pure emptiness

pure emptiness

flexible and flowing
freely moving
melting and merging
immersing in the infinite
integrated energy
existing in pure emptiness

I wrote this poem about being at my center, present and fully awake to experience life, moment by moment, letting it unfold. For me it describes a kind of inner peace, where I have no burdens, where I feel free and at one with life. What does pure emptiness mean to you?

 

* I took this photo inside the Atlanta Aquarium. So beautiful, these two creatures swimming together in a graceful flow. (I try not to get my head too much in the game – I wouldn’t want to run into these guys in the ocean!)

 

moving

Moving

I strip away the film
that has built up over the years.
I feel as if I’m moving backward
as the layers fall away.
I question the false self
that I have created with my beliefs.
My certainties drift into air
like sand disappearing in the wind.
I stand open and empty
like a young child without expectations.
As my real self is exposed,
I see I have been moving forward all along.

I wrote this poem over 7 years ago. I forgot that I even wrote it. Somehow it never made it into the file where I stash away my scribblings. I happened upon it when reviewing some old journal entries and letters to a friend. I was surprised how it spoke to me again, all these years later. Circumstances are different, yet again there is opportunity for rebirth.

How my coach at the time interpreted the writing was inspiring: She saw a woman shedding old layers to transform into the beautiful butterfly she was meant to be, a woman who discovers that she has always been a beautiful butterfly, she just needed to let go of what was weighing her down so that she could soar.

 

* I took this photo of a geranium blossom in my backyard. I picked this photo because the water on the petals speaks to me of tenderness, and that seems relevant given the open and exposed feelings expressed.

the gift of now

the gift of now

rushing
to be where
we think
we should be
we miss
the opportunity
of the present

hurrying
to know
the future’s plans
we move
right past
the chance
to sense
this moment’s grace

moving
out of habit
we walk
without awareness
of the beautiful nuance
available in our current experience

slowing
to the gift
of now
we open
and feel
fully alive

 

This poem, similar to last week’s (a simple dream), evolved from noticing myself expecting that I should be doing something more or that I should be somewhere else. I find myself in a hurry to know what the future holds, as if the days will somehow be richer if I just know.

And then grace enters the room, I catch myself getting ahead, begin to wonder why I’m rushing, and find what it takes slow down. Once I stop the scurry, I can breathe into the present, with all it has to offer. I discover that I am exactly where I am supposed to be and there is enough time for life to unfold.

 

You might also like:

• Always rushing somewhere else (Mindfulbalance)

 

* I took this photo in San Agustinillo, Mexico. This is Bailey (RIP) who, like so many dog friends, shows us the way to now.