To appreciate the simplicity of the moment, it is easier if I can have unhurried awareness.
No pressing issues about which to think, or pressing time tables to meet make it easier to be more present to the moment.
There are times where despite the busyness of life I am grabbed by the moment, however for me, an unhurried awareness helps support this type of appreciation.
While cleaning out the recycling in the kitchen sink last week,
the bottle cap from a milk carton
slipped out of my hands and flew across the floor . . .
as I was in the middle of my work
I let it go for now,
and finished tidying up,
promptly forgetting about the bottle cap.
Later that evening
I heard skimming sounds and soft plunks
coming from the dining room
and went to see what was afoot,
as Sophie and Phoebe both have a penchant for finding trouble.
There they were,
batting the bottle cap across the room and back,
while half a dozen of more store bought toys lay scattered about
unplayed with since the last time I swept the floor.
They were having such a happy time
that they had even forgotten that they don’t usually think much of each other.
These small beings
and ones who have lived with me before,
have taught me more than I learned in Sunday school as a child . . .
they remind me daily
to appreciate the little things . . .
‘the simplicity of a given moment.’
They bring beauty and grace to any given moment . . .
they find more pleasure in the blue plastic milk jug cap
than in all the feathered toys with bells and whistles.
Rolling in the grass is pure joy,
a pill thrust down their throats is momentary torture . . .
they devour their ‘Li’l Friskies voraciously
and turn their noses up at offerings from Thanksgiving dinner.
They bathe in sunbeams cast upon the floor
and all their worries disappear.
Do they even have worries?
They have taught me to make the best of what I have . . .
Like the Japanese cup gardens at Innisfree,
they frame their moments
as little jewels in time
with no planning and no intent . . .
it comes to them instinctively
and I am attempting to learn this way of seeing and being as well.
I think I’m getting pretty good at it,
but there is still much to learn.
ps. I read Antoinette’s post earlier
and believe that she made a cup garden of a moment
when she said she was making tea to serve to Mara.
“. . . . batting the bottle cap across the room and back, while a half dozen or more store bought toys lay scattered about . . . . ” reminds me of our grandson Emerick. When he was here in early June he had a particular stick he was fond of. His folks told him to leave it and I assured him I would put it up and save it for him. When he was here end of July, after hello Papa, where is my stick? The store bought toys in the house and in their car were going to be lonely. Thank you for jogging a nice memory, dear Sparrow.
Quotes like the daily quote today from Philip Gulley support me. At this time in my daily life, I need these reminders.
“Freed from the burden of unbridled desires, we can enjoy what we have, celebrate what we’ve attained, and appreciate the familiar.”
I am having an episode of PTSD, which feels like someone is squeezing me from the inside. My brain is unplugged from most of the practices I cultivate daily, it goes into a stuck place of fragments and terror. The nature of this PTSD is frozen, inside I am panicked but unable to move. The moment feels intolerable. I can’t conjure the usual self-compassion, my faculties are seized up.
Fortunately I’ve spent enough time witnessing myself in this state that I can gently guide my body to move. I know that PTSD is episodic even though it feels forever in the moment. There is good help that I can get soon. With movement, the freeze will also thaw, even if it’s on its own timeline. The ability to witness and hope wrap a difficult moment in reassurance.
Dear Drea, You have been through so much
with the passing of your friend.
You did so much for her.
And now you are going through this PTSD.
I hope you are having some moments of calm,
and that you can get some rest.
Wishing you much peace and joy, my friend.
We’re here to encourage however we can. The body keeps the score. Fortunately it will also keep breathing you (a line from a yoga nidra track I listen to on Insight Timer: Feel what it is like being breathed).
I suffer from this too,
dear Drea . . .
you have described it so well
that it feels visceral in my belly.
I sit with you in the here and now . . .
breathing in and breathing out
until you return to yourself
and know once again
that all is well . . .
all will be well
with love . . . . ♥
Thank you Sparrow. I wish neither of us suffered from this. In my dark humor moments I call it “vapor lock” but it really is a hard, hard thing to have, even with the most diligent healing and help. Luckily my episodes have grown shorter with practice, education, and trauma therapy. I remember having them for weeks, and many sufferers have them frequently, which explains a lot of addictions. Today I’m back to myself, and deeply grateful. Onwards. Wishing you few episodes and much joy, dear Sparrow.
This practice supports me. Taking some time in the morning like this is a good way to start my day and a reminder for the rest of the day.
It seems like so many things, being present to experience even the simplest things, requires a constant coming back. Again and again.
I drift off, into the future and the past, and come back the present. I take a breath and I exhale.
