August 04, 2024 – B

We are--or eventually will be--awash in circumstances
which challenge our resources, will, and intellect
in rising to the occasion
and doing what needs to be done.

We can be swamped, in other words,
and at a loss as to what to do,
here, now, next.

The work is to empty ourselves
of all anxiety
and open ourselves to the stillness and silence
and to our intrinsic intuition,
our original nature,
and our inherent virtues--
the things we do best and enjoy doing most.

And wait in the silence for direction and guidance
to arise to lead the way
from this moment to the next one,
from these circumstances
to those that follow.

Our intuition,
our nature,
our virtues
are our "very present help
in time of trouble,"
which "will not abandon us
or leave us bereft."

It only takes trusting ourselves to them
to know it is so,
"One step at a time."

And listen to our dreams. 

I had a great one two nights ago.
I was walking with a black bear
on a leash.

"Well, now what?" I wondered.
"What am I going to do with 
a bear on a leash?"
"How hungry is it?"
How am I going to feed a bear?
How many beef roasts will it take?
How often?"

I was dealing with these questions
when I came upon an empty 18-wheeler trailer
with bars on the sides and top,
and I led the bear up the loading platform
into the trailer where I left it,
shutting the doors and securing them
while I pondered the matter of what to do.

That led me to two realizations:
1) Why/how is this MY problem?
2) In what way is this bear a symbol
of a burden that I am carrying in my own life?

The bear clearly was not my problem, 
and it was clearly a symbol of my life
in its entirety.

My responsibility for my life 
is exactly my responsibility for this bear--
the bear is my life.
In assuming my responsibility for my life,
I am relieved of my responsibility for the bear.

And I eased into wakefulness aware of the need
to be aware of my life
and of my need to serve it 
with my attentive presence--
as though it were a bear on a leash.