Love it, Don. Completely agree that the everyday miracle of our existence and fundamental human activity is often overlooked. Our nervous systems, and perhaps our egos, are primed to only look for what's new and what's pleasurable, and it's easy to miss how wild it is that we exist at all, and can breathe and perceive.
So sorry to hear about your car. I'm glad you're able to take it in stride instead of beating yourself up about it, as if that will help. On our recent trip, we forgot our food bag in the airport parking lot (surprisingly some of it was salvageable two weeks later!), and then on our way home, I forgot my son's changing pad in the airport restroom. I am learning to just accept such things, though my ingrained first reaction is still to beat myself up, as if piling on more pain and suffering now will somehow prepare me better for the future. It won't; it's just paying a needless cost in regret.
I love how you noticed your environment on your walk home, despite the circumstances. It's so easy to get all wrapped up in our human machinations like money and cars and plans, and so many of us spend almost all of our attention in such places. What a gift you have (and help bestow onto your readers!) to just stop and actually BE where you are. If you can't enjoy the present, you won't enjoy the future you think you're planning for. I am working on reprogramming myself to do this more often. But really what I want to do is just exist without any concepts at all sometimes, even without the concept of self-improvement.
Your piece brought up a question (yes yes...it's unanswerable, but I promise it's not one of the super cliché ones!): how long is 'now'? In video, we have frames, which are still images, and they are shown one after another at some rate, which simulates true motion to our eyes. But forget video: in actual experience, how long is now? Surely it's not just a frame where everything is completely still. We can't even imagine feeling—let alone thinking—unless things are in motion. I think the answer is (perhaps this is some God speaking): "The length of now is—ahem!—.....drum roll please....the length of now is: your silly words and concepts like 'now' have no bearing here. There was no problem until you created it with your question. 'Now' is just another concept! Now begone, human, and go sit by a babbling brook."
Now I have to go listen to "How Soon is Now?" by The Smiths.
What a great response, Mike. I had to copy this, which had me nodding fervently: “I am working on reprogramming myself to do this more often. But really what I want to do is just exist without any concepts at all sometimes, even without the concept of self-improvement.”
I forget if you’ve read any Krishnamurti? He thought that term “self improvement“ was utter foolishness.
And your question, “how long is now?” Great question! I’ve realized for quite some time that it’s not a matter of taking whatever you consider a “moment“ and dividing by two. You can continue that endlessly. In fact, “now” must not be comparable to moments or to time because I don’t think it can be divided by two. I think your answer is close to correct. Now and eternity are one and the same, and they are probably quite beyond our understanding.
No, I haven't read any Krishnamurti directly, but I sure listen to a lot of Alan Watts talks (it's often my sleepy-time activity). His voice is so soothing even when I'm not even listening to the words (an exercise he actually invites the listener to try sometime!), but when I do listen, I learn a lot from other great thinkers, feelers, and teachers. The man was very well read in many different ancient traditions.
The best teachers seem to be those who say, "I don't know, and that's OK" to your last point. Talk about fervent nodding.
Great comment Mike. From this response, I’m wondering if you’ve read Echart Tolle’s “The Power of Now”? I reread it a couple months ago and got even more out of it.
And I love your Zen koan: “How long is now?” The closest I get to an answer, because it is something I’ve pondered, is an awareness that there hasn’t ever been anything BUT “now.” To measure it means you’ve already made a mistake. Like infinity and eternity, “now” is undefinable. It’s dividing any number by zero. It’s quantum in nature. And it’s quite beautiful, isn’t it? One might say…poetic! (See what I did just there???). “Your challenge now, Grasshopper, is to go and write a poem about this so-called “now.”” (Not sure if you are familiar with the old TV show “Kung Fu,” but there you go.).
I have not (I'm not a big reader of books...not sure why exactly; I love them when I do manage to read them).
But what is a mistake? Zen has its roots in Daoism, which says that one cannot *not* follow The Way (which cannot ever be truly conveyed in words, but is simply What Is, though it itself contains all words too, as well as all things we call "mistakes"). Sorry, got hung up on a philosophical point, as I am wont to do...
