Good morning,
Happy Sunday,
Sunday,
August 23rd,
And I can see the sun just starting to rise and this beautiful glow just lighting up the sky.
If you haven't already,
Please do find a comfortable seat that your eyes may be softly close or gently gaze onto a steady spot,
Maybe even the tip of your nose.
And then just take a really nice full deep inhale.
Breathe into your belly and move it up deep into your chest.
Pause just briefly for a moment and then exhale and let the breath go out through your mouth just like a heavy sigh and let everything else go.
Let anything before this moment just completely shed that.
And so if you need another heavy sigh,
Please invite yourself to do that and let go a little bit further.
If you wish,
Place a hand on your low belly and one towards your heart.
And as you breathe in through your nose,
Fill your belly and feel it rise towards your hand,
Moving that same inhale up into your chest and pausing.
This time through closed mouth,
Exhale slowly through your nose.
Open your body for any tension that might be being held somewhere,
Your jaw,
Your eyes,
Maybe across your forehead,
Your shoulders.
Just keep following your breath,
Scanning your body and inviting different areas to just soften with every exhale,
To be right here in this moment,
Right now.
I've been contemplating time,
How time seems to go quickly and yet slowly all at the same time.
And so I share this with you to reflect on time,
How you spend your time,
The same amount we get every single day.
The quality,
Joy and impact of our lives are directly related to how wisely we use the time we have.
Time is our most precious commodity.
Every person is given the same amount to spend in each 24 hour period.
It cannot be rolled over into the next day or added on to the end of one's life.
It is spent entirely in that 24 hour period.
I'll share this parable with you.
My wife wanted me to take another woman out to dinner and a movie.
The other woman was my mother.
The demands of my work and children mean I visit her only occasionally.
That night I called to invite her.
What's wrong?
Are you all right?
She asked.
I thought that it would be pleasant to spend some time with you,
I responded.
Just the two of us?
I'd like that very much,
She said.
I was a bit nervous when I arrived at her house.
I noticed that she seemed to be nervous too.
She had curled her hair and was wearing the dress that she had worn to celebrate her last wedding anniversary.
Her smile was radiant.
As we walked into the restaurant,
My mother proudly took my arm.
Before we could order,
I had to read the menu to her as she can only read large print.
Halfway through with a nostalgic smile,
She said,
When you were young,
I used to have to read the menu to you.
I enjoyed returning the favor.
During dinner,
We caught up on recent events of each other's life.
We talked so much that we missed the movie.
Later,
She said,
I'll go out with you again,
But only if you let me invite you.
I agreed.
That night was much more than I could have imagined.
A few days later,
My mother died of a massive heart attack.
It happened so suddenly that I didn't have a chance to do anything for her.
Sometime later,
I received an envelope with a note that said,
You will never know what that night meant for me.
I love you,
Son.
At that moment,
I understood the importance of saying,
In time,
I love you,
And to give our loved ones the time that they deserve.
Nothing in life is more important.
Because these things cannot be put off until some other time.
Some people spend their time attaining vast wealth and fame.
Some spend their time in a quest for pleasure and fulfillment.
Others spend much of their time cultivating closer,
Deeper relationships with family and with friends.
Still others waste the precious time they have been given and wonder how and why their lives have passed them by.
The important relationships in our lives don't take time.
They give us time.
In these last quiet moments together,
As you follow the rhythm of your breath,
Reflect on your relationships,
The important ones,
The ones that matter,
And how are you spending your time on them,
Or are you at all?
Fill your heart and fill your mind with gratitude for those that you are blessed to share your time with and that share their time with you.
Wishing you a beautiful Sunday.
Namaste.
