Dear friends,
Welcome to this meditation,
And I'm pleased to see that its title caught your attention.
My hope is that you and I will become more comfortable with the idea of stepping off the treadmill without guilt.
But let us begin by finding a comfortable space,
A space where we can relax for a few undisturbed minutes.
I hope you have managed to establish such a place in your own home.
Even a corner will do.
A little space like that will bring you to a place of relaxation as soon as you step into it.
So now relax,
And just let things be for a change.
Leave the past where it belongs,
And for these few minutes allow the future to take care of itself.
You might find it helpful to close your eyes,
But the important thing is that you do whatever feels comfortable for you.
And for the next minute,
Just 60 seconds,
Let's concentrate on our breathing.
Just the simple fact of our breathing in and our breathing out.
Some mantras to help you along the way.
Breathing in,
I notice that I am breathing in.
Breathing out,
I notice that I am breathing out.
In,
Breathing in,
I become aware of this present moment.
Breathing out,
I realise this is a wonderful moment.
Present moment,
Wonderful moment.
A 60 second pause.
Welcome back.
I wonder have you ever had the experience of being committed to a certain activity,
And being so dedicated to it,
That you would only absent yourself if some crisis arose.
Something really important that was a greater call on your time.
This is something that's been going through my mind for the last little while.
It comes down to finding a balance between unfailing reliability and the application of common sense.
An event occurred recently in my own long life that finally allowed the penny to drop in my case.
But I suppose it's better late than never.
I came to realise that I never cancel a commitment unless something pressing causes me to be elsewhere.
It struck me how we can launch ourselves onto a treadmill of activity from which we only decide to stop if there is some exceptional reason.
Yes,
We stop when there is a reasonable excuse for stopping,
But do we ever stop just for its own sake?
Do we ever fail to be present when there's no reason for our absence except the decision to be absent?
A pause now for another 60 seconds so you can consider if this might be your way of being and of doing.
Welcome back.
Now it's not that we want to become unreliable people,
It's just that we need to establish some sense of freedom in terms of what we do regularly.
Could we bring ourselves to realise that we do not have to do everything on every particular occasion?
I read somewhere that the oak tree doesn't apologise for dropping its leaves in autumn and the sea doesn't seek permission before becoming still.
In the same way,
We are not required to justify every quiet moment of escape with some explanation.
Why do we feel a sense of guilt when we decide to stop,
Even momentarily?
Do we have a fear that stepping back might disappoint other people?
Are we afraid that we might be seen as less committed?
Yet our strength shouldn't rely upon our constant availability.
Our greater strength should be found in knowing when to step off in order to step on again with greater enthusiasm.
Let's have another pause for reflection,
This time an opportunity to see if we might need to change our ways,
And maybe a chance now for a resolution to approach things differently.
Welcome back again.
I hope you have managed to find some benefit in these thoughts.
My wish for you is that,
From time to time,
When you find yourself on a treadmill of recording activities,
You will remember to take a step off,
For no good reason except that you have remembered how important it is to stop for a moment.
I hope when you do this,
You won't feel the need to justify yourself,
Or the need to offer any excuse,
Other than perhaps to say that you have decided to take a break,
And you recommend the same to the person who has asked you the question.
I'd like to end our meditation with a short quote.
This is from a well-known book called Stopping by David Kunditz.
David says,
The ultimate purpose of stopping is to ensure that when we do go,
We go in the direction we want,
And that we are not just reacting to the pace of our lives,
But using moment by moment what's best.
The ultimate reason for stopping is going.
Namaste.
