Seeker

Yesterday after some energetic gardening I made and ate a cucumber sandwich, using a cucumber from our garden. I ate this cucumber sandwich mindlessly while scrolling through messages on my smartphone. In retrospect I can say the cucumber sandwich was delicious, but I’m ashamed to say I failed to notice and appreciate it at the time. My mind was on other things. That is not a good way to eat. That is not how to enjoy the good things of life. That is not how to engender gratitude for the simple delights of everyday. It is the antithesis of living in the present moment. I had forgotten about that cucumber sandwich (which I had hardly noticed). This morning I remembered it when I read the  'iBenedictines'  blog. There I found a timely reminder to take time to savour and be grateful for whatever is there in the present moment. It seems that 'Digitalnun' had also prepared and eaten a cucumber sandwich yesterday, but she had noticed and savoured its delight. When...

Be still in this present moment. Don't look for anything, just look in this present moment. Be still in this present moment. Don't listen for anything, just listen in this present moment. Be still in this present moment. Don't try to achieve anything, just be in this present moment. In your stillness, looking, listening and being in this present moment, know God is with you, in you and around you in this present moment. Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

One of the joys of a holiday or retreat away from the usual busyness of life is the opportunity to be still and just look, listen, smell, touch, taste and really be awake. It is a time to set aside the 'to do' list and just be. We can so easily sleep walk our way through life, not noticing life itself, even our own life. I can be busy but not really attentive to what is going on around or within me. I wrote in 'Beatitudes: a call to let go'  about a recent retreat in Galilee. This is another reflection arising from that week. Most afternoons I sat for a while on a rock by the lake, with my feet in the water. Sometimes I tried to sketch what I saw or took photos. Sometimes I prayed. Sometimes I just sat and looked and listened.  On 2 occasions I deliberately did nothing except observe a square yard in front of me for at least half an hour. (This had been a suggestion of the retreat leader.) The photo at the head of this post is the small area I chose. It was at...