🔵 By Shane Espinoza. Photo by lauragrafie.
I recently read a piece on Zen philosophy that stated “sin, then sweep the garden no matter how big it is.” It is ok to fight for freedom but have fun while doing it. Journey on a spiritual path and have fun. Why let prison or people take my happiness? How much fun can I have on this path? These are questions that many don’t ask themselves. This reminds me of my previous article about finding joy in the ordinary moments. Prison does not have to be a nightmare. There is beauty and good here. I choose to see it. This allows me to feel calm, gracious and relaxed. Have you ever noticed how tense your body becomes in difficult situations of our own making? It does not feel good to be under so much tension and it is exhausting. I have learned how to be kind to my body and present with my pain. This loving awareness leads to self compassion. This is how we witness our feelings. Now I can step back and figure out what the story is.
Mark Twain said, “My life is filled with misfortunes, many of which never happened.”
I was being really hard on myself for not creating much over the past couple of months. I started to experience an increased sense of loneliness. In order to be kind to myself I realized that I needed to be present for the loneliness. It is part of my humanity. I mediated and showed gratitude as a way to train for kindness. The loneliness passed and my desire to write and draw returned. Imagine my surprise that being kind to myself resulted in an expansion of my own humanity. I now realize that my kindness is enough.