Being of service. Being content.

Portrait of spring happening…. @Maggiehongkong

I have been dreaming about this ode for some time.

I have been noticing real life taking over.

I have been moved by how easy the rug under our feet can be removed.

And I have been only scratching the surface.

When these rugs are pulled out from under our feet, we might be a bit bedazzled at first, a touch of shock that brings in a bliss on its own- a sort of aeration. A moment to enjoy ourselves just as we are.

The structures that seemingly "hold us" steady, the stream of income, the stream of good health, the stream of making your home the space that you adore, the stream of habits - waking up, getting dressed, preparing to go somewhere, the place you go to and you come back from, the ferryboat awaiting you at a given time and schedule - one day might suddenly shift. The shift calls in for different habits, readjusting, what to keep, what to do, what to let go of. The place you have been going to, it has not turned just into another location on the map. A location that you would not plan visiting anytime soon.

And that might be a bigger task to face than we could imagine. As we hold still in us the fear we stored somewhere in our mind, in our body.

And yet, you wake up not torn by this old memory of fear. You wake up, grateful that you are healthy. First and foremost. You wake up, grateful that the roof over your head has not gone anywhere, no matter what the noise from the typhoons looming over. You wake up and wave at the departed rug that created this illusion of stability. You wave good-bye to a phase, to an era of growth, to a rug thorn too fast by all the objects piling up or thrown at, or disposed of. You wave good-bye to a rug that fulfilled its purpose. You wave good-bye and say thank you.

You wake up and adjust your habits. Suddenly, you come up to the magnificent realization that there is a tremendous freedom that comes along. You wake up to the opportunity, to the possibility, to the "now is the time" to act and sit and reevaluate. The opportunity to recognize there is nothing between you and the precious time you were dreaming about, the time to create, the time when your values can exist just as they are. The opportunity that you could find a flying rug to take you somewhere you cherish dearly. And often that might mean your closest kin.

This is the time available right there, so obvious, when there is no need to count the days and limit the interaction. You take it and wave thank you again. This time that would be a welcoming thank you.

I have been dreaming about this ode for some time.

I have been noticing real life taking over.

I have been taking a ride on a flying rug taking me closer to my dear kin.

I have been humbled by the power of saying out loud" There is nothing between me and freedom".

I have been encouraged recently in a community evening, to "hold on to this feeling", so that you can recall it later from your own resource drawer. Thank you wonderful soul, for reminding me that.

This is the time available right here. Time to partake in life as it is. Time to step in and blend in new habits.Time to show up to life in ways that would also be meaningful for others.

This is the time available right here. Where you get closer to your village, the village that infused your path with integral values, hard to find otherwise. The village where hard work is not something to complain about, hard work is part of daily life. You know there is gratitude right here though all the trees blooming, through all the flowers trimmed, though the hens laying nine-ten eggs per day, though the dogs protecting the courtyard and loving you anytime you step up, through your dear kin taking care of all this invisible machine performing steadily, with the seasons.

Spring symphony and yellow daffodils … @Maggiehongkong

It is spring now in Europe. This means white and pink buds, that means a effeverscence looming in and lifting our steps, with now longer days and the sun shining brighter than ever just before setting down. It is spring now, and both sunrise and sunset are somehow the same. Taking over the horizon. The same horizon that kept you going for ever, that told you through its eternal beauty that there is nothing between you and your freedom.

The only difference between before and now is that you can speak this out loud, with conviction. The imaginary cage no longer dominates the courtyard of your potential.

You know that you knew it all along.

These are of course still concepts and beautiful words to mark the moment of embarking on a new flying rug.

The immersive session of this new phase started by noticing real life happening and doing it with others. It might be slower to pick up an established pace of a garden that needs trimming.

The fast pace comes from multiple directions.

The fast pace is brought to you through the "NOWs" that simply cannot wait.

The rhythm of the spring season is real. Chores performed. Your help might be accepted or not, yet, the time is not intersected by actions that cannot be postponed.

Let's. Shall we. I need. Can you check. Can you read. We must go now. We must do this. NOW. All there is here infused by the immediate.

The correlation is infused by the immediate.

Time alone and co-relational time are very different entities.

You breathe in the joy of what co-relational times bring in.

Time alone is a precious gem on its own and I am somehow even more aware of its sense of luxury or privilege to an extent when I compare it with real life happening.

Real life happening does not carry any sense of luxury. On the contrary, it involves action. Not much questioning. It involves showing up.

While the set point on the scale of practicing gardening skills might be very low on the village skills bar, it comes with the promise of a practice. Or learning a new skill besides talking to your window sill flowers and repotting them on a balcony. In gardening terms, there is much talk about weeds. How fast they grow, how large they grow at inimaginable speed. How is the weather affecting everything there is, including the weeds and when would be the best timing to remove them. How much force is needed to pull out the weeks and clean a patch of soil to let it breath and let the good seeds emerge with their own speed and force. The weeds are inevitable. The manure is necessary and either organic or not, you can understand just by seeing the impact on the soil, that both the weeds and manure enhance natural growth.

A practical analogy drawn by the garden I can see from my window now, as I write. Should you prefer" no mud, no lotus" or should you use the one right here in front of us, in a village welcoming spring, brings the same hope of new harvest. "No weeds, no manure, no fertile soil".

I have been dreaming about this ode for some time.

I have been noticing real life taking over.

I have been noticing yet again the inner power lying in all those who shape us.

I have been recalling the memory of the village making us, by being next to them. By drawing inspiration by the simplest way of being.

While this ode and words come out beautifully this morning, the real stories are yet to be sung in the way I would dream of.

We are not talking heros, we are not talking about big acts or gestures. We are talking about the kin right there in front of us.

Doing their very best in the demanding present moment with all they have. Taking each moment as it is.

The philosophy of being, the philosophy on how to handle the present moment through hard work, through serving one's family and community, has been passed on from generation to generation. Yes, you might call it the wise philosophy of life once in a while, when we enjoy a nice cup of coffee at sunset.

And you know what you know because of them, because of the village who shaped you, because of the kin that are content at being and doing.

The kin who keeps at giving. Keeps being of service. Alongside the seasons.

Enjoying every new fruit tree planted. Enjoying the pink buds of the apricot tree. Getting a bit upset when the freeze hits the soil in April and worries that the fruit trees might not be strong enough. Enjoying again with the daffodils and the tulips coming up graciously. Enjoying and planning hours of patient work in the garden cutting branches into smaller bits to discard them in an organized manner.

We notice as we get to know more and learn from others too, outside of our own village, that this is called service.

Here however, we do not give it a name at all.

This is a way of being. It is what it is. It is their content being of service spread onto us. It is a work ethic. It is responsibility and commitment. It is life.

Life that happens as we are deeply grateful for each other and deeply grateful for health, togetherness, showing-up.

When life calls you, when life "distracts you" with demanding to be literally present in the NOW and participating alongside your kin, say YES.

A precious gem of a time.

A time capsule that you would recall when you might need most, when you might be back to just being you and going back to some alone time.

Nothing works in isolation, all is co-relational and offers us some balance.

Thanks to our village that reminds us by doing it every day how to be of service. Relentlessly. Simply. Being. Eternally content.