"Do nothing. Time is too precious to waste."

 

This somewhat famous lesson from the Buddha, "Do nothing.  Time is too precious to waste." has indeed perplexed me from time to time, because there are so many important and worthwhile things to do.  And there is also so much that really and truly needs to be done.  But then, blessedly, I find myself just sitting quietly somewhere, maybe gazing up at the clear blue sky, or indulging in a little day dream, and then I get it.  The being part of me, the human being, rather than the human doing, settles my mind once more, and I fall into a deeper reality, a freer and wiser place within myself.  

There is such an emphasis on productivity in our Western culture, what with the rush and pushing of time.  And yet so often our most profound understandings and our sudden unexpected inner knowings for our best course of action pop into our heads, not while we are trying to figure it all out, but instead these insights occur most often while we are doing nothing.  It is as if we humans really do need to step aside once in a while, to let it all come clear and slide into place.

Ram Dass, in his seminal work, Be Here Now, demonstrated the bursts of creativity that can come when we allow ourselves to simply focus on the moment.  Watching the cat stalking stealthily in the garden, or a bee visiting a series of flowers, gazing into a campfire, or taking in the silence and stillness of the night, letting the mind simply focus on what is present, for just a few minutes, now and then, is natural and a very important part of who we humans are.

In our rush of technology, and too often wrongly in the name of efficiency, somehow the current trend has resulted in us letting these precious moments of doing nothing slip farther and fewer away.  Instead we play word games or distract ourselves with videos, leaving the television or the radio to play in the background.  Or we listen to talks or the news.  All good ventures unto themselves and completely justifiable.  But not so good for the seemingly ever increasing abstinence from open windows of freely attentive time.  Time where nothing is happening.  Time where we are not trying to meditate or take a nap.  Time where we just take a little break and let ourselves be.

Our brains get so used to us filling every moment with varying pursuits, sounds and distractions, that it actually starts to feel uncomfortable to do without.  Open space for our mind's to gaze at something, or to wander around in, become no longer familiar, and it can start to feel really weird to do so, unless we consciously begin to cultivate empty time, intentionally, once again.  

Allowing this free flow of mind is important, because it is in this open state of simple clarity that epiphanies arise.  Inspirations live here.  The non-focused gentle resting of our attention opens the door to our connection with everything.  This is how we spontaneously see the bigger picture and move past our fears or self-imposed limitations and progress into the free flow of fresh ideas and more prescient understandings and deeper connections.

So, though I too can get frequently lost in the 'brownie points' of checking things off of my 'to do' list, and rushing on ahead to getting things done, the Buddha's words do reach through this furor from time to time and remind me of the clarity that I can find by just taking a moment to look around and do nothing.  So, join me.  Let's just relax and let the moment in.

Clear and Present Attention

 

Some years back, I was visiting my brother's family, up in Tehachapi.  My little niece and I were walking around their house, and there amongst the support beams for their balcony, we came upon one of her little wild friends, a pet horny toad, who used to come and visit with her up on the deck; he had apparently quite recently fallen to his death.  She was bereft, so very sad, sobbing with her eyes filled with tears.  We sat together and held his body in our hands and stroked his still soft skin.  

After a time, when her tears had subsided, I asked her if she would like to have a burial ceremony, to honor her little pet's life.  She nodded in agreement and we went to get the garden shovel.  Her mother, noticed us and asked what was going on.  I briefly explained and she came down to join us.  The three of us took turns solemnly digging and preparing the grave.  We gathered some lovely wildflowers from the hillside, laid them carefully in the hole and placed the toad down in there.  Gently we covered over his body as we said some prayers for his well being in a future time.  Then we found and placed some beautiful rocks, ones that she thought he would have liked, right on top.  

Years later, my sister-in-love commented to me how sacred that moment was, for all of us.  She said, "That's why children love you so much.  You give them your clear and present attention."  And it is true, we all need and crave that direct and full attention, not only from others, but also from and to ourselves.  Far too often, in this modern life, we are driven by distraction.  One thing calls us away from our present task, quickly tumbling into another.  We loose the satisfaction of a job well done.  And we barely have the opportunity to even ask about what would be best to do next or what might be most important, right now.   

Just a few short decades ago, multitasking was heralded as a time-saving and advanced human skill.  Now, we know that multi-tasking leaves us with less productivity and lower quality results.  Not being able to fully focus on either task results in a diminished combined performance.  

The same holds true, the research shows, in regards to our ability to concentrate and successfully think through and complete tasks when we are overly stimulated by common substances like sugar or caffeine.  That extra boost may make us feel like we are accomplishing more, and more quickly.  But, in actuality, the results fall short of that illusion.

