June 13, 2023 -A

We live with what there is to do,
with what we will do with it,
with what we have done,
and what we have failed to do.

The ultimate doing
is making our peace with all things.

Balance and harmony
require us to make our peace
with all things.

"This is the way things are,
and this is what we can do about it,
and that's that."

Squaring ourselves up
with the difference between
the way we are
and the way we are asked to live,
and what we are being asked to do,
in each situation as it arises
is the big destabilizing factor
in each day.

We reduce our vulnerability
by limiting our exposure,
yet, even monks,
even hermits,
even recluses,
come to the crossroads
and have to give up this
to have that.

Balance and harmony
come and go
with the situations
and circumstances
of each day.

No one can sit zazen forever,
and why would they if they could?

Life calls us onto the field of action!
Doing what needs to be done,
when/where/how it needs to be done,
moment to moment throughout the day.

Which makes for a lot of squaring up
and making our peace
with the disparity
between how things are
and how things need to be.

Awareness and attentiveness make for clarity,
and clarity calls for coming to terms with
"This is the way things are,
and this is what can be done about it,
and that is the way things are!"

All day long.
Every day.

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