Basking in the Glow

Sometimes things go right in my life. Much more often, lately, than they ever did before.

When I look at this pear I see a ripe and contented creation of the universe that is comfortable in her skin.

She is nearing her prime -- when she will become ready to fall from the tree and provide nourishment for another creature -- but for now she is tending to her own needs.

The pear is receiving strength and energy from the sun and she is allowing it to help her grow.

The Present Beauty

This autumn country road is beautiful -- but I can't enjoy it. The road is curving up around the bend and I don't know where it's going. For a minor league control freak like me, that unknowing is quite unsettling.

I want to rush through this curve to see what it around the corner. I want to zoom by the gorgeous fall colors just to be certain that nothing bad is waiting for me around the bend. Intellectually I can see the colors of the trees and know that they are beautiful -- but I don't feel it. I am too busy being worried...

I am challenged to work on being in the "here and now" when change is impending.

It's easy for me to relax in the middle of July when summer is surrounding me but in the transition seasons I lose my grounding. I find myself nostalgic for the past and worrying about the future. It's a vicious circle that takes away all of my enjoyment of the present.

I strive to be able to pull up a Lazy-Boy chair in my mind, right there in the middle of the tall grass of this scene, and take time to breathe in the beauty I see around me to the deepest parts of my still un-trusting soul.

I want to enjoy the "here and now" before it so quickly becomes the "there and then."

To Be Cradled in Transition

Sometimes in life I just need to retreat and slow down everything. I need to turn off the chatter of daily life, and the chatter in my mind, and focus inward on more steady and stable truths.

I find I need this especially before new changes are about to occur. I seem to need the retreat time to nurture my self, and my soul, in preparation for the changes which often can be unsettling in their new unfamiliarity.

I "know" that change is good...that without change there would be stagnation...but nevertheless, my sensibilities still find the transition into change to be challenging...

I love this little acorn that is taking a rest in the comfort of the leaf -- the leaf which probably came from the same tree the acorn was from before it fell to the ground. The little acorn is gathering its energy to prepare for the next phase of its journey, that of becoming a magnificent tree, and it finds comfort in hanging on, for just a little while longer, to the old relationship with the leaf.

Soon the acorn *will* blow away and lodge itself in the earth to eventually become the tree it was meant to be, but for now -- it rests.

Do you give yourself time to slow down, retreat and gather your energies before new changes happen in your life?