Hey,
As you settle in,
Take a moment to witness your riotous thoughts running around,
Running around.
Breathe in,
Concentrating on the feel of the cool breath entering your body.
Breathe out,
Softening your shoulders and jaw.
Center,
Settle.
Welcome to a hit of hope,
And this one's a wee bit salty.
In high school,
I visited New Zealand,
And beyond being pierced to the core by the raw beauty of those islands,
I remember being astonished at an exhibition of border collies working with sheep.
The intelligence,
The athleticism as they circled,
Nipped and herded the sheep this way and that.
They excelled at keeping the bleating huddle of beasts in check.
Until right now,
I thought that was the perfect model for living.
Because if we could keep our thoughts controlled and huddled,
Moving in the directions we wanted them to go,
Why,
That would be brilliant,
Right?
I've got to do this.
I need to do that.
Oh,
I have to remember this.
There you are,
Controlling it all.
Inhale,
Exhale.
Maybe that kind of energy is familiar to you.
It's the kind of energy that can help us be hyper-efficient,
And so it might seem like the perfect kind of energy for our busy,
Modern lives.
But that kind of living is exhausting.
Inhale,
Exhale.
It occurs to me now that in that scene oh so long ago in New Zealand,
There was a better model for living.
The shepherd.
As the sheep spilled like woolly milk all over the green fields,
As the border collies worked their asses off to contain the mess,
There was the shepherd,
Standing still,
Watching it all.
Inhale,
Exhale.
We are not our thoughts.
We are not our thoughts,
Those innocent lambs that can sometimes turn all too easily into shit-stained sheep.
And,
Like border collies,
We do not always have to be working so damn hard to keep it all together.
Inhale,
Exhale.
We can be the one watching,
The witness,
The shepherd,
Who can see the craziness and with only a whistle say,
Nope,
Not that way.
It's the energy of guarding our thoughts so they stay away from edges and brambles.
It's the energy of tending.
Ah,
Little one,
Here let me scoop you up and keep you safe.
It's the energy of quiet wisdom.
A wisdom that can see the bigger picture.
I know where the clover is,
A sweet field where you can breathe deeply and live with a sense of fullness.
When life leaves you bleating in distress,
When life leaves you exhausted from chasing,
Stop.
Still.
Breathe.
Turn toward that big and grounded energy that will always keep you safe and lead you home.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Live Light.
