love that resists distraction. It is a staunch refusal to fall into absentmindedness. It is focused, sustained attention toward the beloved. In this way, mindfulness seems less tied to the cognitive functions of the mind and closer to what we call an act of will. Mindfulness is choosing to cherish and then choosing – again and again – never to back away from that initial decision. Devoted spouses, dedicated friends, caring parents are all mindful of the ones they love. Above all else, God is mindful of humanity. On the basis of this primal act of divine will, we can be assured that God’s attention never wavers.
Mark Ralls, Living by the Word: Mindful
….in the ordinary moments of this life.
Today’s society encourages the idea that our lives need to be full of activity and excitement for them to be significant. However, today’s celebration reminds us that it is in the ordinary that the deepest meaning can be found, in the small hidden village not the vibrant main city, in the ordinary gestures now not the special once-off occasions sometime somewhere else. Our lives too are made up of moments, giving us opportunities for care and attention here and now, in the reality of our lives, not in some future imagined moment.
The more complicated our lives are, the more important it is to live in the present moment — otherwise we’ll miss much of our lives. Mindful parenting is about moment-to-moment, open-hearted and non-judgmental attention. It’s about seeing our children as they are, not as we want them to be. It means you become less attached to outcomes and more mindful of what’s unfolding in your life. As a parent, you can’t withdraw to a cave to meditate. It’s all about now. When you tune into the breath and sensations in the body, you are stepping outside of time. Moment-to-moment, non-judgmental awareness cultivated by paying attention — we are all capable of this. Mindfulness actually saves us a tremendous amount of time because we don’t go down so many dead ends with our thoughts. It doesn’t take any more time to be more mindful. It’s not a philosophy, it’s a practice. You don’t have to get less busy or fix anything. Simply reclaim your moments by showing up for them. The more “speedy” your life is, the more oxygen this practice gives you.
Jon Kabat Zinn
