Simplicity, Patience, Compassion

[naturesflow]

These three are your greatest treasures.
Simple in actions and thought you return to the source of your being.
Patient with both friends and enemies you accord with the way things are.
Compassion towards yourself, you reconcile all beings in the world- Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching.

[naturesflow]

What is simplicity to me?


Last night in my meditation course, someone beside me shared that they received a message in their meditation "S (her name) keep things simple in life". She didn't elaborate further. It was her own personal message so I accepted it as she shared, but it opened me to look more deeply at myself in this message and quote above.

(she did share with the group later she was distracted by noise going on outside the room, so much so she moved herself from her meditation space to go out and investigate to make the noise stop. I shared that I used the noise to go deeper in myself even as I too initially was distracted)

For me personally simplicity has come more into my life, because I am less involved with others caught up in themselves and more aware in myself clearer as to who I am and who they are. I find that simplicity allows me to sit back and let life be more so. Let myself be and let others be. In this regard I am less involved and caught up in others and their life and more accepting and supportive as they are. For me this symbolizes a dramatic change for me. Once upon a time I wasn't like this. Now I am deepening into this place of being more so. In some regards simplicity in this view frees up my own time and space. I am more focused on being creative and take in more of life around me in so many ways of life. The little and simple ways of life touch me now because I am open and less entertained by a greater need to make life be anything. Immersing more into life as it is, as myself, I receive an abundance of joy in the simplicity of being myself in this way now.

The other aspect of simplicity is that I take my time, I move through life aware that simplicity reflects if I allow it too with all life. I can make it hard for myself and my movements or I can bring the simplicity of my being into life itself and let other life be in this way.

In some ways simplicity has taught me an underlying gift, that even as I as I am being and doing, creating and making a life, maintaining an awareness of simplicity, shows me what is important to me in my creating, so I am less about needing to make right or change, but more open to be and do as myself. I am aware and living in a more holistic way of being.

Everything plays in harmony, not just one thing in my world, so general living in my home, the people that live there, my physical and emotional health, my daily living and commitments, and my relationships don’t conflict or function in opposition to each other. Simplicity allows for everything to fit as it will, flow as it wants too, and I move myself one with it. When I am clear about knowing who I am, I have less desire to make life harder for myself and more awareness life can be lived through the view of simplicity, patience and compassion.

[naturesflow]

I was driving around today contemplating patience.

I do a lot of contemplation in my car for some reason. I guess it is because I am most often alone doing my stuff that I need to do. But the car is a good teacher of patience for me also.

Today it was fairly hectic on the roads, so cars were moving fast, slow and some middle paced. I was moving fairly steady, in no rush to do or get where I wanted to get too. When I was looking for a park, I wanted one under cover, but driving around the car park it appeared everyone had the same idea. As I found a spot on the very end of the under cover bays, I realized it was only in half shade, so half shade on one side of my car and half sun on the other.

I was lucky though because I understood the time of day and the movements of the sun, so I settled in the knowing that by the time I came out from shopping my car would be in full shade. So I was happy even as I knew that I would have to subject my car to part sun for a time. I knew that the long term outcome would serve me in the way I intended by parking there in the first place.

So even as I didn't find the full shade spot like everyone else in the first place, I knew that with patience and time, eventually my space would be fully shaded, just in time for me to drive home in a cooler car.

And so it was.

[Gem]

Sometimes I think that people do not think about things in the right way. I mean, thinking is not solely personally invented by individuals. We are immersed in a culture and society which imbues us with ideas, ideologies, and ways of thinking, just as we as individuals contribute our ideas to this greater form of thought. I was just thinking, it's not so much what we think, but the way in which we think.

[naturesflow]

Originally Posted by Gem

Sometimes I think that people do not think about things in the right way. I mean, thinking is not solely personally invented by individuals. We are immersed in a culture and society which imbues us with ideas, ideologies, and ways of thinking, just as we as individuals contribute our ideas to this greater form of thought. I was just thinking, it's not so much what we think, but the way in which we think.

I understand what your saying I think.

