More on butterflies and lightness in dealing with the daily events, or more precisely, the thoughts they give rise to :
For years and years I struggled
just to love my life. And then
the butterfly
rose, weightless, in the wind.
“don’t love your life
too much,” it said,
and vanished into the world.
Mary Oliver, One or Two Things
photo andre engels
Some days or weeks we work with limited vision. The true meaning is hidden. We rely on inner values and on the commitment we have made.
Bringing in a full harvest from human effort has always been difficult, because what is worth bringing in is almost always hidden from us: think of the hard, protected kernel of the wheat amidst a waving sea of gold, or the the walnut nestled in its dense, unyielding skin of green and white, think of how common a much-wanted, simple understanding is needed, hidden by our complex thoughts; or the attempt to fully forgive when even forgiving a little seems to be the last thing we want to do; and lastly, the wish to love and to be loved, when loving is what we are most afraid to do.
David Whyte, Letters from the House
We spend all our energy and waste our lives trying to re-create zones of safety, which are always falling apart. That’s the essence of samsara – the cycle of suffering that comes from continuing to seek happiness in all the wrong places.
Pema Chodron, Comfortable with Uncertainty: 108 Ways Teachings on Cultivating Fearlessness and Compassion
When you allow for uncertainty, then you don’t always have to find solutions. You can live through a problem until it’s not a problem anymore. Instead of seeing things as problems, you see the life you are living. You can live your way into the answers. This is different from standing outside of your life and throwing stones at your problems from a safe distance.
John Tarrant, Why Play with Koans?
There is great psychological wisdom in the ancient texts as to how to deal with the strong emotions stirred up by challenges we face every day. Being able to see, without making it a story about ourselves:
You shouldn’t chase after the past, and don’t place expectations on the future.
The past no longer is. The future has not yet come.
Whatever is present in life as it is in the very here and now
you clearly see, right there, right there.
Not taken in. You dwell in stability and freedom
That’s how you develop the heart.
The Buddha, Bhaddekaratta Sutta, Majjhima Nikaya No.131.
We do not have to have everything sorted out in our lives for them to be complete and us to be happy.
A lot of disappointed people have been left
standing on the street corner
waiting for the bus marked Perfection
Donald Kennedy
photo kai hendry
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