Be Present, It Will Change

As a child, I was taught that if I wanted something to be different I needed to change it, and if I didn’t do anything things would just stay the same. These lessons still seem to be true but there is a problem. I don’t know what’s best for me. I can identify a problem, decide on a new direction, and change things to point in this new direction, but since I can’t intellectually identify the best direction, my guidance is always a little bit off. I end up spending lots of energy to merely aim from one side of the target to the other.

This doesn’t mean I should do nothing. In the past it always seemed like an either or decision, but if I do nothing I’m bound to suffer through the same entrenched patterns. Instead, Vipassana teaches us to observe the present moment, and this process will lead our lives to change. Up to this point, I’ve observed meditation purifying my mind, but witnessing it purifying my path still seems illogical. How is it possible that this mental exercise can literally impact my path and the world around me? It just doesn’t make sense.

But my experience tells me differently. When I meditate, opportunities seem to present themselves at the right time. Whether it’s the right job, the right people, or the right opportunity, everything seems to enter my life at the right time if I’m simply patient enough to let dhamma work. It almost seems irresponsible to just let go in this way, but maybe that’s what we’re supposed to do. Maybe we simply trust dhamma. Time to meditate.