Some moments are so precious and so easily gone. Feeling connected connects me with the simplicity of a given moment. What seems so easy for most of you still seems to be an almost impossible state to enter into for me, which has ruined so many opportunities to possibly open a door to reconnect with people I hold dear. I am afraid that this might have happened again. Please pray for an outcome for peace for all concerned. Sending Love to all.
Thank you all dearly, dear Drea, Charlie, Sparrow, Mary, Joseph and Robin, for your loving kind and encouraging replies. So many lights in dark times, thank you! It helps a lot to stay centered and be present with faith that it will be as it will be best for all concerned. 🙏❤️🙏
I pray for a peaceful outcome for you, dear Ose,
and for those with whom you wish to reconnect.
Please be especially kind and gentle to yourself at this time.
Sending you much love, my friend.
The door,
dear Ose,
doesn’t have to remain closed . . .
you hold enough Love in your heart
that I believe you can overcome almost anything
with that Love . . . ♥
I am thinking of you, Ose, and sending positive energy.
I think what we are doing is anything but easy. Being present is rare. Most of us have spent our whole lives actively trying not to be present. Fear, shame, and embarrassment, are powerful emotions and there are so many easily accessible ways to avoid them. I know that when I stopped resisting and finally surrendered, things started to open up for me.
The universe supports me 24/7 – I just forget that when I’m lost in my world. The breath is a good anchor to relaxing the body/mind and then I can see that -oh yes, I’m lost in thought illusion. I can come back and let go over and over 🌱💯🙌.
Freed from the burden of unbridled desires, we can enjoy what we have, celebrate what we’ve attained, and appreciate the familiar
These thoughts are often pregnant with wants, longing, greed, unfulfilled expectations- desires . So I appreciate seeing today’s quote. Helps me to see my mind world and let go and attend to the familiar- extraordinary- extra – ordinary life that is right here and now.
Somatic training is also helping me to slow down and look at what’s coming up in body in the way of this longing, loneliness or anxiety feelings. They are the ones that are so uncomfortable and unsettling. They make me want to run away and make my self “busy” to not have to face them ! I don’t want to dig deeper into the dirt of these pictures of suffering. But now I see what I have swept 🧹 underneath the rug is starting to smell ! If I don’t want to see more of these pain feelings I must face what is here and allow it to come up. Face the monster 👹. Go to the places that scare me when they are knocking at the door . The Buddha called it Mara- hello Marra I see you . Sit down and have a cup of tea . What do you want from me ?
I was a little girl. Very young and scared and she wants my attention and love . The love we all long for.
Sorry guys this became so long but this is what is showing up now . And because we have this space and I am safe here I’ll make the cup of tea now and sit with this deep dark place . I think I finally am able to cry or do whatever it takes to face the ghosts . Thank
You so much universe.
Ditto to your first sentence- And your comment the universe supports me I just forget that when I’m lost in my world-
This reminded me of lyrics to a song, went something. Like this… I wanted it to last, but life got in the way…
Anyway, that is our challenge isn’t it-to marry that awareness to our life and they become one, not separate?
We are not separate whatsoever. But my human mind can’t and doesn’t know this . This is not a theory or something to learn. We have to eliminate the human mind which is like a camera and makes copies of the world . We live inside our pictures or picture world overlapping Truth . This is our “sin” if you understand. Our false self must “die” . There is no self whatsoever it’s an illusion.
Happy meditation! 🌱💯🙌
Thank you Carol Ann, our thoughts are not truth . They are illusions and letting them go allows us freedom. Going deeper now in meditation is helping me to uproot more and see the falseness head on. It’s breaking down the habits and letting them go. Today has been great but by no means easy . Wending the human mind is dirty work but so worth while. Baby steps each day ! Thank you 🙏
Drea , yes not runking to be productive or go to the gym or whatever’s this over doing self wants to do so that it can push it under the rug is bs . I’m so good at over doing and running away all in the name of not having to look at what makes it so hard to be alone or just not look for someone to fill the space. This is a lot but it’s ok for it to come up now because I have the ability due to the universe to know I’m safe here at home. There is nowhere to run and I don’t watch tv lol 😂 so I’m not able to bing watch Netflix- but it doesn’t matter what our poison ☠️ is it’s just a way of trying to hush the crying baby inside . I’m so fortunate and blessed . Thank you 🙏
I recently rediscovered a picture of my mom when I was looking through a photo album. This picture was taken several weeks before she died of cancer. She is skinny, her face is pale, she is wearing a scarf on her head because she has no hair. But her eyes are absolutely radiant and alive, filled with both joy and sadness. It is clear that she is so aware in this picture that her moments left are limited. This past week, I have been looking at this picture (along with some pictures of when she was healthy) every morning, and remembering that my moments (and all of our moments) are also limited. I also have been thanking her for giving me the gift of life and the gift of love as she and my dad raised me and my brother. This has supported me in my desire and ability to appreciate the gift of each moment.
