The Sanctity of Simplicity

Dear Awesome Woman,

I find it so easy to get caught up with living in my mind instead of living in the world. Time passes as I go from activity to activity – getting up, getting out, eating, driving etc. and yet I’m not in these activities as a participant. I’m just getting them over with.

My mind also has the tendency to focus on the past or on the future.

This quote from Byron Katie hangs above my desk.  I put it there to help keep me mindful throughout the day.  I think that I need to tape it to my forehead so I won’t forget it. Since that would look funny and may be distracting and dangerous, I thought that I would share it with you today in hopes that I’ll anchor it stronger into my reality and maybe you can gain something from it as well.

Enjoy!

LIVE NOW: JUST DO THE DISHES

Become mindful of the verbs you use: was, did, will, are going to etc. To speak of the past in the present is to reawaken and recreate it fully in the present, if only in our minds, and then we are lost to what is present for us now.  To speak of the future is to create and live with a fantasy.

If you want to experience fear, think of the future.

If you want to experience shame and guilt, think of the past.

Just focus on the dishes in front of you.

“Doing the dishes” is a practice of learning to love the action that is in front of you.  Your inner voice or intuition guides you all day long to do simple things such as doing the dishes, driving to work, or sweeping the floor.  Allow the sanctity of simplicity.  Listening to your inner voice and then acting on its suggestions with implicit trust creates a life that is more graceful, effortless, and miraculous.

Byron Katie – Posted on September 8, 2006