“I see a fearless generosity in the flowers and trees, in the way birds sing out at dawn, in the steady drumming of the rain. As I grew older and found I had things to protect, I forgot. I completely forgot that I had always had enough in the first place. Now I am trying to learn this once again—total abundance, nothing begrudged.”
~ Sallie Tisdale
gratitude
grief…
stay open ~ Enso…
this ~ Enso…
this shared Life…
“Destiny itself is like a wonderful wide tapestry in which every thread is guided by an unspeakably tender hand, placed beside another thread, and held and carried by a hundred others.”
~ Rainer Maria Rilke
~ Rainer Maria Rilke
what have i done that i should wake with
breath filling my lungs?
what have i done that i should feel the
warm sun kiss my back,
the cool breeze tease across
my face?
what have i done that i my feet should
walk upon this earth and
feel its strong embrace,
holding each step?
what have i done to hear the
songs of birds or
see the dedicated work of
bees and ants?
to find comfort in
music?
to dream in
art?
what have i done to know friendship and
love
LOVE
in the deepest places of my heart, that
it has no choice but
to sing its song to every cell in
this body
THIS BODY
that too has been
given,
this body
THIS BODY
made of so many other little bodies in
this shared Life?
YES
this shared Life.
nothing.
it is all Gift.
~j
November 28, 2013
Thanksgiving & Hanukkah
choose to cherish…
“Letting go is a central theme in spiritual practice, As we see that preciousness and brevity of life.”
~ Jack Kornfield
with the passing of time and with age i have come to understand that this movement within us to not let go, to hold on, is simply our mind misunderstanding the emotion of our heart. the truth resides in our heart. our heart knows that all things pass. and our hearts know that the answer to this uncomfortable truth is not to hold on, but to “cherish”.
we cannot avoid illness, age, or death forever. this may be the last day at our job. this may be the last conversation with a friend or the last kiss with our love. but we can choose with wisdom and with courage to trust, to let go, and to cherish. when we cherish, by being fully present with a grateful heart, we honor our heart, our love, this earth, our friends and partners, and in doing so we honor Life.
namaste
~ j
we live as if…
surely in our anger, in our aggression, in our bitterness and despair we have forgotten that not even our next breath is guaranteed. we live as if our words are empty and actions can be undone. we live as if we have an infinite number of tomorrows when all the while death is standing on the other side of the door. everything counts, every moment is sacred. live with gratitude, joy, kindness, compassion, peace, and wisdom – for these are love.
~ j
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
a bowl of mac ‘n cheese…
a bowl of mac ‘n cheese…
i do love mac ‘n cheese. it is a comfort food, for sure, and one reason why i still cannot consider myself vegan. i don’t eat it often and i am not a big fan of dairy, but it does find its way to my table every once in a while.
i have been trying to be more mindful when eating, taking notice and taking time, letting each bite reveal a little bit of life’s mystery as my body gains some nourishment. so, tonight with my mac ‘n cheese before me, i embarked to find awareness.
the first thought was, not surprisingly, “this is just a bowl of mac ‘n cheese.” followed by, “AND it looks delicious – i’m hungry!”
i set out anyway…looking deeply at the pasta i coould see that it is made of unleavened dough of wheat probably, mixed with some flour, water, and egg. looking deeper into those ingredients i could see that the wheat had to be grown, in a field where it received sunlight and water, without which it couldn’t survive. it grew out of soil that houses insects who burrow oxygenating and making it the perfect place for this wheat to grow. and then there is the farmer who owns the land and the workers of the land who assist in the farming. this doesn’t even address of course the eggs which came from chickens who also need sun and water and ranchers. chickens, mind you, that eat grain and feed that also need the right environment and nutrients to grow and be farmed – farmed using equipment that some genius developed, perhaps through trial and error and the help of other people. and then there is also the cow who produced the milk that with assistance and ingenuity has become cheese…oh, yes – the cow also requires sun and water and feed, etc. etc. etc.
looking deeply, i can also see that someone created this popular dish at some point and many others have contributed to the recipe that sat before me, before i ate it…out of a bowl made in China…you get the picture.
all of this and the staff at Sprouts where it was purchased by my sister with money that was given for jobs that i wouldn’t have or she wouldn’t have if it weren’t for people wanting our work.
so what i came to realize on a heart level, welling with gratitude, was what i have known on an intellectual level but hadn’t felt so deeply…this bowl didn’t hold just mac n’ cheese within it’s curved walls, it contained the sun, the rain, sacrifice, hard work, ingenuity and generosity…indeed, it contained the entire world.
~ j
The Metta Garden 