But It Is

 - and as such everything comes to be. Reaching, my hand seems to leave off in a sudden void, and yet touched by air and continued through sky I am intimate with every moon, sun, and star. More so, my own state is nothing less (or more) than the capacity that greets the world in view and form - in less solid moments I am mingled dust yet somehow aware, astonished to find a self here at all. I have no idea how this all came about.

But it is. 

and I am grateful it continues in its way...

~

Peace,

Eric 

No Idea

perhaps sudden - to be quite honest I have no idea where inspiration comes from, or why even these particular words come to mind at this moment. There may be a cause, a single seed planted at some forgotten point that only now comes to bloom in the new light of an empty page. There's really no need to know for certain - I am grateful for the words, my openness to receive, and the chance to share them with whoever finds this page. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

Emptiness Found Full

it's not that we are empty of - but 

empty with.

as a flower is a unique expression of a seed held by earth and nourished to bloom by rain and sunlight, not one thing can possibly be removed from the whole of it's becoming. To find myself in awe of the beauty of a flower, is to welcome it in my own appreciative capacity, I too am fertile ground for it to become within my view. 

for a thing to be empty is simply a seen through illusion of it being a thing at all - to find emptiness is seeing the potential of seed once it is touched by earth and abandons its identity as a seed to the reach of sun. The seed was never just a seed anymore than a flower is the end result of what will be. Emptiness is the constant mystery of becoming/ceasing/ and becoming once more - yet at all times it's only life happening in its own accord. 

my own emptiness is found full - the world in

bloom.

touched by all existence. 

(and of course it's not like this at all)

~

Peace,

Eric 

The Word That Comes to Mind

and the word that comes to mind is cherished - how my own world parts in wonder for the tilt of a butterflies wing, a birdsong that I'm almost sure was given as a note to fill a soundless void, and too a brief encounter with a strangers smile. For this all to be is a mystery, that it was gifted for a moment in a shared presence - is a miracle. 

Each one deeply cherished. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

From Molecules to Stars

from where I sit now, it all seems pretty simply really - life is happening, and at no point am I apart from any of it. From minute galaxies of molecules dancing body into form, a birds flight that merges wing to air and finds my view, to stars gathered in constellations - nothing is found separate in this existence. No effort is required for this to be, a manifestation of its own accord that includes me in its sweep. I attend to the details of life, the immediate concerns that find me each day. There is cause to smile often, for tears to fall, and to marvel silently at it all. It's life. I am a full participant - from molecules to stars. 

Nothing is apart from this. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

A Thousand Broken Pieces

at times it seems we're broken, worn, or lost in the turns of life - and perhaps in truth, at least for certain moments, we are. We would like to know that a higher guidance is in place, that we wander not without plan but in design to a greater purpose than we know. This may be true. Yet nothing is revealed that is beyond this moment, the mystery isn't that we have found ourselves broken, it's more that we come to find the continuation of life in a thousand pieces as well as the space that holds it all in seamless existence. Perhaps the grand design is that amidst in suffering, we are whole, connected to the thousand other broken pieces of those who also suffer now, past, and still in days to come. In this same mystery we see joy belonging with sorrow, beauty to that which ends, and arrival to this moment by all who seem to wander. There's no escape, and the only wisdom gained is in the acceptance of being whole - everything belongs. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

It's Love Without Effort

it's love without effort- and too we could call this simply reality, the Tao, or even God. In the end these are terms with great meaning attached to something that occurs as naturally as breath or heartbeat. Seen as love, it comes to one thing giving way to another aspect of itself, acceptance to what is in every given moment. It's happening now, and always, and conscious loving is only the recognition of this occurrence - it's Life gifting to itself the patience to arrive, and be, and allow it all to pass on its own accord. This is action without the need to move the world, aligned with even the friction of a storm that erodes an oceans shore, or common thoughts that stress the mind. It all belongs. There is no effort on our part for life to be, our response in each moment is in no way separate from what occurs, and so life continues in its natural flow. We could call it love, or nature, of the Buddha mind - but it all happens just the same. 

