Consider the Lillies

  

When asked recently why Easter is my third favorite holiday and Christmas my fourth, I replied, “It’s the vernal freshness, the physical exemplification of renewal.”

We say the sun is reborn on the solstice, slowly stretching a few extra rays of light in the darkest of nights until we behold: blossoms.

I started to notice petite purple flowers beginning to bloom as I walked my new deaf puppy Trixie in February. After the Pisces new moon on March 10th, the white flowers were apparent and the yellow too, as if they’d been there all along just waiting for me to notice.

How to appreciate beauty alongside destruction? Where attention goes, energy flows.

I used to think I knew so much back when I ingested copious amounts of psychedelics, but when I put away (what became) childish things and put my nose to the grindstone of a daily and rigorous spiritual practice, I realized how much I do not know. Hence, I have kept my mouth shut for a majority of the last 5 years. 

Not to throw away that decade of debauchery and telling jokes on stage; I did learn a thing or two during that time that I apply to my spiritual practice now: When in doubt, spend time in nature; take a deep breath; do yoga; drink water; stay calm.

I’m not sure if it’s necessary to wrestle with self-doubt or if I even do that anymore, but when I wonder what I should write about or of what am I certain, I return to: stillness.

What can I offer to the world, to my clients and customers, to my friends and family or strangers at the store? A quiet mind. I can bring stillness. 

“Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.” Matthew 6:28-29 NKJV

So often I created my own problems by trying to force things to be the way I thought they should be. Even more, how much trouble I caused myself by worrying about things out of my control! 

What is blossoming before my spiritual eyes now is this: Even with all the talk of manifestation and setting intentions, I can find myself blocking the flow of the Universe by trying to control an outcome. 

G*d already knows what I need; I need not become aloof or a ‘mental loafer.’ I also need not compare myself to other people or measure myself by the standards of others (don’t get me started on Hollywood…). 

So…how to discern and navigate troubled waters? Return to stillness, again and again. 

It’s okay to not be famous; it’s okay if the job didn’t work out or you have to uproot everything again - you’ll be given exactly what you need in exactly appropriate measure. Learn to trust; learn to listen and be still.

Best wishes,
Amanda