These words are at the same time so comforting to me and also so triggering. I have tried so hard to keep some things the same, literally grasping for the hands of the children who are all grown up now and moving on with their own lives.....as they should! I miss those young, naive and energetic hands from 27 years ago....those hands that had no idea of the treasures they would make and love. I have fought the "growing up" of our family tooth and nail; this unwillingness to accept these changes have brought grief and pain my way. Then there have been some things in my life that I couldn't wait to change, illnesses, difficult times and stages, presidencies.....it is so comforting to know that nothing lasts forever and in time it will change. Pema Chodron, a beloved teacher, wrote that feelings change every 90 seconds......sometimes I look at the clock and think, "just stay" knowing that "this too shall pass". The teaching in yoga class this week is based on Aparigraha which translates as non-attachment. I can get attached to belongings and possessions which then require maintenance, storage and also bring clutter to my world. I get attached to how I think others should behave, which of course I have no control over, so only leads to resentment, disappointment and judgement. Over and over, in my life, I learn that as I Let Go and Trust, my life opens up and brings me freedom, growth and Goodness! As I live in abundance instead of scarcity, I am shown that what I value most is overflowing, kindness, love, empathy and joy! I wish the same for you.
What makes a fire burn is space between the logs, a breathing space. Too much of a good thing, too many logs packed in too tight can douse the flames almost as surely as a pail of water would. So building fires requires attention to the spaces in between, as much as to the wood.
When we are able to build open spaces in the same way we have learned to pile on the logs, then we can come to see how it is fuel, and absence of the fuel together, that make fire possible.
We only need to lay a log lightly from time to time. A fire grows simply because the space is there, with openings in which the flame that knows just how it wants to burn can find its way.
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