I know a cure for sadness:
Let your hands touch something that
makes your eyes smile.
I bet there are a hundred objects close by that can do that.
Look at beauty’s gift to us –
her power is so great she enlivens
the earth, the sky, our soul.
Mirabai
These beautiful autumn days touch the heart and the spirit. Simply being out in nature can heal and restore us, without the need for words or explanations or ideas.
We can learn from it as to how to be with someone who is going through a time of difficulty:
I was sad one day and went for a walk; I sat in a field.
A rabbit noticed my sadness and came near
It often does not take more than that to help at times –
to just be close to creatures who are so full of knowing
so full of love, that they don’t
chat
they just gaze with their marvellous understanding.
John of the Cross
Life’s energy is never static. It is as shifting, fluid, changing as the weather. How we relate to this dynamic flow of energy is important. We can learn to relax with it, recognizing it as our basic ground, as a natural part of life; Or the feeling of uncertainty, of nothing to hold on to, can cause us to panic, and instantly a chain reaction begins.
We panic, we get hooked, and then our habits take over and we think and act in a very predictable way. The source of our fear is the unfilfillable longing for a lasting certainty and security, for something solid to hold on to. Unconsciously we expect that if we could just get a better job, a better partner, a better something, then our lives would run smoothly. We get caught up in a fearful, narrow holding pattern of avoiding any difficulty and continually seeking comfort.
Pema Chodron, Taking the Leap
