Nothing to Cling To
I think my motivation for this article has been the last month or so, as I’ve noted the deteriorating political situation in most of the Middle East, and in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and even in the cliché laden US primaries. Not to sit up here in Canada and preach, as we’ve got our own dramas.
The other thing was the market fluxuations. I got to thinking about how the world seems to be shifting a bit, or a lot, and how interesting the times could be, for folk not well grounded in themselves.
I suspect that might include a pile of people, as depth is not a prized characteristic. Clinging, on the other hand, is. Here, in no particular order are 10 things we cling to-
Small, Consistent Steps
Sure, everyone knows: “Rome wasn’t built in a day,” “The road to anywhere begins with the first step,” or even, “Begin with the end in mind.”
So, why is this Zen Living, this making changes, this doing life differently, such a struggle?
There are four things that hinder us: finger pointing, stubbornness, lethargy, and magical thinking. Today, we explore each, and propose a small, consistent step.
On Cleaning Out
There’s nothing particularly helpful about blame. And yet, it seems our minds revel in blame’s appeal. We fill our minds with slights, we tell ourselves how hard-done-by-we are, and we make ourselves victims of the past.
In this article, we look at cleaning out our minds—letting go of what does not work. From this ‘cleaned place,’ new choices emerge.
Zen Based, Present Living
