Every morning I walk like this around
the pond, thinking: if the doors of my heart
ever close, I am as good as dead.
Mary Oliver, The Book of Time
keep the heart open
Tag: Awareness
Meeting life
When the mind is calm and spacious, we see things more clearly. Instead of being caught in habitual reactions, we have the freedom to pause, to breathe, and to choose how we respond. That space between stimulus and response is where wisdom arises. It’s where we remember that we don’t have to be ruled by every passing thought or emotion. In that spaciousness, kindness and clarity can emerge, and we can meet life with greater ease.
Sylvia Boorstein
Tensed
We don’t suffer because of life’s changes.
We suffer because we demand that life be a solid block of happiness.
The problem isn’t the wave; it’s our grip on the boat
Ajahn Sucitto, dharma talk, On Resistence
Defended
Grace is the word for what it takes to lay down your armour.
To stop protecting yourself long enough to be touched by something beyond your own strategies
Padraig O’Tuama, In the Shelter: Finding a Home in the World
I was there
We often regret the past because we weren’t truly present for it.
The antidote is to live each moment so fully that, even if it’s painful, we can say, ‘I was there. I felt it all.’
Héctor García & Francesc Miralles, Ichigo Ichie: The Art of Making the Most of Every Moment
our natural state of ease
There is a deep difference between inactivity and rest. Inactivity is often filled with mental chatter and tension. True rest is a mindful ‘non-doing.’ It is the art of releasing the need to control, to achieve, and to manage every moment. It is in these moments of sincere letting go that we truly restore ourselves and come back to our natural state of ease.
Joseph Emet, Buddha’s Book of Happiness: Teachings for Achieving Lasting Peace, Joy, and Fearlessness
Mindfulbalance 