I sit here,
the sound of rain
gently tapping
on the metal shell
surrounding me,
the vehicle I sit in
otherwise inert
and silent.

Bereft of its function
as a means for moving,
how peaceful it becomes,
not as a machine,
but as a place of quiet,
restful and undemanding.

What an unexpected gift,
to be here
with nothing needing to be done,
peacefully enjoying
the subtle pleasures
of just sitting here.

When there is a nagging feeling
of what is missing,
when a stream of thoughts say
“this or that is not enough”,
there can be no peace
in any moment.

only when the chain of thought
is seen and broken,
the lie revealed for what it is,
can the little things that fill our lives
suddenly be satisfying.

The feelings I feel
are like clouds
in the sky

and I am the one
who sees them
pass by

I am not the clouds
I am the sky

Things don’t care
if they are seen,
but we, as humans,
do.

We long to be cherished,
dreading dismissal
or disgust.

But a thing
simply is,
devoid of doubt,
empty of self-image,
free of concern
for what it is.

How would it be
to learn that freedom,
abandoning our discontent
with how we are?

Perhaps,
by learning to love
everything else,
just as it is,
we can learn to love ourselves,
and each other,
just as we are.

I have always felt
I was an imposter,
insufficient to the task
of being who I thought I should be.

Now,
as the illusion
of being someone in particular
slowly slips away from me,
I see the pointlessness
of trying to be anyone.

My story is irrelevant;
I exist
beyond the flow
of what was
or what may be;
I am only real
in this eternal Now.

I have not yet learned
how to freely love
another human being,
or this person
I call myself.

But I am beginning to love
being alive,
surrounded by life
and this universe of wonders,
and for now,
that is enough.

It is never tomorrow,
and it is never yesterday;
it is always only ever
now.

Fears and regrets,
longings for what was
or what might be
are all that stand between us
and the richness of each moment,
steeped in the simple truth
that all there ever is,
is now.

How easy life can be,
when we cease attending
to the complaints of the mind.

How pleasant is each moment,
when we are not mired
in doubt and disapproval.

How simply time flows,
when we let go of past and future,
and surrender to its flow.

In love, we are united;
in anger and fear, we are divided.

Anger
is the inability or unwillingness
to accept what is.

Fear
is the inability or unwillingness
to accept what might be.

They are the seeds of chaos,
sown by those who would prefer to see us helpless,
unable to meet the ups and downs of life effectively.

Anger and fear are the toxins that sap our power,
leaving us paralyzed by negativity,
unable to relieve our own suffering,
or the suffering of others.

To fully own each new experience
that life may offer you,
you must purchase it
by how much
you pay attention.

The more you are willing to pay,
the more you may receive.

And that is all
you may ever truly own.