Happy New Year

2009 was a year of remarkable discoveries, no? We discovered we could do with less than we thought. We discovered, for the gazillionth time, that money cannot buy happiness. We discovered that the world could look right side up one moment and upside down the next. We discovered new leadership for our country and the world. We (OK, I) discovered that a 27^th pair of jeans is simply not necessary and how much time and energy and money I spend craving possessions, hairdos, and tokens of success.

I discovered once again that when I’m focused on anything but love, I’m basically wasting my time. And by love I mean being myself completely, beyond all illusions, offering the best of myself to whomever happens to be around, and continuously acknowledging my  wish be loved, embraced, seen—without shame, agenda, or expectation.

In my Shambhala Buddhist lineage, Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche encourages certain contemplations to be done on your birthday. Since today is a birthday for the world, I thought it would be appropriate to offer them to you. These are things to contemplate that will keep you composed and committed to the priorities that matter most.

OK? Ok!

To start, take a moment and calm your mind. Contemplate your own basic goodness until you become certain of it.  Take a moment to feel gratitude for your body, your speech, and your mind. They are yours and they have the ability to bring much beauty into the world.

From this space of appreciation and goodness, contemplate these truths, one at a time. (Contemplating something is different than thinking about it. Contemplation means holding these words in your mind and noticing what arises. You don’t have to do anything. If your mind strays from these words, simply bring it back. Your own wisdom will do the rest.)

My birth is a precious miracle that is impermanent. Within me is the ability to make my life a profound celebration of heart, a living expression of compassion for myself and others, beginning immediately.

Everything that arises also dissolves. If I can face this truth with courage, I will be able to appreciate everything and everyone with a love that comforts when comfort is required and shocks when things get too comfortable.

I am not alone in this world. Everything I do and everything I am is interconnected with all of existence. My every thought and action can create positive effects for myself and others.

Everything is completely OK, right now. There is nothing I can do, see, be, think, or attract that has the potential to make me any happier than what I possess at this very moment. It is all right here.

After contemplating these truths for awhile, let them go. Make the aspiration to live in truth, love, and good cheer in the coming year and all the days of your life. Offer gratitude to your lineage, your source of support. Maybe it’s your family or an organized religion, or maybe you see yourself as part of the lineage of artists, parents, activists, Romans, gardeners, or race car drives. We all have our lineage. Give thanks to yours and request its blessings.

In 2010, I wish you

The strength to be yourself utterly.

The clarity to pierce the veil of illusion around who you think you are supposed to be.

The courage to offer the best of yourself to whomever happens to be around, and

The intention to give voice to your own wish to be loved, embraced, seen—without shame, agenda, or expectation.

Love, Susan

categorized in: dharma