It's all about the journey we've already arrived at our destination!
We as a society are so busy wanting, yearning, searching, and accumulating that we forget to just be. Doing is carrying out some activity that we think will bring us happiness. Being implies that we are mentally, physically and spiritually in the present moment. I call it keeping my head where my feet are and honestly, I am not very good at it - YET,unlike when I was a little girl. Back in the day my grandmother often used the expression "stop and smell the roses" when we were rushing from one destination to another DOING whatever it was that needed to get done. Being me, I took this expression as a literal truth! Often upon our arrival home I would jump out of the car and run up to one of her many rose bushes, breath in the fragrance of the variety of scents,, admire the exquisite beauty, touch the velvet like petals and become lost in my imaginary world. A world where flowers came to life...the place where they could dance and tell me the secrets of the universe. Grandma would call my name several times before my attention was drawn from this mesmerizing world. She would grin and ask if I knew the name of a certain rose, if I didn't, she would tell me the names and give me a brief history lesson on where the flower came from, how it got its color and how much work it took for the rose to be planted, nourished and where one should cut the bloom so the rose could continue to flourish. Life was so carefree and simple then! Today I laugh out loud at that childlike exuberance and a small emotion tugs at my heart - my grandmother in her infinite wisdom was imparting knowledge to me in a way that she knew would someday be pollinated and grow to full maturity. My love of flowers, roses in particular and my innate desire to just be - if only for a moment.
Today I remembered to stop and smell the roses when I went into my meditation room. Often even when meditating I am trying to reach some predetermined destination of spiritual enlightenment. The meditation I used today was a non-focused meditation. In Zen Buddhism they call this type of meditation Zazen which means just sitting. I just sat in lotus position and let my mind reel. WHEW. I seriously thought that the chatter was never going to stop! It was like a possessed movie projector - flickering, racing with images - memories (like the one about the roses!), wishes, desires...and then there was peace. I forgot that I was breathing, I didn't think about sitting, I just was...being. In my minds eye I saw the sun shining. I felt the wind blow across my face, the sensation sent chills down my arms. I was one with the universe! I had a flicker of enlightenment. I have been so busy searching for God - that I have forgotten that we are a part of God, the Universe is one- we are all interconnected. It was in that moment that I realized - the illusion is that there is a destination, this is the destination - we are here where we are supposed to be, doing what we are supposed to be doing. Life is all about the journey! Stop and smell the roses, just be, you've already reached your destination!
