Thursday, April 2, 2015

Painful Life Lessons: Extraordinary Teachers and Precious Moments


I wonder about life as I sit here quietly tapping away on my keyboard.  Outside my wind chimes make a beautiful tinkling sound in the sunny sea breeze of a beautiful day.  The things I have seen have filled the pages of my life with so many things.  There has been much comedy, love, disappointment and tragedy.  I’d say the most important of all was the painful life lessons.  It was those and the teachers who gave them that I am most grateful for.  I may not have thought so at the time and I might have chosen to harden my heart and mind against this world seeing only villains and victims within it.  But something within me, so very deep within me said, “stop, these are not the thoughts we wish to think and these are not the perspectives we most wish to carry.”  I listened some how to that still small voice that must have been shouting above the din of my ego’s poor me feelings.

I laugh gently at myself now for those glory days of tears and anger, frustration and disappointment.  I don’t think I’d like to walk through them again and I don’t think I care to venture into the future either.  I’m finding such peace in a simple moment that I care not to venture outside of it.  Breathing into the amazing wonder of the moment at hand is such a precious gift.  You don’t realize what a precious gift it is until you are breathing it peacefully.  In those moments of ragged and fearful breath there isn’t much to appreciate.  I’ve seen many such moments and I’ve felt the clammy cold terror and panic of letting the mind get too far ahead of itself in “what if.”  There is no “what if” I have learned and to consider otherwise is only borrowing trouble.  Why do we always do that?  Rhetorical question.  These days I think  I try not to let my thoughts get too far away from me.  I can let them stretch back in a few moments only to go over what I think I have learned and realize I did get the lesson and fully. 

Lately I have given much thought to teachers and students and how much we are all that in every moment of our lives.  I smile now as I realize those teachers I decided most to continue learning from and those who with gratitude I blessed as they went on their merry and sometimes not so merry way.  There are worlds from which we can gain so much understanding if you’d get yourself outside the typical paradigm of language, thinking and stretch, stretch, stretch into the beauty of the unknown within this precious moment.  We are here, there and Elsewhere all the time I suppose.  What a treasure that thought is in a moment such as this!

The leaves have begun the process of rebirth from my favorite tree and I can hear her song, Singing River.  The wind rushing through the leaves always soothes my soul like a lullaby.  Precious seconds have escaped in this moment and still here it is, right where I’ve left it.  Paradoxical or not time is sweeping and changing, perceived only and still seemingly rearranging.  It’s a fascinating thought at least I think.  I let my gaze drift from the screen to the sky.  Soon those cerulean blue skies will turn indigo and then black and the stars will be out in abundance and I will still be in this moment.  What a curious thing this moment is.  Our lives begin and end in a moment.  Yesterday was just a moment ago.  Tomorrow may be here in just a moment.  For now, I am still and time?  Who cares.? Life is too precious, too beautiful and I love it.  I’ll be back, in a moment but don’t’ wait for me.  Go have fun exploring this dream.  Just do yourselves a favor and don’t take anything but love and compassion seriously.  Bless.

© 2015 Jaie Hart (photo/words)

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