The Ordinary Art

I own a daily mediation book by Mark Nepo called, The Book of Awakening, his writing is beautiful and inspiring.  I try to read each day, that rarely happens, but at least I make the attempt.  The passage I read from the other day struck me so I wanted to share it.

The Ordinary Art:

Before fixing what you’re looking at, check what you’re looking through.

It was a sun filled-day.  I had driven 300 miles to see her.  She was ninety-four and had been in one room for close to eight months.  I was her first-born grandson and she was so happy to see me.   But after catching up, we sat in silence on the edge of her bed, and finally, she complained how gray a day it was.

I realized then that her one window hadn’t been cleaned in almost a year.  When I said this, she chuckled, as only someone ninety-four can, and uttered with her Russian accent, “Got a dirty eye, see a dirty world.”

It is the same with our minds and hearts.  For our very self is the one window we have into this life.  And so often, we suffer the mood of a dirty window, believing the brilliant world gray.

Perhaps the purpose of authentic relationship is to help each other keep our minds and hearts clear.  Perhaps inner work is the ordinary art of window washing, so that the day is fully the day.

–Sit quietly until you feel centered.  Now use your breath to wash the ideas from your mind.  Breathe evenly and wash the film from your heart.  Breathe deeply and wash the conclusions from your eyes.

I really needed to read this because sometimes I get so fixed in my impatience and agitation, I become blinded by what is really around me.  The weekends tend to get to me the most, I am surrounded by the “weekend warriors” binge drinking their vodka redbulls and humping in the midst of my path.  However, I have placed myself in this job, I am no victim here, and honestly the entertainment is boundless.  When I look at things clearly I realize I get paid to hang out with some awesome coworkers, some even have the ability to make me laugh and enjoy the chaos.  Also, I am able to gain perspective on my goals, the way I want to present myself to the world, and the people I want around me.

So maybe your alarm didn’t go off, traffic was awful, or that one table was rude… these are just moments, simple as that.  Ultimately, these moments have no power over an entire day, but if we allow them to take over our windows become dirty.  All of the sudden we latch onto the negative and forget to feed the positive.  Some days my blinders are so fixed that my entire vision becomes dimmed, but I have to realize I am in control.  It takes work to step out of a bad attitude, at least for me, sometimes it is easier to hate everyone and just roll my eyes.  In reality though, this does nothing for me and I remain in a gray room forgetting the sun is on the other side.  Seeing things clearly and removing the emotional clouds takes some practice, the act of letting go and being present is an art.  Try to remove the dirt from your eyes, the world sparkles if you allow it to.  After all, the sun always wants to come out from behind the clouds.