Quote of the day: “Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.” ~ Buddha
Crystal Chandelier
As a long-time meditator, I work on living with presence, and mostly I fail. I have glimmers of presence but more than anything my meditative practices have shown me how I am not present most of the time.
I’ve been doing an early morning class called ai chi for over one and a half years. (Ai chi is a water-based meditative practice created by combining Tai-Chi concepts with Shiatsu and QiGong techniques. Take a look at the video below if you’re curious about it.)
This morning, while doing ai chi, I noticed for the first time (after 1 1/2 years!), how I almost always anticipate the next movement or the next breath, instead of staying fully present to the current movement or breath. This was such a big “A Ha!” for me. I almost laughed out loud. It felt so good when I was in the moment and not anticipating the next moment, but a devilishly difficult state to achieve.
Now I am beginning to understand the statement of a classmate who’s been doing ai chi for 15 years. Just after I started the class, he told me that it took him 3 years to get it fully. At the time I thought, “Hmmm… slow learner. I’ve only been coming to class for 3 weeks and I’ve got it.” Well, maybe not…looks like I have many opportunities to learn more deeply about presence.
I think one of the reasons that I love photography is because I stay in the moment when I am making photographs.
A note about today’s photos. I was at a friend’s house and enjoying her wonderful art objects and collections from around the world. These are a few of the photos I made of them. (As you can see, I’m still in a black and white mood.)
Aboriginal Art Coaster
Translucent Flowers
Rabbit Statue Still Life
Candles
Turtle Aboriginal Art Coaster
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