"The path toward the liberated and awakened self is never smooth or straight. It is strewn with potholes, boulders, and landslides. Just as an artist spends months, even years, painting a masterpiece, relying on the creativity within and exercising the discipline required to patiently add stroke upon stroke, so it is with the process of awakening. The liberated self doesn't emerge overnight. It arrives as layer after layer of our ego gets peeled off and replaced with mindfulness and the wisdom that comes with it. Given that we are asked to face all our fears, the price of awakening may seem high. However, if we keep moving forward, one step at a time, the rewards of such an undertaking soon reveal themselves. Our days begin to be permeated with an irrepressible joy and a sense of purpose that engages us with intense present-moment awareness.
The Gift
"May you be blessed with a child . . .
Who defies you
So you learn to release control,
With one who doesn't listen
So you learn to tune in,
With one who loves to procrastinate
So you learn the beauty of stillness,
With one who forgets things
So you learn to let go of attachments,
With one who is extra-sensitive
So you learn to be grounded,
With one who is inattentive
So you learn to be focused,
With one who dares to rebel
So you learn to think outside the box,
With one who feels afraid
So you learn to trust the universe.
May you be blessed with a child . . .
Who teaches you
that it is never about them And all about you."