Wow, that’s pretty intense, Elizabeth, looking at these pictures of your Mom, and remembering that your moments on this earth (like mine) are limited. Wishing you peace and joy as you reflect
The inner peace that comes from letting go of regrets over lost precious moments, and the frustration caused by unwanted situations, helps me enjoy this time of simplicity. May you all find peace in challenging moments.
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To appreciate the simplicity of the moment, it is easier if I can have unhurried awareness.
No pressing issues about which to think, or pressing time tables to meet make it easier to be more present to the moment.
There are times where despite the busyness of life I am grabbed by the moment, however for me, an unhurried awareness helps support this type of appreciation.
This site and so many wonderful reflections, my faith as well
Experience, and a perspective shaped/informed by gratefulness
While cleaning out the recycling in the kitchen sink last week,
the bottle cap from a milk carton
slipped out of my hands and flew across the floor . . .
as I was in the middle of my work
I let it go for now,
and finished tidying up,
promptly forgetting about the bottle cap.
Later that evening
I heard skimming sounds and soft plunks
coming from the dining room
and went to see what was afoot,
as Sophie and Phoebe both have a penchant for finding trouble.
There they were,
batting the bottle cap across the room and back,
while half a dozen of more store bought toys lay scattered about
unplayed with since the last time I swept the floor.
They were having such a happy time
that they had even forgotten that they don’t usually think much of each other.
These small beings
and ones who have lived with me before,
have taught me more than I learned in Sunday school as a child . . .
they remind me daily
to appreciate the little things . . .
‘the simplicity of a given moment.’
They bring beauty and grace to any given moment . . .
they find more pleasure in the blue plastic milk jug cap
than in all the feathered toys with bells and whistles.
Rolling in the grass is pure joy,
a pill thrust down their throats is momentary torture . . .
they devour their ‘Li’l Friskies voraciously
and turn their noses up at offerings from Thanksgiving dinner.
They bathe in sunbeams cast upon the floor
and all their worries disappear.
Do they even have worries?
They have taught me to make the best of what I have . . .
Like the Japanese cup gardens at Innisfree,
they frame their moments
as little jewels in time
with no planning and no intent . . .
it comes to them instinctively
and I am attempting to learn this way of seeing and being as well.
I think I’m getting pretty good at it,
but there is still much to learn.
ps. I read Antoinette’s post earlier
and believe that she made a cup garden of a moment
when she said she was making tea to serve to Mara.
“. . . . batting the bottle cap across the room and back, while a half dozen or more store bought toys lay scattered about . . . . ” reminds me of our grandson Emerick. When he was here in early June he had a particular stick he was fond of. His folks told him to leave it and I assured him I would put it up and save it for him. When he was here end of July, after hello Papa, where is my stick? The store bought toys in the house and in their car were going to be lonely. Thank you for jogging a nice memory, dear Sparrow.
🙂
Bubble wrap, pots and pans, lids and plastic containers and cardboard boxes were our boys favorite.
Cardboard boxes are a big favorite here too,
dear Yram . ❣️
♥, dear Joseph . . .
children know things. 🙂
Quotes like the daily quote today from Philip Gulley support me. At this time in my daily life, I need these reminders.
“Freed from the burden of unbridled desires, we can enjoy what we have, celebrate what we’ve attained, and appreciate the familiar.”
I love that quote too, Carol Ann
I am having an episode of PTSD, which feels like someone is squeezing me from the inside. My brain is unplugged from most of the practices I cultivate daily, it goes into a stuck place of fragments and terror. The nature of this PTSD is frozen, inside I am panicked but unable to move. The moment feels intolerable. I can’t conjure the usual self-compassion, my faculties are seized up.
Fortunately I’ve spent enough time witnessing myself in this state that I can gently guide my body to move. I know that PTSD is episodic even though it feels forever in the moment. There is good help that I can get soon. With movement, the freeze will also thaw, even if it’s on its own timeline. The ability to witness and hope wrap a difficult moment in reassurance.
I surround you with peace and gentleness.
Thank you deeply, Yram.
Loving kindness, peace and calmness to you Drea.
Thank you so much Michele.
I have seen this Drea in one I loved. May you continue to move through it, and find the help you desire.
