sips of tranquility

dispelling the myth of waiting to enjoy your life

i give up.

i give up the dream that one day i’ll empty my metaphorical inbox; celebrating by bathing in an empty life with no challenges and no responsibilities. that i’ll one day be done with all these pesky little obligations and make it to the other side where life doesn’t require anything of me.

but that’s not how it works.

there is no end to the constant barrage of Life.

creeks

this morning, while sitting next to a nearby creek, i found the ceaseless nature of it quite unbelievable. it just keeps flowing! no matter how long i watched, the creek spent.

likening the rushing water to my internal stream of consciousness, with endless thoughts, ideas, judgements, and regrets; for the first time, nature’s example left me more unsettled.

there is no end to the madness. our minds in these bodies are executing like scripts in a terminal. as we take in more input, we generate more output.

we are a process. a messy, soulful process.

the idea that i’ll one day be “done with societal & life responsibilities” and can then enjoy myself is hearsay.

sips

just like taking our daily vitamins, or walking our steps, like hearty soup we can scoop from the cauldron of peace, sipping our tranquility in doses throughout our day.

by interweaving sessions of meditation, breath work, or (by golly) dozing on the couch— we can knit a quilt of calm, peace, and stillness to help comfort our burnt-out nervous systems.

i’ve stopped waiting to relax until the to-do list is over, my calendar is clear, or my room is perfectly clean.

now i’m selfish, i witness the empty trails and desolate parks; soaking up the sun and cashing in moments i’ve saved for the future. because there really is no such thing as saving time.

nourish

drink from the stillness of each moment, giving it as much attention as we do to our habits of self-destruction.

dip into calmness until the vibration of your activated self feels as abrasive as slowing down did at first.

for on our deathbed, this may be the only drink we remember.

bottoms up.