Be soft in your practice.
Think of the method as a fine silvery stream,
not a raging waterfall.
Follow the stream, have faith in its course.
It will go its own way,
meandering here, trickling there.
It will find the grooves, the cracks, the crevices.
Just follow it.
Never let it out of your sight.
It will take you.
~ Sheng-Yen
Practice. Path. Life.
Be soft . . . find the ease . . . recognize the moments when I swim against the current . . . simple.
Yet not always easy.
That’s why life brings me reminders . . .
To practice.
To make space to look. To make space to be kind. To open myself to opportunities to be gentle with myself.
To recognize the moments of habit.
To listen.
The voices of habit will always speak clearly and constantly . . . so much so that I often just believe them without much thought or inquiry.
Practice.
To remember that the “voices of reason” of the mind are just thoughts that I either choose to believe, or choose not to believe.
To have trust in the process of life’s unfoldings . . . because after all, where am I going and where did I come from?
The mystery and wonder of this exact moment . . .
To nurture the courage to follow my path . . . as there are so many ways to live this life . . .
To remember: All streams, lakes, and rivers flow into the same expanse of ocean.