~

Love,

Eric

No Prison

there's no prison - we're not spirit encased in flesh and ego. We are life expressed in various fashions, a body given to function, a sense of self to navigate common borders - and yet done of this is found apart from any other appearance of the world, more still it all belongs within a quiet, spacious wonder. It's seamless, a capacity that is open to holding itself as form and still retaining its own formless nature. Life isn't bound by illusions. Everything belongs for the moment of its arrival and whatever length of stay that happens. Seeing this - what is there that could imprison us that isn't of our own self? 

Life simply is - and it's all included, ego, flesh and thoughts as well. They are not our entirety, but they are not our captors either. 

They belong. 

Everything does. 

Seeing this is freedom. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

Tracks Left By An Absent Wanderer (Counting The Single Moment of Sobriety)

it's always, and only, day one - counting anything other than the singularity of this moment serves no reason beyond the need to count. Should sobriety be our calling than it begins and ends right now, this moment alone is what we have to base an entire lifetime upon. Everything is contained in this instant, to be sober now is the entirety of the journey, to fall or begin again will always happen in the same moment that holds us in eternity. So we have no need, in deed no truth in counting days that have no real basis of existence - tracks left by an absent wanderer, leading always, and only to this very moment. 

Love,

Eric 

Our Brokenness

to come to our brokenness - knowing 

every piece has its 

belonging

and the emptiness found between is 

our connection. 

~

intimate - even what seems broken is always held in the tenderness of acceptance, nothing can be excluded from this, and only our forgetfulness keeps us from the worlds embrace. Awakening is simply remembering our intimacy with life, that in the play of all things nothing can be excluded, and even our sorrow to what ends is as holy as the joy of new beginnings. 

It all belongs. 

~

Love,

Eric 

Attend To This

attend to this moment - and by no means is this exclusive to breath, thoughts, or sensations of the body. We are mindful only that everything occurs now, forgetting this, wandering to past or future moments - does not remove us from the present. What we attend to isn't the minute details of what occupy's the mind, but the allowance itself that provides space for thoughts to wander, for memories to be cherished, and plans for tomorrow to be laid. Everything belongs to the moment that is given, nothing excluded, and awakening isn't the focus of one thing over another - it's simply this moment, open to all that comes and passes. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

It Just Is

for just a moment, don't do anything, nothing - disregard even these instructions. It's not a practice, nor a meditation. Here, we find that life is always happening, breathing, the body functions with no effort given, the world is still in motion. 

We are being. 

It's life. 

Happening. 

Perhaps the true and only miracle is that we're aware, right now, of it all - and that at no point do we break from this awareness in any thought or deed. 

It's simple really. 

Everything belongs. 

And there is nothing we need to 

make this so - 

it just is. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

It's Alchemy

it's the alchemy of one thing appearing as another, of emptiness giving way to sudden form - it's life happening this very moment and later viewed through the lens of time. Nothing is how it appears - yet it is exactly so, aligned in its own perfection, independent of our opinion. In no part of this display are we separate - an alchemist in our own becoming. 

this is awareness

happening 

now 

(and of course it's not like this at all) 

~

Peace,

Eric 

Somehow - We've Occurred

and so things occur - and always they are seamless in acceptance, even resistance is not apart from this reality, one thread in endless fabric of display. Our issue is found in the denial of the very hand in play, suffering, and the refusal to allow, a wish for things to be other than they are right now. Our issue is no more than one more occurrence - instantly there is a subtle acceptance of what is, life recognizing itself through the guise of something new. 

It's just one more thing.

Belonging. 

This too is our awakening - things occur, and aware, we too find ourselves as part of this grand occurrence, an event of breath and thought, life in the happening of joy and drama. Somehow - we've occurred. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

Free Of Nothing

here's our freedom - not from thought or single thing, but in recognition of their acceptance in the very moment they appear. To be free has nothing to do with comfort, or even a sense of being unrestrained by circumstance - freedom isn't found, nor is it granted by authority not of our own belonging. We are free, here, this moment, aware of life in its flow of all things, our sense of self included. It's not that we are untouched by this flow - no, it's that we are no more than life itself, ever flowing, not removed from a single thing, and in this sense there is nothing at all to be free of.  Everything that is - we are. 

And as such there is only

freedom. 

