Theme/Mantra: “Let me be present in the present moment”
Reading:
A Dark Think Inside the Day by Linda Gregg
So many want to be lifted by song and dancing,
and this morning it is easy to understand.
I write in the sound of chirping birds hidden
in the almond trees, the almonds still green
and thriving in the foliage. Up the street,
a man is hammering to make a new house as doves
continue their cooing forever. Bees humming
and high above that a brilliant clear sky.
The roses are blooming and I smell the sweetness.
Everything desirable is here already in abundance.
And the sea. The dark think is hardly visible
in the leaves, under the sheen. We sleep easily.
So I bring no sad stories to warn the heart.
All the flowers are adult this year. The good
world gives and the white doves praise all of it.
Meditation:
Find a comfortable position, seated or standing.
Relax and close your eyes.
Exhale completely. Inhale slowly and deeply through your nose. Allow your stomach to expand like a balloon. Allow your breath to fill your chest and lungs.
Hold your breath: exhale slowly through your nose and squeeze out all the air.
If you wish, count to maintain your rhythm, inhaling for the count of 5, holding your breath for 15, exhaling for the count of 10.
Repeat as long as you want.
Meditate on the words- “I drink deeply from the well of Life.”
Physical Movement:
Find a smooth wall, and stand with your back to it.
Place your feet a foot-length distance from the wall. Keep your feet a hips distance apart.
Lean your back against the wall and slowly bend your knees until you are in a sitting-like position. Hold until you can feel your muscles begin to shake. Without judgement. Without pride. Our bodies are what they are.
Slowly slide your body back up into standing position. Repeat as you desire.
The goal here is to be aware of the body- how we feel our muscles when we use them.
Awareness in the present moment.
Reflection:
Jason Isbell has always impressed me with his lyrical capabilities, from his days with Drive By Truckers and songs like “bulldozers and dirt,” “daddy needs a drink,” and “outfit.” In this song, he oddly captures that feeling we have- of immortality, when we are actually mortal. If we were vampires and lived forever, how would we live? But we are not. Again, we are mortal. So every moment counts. We choose to love, to smell the roses, to pause and listen to the bird’s song. We choose to hold the hand of a loved one. I suggested the physical action of a chair sit for the sake of feeling the muscles in our own bodies strain. To feel, from an internal place, an awareness of our own physicality. Knowing that we cannot go on forever perhaps might helps us make better decisions in the here and now.
Song: If We Were Vampires by Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit
Lyrics:
It's not the long, flowing dress that you're in
Or the light coming off of your skin
The fragile heart you protected for so long
Or the mercy in your sense of right and wrong
It's not your hands searching slow in the dark
Or your nails leaving love's watermark
It's not the way you talk me off the roof
Your questions like directions to the truth
It's knowing that this can't go on forever
Likely one of us will have to spend some days alone
Maybe we'll get forty years together
But one day I'll be gone
Or one day you'll be gone
If we were vampires and death was a joke
We'd go out on the sidewalk and smoke
And laugh at all the lovers and their plans
I wouldn't feel the need to hold your hand
Maybe time running out is a gift
I'll work hard 'til the end of my shift
And give you every second I can find
And hope it isn't me who's left behind
It's knowing that this can't go on forever
Likely one of us will have to spend some days alone
Maybe we'll get forty years together
But one day I'll be gone
Or one day you'll be gone
It's knowing that this can't go on forever
Likely one of us will have to spend some days alone
Maybe we'll get forty years together
But one day I'll be gone
One day you'll be gone
Until Tomorrow-Peace