Yesterday, we talked about time-fulness, about receiving this moment as it is. I recently read this quote attributed to the Dalai Lama (I've changed it just a bit to make it gender inclusive):
"The Dalai Lama, when asked what surprised him most about humanity, answered, 'A person. Because they sacrifice their health in order to make money. Then they sacrifice money to recuperate their health. And then they are so anxious about the future that they do not enjoy the present; the result being that they do not live in the present or the future; they live as if they are never going to die, and then die having never really lived.'"
This is another dimension of clutter, where we toggle back and forth in our minds between time present and upcoming (and time past) and lose the sense of asking ourselves, "what is this particular moment for?"
Years ago, someone gave me a small pillow with the words of Psalm 118 stitched into it, "This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it." It's on a bookshelf in my office, intentionally within my line of sight when I lift my eyes from my computer screen. It reminds me to take this time appreciatively, especially when I am mindlessly sacrificing the moment.
What cues do you use to keep yourself attentively present? In this season, I particularly like to use the blooms on the trees to remind me because as beautiful as they are, they're also wonderfully impermanent. Unlike the green leaves to come, they're not going to hang around for months.
Ken, your response to the Dalai Lama comment reminds me of a point that Dan Gilbert brings up in his great book "Stumbling on happiness". He points out that the ability to contemplate the future is great in so many ways but also has so many negatives. For example, most anxiety would be impossible without the ability to think about the future. To the extent it's possible, it's great to inhibit excessive thoughts about the future.
ReplyDeleteKen, thinking of impermanence as wonderful is quite a challenge when it comes to the good stuff. Thank goodness for the comfort of impermanence when it comes to the bad stuff! ;-)
ReplyDeleteThe Dali Lama quote reminds me of something you said one time in a discourse, Ken. "Learn to want what you have." I think about this phrase whenever what I want is either out of reach or the desire of a whim. It keeps me grounded.
ReplyDeleteI need to start a journal for all of the amazing quotes and book titles shared in this blog.
ReplyDeletePost-it Notes. Yes that's how I try to stay present. Simple and easy. When I am rushing too much, not paying attention to my life, and not enjoying the present moment I place post-it notes throughout my house with simple reminders to stay present.