I am grateful for all I encounter in this life
But I bow in most gratitude to the difficulties.
Like stumbling upon a rock on a path,
They cause me to stop and pay attention.
Look, they say. Open your eyes and see what is here.
Then I remember to do so.
Oh, my walk is like this now?
I smile, breathe, and continue on.
Life used to be so simple.
Really? Or does blinkered memory make it so?
Just being alive, no matter your situation, entails mess.
Complications always arise,
And our control is often more limited than we imagine.
If we learn to handle the uncertain ground that is existence,
Then we can find meaning and connection.
We can let go of fear and instead face change
With openness, resoluteness, and acceptance.
What if we turn the fight into a dance?
Hear songs of kindness, joy, and community rather than tunes of cruelty, misery, and division?
The hard road of suffering is our common path, but how we travel it depends on us.
Pay attention. The choice is mine and yours and ours.
It can begin with a single breath.