~

Peace, 

Eric 

Our Grace Is Not The Story

we weren't promised a happy story, no sunrise or twilight is ever guaranteed. But the day, and broken down still further to this moment, is what we have - now, this breath taken, is the promise of enough. That which unfolds from here, life, is varied in expression. 

Our grace is not the story - but the 

acceptance found in its 

unfolding. 

and so we come to happiness, and grief, sorrow, and joy - a full story. It's the only promise that we know. 

It's enough. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

Spiritually Lazy

I'm not allowing anything - there's no practice of acceptance, things are, and by virtue of arrival they come with a belonging to the moment of their appearance. Perhaps there is value in recognizing this, mindful of what comes, attentive to length of an experience, and witness to departure - but more I find there is a simple grace of just being, knowing there is an acceptance of calm and storm without my interference. I've become spiritually lazy.
And smiling now - I know even this is
allowed.

~
Peace,
Eric 

Weeds Within My Garden

in the past this would be depression, and maybe it still is - and yet I no longer feel like an active participant to dark emotions, or perhaps better stated there no longer seems to be a separate, removed person to suffer this alone. It's not that I have disassociated myself from the gravity of depression, there's no rose tinted view to my inner weeds, in fact, and more so, I've come to find a holy place for weeds within my garden. They belong. Right now, depression is occurring through no invitation of mine - and too there is still beauty, and a kinship of people, trees, and sky. I am removed from none of this, finding myself drawn in and released, a breath without struggle in this play of life. It's all simply happening. I am too. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

Lets Consider The Esophagus

let's consider the esophagus, a quick meditation - right now the esophagus is doing exactly what an esophagus is supposed to do. Hopefully. It needs no help from us, no conscious action on our part is required for its proper function. Effort is needed in order for it to perform its role, however it doesn't come from us, there is no command each morning for compliance of each working organ. It's the innate wisdom of the esophagus. It's life. Functioning. This same wisdom is found throughout the body, the natural draw and release of breath, heartbeat, and recognition of the senses - it's the very same wisdom that causes a tree to reach it's branches through air and spread roots in connection to the earth. It's not divided from one cause to another, life sourced in a hierarchy of order. We are animated from one source - everything. Life. Happening. 

Sometimes there is failure, the natural function of the body ceases to perform in it's usual manner, we age and eventually face the moment of our departure from this known life. I have no clue what comes after. My need for comforting thoughts of this particular life continuing have lessened in light of current revelations offered in this moment - life is affirmed by this breath, now, this heartbeat, and yes, the healthy function of my esophagus. I am not separate from any of this. It's life and I am fully in its midst. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

Faithless

faithless - for beyond this moment would only be speculation, an authority other than my own granted as my guidance. My beliefs are held lightly, what holds true now may indeed prove baseless in light of further experience. Yet in this moment, without faith in anything other than the touch of air against skin, a birds note playing to a soundless backdrop, breath, heartbeat and thought all serving to the function of life itself  - it's all simply enough. 

Nothing more is needed. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

The Grace Of Each Given Instant

it's grace, found this very moment - and it's the simplicity of just allowing, no argument presented to the reality of what's occurring, and for this sake even words of protest are found to be harmless in their passing. Grace is our surrender - but not to anything removed from this moment, not to a concept thought larger than ourselves. We let go only to right now, the grace of each given instant, and it's a continuous surrender in which we may find ourselves awakened. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

Here's The Thing - I'm Not Interested In "You"

here's the thing - I'm not as interested in the views, opinions, or the thousand thoughts that frame our day, as I am in the shared presence that we hold between us. Our seeing is of the same source and only the later interpretation will ever differ. We hear a birds note in a familiar listening, a stillness belonging to no one in particular yet receptive to us all. It's the same with all of our senses, each experienced on what seems the individual fabric of self, the touch of sun against skin, a scent carried by a breeze that holds a memory of long ago - the surface of the experience is ours alone, but the depth, that in which the world plays through and as in these smaller servings, that's the answer to what we are. It's all presence, the note and bird are not removed from the listening, the breeze and scent are one, and we are as much the sun as we are the skin that receives it. We are the seeing. Alone, together - not apart from each other.

Ever. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

This Breath Alone

this breath alone - drawn now, released, and beyond the

moment that it's given, 

there is nothing more to know.

