"The present is the only reality. Everything past or future resides only in the head. The choices we make in this present moment determine our future and can heal the past. We miss out so much on the beauty and joy in life if we are not here and now, but lost in thoughts. If we are fully in the present, here right this very moment, pure, fresh, and untainted, that is us in our spirit essence. the choice is ours whether to live as our pure, infinite spirit or in the limited mind." (Excerpt from Awaken Our Spirit Within - Chapter 8 The Human Mind)
"When there is silence, one finds the anchor of the universe within oneself." - Lao Tzu
Hi all,
I share a comfortable home with three beautiful young adult children and five enlightened beings - our dog Charlie, tortoise Gordon, budgies Mr Frodo and Yuki, and Siamese fighting fish Bruce!
Charlie's days consist of waking up at the crack of dawn, a series of yoga stretches, greeting me with joy and then all full of spark ready for his walk. On his walk he sniffs every stretch of lawn, pavement and post, pees at almost every tree, empties his bowels, and says hello to his doggie pals. He returns to the same type of breakfast dish everyday, then lie and chill in the sun all day punctuated by fiery bursts of barking from one end of the garden to the other when another human or dog walks past his territory. Totally content until he pipes up again late afternoon ready for his walk. Same sniffing routine (you see, Charlie's a beagle) then back for dinner, more guarding and barking, and then snuggle up in his soft bed.
Gordon walks around the whole garden and devours his piles of vegetables and lettuce in summer. Gordon is blind in one eye so when he eats his lettuce it takes him about 5 attempts with his open jaw before he finally scores a mouthful. But he spends all day simply doing that, then back into his shell when he's had enough, and out again for more food and a wander after. In winter he simply refuses to poke his head out of his shell at all, but half buries himself under my oregano bush in complete hibernation.
Mr Frodo and Yuki love and can't bear to be apart from each other. They spend all day eating, drinking, chirping and grooming each other. Then snuggle their heads into their wings for their sleep before coming out of their cages for their fly-around. And so they keep going.
Bruce is a beautiful red fighting fish with enormous frilly fins. He has his huge fish bowl on my kitchen bench all to himself' If he was to share bowl space with another fish, there would be a mega fight. Bruce too swims, eats, parades his fins, sleeps tucked in the fronds. And so he keeps going.
Animals are simply in-the-moment. They eat to survive, sleep and rest to rejuvenate, and behave instinctively for protection and security. If you watch them for awhile you will find that they remind us that this is our natural state. Everything else is just extras we have chosen to pile on and accumulate, including our complex minds. When an animal eats, they just eat, not eat while thinking "where is my food going to come from tomorrow?" "will I find a right girlfriend/boyfriend?" "who's going to take care of me when I'm old" "will I get fat?" "how much money do I have left in the bank?" At least, they don't look like they have these thoughts. In fact, they don't look like they're thinking at all. Simply being and doing. And what pure joy and contentment in just simply being and doing.
We are privileged as humans to have evolved to more than just instinctual beings (although some may contest to this statement). We have the gift of more developed and complex analytical, problem-solving and creative intelligence. But these are our tools for expanding and progressing our lives. We are the ones in charge of our tools and we should choose when to use them and when to put them aside to rest, to allow our natural state to simply be. For our natural state is the silence, anchor and ground that allows us to thrive.
Remember everyday, allow yourself some time to just Be!
Love & light to all,
Patsie
www.patsiesmith.com
PS: Just started a Facebook book page, please feel free to connect with me on facebook.com/AwakenOurSpiritWithin will post writings, quotes, offers, info etc.
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