I am finally settling down after a few days being back home from a visit to my son’s house for Easter. Since my return from Ecuador in early April, I have been anything but settled down. This is not new territory for me as it is always like this when we return home from our three-month winter stay in southern climes. The difference this year is that I am being gentler with myself, more open to accepting the small things that fill my hours, days, and life.
In Ecuador, I stopped formal meditation. I blamed it on my left knee which began to be an issue for me last August. However, I didn’t stop meditating. Rather, I switched, unconsciously to walking meditation. Since we walked about two hours non-stop almost every morning, it didn’t take long before we both disappeared into our breathing and the spaces in between. The walking meditation became a daily conscious choice that fuelled my soul.
Now that we have returned home, the walking meditation has continued. Yet, I need more. I did manage outdoor meditation once with weather conditions being friendly. However, it is still April and sitting meditation indoors is the only sensible choice to make. The truth is, it doesn’t matter when or how. It all comes down to simply taking the time to meditate.
“Remember, life consists of small things, there are no big things. Small things accumulated become big things. A single act may not look very significant either as evil or good. A single smile may not look very significant, but a single smile is part of a long process. … Do not belittle your failures, do not belittle your good acts. Each and every act is significant: If it is bad you are going to suffer; if it is good you are going to enjoy life. … Life consists of small things, and you have to transform each small thing through your awareness, watchfulness, alertness, into a beautiful act. Then, ordinary things can become extraordinary.”Osho, The Journey of Being Human, Prologue
This lesson from Osho is one that I take to heart. Such as small thing as taking time to meditate while stripped of every artifice, being my authentic naked self, is a beautiful act. It isn’t a designer label activity, something to show others how important I am. Rather, stripped I become just another human. Beneath our outer trappings we are all naked and vulnerable. And that, is a beautiful thing in itself.