~

every revelation is momentary, and all we can ever know is the simplicity of breath, it's arrival and completion, life affirmed by heartbeat, and the texture of the world against our senses. Anything else that seems to lead us from this moment - is only speculation. 

Awakening to this - life, occurring always and 

only right now,

happens on its own. 

Enjoy it all. 

Peace,

Eric 

It All Happens On Its Own

it's not willful - it all comes from mystery, a void of knowing, and in this there is no place to exert any certain expectation. Our demands mean little outside their thought filled realms. Yet we devote our lives to the whim and wish of a bullying voice. Life is uncertain. Even our best intent only leads us further deep in mystery. 

In truth - we are led nowhere. 

This moment is the depth of mystery, it's the continuous question to our every answer, and the fulfillment of its own desire. It's beyond our knowing, and still, it is all we will ever know. So we come to this paradox, full of will and intent, prayerful  - and there's nothing we can do. 

But surrender. 

And again 

surrender. 

If it all comes to mystery than our only faith is this - there is no knowing past the moment that we're given. Let go, let go, let go....it all happens on its own. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

Because I Am - And Nothing Is Apart From Me

because I am - it's this existence alone that's my concern and as such not a thing can be excluded. To exist is a seamless extension of just one thing disguised in varied form. There are no lines to distinguish mine from yours, and in truth only the words we use define our separation. I am - and from this view the world continues. I find your appearance in this existence as you'll find mine in yours - yet we can't exist apart, there isn't a separate belonging for both of us. There's only presence, only one existence. 

This is the source of our compassion - I care because I am, and in this no one, not one thing, can be found to be apart from me. 

Love,

Eric 

In Full Allowance To What Is

it's how things are, right now - and in this moment can't be otherwise. This is where peace is found, not in the absence of storm and chaos, nor faith in an underlying changeless realm - no, peace is our presence that is in full allowance to what is. That things will change is a given, and belief beyond this only leads to mysteries that continue to unfold. 

No faith is required. 

Actions is spontaneous,

intuitive. 

It's all seamless - and even our argument for things to be otherwise, our demands against reality, and turning away from what the moment holds, they all belong exactly as they are. 

Until they don't. 

And then another moment simply comes along...

~

Peace,

Eric 

That It Occurred At All

this moment is all that it allows - nothing exceeding the exactness of what is held and for its length of stay. This is perfection, not our opinion of what occurs, but only the fact that it occurred at all, and no demands were made within reality to accept it. 

It's life - happening. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

Our Own Fragile Beauty

this is where beauty is found - here, this tender moment, allowing of itself to break wide for whatever may appear. Nothing is excluded. To see this is to find the true depth of beauty, the fragility of what occurs is matched by our own brief appearance. In this light a flower's decline from full blossom is the beauty of its entirety, already it is complete in its becoming while still transforming to the seasons call. Beauty is found here, right now - or not at all. Aware, we simply note that everything is appearing exactly, and only, as it's fully able, for it's own duration, a gift - and to know this is to find ourselves as well giving of our own fragile beauty. 

For however long we may

appear. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

And So We Come To Kindness

and so we come to kindness - not a forced approach, or a measured thought to offer, but our own simple, open nature of accepting what comes to our awareness, the Buddha smile that says "yes, this too belongs right now." By this light, the world is designed in perfect kindness - nothing judged in it's belonging, all things allowed by virtue of their occurrence. Even our own fight against the kindness of our nature is, in fact, held in this embrace. 

It's how things are. 

It's what we are. 

Kind. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

Reality - Local And Far

it's reality, right now, here - from the local area of thoughts and body, to molecules that dance us into form, and then continued on as earth, air, and even stars. Everything is happening at once, creation, entropy, it's all seen as a singular flow within existence. 

It's a miracle. 

And that we can be aware of this, knowing ourselves as a personal note in such an infinite song, and that we are essential in the symphony of it all - is perhaps the most miraculous. We are the entirety, note and song, molecule and body. 

We are reality. 

Happening, always, right now. 

~

Peace,

Eric 

As My Own

it's your sorrow as my own - and in this

there are no lines drawn

between us,

being one

with no borders to be

found

~

Peace,

Eric