But seriously, on a less word-lawyer, more pure-feeling level, the sensation that everything has always been "now", indeed that it is indistinguishable except conceptually from "eternity" (and, we just established, concepts can never BE the thing itself), is a really powerful and really strange feeling. I am in the same moment as Genghis Khan and the moment an asteroid struck the earth to form the moon and the moment my children were conceived and the moment I was conceived and the moment I was separate half-cells in my parents while each of them was in their own mother and the moment of life evolving for a mere 4 billion years from single-celled to me to the moment of there being nothing but black holes in the universe leaking out Hawking radiation extremely slowly for an unimaginably long moment that dwarfs the timeline of anything else in the universe, until the moment of no more meaningful change and everything in existence is a tepid homogeneous soup of useless heat. ALL OF THAT is what I am, and what you are, Kert.
💯%! I LOVE this discourse! Alan Watts says “There is not a single grain of sand or speck of dust out of place in the entire world. Everything is exactly where it is supposed to be.” So, yeah, “mistake” is simply the human folly of judgment. Judgment is about the past; judging something that has happened in the past. But the past no longer exists except in faulty memory. I’m not great at living this way of being, but I include the word “yet” there because I’m always trying. Trying to bring my best game to each moment of nowness.
Thank you so much! I will say the poem continues to evolve and given the reception this draft got, I will post it in a more polished form on my Substack in due time!
reminds me of the new arrival at the monesterry who asks the abbot what he needs to do to get enlightened. abbot: have you had your rice? new arrival: yes. abbot: wash your dish.
That’s such a great answer, Ed! And anyone who is focused on getting enlightened rather than on washing their dish, on the air they breathe, on the fact of walking, is going to continue in a state of dissatisfaction.
Reading this after having just found mold in my house (likely the cause of ongoing health problems for my husband and daughter.) There is so much to be done, so many expenses. And yet here I am sitting on the bed as my daughter sleeps beside me, hair still wet from swimming in the lake, in a dark and cool room. Everything is okay right now. Beautiful, even. And it will continue to be as we walk through everything to come. Thank you for this incredibly timely reminder. 💙
“But right now, at this very moment, absolutely nothing is wrong.” Sorry about your truck, Don. Great reminder here that we take so much for granted, so much we don’t think about, but if we notice, just pay attention we’ll see the miracle. Beautiful piece, Don. Thank you for this.
Thank you so much, Steve. They have to remove the starter to replace the transmission, so I suspect it was related, but I just paid the $400 for a new starter and let it go. It’s a miracle to have wheels! And legs! And life 🙏💚🌈
Gratefulness for everything exudes in this post, Don. How beautiful. It is a miracle to be able to simply walk across a parking lot, breathe air with our lungs, and grasp a door handle (for some reason I can feel the cold yet refreshing metal on my hands as I write that). Even more of a miracle is the fact we get to go get incredible coffee on demand at Starbucks whenever we want. What a time to be alive. :)
Beautiful , Beautiful . Yes, you are so right about living in the moment . When I am too much bogged down by worries (mostly past and future!!), I kind of bring my mind to the 'mundane present' like watching where I am, sitting, standing, the clothes I am wearing, looking at the things around me...it is so simple but calms me a lot. And then I realise I am still breathing and what can be more wonderful than that !! Hope you have a lovely day :)
Nice, Sharada. The “mundane present.” The mundane moment. That’s a good way to put it. Seeking excitement and stimulation can be a most dissatisfying addiction.
That opening quote from Hahn hits the nail on the head for me. I cannot describe the enchantment and wonder that mindfulness has opened up for me.
A lot of people go on and on about the need for “re-enchantment”, and there’s a sense that the world as it is is not enough for wonder. But that’s backwards. Enchantment starts right here, right now.
