Simplicity

I want there to be magic pill. It would come in a bright blue bottle with a big smiley face on the front. It would promise and it would deliver.

I would take one pill and a sip of water and as it slid down my throat all of my problems would melt away.

I wouldn’t get frustrated any more, I’d never feel afraid, I’d never be unsure of myself, or lack the confidence to succeed.

I would be patient and charming, cool and composed, wise and compassionate.

I would have a full head of hair, a full bank account, and no credit card debt.

I’d have the perfect relationship, I’d always know what to say, and I would never ever ever get spinach stuck in my teeth.

I would know everything about everything. People would stop Googling things and start Tokuing instead.

I would be beautiful, perfect, and infallible.

Oh how I want there to be a pill.

But each morning I wake up and I have less hair. I make mistakes. I struggle to be present. I work hard on my dreams and fall short.

Each morning I wake up and my throat is scratchy, or my back aches, or I’m in a bad mood.

Each morning I wake up without a pill, just this imperfect body, this monkey mind, and the impermanent and ever decaying world.

And each morning I work to be more grateful, kind, and compassionate (even though I’m often not.)

Because while there isn’t a pill the solution is simple.

This is your life, your body, your karma, and each day you get to make a choice which nudges the needle one way or the other.

You can choose the variety, the complexity, the bright and shiny.
Or you can choose the simple, the spacious, the clear and sublime.

You can choose to open and love, or to grasp and close.

The choice isn’t easy. In fact sometimes it’s really really hard.

But each time you choose the simple path, the path of generosity, the path of love, you move open the door to your cage and step ever closer to freedom.

Photos