I do struggle with the ways in which some people think at times. I find that this challenges me to be ok with the way in which they are thinking that might be projecting an undesirable feeling unspoken and naturally it lands in my space as an awareness of all that. Tonight I allowed another to think the way they wanted and I noticed that my awareness spoke to me more directly within about the truth of that thinking. I didn't try to see, it opened in me naturally. And I moved myself one with it more peacefully.

[Within Silence]

Originally Posted by naturesflow

These three are your greatest treasures.
Simple in actions and thought you return to the source of your being.
Patient with both friends and enemies you accord with the way things are.
Compassion towards yourself, you reconcile all beings in the world- Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching.

At the core of simplicity, patience and compassion is acceptance, nonresistance and balance.

At the core of complexity, impatience and hard heartedness is non-acceptance, resistance and imbalance.

One is open and receptive, the other closed and narrow minded
one is free, the other in bondage
one is light, airy and joyful, the other heavy & de-pressed
one is at the center of being, the other carried away in the stream of thoughts
one identifies with the whole, the other identifies as the part
one knows who they are at their root, the other has yet too
one listens attentively and has the capacity for a still silent mind, the other's attention is fragmented and their mind is neither silent or still
one is whole within them self, the other is conflicted within them self
one is at peace and content, the other fighting an inner battle and discontent
one operates from a foundation of unity, the other from the foundation of division

[naturesflow]

Originally Posted by Within Silence

At the core of simplicity, patience and compassion is acceptance, nonresistance and balance.

At the core of complexity, impatience and hard heartedness is non-acceptance, resistance and imbalance.

One is open and receptive, the other closed and narrow minded
one is free, the other in bondage
one is light, airy and joyful, the other heavy & de-pressed
one is at the center of being, the other carried away in the stream of thoughts
one identifies with the whole, the other identifies as the part
one knows who they are at their root, the other has yet too
one listens attentively and has the capacity for a still silent mind, the other's attention is fragmented and their mind is neither silent or still
one is whole within them self, the other is conflicted within them self
one is at peace and content, the other fighting an inner battle and discontent
one operates from a foundation of unity, the other from the foundation of division

I like this.

It took me back to my previous reflection that I shared with Gem. When you know yourself as the one in all guises of the one, understanding and being more aware of others in this way, shares the same space within. And for me it was within my silence in that moment.

When the sides in myself are in peace of being, then peace reflects itself naturally from within in a more silent reflection. The noise of the external no longer turning me into noise. I guess it comes back to turning the noise into music again. In this way of being I find myself pulling up my socks fast and getting on with life. Where as unnecessary entanglements that arise from bringing my own noise into others noise by not honouring the whole in me more complete, just creates more entanglements of noise..

[naturesflow]

Speaking of others noise in the world around me, I wanted to reflect some more on patience with others. This past year I have been involved (family mostly) in others pain and process and learning to be more patient with where they are in themselves, what has been transpiring for them in their journey. Being a supportive open presence for them. It has been coming in, in various ways of closeness (reflecting my own feelings in close to me in this process) of those nearest and dearest. I have become aware of my patience to let things fall and go as they occur for them. Sometimes they were difficult for me being a part of, other times not so difficult. I am aware of a deeper acceptance and patience with their process that arose in me, for them, even so.

Going back to what Gem shared about the way in which we think, I became aware that within this process with others, my mind wanted to go back to it's old way of thinking, even as my feelings were more balanced, the old conditioned way of thinking, at times snuck in. My emotional body and awareness was able to bridge this old way of thinking, fast, which supported the ability to become more patient with others in repetition of behaviours and experiences that they are and have walked through. Some of the deeper more difficult emotional spaces I am familiar with, challenged me in this way to deepen and let go of my old way of thinking about situations and certain experiences that they were walking through.

As the year is drawing to and end, I feel patience with others in so many ways of them being them and experiencing themselves has been my reward from all these situations. Through my own understanding in being this way, the gift of deeper awareness and clarity, compassion didn't give up on them or myself.

I see that any conflict I may have held in myself more contained in this way, would have inflicted and put more fire on the fire within them already. But being able to witness and hold patience within, extend that without, allows for me to signal to those closest and dearest, a message that I don't give up on them/I don't give up on myself within me. I ground deeper into my own patience and compassion.