You’re absolutely right, Stephen. After a lifetime of “searching” I’m finally realizing fully that the searching state alone implies that beauty and answers are hidden from us. They are not. It’s like I was picking up the answer and looking under it, behind it, and all around it, but not AT it.
Thanks, Don, for this. Like you, I occasionally marvel at the very fact that our bodies function from day to day (until they don't, of course.) And most of it is outside of our consciousness, since so much else is happening around us to distract us. Thanks for bringing that consciousness into focus and awareness. I enjoy your posts very much - they always give me lots to ponder.
Don, your post beautifully captures the often-overlooked magic in the mundane. It reminds me of when I was a kid, fascinated by ants building their colonies or the intricate patterns on a leaf. Somewhere along the way, we adults seem to lose that sense of wonder. Your coffee run mishap turned mini-odyssey is a perfect example of how shifting our focus can reveal the extraordinary in the ordinary. It's not about seeking the miraculous, but about seeing it.
This is a beautiful, soothing read and reminder, thank you Don, just perfect. And good luck with your truck. I had a similar experience writing off my car 7 months ago and surrendering to having to use public transport in a city where public transport officially sucks. What I discovered, unexpectedly, was how much that slowed me down, forced me to simplify my day, and gave me a lot of extra time to read. It also gave me a great appreciation of the freedom of wheels when I finally got some new ones 7 months on 😊
Thank you so much, Vicki. In fact, a car breakdown once landed me in Santa Fe, New Mexico for three months, and that became the turning point of my life!
Ha I might be next! I currently rely on twice yearly Cortizone shots. I’ve heard lots of good things about the knee replacements. Almost like a new lease on life! Best of luck, Marc!
Don, this post is spot-on. Living in the present is the only thing that makes sense. After battling a life threatening illness, I've used my grandmother's words as a mantra: "when you have your health, you have everything." It's true. Savoring the present helps bring about inner peace.
“But how often do we—I, actually—live in this present moment, focused on the actual, the here and now?”
I had an epiphany recently that my mind was keeping me on a loop living in some perceived future, and because my current reality wasn’t matching said perceived future, it was making me unhappy. This was a real truth I had to settle in to. I am learning again(always relearning) the art of contentment ✌🏼
Sorry to hear about your truck! Hope everything works out 😊
Ah, Don! I get it!! Your truck broke down. My hip has. Both present real challenges and our human reactivity is so automatic. Then we can settle in to the reality the miracle in each and every moment and get on with things. 🫶🏻
This was a lovely read on the spirituality of being in the now. How calming and engaging it is. For some people very hard to touch. You are very lucky to be perceptive enough to enjoy it.
Hello Dan, thank you for taking me on your walk through your neighborhood. It was a very peaceful walk & talk, just what I needed this morning. As I read your piece, my breathing calmed and I could almost feel the shade from the tunnel of trees. You are so right that we just need to open our eyes to what’s around us to view the endless miracles that abound. Peace my friend.
Thank you so much, Lance, I really appreciate your feedback.
I just finished recording my newest essay, to be published Tuesday or Wednesday. I gave it a listen and I found myself feeling very peaceful haha. So I think I know what you mean.
Love it, Don. Completely agree that the everyday miracle of our existence and fundamental human activity is often overlooked. Our nervous systems, and perhaps our egos, are primed to only look for what's new and what's pleasurable, and it's easy to miss how wild it is that we exist at all, and can breathe and perceive.
So sorry to hear about your car. I'm glad you're able to take it in stride instead of beating yourself up about it, as if that will help. On our recent trip, we forgot our food bag in the airport parking lot (surprisingly some of it was salvageable two weeks later!), and then on our way home, I forgot my son's changing pad in the airport restroom. I am learning to just accept such things, though my ingrained first reaction is still to beat myself up, as if piling on more pain and suffering now will somehow prepare me better for the future. It won't; it's just paying a needless cost in regret.
