Monday Mindfulness

Cultivating Strength, Joy, Calm & Resilience


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Boldly Going Nowhere

Frenetically charging ahead.

Pushing to make something happen.

Squandering the gift time has given of ponderance.

Moving and changing is exhilarating.

The powerful rush of adrenaline

on the grand loops and dips of the roller coaster.

Is that sustainable?

Movement for the sake of movement can release and even bring progress.

Advancing into action

can relieve pain and fear.

It can also bring injury and dis-ease.

There is great potential for harm with repetitive movement absent proper supports and conditioning.

Every decision is filled with regret or acceptance.

Every decision is likely being made in response to fear.

It may be the greatest fear we have is remaining where we are.

Every decision can be empowering.

It may not require striving,

movement

or big changes

to demonstrate prowess,

intellect,

and power.

It may be adventurous.

It may untangle the bonds of current conditions.

Or, it may be escapism,

grandiosity,

avoidance.

It may be a means of hiding

or running away

from the lessons available right where we are.

Just being,

in the stillness,

in the simplicity,

in the temporarily perceived lack

and stagnation

could be just what is needed

to truly free the heart,

open the mind,

and honestly and gratefully embrace one’s spirit.

To boldly go where no one has gone before

may be an invitation

to stay right where we are.


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Peace of the Heart

In the space of silence and stillness,

there is an enormous void,

fabulous,

wide open,

freeing.

Or hollow,

isolating,

lonely?

It is one space.

In encountering this space,

there is a choice made instantly.

Inquiry,

assessment,

judgment

all rush in to

analyze,

identify,

interpret.

The recoiling in the stark emptiness is natural –

that moment when the stillness startles and unnerves as it presses against the constricting familiar.

And, each and every time,

that space can be met with

curiosity or fear,

acceptance or resistance.

It is the potentiality that resides in the peace of the heart.

It is a choice to receive it

as a gift

or a challenge

when feeling so fully

and completely

into ourselves.


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Apart or whole

Gnarled or free flowing.

Grasping or outstretched.

From its center point,

form expands in two directions,

mirrored in the spread of itself confidently into the earth

and it’s expansion courageously into the air.

Nourishment flowing.

Survival impossible without the reflections

of grounding,

of stretching,

of growth,

of change.

One feeding the other,

feeding the other.

Separate in apparent function.

Symbiotic existence as one.


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Listen to the feeling

The abundance of the universe surrounds me,

an endless supply of successes and challenges.

I always have the choice which way I turn.

Signs and signals.

Distractions and dilutions.

Stop looking to the outside for answers.

Trust the intuitive process of discernment and distinguishing.

There are no bad choices,

merely different ways to play in the field.

I can stay here or I can move towards something else.

Forcing narrows the focus,

and breeds striving,

limiting potential,

and resulting in tension and confusion.

Grace and patience fuel clarity

as trust flows into and from decisions to open opportunities,

not always challenge-free but solution-oriented.

Seeking the solutions

that inspire hope,

kindle kindness,

and support the expression of deepest passion

and purpose.

This is dharma.

This is the path of choice.