Struggling to Stop Struggling
by Merry Coburn on 01/01/11
New Year's resolutions become the focus of my thoughts on this morning's walk. It's ironic that all this trying is counterproductive to the ultimate goal. Enlightenment occurs when we stop doing and consent to falling into being. "How do I do that?" I ask myself. The answer stands before me in this wood lot of winter trees where I've paused for contemplation.
Each tree is completely itself in its perfect imperfection--broken branches, split trunks, whorls where insects have burowed into an old wound. The trees are content to live in harmony with their environment, and they sing the song they were born to sing. Each one responds with inner wisdom to the breezes, the cold, the rain, and the sun, giving their gift and expecting nothing in return. The trees dance with their neighbors and submit without complaint when the number of days alloted for this incarnation comes to an end. The trees are teachers of perfect presence and profound contentment.
May I cultivate such qualities in the coming year, mindfully practicing until presence becomes my way of being in the world.