I love how you noticed your environment on your walk home, despite the circumstances. It's so easy to get all wrapped up in our human machinations like money and cars and plans, and so many of us spend almost all of our attention in such places. What a gift you have (and help bestow onto your readers!) to just stop and actually BE where you are. If you can't enjoy the present, you won't enjoy the future you think you're planning for. I am working on reprogramming myself to do this more often. But really what I want to do is just exist without any concepts at all sometimes, even without the concept of self-improvement.
Your piece brought up a question (yes yes...it's unanswerable, but I promise it's not one of the super cliché ones!): how long is 'now'? In video, we have frames, which are still images, and they are shown one after another at some rate, which simulates true motion to our eyes. But forget video: in actual experience, how long is now? Surely it's not just a frame where everything is completely still. We can't even imagine feeling—let alone thinking—unless things are in motion. I think the answer is (perhaps this is some God speaking): "The length of now is—ahem!—.....drum roll please....the length of now is: your silly words and concepts like 'now' have no bearing here. There was no problem until you created it with your question. 'Now' is just another concept! Now begone, human, and go sit by a babbling brook."
Now I have to go listen to "How Soon is Now?" by The Smiths.
What a great response, Mike. I had to copy this, which had me nodding fervently: “I am working on reprogramming myself to do this more often. But really what I want to do is just exist without any concepts at all sometimes, even without the concept of self-improvement.”
I forget if you’ve read any Krishnamurti? He thought that term “self improvement“ was utter foolishness.
And your question, “how long is now?” Great question! I’ve realized for quite some time that it’s not a matter of taking whatever you consider a “moment“ and dividing by two. You can continue that endlessly. In fact, “now” must not be comparable to moments or to time because I don’t think it can be divided by two. I think your answer is close to correct. Now and eternity are one and the same, and they are probably quite beyond our understanding.
No, I haven't read any Krishnamurti directly, but I sure listen to a lot of Alan Watts talks (it's often my sleepy-time activity). His voice is so soothing even when I'm not even listening to the words (an exercise he actually invites the listener to try sometime!), but when I do listen, I learn a lot from other great thinkers, feelers, and teachers. The man was very well read in many different ancient traditions.
The best teachers seem to be those who say, "I don't know, and that's OK" to your last point. Talk about fervent nodding.
Great comment Mike. From this response, I’m wondering if you’ve read Echart Tolle’s “The Power of Now”? I reread it a couple months ago and got even more out of it.
And I love your Zen koan: “How long is now?” The closest I get to an answer, because it is something I’ve pondered, is an awareness that there hasn’t ever been anything BUT “now.” To measure it means you’ve already made a mistake. Like infinity and eternity, “now” is undefinable. It’s dividing any number by zero. It’s quantum in nature. And it’s quite beautiful, isn’t it? One might say…poetic! (See what I did just there???). “Your challenge now, Grasshopper, is to go and write a poem about this so-called “now.”” (Not sure if you are familiar with the old TV show “Kung Fu,” but there you go.).
I have not (I'm not a big reader of books...not sure why exactly; I love them when I do manage to read them).
But what is a mistake? Zen has its roots in Daoism, which says that one cannot *not* follow The Way (which cannot ever be truly conveyed in words, but is simply What Is, though it itself contains all words too, as well as all things we call "mistakes"). Sorry, got hung up on a philosophical point, as I am wont to do...
But seriously, on a less word-lawyer, more pure-feeling level, the sensation that everything has always been "now", indeed that it is indistinguishable except conceptually from "eternity" (and, we just established, concepts can never BE the thing itself), is a really powerful and really strange feeling. I am in the same moment as Genghis Khan and the moment an asteroid struck the earth to form the moon and the moment my children were conceived and the moment I was conceived and the moment I was separate half-cells in my parents while each of them was in their own mother and the moment of life evolving for a mere 4 billion years from single-celled to me to the moment of there being nothing but black holes in the universe leaking out Hawking radiation extremely slowly for an unimaginably long moment that dwarfs the timeline of anything else in the universe, until the moment of no more meaningful change and everything in existence is a tepid homogeneous soup of useless heat. ALL OF THAT is what I am, and what you are, Kert.
