There’s this Buddhist slogan that I love that goes – when things are going well, be patient, they’ll change. When things are going poorly, be patient, they’ll change.
Everything, and I mean everything, is always shifting and changing. Things are either coming or going and it’s a process that we can’t stop. It’s a river that no matter what we do always carries us with it despite our best efforts.
Many will try to dam up the river. Try to manipulate it, change it, move the rocks around within it or swim up stream. They will rage against it and do their best to try to force their will upon it. But in time, it always takes them to where it intended to go.
Peace and mindfulness are about traveling with the river and addressing whatever arrives when it does. It’s not about speculating what will come. How could you possibly know? It’s about taking your oars out of the water and enjoying the ride. Take in the scenery. Sit back and stay a while.
So that leads me to this. No matter what is going on in your life, you have a choice to make. Fight against how things actually are, yielding a significant amount of pain and suffering. Or, going with the way things are unfolding, and meet those events with courage, understanding and wisdom.
Remember, the circumstances change constantly. Things will go up and down and those situations you can’t control. But you can control what you do with those situations. You can control who you decide to “be” in those moments. These are the most powerful decisions of all
Joseph Campbell, a famous mythologist and great thinker once wrote, “The psychotic drowns in the same waters in which the mystic swims with delight.” I think you get the point of what he is saying here.
Don’t spend much time looking back. It’s good to from time to time to really gain a deeper understanding of who you are and how you arrived here. But most of all, be here. Ride the current and have faith you are going where you need to be.
These moments are yours.
Evan Sanders
The Better Man Project
perfectly written and innerstood. we have to find a middle way.