How to find a still mind?
Try being aware of movement,
The ever-flowing change that is always occurring.
Take the body, for example.
Even in the midst of the deepest meditation or dreamless state,
There are infinite shifts taking place.
Cells replace themselves; breath moves in and out; the heart beats; and so on.
Similar processes happen across the physical world,
From the most minute particles all the way to vaster aspects of slow relentless geologic change.
Accepting this impermanence with equanimity
And relinquishing the notion that this will stop in any way
Provides a space to relax and rest with a sense of ease.
This will also evolve but observe with detachment.
Nothing (and everything) lasts forever. This need not cause suffering.
Find the path to peace and joy.
This is a true story. It actually happened to me.
I was much younger at the time, which is neither here nor there.
Bedbugs invaded my residence. How? I never knew.
This is still a mystery, as my home adjoined no other abode.
I suspect I unwittingly imported them via mail but don’t know.
While I had the house treated, I went to a cheap motel.
I awakened the next morning with familiar bites.
The room (and the entire motel) was similarly infested.
Wherever you go, there you are. Changing places doesn’t always change circumstances.
A valuable lesson, indeed.
Do not ask for my heart; I have already given it.
Freely; willingly; with abandon. To you, yes, but also to:
The friend who calls from a distant land;
The neighbor who visits over the fence;
The postman who offers a friendly wave;
The stranger who walks down the street.
For these and many others, I have cast my devotion and regard,
Wanting each to be happy, at ease, free from suffering, and joyful.
So again, do not ask for my heart.
Know that you have it already and help spread it through the world.
Now is a good time to reflect upon deities
And who we will decide to worship, and why?
We all have idols, numerous ones,
Acknowledged or not,
So it behooves us to choose wisely.
I would suggest liminal beings,
For we are on the threshold in many ways,
Looking backwards and stepping forward.
We need divinities that speak to transition,
Enable us to handle change and be not afraid,
And move from warring with each other to peace,
Gods and goddesses that do not compete for supremacy,
Nor encourage us to do so,
But instead work for the betterment of all existence
And inspire us to do likewise.
I know who I think upon: to whom do you pray?
I walk outside before dawn
To breathe in the quietness of this time
And watch the clouds move across the moon.
All is cast in tones of gray and shadow,
And there is a sense of abeyance,
A momentary hush,
As if the world has taken a brief pause
For meditation and reflection.
Soon enough the sky will fill with the colors of morning,
And the sounds of the day will begin.
Five rivers traverse Hades, the underground.
You think you get to choose; mind you, you don’t.
We all have to cross each river alone at some point.
For this poem, ponder this:
Which rivers would you enter, and for what reasons?
The River Styx, the River of Hate, allows you entrance to the underground. Take care.
Charon can ferry you through the River Acheron, the River of Pain, but you always have to pay.
Travel the River Cocytus, the River of Lamentation, with an open heart. Consider others’ suffering.
We all drink from the River Lethe, the River of Forgetfulness, in some fashion. Be aware.
The River Phlegethon, the River of Fire, can destroy your hubris. This is not a bad thing.
Remember you journey with gods, lost souls, and powerful currents.
Think wisely; take a deep breath; and begin.
“SO EVEN THOUGH WE FACE THE DIFFICULTIES OF TODAY AND TOMORROW,
I STILL HAVE A DREAM”.
I look around me to see
The empty spaces once filled by all we’ve lost:
People gone; land destroyed; dreams themselves dying,
And wonder can we bear this cost?
But I also pause to hear
The many voices that sing out a common song:
Notes of lamentation, but woven with threads of laughter and hope,
And remember that love remains strong.
There can be all manner of destruction and devastation,
But I will not forget the outstretched hands, the kind acts, and the courage of community.
I ask him,
“Why did you not tell me
The happenstances of getting older?
That the months and years would steadily speed,
While the amount of time and energy
Needed for any one task would increase?
Or that the ability to dance would diminish but never the desire?”
He replies,
“You remember, surely, that I never had the chance to learn these things.
I died a younger man than you have been for many years.
So you are indeed solitary on this journey,
Though I tried to give you what tools I could.”
I smile and take his hand.
“As long as I can remember you, I am not alone.”