If you are doing every moment of your life for the first time: how is it possible to make a mistake?
Well, now that you put it that way, I guess it’s not possible to make a mistake. Great way of looking at things, Paul!
💯%! I LOVE this discourse! Alan Watts says “There is not a single grain of sand or speck of dust out of place in the entire world. Everything is exactly where it is supposed to be.” So, yeah, “mistake” is simply the human folly of judgment. Judgment is about the past; judging something that has happened in the past. But the past no longer exists except in faulty memory. I’m not great at living this way of being, but I include the word “yet” there because I’m always trying. Trying to bring my best game to each moment of nowness.
Alright alright, I've done it: https://substack.com/@mikesperiosu/note/c-65529563?utm_source=notes-share-action&r=286g6m
MIKE!!! It’s a truly GREAT poem! One that I’m going to make a hard copy of to save in my folder of poems.
Thank you so much! I will say the poem continues to evolve and given the reception this draft got, I will post it in a more polished form on my Substack in due time!
reminds me of the new arrival at the monesterry who asks the abbot what he needs to do to get enlightened. abbot: have you had your rice? new arrival: yes. abbot: wash your dish.
That’s such a great answer, Ed! And anyone who is focused on getting enlightened rather than on washing their dish, on the air they breathe, on the fact of walking, is going to continue in a state of dissatisfaction.
Thanks, friend!
really enjoying your posts Don.
Thanks, Ed, I really appreciate that!
Reading this after having just found mold in my house (likely the cause of ongoing health problems for my husband and daughter.) There is so much to be done, so many expenses. And yet here I am sitting on the bed as my daughter sleeps beside me, hair still wet from swimming in the lake, in a dark and cool room. Everything is okay right now. Beautiful, even. And it will continue to be as we walk through everything to come. Thank you for this incredibly timely reminder. 💙
Oh, that's so nice to hear, Kendall. Thanks for sharing your moment with me. 🙏💚
“But right now, at this very moment, absolutely nothing is wrong.” Sorry about your truck, Don. Great reminder here that we take so much for granted, so much we don’t think about, but if we notice, just pay attention we’ll see the miracle. Beautiful piece, Don. Thank you for this.
Thank you so much, Steve. They have to remove the starter to replace the transmission, so I suspect it was related, but I just paid the $400 for a new starter and let it go. It’s a miracle to have wheels! And legs! And life 🙏💚🌈
Don, despite what happens your ability to go to that place of gratitude is not easy and quite admirable. Beautiful.
Aw, thank you so much, my friend. 🙏😊
Gratefulness for everything exudes in this post, Don. How beautiful. It is a miracle to be able to simply walk across a parking lot, breathe air with our lungs, and grasp a door handle (for some reason I can feel the cold yet refreshing metal on my hands as I write that). Even more of a miracle is the fact we get to go get incredible coffee on demand at Starbucks whenever we want. What a time to be alive. :)
Thank you so much, Thomas, and how wonderful to see you here! 🙏💚
Beautiful , Beautiful . Yes, you are so right about living in the moment . When I am too much bogged down by worries (mostly past and future!!), I kind of bring my mind to the 'mundane present' like watching where I am, sitting, standing, the clothes I am wearing, looking at the things around me...it is so simple but calms me a lot. And then I realise I am still breathing and what can be more wonderful than that !! Hope you have a lovely day :)
Nice, Sharada. The “mundane present.” The mundane moment. That’s a good way to put it. Seeking excitement and stimulation can be a most dissatisfying addiction.
Thank you! 🙏
That opening quote from Hahn hits the nail on the head for me. I cannot describe the enchantment and wonder that mindfulness has opened up for me.
A lot of people go on and on about the need for “re-enchantment”, and there’s a sense that the world as it is is not enough for wonder. But that’s backwards. Enchantment starts right here, right now.
You’re absolutely right, Stephen. After a lifetime of “searching” I’m finally realizing fully that the searching state alone implies that beauty and answers are hidden from us. They are not. It’s like I was picking up the answer and looking under it, behind it, and all around it, but not AT it.
