Developing Presence

I can hear the deep silence anytime I remember to listen.  It’s right below the noise.  This is what I am reminded of each day during my meditations.  It is the stillness where my answers arise, where my pain melts and I feel gratitude for my life with all its joys and all of its sorrows.

It is this present moment awareness that is my foundation for exploring my life journey.  If I can remember to be gentle with myself once I start my daily relationships it makes me doubly appreciative of the time spent honing this awareness of what Stillness is capable of.  It isn’t only the moment of the “aha” but all the spaces in between; the process of living my life step by step by step.  And yes, stumbling at times as well.  In fact many times it is the stumbling that creates more insight than the “aha”.  Or, maybe the “aha” is the result of the stumbles.  It’s probably a chicken or the egg discussion.

At the heart of it is my realization that the process is what has created the form of my life.  If I focus on the answers that I think I need I entirely miss the experience of how to live in that moment and the next moment that provides the ultimate result and deeper meaning.  It is the deeper meanings of those steps and stumbles that provide healing. 

It is developing presence that gives me knowledge of myself.  And, more fully knowing myself allows me to heal.  If I can heal myself I can help to heal the world.