Thank you Cathie, luckily these episodes have become shorter and shorter with help. Moving through it much better today.
Dear Drea, You have been through so much
with the passing of your friend.
You did so much for her.
And now you are going through this PTSD.
I hope you are having some moments of calm,
and that you can get some rest.
Wishing you much peace and joy, my friend.
Thank you Mary. I appreciate your support. Getting better today, and looking forward to some rest.
May you be well, may all be well. Loving Kindness your way Drea.
Thank you dear Joseph.
We’re here to encourage however we can. The body keeps the score. Fortunately it will also keep breathing you (a line from a yoga nidra track I listen to on Insight Timer: Feel what it is like being breathed).
It will keeping breathing me, good line Barb. The breath can really tell the story of the body.
We are here to support you dear Drea. Sending love and light your way ~ Hugs
Thank you Robin Ann, I feel the love and deeply appreciate it.
Oh Drea, my heart goes out to you in this difficult moment.
Thank you Christina ❤️
I’m a firm believer that we can send loving energy over the miles. Surrounding you with loving energy as I hum and gently sing old hymns.
Thank you Carol. I felt the love!
I suffer from this too,
dear Drea . . .
you have described it so well
that it feels visceral in my belly.
I sit with you in the here and now . . .
breathing in and breathing out
until you return to yourself
and know once again
that all is well . . .
all will be well
with love . . . . ♥
Thank you Sparrow. I wish neither of us suffered from this. In my dark humor moments I call it “vapor lock” but it really is a hard, hard thing to have, even with the most diligent healing and help. Luckily my episodes have grown shorter with practice, education, and trauma therapy. I remember having them for weeks, and many sufferers have them frequently, which explains a lot of addictions. Today I’m back to myself, and deeply grateful. Onwards. Wishing you few episodes and much joy, dear Sparrow.
Thank you,
dear Drea . . . 🙏
We are with you in this moment, Drea 🙏
Thank you so much Charlie.
This practice supports me. Taking some time in the morning like this is a good way to start my day and a reminder for the rest of the day.
It seems like so many things, being present to experience even the simplest things, requires a constant coming back. Again and again.
I drift off, into the future and the past, and come back the present. I take a breath and I exhale.
your reflection resonates with me, thank you.
It’s good practice,
dear Charlie . . .
I am soothed by its familiarity. ♥
Amen, dear Charlie.
So much coming back to presence, again and again. Thank you Charlie.
Some moments are so precious and so easily gone. Feeling connected connects me with the simplicity of a given moment. What seems so easy for most of you still seems to be an almost impossible state to enter into for me, which has ruined so many opportunities to possibly open a door to reconnect with people I hold dear. I am afraid that this might have happened again. Please pray for an outcome for peace for all concerned. Sending Love to all.
Wishing peace for all concerned for you dear Ose.
Thank you all dearly, dear Drea, Charlie, Sparrow, Mary, Joseph and Robin, for your loving kind and encouraging replies. So many lights in dark times, thank you! It helps a lot to stay centered and be present with faith that it will be as it will be best for all concerned. 🙏❤️🙏
I pray for a peaceful outcome for you, dear Ose,
and for those with whom you wish to reconnect.
Please be especially kind and gentle to yourself at this time.
Sending you much love, my friend.
Love, Kindness and Peace to you dear, Ose.
Thinking of you during your current struggles- sending peaceful moments
The door,
dear Ose,
doesn’t have to remain closed . . .
you hold enough Love in your heart
that I believe you can overcome almost anything
with that Love . . . ♥
I am thinking of you, Ose, and sending positive energy.
I think what we are doing is anything but easy. Being present is rare. Most of us have spent our whole lives actively trying not to be present. Fear, shame, and embarrassment, are powerful emotions and there are so many easily accessible ways to avoid them. I know that when I stopped resisting and finally surrendered, things started to open up for me.
Thank you, dear Charlie.❤️
Wishing everyone a peaceful outcome, Ose. I hope that the opportunity is not ruined, I hope there are opportunities for repair.
Thank you, dear Drea! ❤️
The universe supports me 24/7 – I just forget that when I’m lost in my world. The breath is a good anchor to relaxing the body/mind and then I can see that -oh yes, I’m lost in thought illusion. I can come back and let go over and over 🌱💯🙌.
Freed from the burden of unbridled desires, we can enjoy what we have, celebrate what we’ve attained, and appreciate the familiar
These thoughts are often pregnant with wants, longing, greed, unfulfilled expectations- desires . So I appreciate seeing today’s quote. Helps me to see my mind world and let go and attend to the familiar- extraordinary- extra – ordinary life that is right here and now.