Thank you, Stephen. 🙏💚
Exactly ❤️
Thanks, Don, for this. Like you, I occasionally marvel at the very fact that our bodies function from day to day (until they don't, of course.) And most of it is outside of our consciousness, since so much else is happening around us to distract us. Thanks for bringing that consciousness into focus and awareness. I enjoy your posts very much - they always give me lots to ponder.
Thanks, Hal. I truly appreciate that! 🙏💚
Don, your post beautifully captures the often-overlooked magic in the mundane. It reminds me of when I was a kid, fascinated by ants building their colonies or the intricate patterns on a leaf. Somewhere along the way, we adults seem to lose that sense of wonder. Your coffee run mishap turned mini-odyssey is a perfect example of how shifting our focus can reveal the extraordinary in the ordinary. It's not about seeking the miraculous, but about seeing it.
I’m so glad you liked my essay, Alexander. I like that idea; seeing the miraculous in the mundane. 🙏💚
This is a beautiful, soothing read and reminder, thank you Don, just perfect. And good luck with your truck. I had a similar experience writing off my car 7 months ago and surrendering to having to use public transport in a city where public transport officially sucks. What I discovered, unexpectedly, was how much that slowed me down, forced me to simplify my day, and gave me a lot of extra time to read. It also gave me a great appreciation of the freedom of wheels when I finally got some new ones 7 months on 😊
Thank you so much, Vicki. In fact, a car breakdown once landed me in Santa Fe, New Mexico for three months, and that became the turning point of my life!
Love it 😀
Love those everyday miracles. With a recent knee replacement here, every step of recovery is miraculous. Thanks for the reminder!
Ha I might be next! I currently rely on twice yearly Cortizone shots. I’ve heard lots of good things about the knee replacements. Almost like a new lease on life! Best of luck, Marc!
Thanks! New lease on life, indeed.
Don, this post is spot-on. Living in the present is the only thing that makes sense. After battling a life threatening illness, I've used my grandmother's words as a mantra: "when you have your health, you have everything." It's true. Savoring the present helps bring about inner peace.
Yeah, so true, Beth. Living in the present gets a lot of lip service but to actually do it takes some intention and follow through. It’s worth it!
“But how often do we—I, actually—live in this present moment, focused on the actual, the here and now?”
I had an epiphany recently that my mind was keeping me on a loop living in some perceived future, and because my current reality wasn’t matching said perceived future, it was making me unhappy. This was a real truth I had to settle in to. I am learning again(always relearning) the art of contentment ✌🏼
Sorry to hear about your truck! Hope everything works out 😊
Thanks, Mackenzie. I was right; it was the starter. Another $400 and I’m rolling again.
Thanks for your insightful comments. Great epiphany!
Ah, Don! I get it!! Your truck broke down. My hip has. Both present real challenges and our human reactivity is so automatic. Then we can settle in to the reality the miracle in each and every moment and get on with things. 🫶🏻
I think a hip problem would be even more difficult to stay in the moment with. Good for you, Kim! 🙏💚
This was a lovely read on the spirituality of being in the now. How calming and engaging it is. For some people very hard to touch. You are very lucky to be perceptive enough to enjoy it.
Thank you so much, Kate. It’s very thoughtful of you to check in and offer your feedback. I’m so glad you liked my essay. 🙏💚
Hello Dan, thank you for taking me on your walk through your neighborhood. It was a very peaceful walk & talk, just what I needed this morning. As I read your piece, my breathing calmed and I could almost feel the shade from the tunnel of trees. You are so right that we just need to open our eyes to what’s around us to view the endless miracles that abound. Peace my friend.
Thank you so much, Lance, I really appreciate your feedback.
I just finished recording my newest essay, to be published Tuesday or Wednesday. I gave it a listen and I found myself feeling very peaceful haha. So I think I know what you mean.
Peace to you as well, Lance. 🙏💚