The rewards of patience, allows me to deepen in myself and deepen my connections, not just in nice and desirable ways of being connected, but through the deeper and more difficult ways of being connected to and with others/I dig deeper in myself.

As both the experiencer and witness of others experiencing, those experiences teach me patience and a greater degree of resilience in myself and sends a message to others that their failings, their process is worthy of my love and support as they are and are being/I love and support my own failings over and over, I love and support myself as I am.

[naturesflow]

I had another experience of patience today. I take myself to Macdonalds café for a coffee every so often and just of late it come to my awareness that the young girls are unaware of their handling of peoples cups when serving their coffee.

I have in the past very discreetly let them know that they shouldn't place their fingers on the edge of peoples coffee cup, because it is very unhygienic. It's been an ongoing situation with various ones there. So in the sharing one to one, which I prefer, I have slowly come to letting many of them know when they have been unaware. Always polite and just explain why I want another coffee. Today I was in the same store and I noticed a young girl being trained by another girl and the girl in training was making my coffee while the training girl looked on indirectly. Well once more my coffee cup was held around the edge where one drinks from but also by the handle as one. I am aware, both in the past and today, it was because they don't want to spill the coffee. I politely shared again and asked her to make me another, explained my reasons. The training girl was looking on and listening, she took over without speaking at all and began making me another coffee. She was in a small amount of resistance (nothing major, just an awareness of a subtle movement moving in her) which was fine, but without speaking she made me another. The other girl in training, stood nearby and was more open to my request, so I reinforced with the words. "Please take this as a polite offering because I know that many folk might not be so polite about such matters especially on the frequency of repeating issues I have had with this. I also said I prefer to speak to you directly rather than go to management over this issue. She smiled when I spoke some more to her and agreed with me. I could see she understood and took it in willingly. The training girl continued in her minimal resistance mode, making me another coffee, without any acknowledgment. Upon bringing my coffee over, she picked up my cup by the handle but nearing the plate she placed her fingers on one side of the edge as to not spill it. As I noticed this, I kind of did an internal shrug and sensed she was really quite oblivious to her actions once more. So in that moment I decided to drink my coffee from the other side she didn't touch and actually next time speak directly to management once again.

I suspect in her minimal resistance, she didn't fully take in what I was sharing more complete. I realized this in that moment. I knew she wasn't reacting. I just knew she wasn't thinking more complete about what was important in regards to my request, but more about her own thinking, which was not to spill the coffee.

It was a good lesson for me in the nature of people and their minds, witnessing and aware of the various ways in which people respond and act. It has been an awareness of patience in myself and being more compassionate towards others even if I am dealing with them over and over with the same issue.

My patience kicked in nicely, I enjoyed my coffee. Next time I will approach the management again, (which I have done before over this issue very politely as to convey this as a friendly request to bring awareness to the girls about the priority of their thinking) I know that both issues are important, especially in relation to their time management and clean practices, but it seems my issue that I see as important, isn't coming together one with their thinking or priority and obviously the last request to management hasn't been followed through to affect.

Some things take time for change more complete.

[naturesflow]

When I left the market today, I noticed a dog tied with a short lead to a post. It was getting very warm and I also noticed he was isolated from people and stalls. He had a thin mouth band around his jaw. He had obviously been tied when shade was covering him but the sun had moved so he was laying down in part sun/part shade. I wondered if he belonged to a stall holder and had to endure the hot day laying there like that. There was no water in sight. As I had left the market, I thought I would go home and take my things home and come back and see if he/she was still there. I would investigate further if he/she was still there. I only live three minutes from the market so the drive was no issue. While I was walking across the road in thought and care of him, I felt myself cry a little for him/her. I thought even for a short time there alone, at least water and the awareness of shade more complete to shelter him could have been thought about for the dog. His mouth tied in the heat so he was literally confined in so many ways.

In that moment, I wondered if in fact the owner had left him for a short time because dogs were not allowed into the market. Anyway, I decided I would come back and check on him/her just in case.

And I did. And he/she was gone.