I am now reading Meditations on Intention and Being: Daily Reflections on the Path of Yoga, Mindfulness and Compassion by Rolf Gates as part of my mindful morning time. Rolf has been inspiring me for nearly 10 years with his wisdom. When I received the book this summer, I jumped to the section on mindfulness (something empowering to choose to read a book starting in the middle ;]).
Today’s (Day 191) abundantly delicious reading is about impermanence.
“When a biological organism perceives something in its internal or external environment, it reacts…the stimulus arises and the urge to react arises with it – the itch, the thought, the ache between the shoulders. If we sit with this play of sensation without reacting, something happens that offers a genuine insight: the stimulus, the itch, the thought, the ache, arises, stays for a while, and then passes. Things come and go….things change on their own and …it is okay to do nothing.”
I noticed my reaction was to want to be able to sit with itches, thoughts, and aches long enough to let them pass. And, then I saw the opportunity to pause, breathe, and let that desire pass, just being with this insight.
[Read more about how I’m involved in creating a mindfulness movement.]
* I took this photo of the dunes at Fanore, County Clare, Ireland in June 2016. The way the clouds and wind move along the coast are a reminder to me of how things come and go.
Lovely post, Vicki!! Avoiding discomfort is a western pastime, and your blog reminds us that it’s okay to sit with it. In fact, sitting with it changes it. Love, love love the photo!!! Well done!
As you know, about 5 years ago I was given a perfect playground for sitting with discomfort. Indeed, something I didn’t imagine possible took shape by sitting with my thoughts, sensations and emotions at difficult moments. You were there when I wrote my way through some of them (https://mostlymyheartsings.wordpress.com/). Thanks for being my friend on this adventure of life, Maureen!
Sounds perfect but its hard to do sometimes. But this post came to me Vicky at the right time thank you.
So true…accepting what is can be really challenging – we are so wired to judge, evaluate, tolerate…I love it when things show up in your life just when you need them – grateful this post did that for you. Thanks for stopping by!