I had just finished my personal practice in my favorite park next to my favorite pond. I had no intention other than to be present. Rather than meditating with my eyes closed, for an inward experience, I chose to keep my eyes open and be where life was happening. Here is where I found myself…
Everything around me is filled with life, the grass I’m sitting on green, vibrant and firm yet flexible. Little critters crawl on blades of grass as if they were tall trees reaching for the sky. The branches and leaves of the trees dance gracefully to the gentle breeze. They cast a cool shadow for me to sit in as the sun blazes bright and warm on my skin and the earth. I find myself surrounded by winged creatures. Colorful dragonflies hover above me and the water, giant fuzzy bumble bees buzz from purple flower to purple flower retrieving their sweet pollen. Hawks glide on the wind currents above me without a single flap of their wide wing span. Birds unseen sing from the trees bringing beautiful music to the atmosphere. The water is alive as it ripples far and wide each time another piece of life touches it. It reminds me, we are all connected. Four white Ibis hunt together in these waters for their breakfast and gracefully walk through the shallow depth. They are busy and playful. Another beautiful white heron swoops down for a landing to catch a small fish then sit upon a rock watching life around her just as I am in this moment. I hear a splash from the water but only ripples are to be seen now. Again it reminds me we are all affected by these ripples even if we don’t know their origin. A beautiful blue heron is now flying by on the other side of the water alerting something in the wild of his presence. I see you blue heron. I look up, the sky is bright blue with a few fluffy white clouds travelling by. The environment in warm but the breeze is cool. Everything is as it’s supposed to be. It’s all working together beautifully and I am a part of it. I am sitting within life itself. I am life and in this moment it is peaceful, lovely and content.
I’m not sure how long I was there, it didn’t matter. I allowed my intuition to guide me when it was time to leave but in these precious moments it was getting present to the moment that allowed not only a memorable experience but helped as a tool to provide contentment.
Life isn’t always this effortless as you know. It all depends on where your mind is. To be this present in a world of upset would be that much more challenging but still possible. It just takes practice. Prior to my physical practice my mind was quite busy with an emotional week I had prior but getting to my mat helped to release that and bring me to a more present state. I understand people don’t always have time for an hour practice on their mats but wherever we are, we take the tools we learn on our mat into our lives. This could come in the form of a few light stretches, breath work, mantra, creating intention and/or letting go of our thoughts and getting present to the moment in front of us.
In what ways have you found contentment or been touched by the present moment or nature? I would love to hear from you in the comments below.