perfection

As a child, I loved the game you play by making different shapes with your hands: rock, paper, scissors. I especially loved the moment when ‘paper’ covered ‘rock.’ I was enchanted with the idea that something as soft & pliable as paper could conquer something as hard as rock. But then there was always the painful moment when scissors cut into paper…The game could never end, because no one was invulnerable. When I discovered meditation, it was as though I discovered the shape that could rise to meet any obstacle……Noelle Oxenhandler

the self is not as solid as we think…..& of course, the thinking is the ‘problem’…..& the ‘issue’ is thinking that these things are problems….hmmm….monkey mind? yes, indeed…..the exquisite awaits us though, like a sweet dance, when we simply begin to dance….

breathe & know your funny mind…

We’re all faced with the same fundamental choice of calming the mind or letting it go its own scattered way. Leaving it to the caprice of unplumbed emotions leads to a life that’s mysterious in all the wrong ways. Baffled by lack of control and thwarted hopes, we feel hard-done-by, retreat further into feigned self-confidence, and become immune to love. In fact, this is no choice at all. It’s denial. The alternative, the way through the brambles of self-deception, is old-fashioned, cold-blooded honesty. We’re responsible for ourselves. No matter how hurt we feel and how much we deny it, we’re driven by the need for love. We’re all going to die but want to live life to the full. We’re all afraid, but our attempts at security hem us depressingly in.The Buddha’s meditations lead us inward to unblock this resistance, but its results work in the opposite direction, pushing us to reach out to others and embrace life in all its unpredictable mystery. We become open to the creativity within and are freed to rediscover life as an adventure. This is our full potential—unconditional, spontaneous love…..Stephen Schettini

nothing will be ‘different’ after meditation…we gain no control…no rainbows….the magic comes in not needing the control….the rainbows were already there…..

An ocean of ignorance, misunderstanding, & fear lies between our rejection of suffering & our acceptance of it. Crossing that ocean is the spiritual journey.

We need a boat for this journey a snug & elegant craft.

Meditation is such a boat…..Elizabeth Lesser