More Than A Mudge Puddle March 6, 2013
Posted by nrhatch in Art & Photography, Life Balance, Life Lessons, Poetry.Tags: Happiness, Island Gallery West, Life Balance, Mattie Van Arsdel, Poetry
trackback
The search for self is riddled with false starts.
If not for memory’s usefulness as a yardstick for how far we’ve come, we might do better to greet each day with a clean slate, forgoing the cloudy backwards glance at all that has come before.
Without judgments framed in past reference and future promise, we would embrace the Here and the Now and remain fully in the flow of life.
We would shed our loyalty to consistency and abandon ritual sameness.
We would reach for our heart’s desire without concern about rocking the boat or capsizing.
We would see glimmers of self, shining like gold, not so far below the surface as we thought.
We would wash off the mud clinging to our countenance without worry that no more than a mudge puddle will remain.
We know that we are more than that.
Any thought contrary to “what is” is energy expended without hope of a reasonable return.
Let us stop battling with imaginings.
That which exists outside the Here and Now does not exist.
We need only deal with the day.
Fear and pain and bewilderment abound and still the moon passes across the sky as birds sing and daffodils bloom and spring returns to warm winter’s soil.
Even in the midst of looming disaster, the sun rises on a new day.
So too will we shine.
Aah . . . that’s better!
* * * * *
Artwork by Maitte Van Arsdel ~ available at Island Gallery West.
I like this post, Nancy, and the pictures you have chosen to go with it! I have a problem washing off my mud (what an excellent way to see things, I must add!), so I end up carrying lots of it around with me! I really need to break myself free of some of the habitual things I do… I will shine. We all will if we want to!
Thanks, Tom. It’s easy to carry smudges and splatters of mud around with us from one day to the next.
Selective amnesia helps restore our clarity.
Customized for writers: Leave the “what if” to your novel concept, and embrace the “what is.”
Yes! We should play the “what if” game when writing and the “what is” game when living.
You said it better than I did.
Ditto.
This is so inspiring, Nancy! Just beautiful
Thank you, Dianne! I enjoyed writing it.
What a beautiful piece of writing, Nancy! And inspiring, too. Here’s to the here and now.
Thanks, Kate. The more present we are . . . the greater our capacity for joy and happiness.
What is right now…rain pitters on the roof and the windchimes swing in unison to the whistle of the wind….I won’t worry or think about the storm; I will just enjoy the symphony it is providing.
Love your images of nature’s symphony . . . including the whistle of the wind (as it howls, “Can you hear me now?”).
A lovely blog and photos – a good reminder
Thanks, Lorraine. Glad you enjoyed.
“We would reach for our heart’s desire without concern about rocking the boat or capsizing.” Nancy! CH and I were just talking about this just a few hours ago!! I was saying to him that at 61 you would think I would do what my heart wanted to really do instead of worrying about what the other person expected of me. Nothing to lose anymore. And why can’t I stop worrying about pleasing someone else who doesn’t give a rip! And I like the idea of greeting each day with a clean slate! Aah I like this post tonight!! Lovely thoughtful words Nancy.
Yay! Glad you enjoyed. So cool that it mirrored your chat with CH. Perhaps it’s just the “reinforcement” you need to hammer that thought home.
Throw yourself a Garden Party: “You can’t please everyone . . . so you’ve got to please yourself.”
Yes, we can’t do anything about yesterday and when we worry about tomorrow we deny the blessings of today. Gotta stay in the now.
Shine on!
My head is not in the right place to read this today, reaching for my heart’s desire and teetering over the water. Getting wet. Yes, it will get easier. Yes, I’m sure I’ll be glad I did it. Yes, I can give myself a billion little pep talks and read positive reinforcement.
It does not make it any less hard, in the thick of it.
Just keep breathing . . . and deal with “it” (whatever “it” is) one day at a time.
Our frame of reference is just that, isn’t it Nancy. I enjoyed this post but struggle with “We would shed our loyalty to consistency and abandon ritual sameness”. I am not sure I believe that as I am one of those people who finds ritual sameness totally liberating.
Can you give me an example?
To me, “ritual sameness” is handcuffing ourselves to the past out of a sense of loyalty or obligation rather than continued enjoyment or pleasure of the choice in question.
Doing something “because we’ve ALWAYS done it that way” is different to me than “yay! it’s pizza and game night!”
Okay, then I think we are on the same page. I rise early – not because I always have but because I thrive on the stillness of early morning – a time to connect with the universe. I head out for my morning hike to greet the skies. I make a hot double black espresso to jolt me into my day. I look at my blog. I go to the office (which bears a wide variety of activities) I prepare a meal and share it. I slide into bed next to a cuddly boy and read a story. And yes, on Friday night, I shout Yeah! It’s pizza.
Sounds like you are mindfully aware of ALL the pleasure you derive from each of those little rituals . . . keep ‘em!
Beautiful post as usual! Not diluting the present by going back to the past or into the future is actually empowering. The majority of us do not escape into the past or future because we are being positive. Most are rehashing past regrets or hurts or anticipating fear in a future; such is the nature of the untamed mind. Cheers to staying present!
It is difficult to step fully into THIS moment without considering all that has gone before and is still to come. I expect we might become a bit seasick splashing about in the huge sea of life without any ties to the past or future.
That said, I think you’ve hit the nail on the head ~ we must use the past and future to spur us forward, not hold us in place.
For example, if we can think of the kind thing someone did for us yesterday, to encourage ourselves to do a kind thing for someone else today . . . that’s using the past as a positive springboard for action.
{{BOING!!!}}
Thank goodness for new days! They really are much better when we aren’t tripping over yesterday’s baggage.
Yes! Each time we take a shower, we might mindfully wash off ALL of yesterday’s baggage.
Love this! I really wish that I can just close my eyes and release myself from the chains of perception, expectation, fear rooted in the past and the nagging of my mind…..
Thank you reminding us again how important it is to just be right here…right now.
Thanks, shree! Letting go of ALL our non-productive thoughts is not easy . . . but it’s worth it. After all, our freedom is at stake.
Don’t worry, you’re going to die. Worry, and you’re going to die even sooner!
As you say, the Here and Now is an important place.
Yes! George Burns reached a ripe old age by not worrying about the cigar he held in one hand and the drink in the other.
There you go, then!
Cheers!