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Namaste and Welcome.
I’m so happy that you’re joining me here on my very first Livestream, which also happens to be the Vernal Equinox. Today is a moment. As we take this time together to pause, today is just one of two days in our year where day and night are equal.
We are passing through a threshold into the season of spring which brings longer days than nights. It is the earliest spring that we’ve had on earth in 124 years.
So if you’re feeling that this day was coming really early, you’re right that it is.
Nature is a wise teacher. Because even though we try to pause a moment, we are constantly moving forward and with this day we witness that change is ever present.
We have always lived with uncertainty. But with our current condition we are waking with clearer vision and greater understanding, into the truth of how uncertain our circumstances really are. To me, it feels like a loss of innocence. And I’ve even waxed poetic about how nice it would be to regress back into the shadows of not knowing. Ignorance is, as they say, bliss afterall.
But for seekers and yogis alike, we know that is false. Because we are on a path of understanding, knowledge and truth.
As many of you know already, I returned to my childhood home temporarily and so I’ve had a moment to reflect not only growing pains as we change and mature, but also the bravery and wisdom of innocence, of childhood. Because though we won’t ever fully be able to return back to how it was, we can bring with us some of the tools that we had with us as we step forward into this new season.
Many of you might know this book. It’s a favorite.
Where the Sidewalk Ends By Shel Silverstein
"There is a place where the sidewalk ends And before the street begins, And there the grass grows soft and white, And there the sun burns crimson bright, And there the moon-bird rests from his flight To cool in the peppermint wind. Let us leave this place where the smoke blows black And the dark street winds and bends. Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow We shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow, And watch where the chalk-white arrows go To the place where the sidewalk ends. Yes we'll walk with a walk that is measured and slow, And we'll go where the chalk-white arrows go, For the children, they mark, and the children, they know The place where the sidewalk ends."
We are entering a new season filled with sunlight and growing plants all lush and green. We are entering a time which is uncharted, with no road paved before us. We are entering the place where the sidewalk ends.
And Shel Silverstein reminds us that children know how to get where the sidewalk ends. And so we learn that it is our own childish sense of wonder, play and a deep connection to mystery which are all gifts we bring with us into these times.
We have a practice for maintaining wonder, because the more we learn, the harder it can be to maintain. Because cynicism can be easy to slip into.
This practice is called meditation.
So I invite you to sit comfortably. If you’re sitting in a chair have both feet on the ground. If you’d like you’re welcome to close your eyes.
Softly tune into your body.
Notice your seat and the support you’re receiving from your chair and the floor.
Feel yourself enter this present moment. This day where all is balanced. Light and dark. You might even begin to balance the length of your inhale and exhale in a practice we call “Sama Vritti Pranayam”. Same length inhale as exhale.
Letting your breathe be luscious and slow, can you be with any sensations that arise? The tenderness of your eyes behind their skin, a gentle ache of your low back or a creak in your knees…
Can you recognize these sensations as invitations to pause and to be with yourself?
As you are present with these sensations, do you notice how they might change slightly?
With your attention does the tenderness behind your eyelids melt softening your face?
Without trying to change anything about the sensation you’re noticing, allow your mind to connect with what you notice, pausing on it for a moment, and with the sheer connection of your presence allowing those sensations to move through you and then softly away.
This is the practice of bringing our loving awareness into the present moment, witnessing our very own natural and great power of change. This is something that naturally moves through us.
Can you now return back to your breath, letting that be your anchor so that if anything comes up that you don’t want to be present to at this moment can shift aside, and you can reside peacefully in this moment?
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Begin to slowly return to your breathe and your body. Once again re-entering the present moment.
Since you are in the comfort of your own home you are welcome to extend this meditation a bit longer if you wish.
Taking steps forward into a new season and time isn’t easy. We need tools and strength we gain from being together and so I thank each of you for being here with me.
This video will be catalogued and will remain on the Video Page of my website for the next 6 days, if you wish to freely access it at anytime. For those with the need for audio assistance, a written copy of this talk is catalogued on my blog.
Thank you so much for your generosity, your donations really make a difference.
May we now go forth into a new season filled with light, laughter and love. And may we never forget our wonder as we explore where the sidewalk ends.
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