Somatic training is also helping me to slow down and look at what’s coming up in body in the way of this longing, loneliness or anxiety feelings. They are the ones that are so uncomfortable and unsettling. They make me want to run away and make my self “busy” to not have to face them ! I don’t want to dig deeper into the dirt of these pictures of suffering. But now I see what I have swept 🧹 underneath the rug is starting to smell ! If I don’t want to see more of these pain feelings I must face what is here and allow it to come up. Face the monster 👹. Go to the places that scare me when they are knocking at the door . The Buddha called it Mara- hello Marra I see you . Sit down and have a cup of tea . What do you want from me ?
I was a little girl. Very young and scared and she wants my attention and love . The love we all long for.
Sorry guys this became so long but this is what is showing up now . And because we have this space and I am safe here I’ll make the cup of tea now and sit with this deep dark place . I think I finally am able to cry or do whatever it takes to face the ghosts . Thank
You so much universe.
Ditto to your first sentence- And your comment the universe supports me I just forget that when I’m lost in my world-
This reminded me of lyrics to a song, went something. Like this… I wanted it to last, but life got in the way…
Anyway, that is our challenge isn’t it-to marry that awareness to our life and they become one, not separate?
We are not separate whatsoever. But my human mind can’t and doesn’t know this . This is not a theory or something to learn. We have to eliminate the human mind which is like a camera and makes copies of the world . We live inside our pictures or picture world overlapping Truth . This is our “sin” if you understand. Our false self must “die” . There is no self whatsoever it’s an illusion.
Happy meditation! 🌱💯🙌
👍💕
I find the term “thought illusion” very helpful.
Thank you Carol Ann, our thoughts are not truth . They are illusions and letting them go allows us freedom. Going deeper now in meditation is helping me to uproot more and see the falseness head on. It’s breaking down the habits and letting them go. Today has been great but by no means easy . Wending the human mind is dirty work but so worth while. Baby steps each day ! Thank you 🙏
Yes, this is not easy stuff. I like the image of having a cup of tea with my fears.
Thank you for this. 🙏
Yes all of our negative minds and thoughts we can let go of if we are ake and know they are not real- they are not us . Thank you Charlie . 🙏
Brave work, Antoinette. Keep it up.
Drea , yes not runking to be productive or go to the gym or whatever’s this over doing self wants to do so that it can push it under the rug is bs . I’m so good at over doing and running away all in the name of not having to look at what makes it so hard to be alone or just not look for someone to fill the space. This is a lot but it’s ok for it to come up now because I have the ability due to the universe to know I’m safe here at home. There is nowhere to run and I don’t watch tv lol 😂 so I’m not able to bing watch Netflix- but it doesn’t matter what our poison ☠️ is it’s just a way of trying to hush the crying baby inside . I’m so fortunate and blessed . Thank you 🙏
I recently rediscovered a picture of my mom when I was looking through a photo album. This picture was taken several weeks before she died of cancer. She is skinny, her face is pale, she is wearing a scarf on her head because she has no hair. But her eyes are absolutely radiant and alive, filled with both joy and sadness. It is clear that she is so aware in this picture that her moments left are limited. This past week, I have been looking at this picture (along with some pictures of when she was healthy) every morning, and remembering that my moments (and all of our moments) are also limited. I also have been thanking her for giving me the gift of life and the gift of love as she and my dad raised me and my brother. This has supported me in my desire and ability to appreciate the gift of each moment.
Wow, that’s pretty intense, Elizabeth, looking at these pictures of your Mom, and remembering that your moments on this earth (like mine) are limited. Wishing you peace and joy as you reflect
Thank you,
dear Elizabeth,
for sharing these lovely things about your mother . . .
I am moved by your story . . . ♥
The importance of our relationship with self and others speaks in every word you wrote.
So beautifully said, Elizabeth. Thank you.
What a beautiful memory and ode to your mother. Thank you Elizabeth.
Thank you, dear Elizabeth, for your helpful reply.
Being present. My breath, in & out……….
🕊️🩷
The inner peace that comes from letting go of regrets over lost precious moments, and the frustration caused by unwanted situations, helps me enjoy this time of simplicity. May you all find peace in challenging moments.
My Ngoc, it’s a good thing that nothing is perminant. Everything has a way of smoothing out.
Routine…..
Great answer, Yram. Having that brings structure to my life and reduces overthinking.
Presence of Sophia (Wisdom) within. Breathe becomes the touch stone that ‘I am here.’
♥
A clear mind