“If you think of rest periods as an active part of your practice, you will stay in tune with what your body is telling you, and act accordingly.”

-Rolf Gates, Meditations from the Mat:  Daily Reflections on the Path of Yoga

Day 14 – Often times in the process of reading both books, Meditations from the Mat:  Daily Reflections on the Path of Yoga and Meditations on Intention and Being: Daily Reflections on the Path of Yoga, Mindfulness and Compassion, I am awed by Rolf Gates’ words.  Simply put (and in his words), I am dazzled by a moment within a moment, which “calls me to find anew what has always been and, in this finding, to create something that has never been before.”  Indeed, his writings release “a groundswell of love, understanding, and peace that is all at once a call to be still and a call to action.”

Considering today’s reading, “Remembering,” I know I am not an all-or-nothing kind of person.  Perhaps I appear this way, diving into curiosities until they become fully ingrained into my life.  I’ve done and seen a lot, but, oh, there is so much more to do and see and dabble in, and sometimes it feels so short–this life–that I almost grieve at the thought of growing incapable in body to move or absent in mind to think.  Thus, I push myself to practice, reflect, regroup, and begin anew in various these various interests.  Today, I reconsider my endeavors, not as passions, but practice, and my continued “practice” on the mat, in essence, births me day after day after day.  It births me passionate, energetic, empathetic, balanced, conscientious, curious, mindful.

In our go-go-go society, resting in the beauty of a moment within a moment, taking in the immense wisdom of both the past and the present without too much ado, is essential.  Words and thoughts cannot make it so, but, oh, there is still so much to do and see (I enjoy reading and writing)!  I am beginning to see the moment within the moment of each and everything I do and see, and that is a nice way to start the day.