Another cultural pattern that we tend to hold in high regard is being busy.  We are somehow made to feel 'less than,' if we are not rushing around doing many things, checking our messages, meeting people, tending to lots of details and little emergencies all day long.  Each accomplishment that we do, gives us a small endorphin rush and we hurry off to get another.

Even in conversation, we often are so actively looking for ways to respond, or are so eager to empathize and share our own experiences, that we jump in without letting the other person finish saying whatever it is that they were sharing.  The light of connection goes out of our eyes, as our minds shift into preparing our own thoughts to share.  Perhaps you've seen that.  I know that I have, where someone's eyes become dull as they have let their attention move away from what is being said.  I am often guilty of this particular habit, and I often fall prey to all of the other modern-day tendencies mentioned here, as well. 

But, as my sister-in-love said, there are times when I can give my full and present attention, listening carefully, slowing down, feeling a sense of completion, allowing what is most important in this moment to arise.  And this is true for all of us, with all of these habits.  We can cultivate changes and become more conscious, often just by realizing them and letting ourselves become more aware.  It's okay to 'Stop and Smell the Roses.'   We can reclaim the ability to 'Be Here Now,' as Ram Dass famously proposed.  

Two of my favorite authors, from Australia, Susan Pearson and Martina Sheehan, addressed these cultural tendencies beautifully in their book, Do Less, Be More, which they wrote in 2017.  Instead of giving a 'To do list,' they offer a 'What Not To Do List,' helping readers to avoid rushing off to accomplish more, or dividing their attention with various things.  When we rest between tasks, even if just for a moment, ideas and inspirations have a chance to enter into our thoughts.  Racing around, doing too much and jumping from one experience to another, prevents us from having the ability to let deeper parts of our brain engage and this takes it's toll.

For myself, the times when I have really felt connected to others, and connected to my reason for being in this world, are when I have taken the time to give whatever it is that I find at hand, my complete focus.  I'd rather be right there, in the moment, like that time with my little niece.  If I were to have been checking for messages in the midst of it, or trying to sweep away a few cobwebs and clean something at the same time, the sacredness of the moment would have been lost.  

Those of you who read my blog know that I often like to recall the teaching of the Buddha, who said, "Do nothing.  Time is too precious to waste."  Sometimes doing nothing or at least slowing down and being present in the moment, helps me to feel more alive, more awake and more fully aware.  And it brings me my richest rewards, a joyful and fulfilling way to be.  

I'll leave you with this, from one of my mentors, Peace Pilgrim.  
She put it this way:
"Stay in the present moment.
Do what needs to be done.
Do all of the good that you can each day.
And the future will unfold."
Sweet blessings to each and every one of you.

Hooray for Yesterday, and My Perspective Today.

 

The one thing I've missed most of all during this pandemic is visiting with my niece, her beautiful young family and my wonderful sister-in-love.  Aside from the usual precautions being observed by most of us, and being parents of two small boys, the family has been especially careful.  So, we stopped seeing each other.  

I'm not much for most social media, nor am I free of concerns over the massively increasing and now ubiquitous exposures of electromagnetic frequencies, (EMF's.)  So, for that reason and a myriad of other concerns, I don't choose to own a cell phone.  So, I don't text.  And most young people, these days, truly dislike using their phones as phones.  So, unless we make time to see each other, I'm literally completely out of touch with my niece and her family.

But yesterday, joy of joys, with the onset of spring and the drop in COVID cases, an exception to our 'No Visiting' stance opened with a window of opportunity and we all jumped through.  We didn't hug, but we spent a truly glorious day together out in their charming little backyard.  

The boys had dump-trucks and blocks and a mini, light portable swing-set, along with a delightful elevated circular plastic trough that Gram-mama had just filled with water for them to stand at, pat and splash in, with their toys.  We brought some little celery snacks and some tomato based veggie drinks, which were a big hit.  And we found that we all just delighted in the moment, each moment, all day long.  

The weather was beautiful, the company superlative, and the joy factor was spectacular.  Despite our many vague attempts to speak of ideas or ideals, the boys religiously pulled us back to the present moment of now.  

May we all be so blessed as to have such great fun with our families or friends, catching those golden moments of relaxed love and joy, whenever we can.  As the Buddha said, "Do nothing.  Time is too precious to waste."

I'll leave you with this snippet from a Mary Oliver poem that I love:

The god of dirt
came up to me many times and said
so many wise and delectable things,
I lay on the grass listening
to his dog voice,
crow voice,
frog voice;
now, he said,
and now,
 
and never once mentioned forever.