Living Simply

My talk this morning is taken from a talk given by Wendy Craig Purcell of “The Church of Today” in San Diego, California.

Whenever we engage in conversation with someone and listen in a state of receptivity, we get a great gift. We get to hear something that is just perfect for us. Each person gets a chance to walk away with just the message that they needed to hear that day; that is, if they have done a little preparation work before hand, so that they can really hear the message. That work is connecting first with Spirit and then listening with not just an open mind but with an open heart. Wendy states, “ I am often surprised after a service, when someone greets me and states that they really understood what I meant, when I said so and so. The reason for this is that I never said the statement to which they are referring, at least I don't remember saying it. My only guess is that it was exactly what the Divine had for that person to hear regardless of the actual words spoken.” I have also had this experience after giving a morning lesson; but I never really understood what was happening in just this way before.

This morning we are going to look more deeply at the idea of 'Living More Simply”. How can I personally live a life that is more simple? As I share these ideas with you, I am by no means saying that I have mastered them. I have not, but how often do we teach what we need to learn? I do know this, however, whenever I set an intention to examine a particular practice, when I put my thoughts feelings and emotions behind that idea, I will actually get better at fulfilling that task whatever it may be. Awareness and intention are the 1st steps in bringing about any change in our lives. Wendy also states that it is not about perfecting the change; for, just when we think we have perfected something, there always seems to be an opportunity to do something a little better or to apply it a little more deeply.

There was a quotation by Mother Teresa that touched me personally. It was “Let me live simply, so that others can simply live.” There was also an article that was written by an anonymous student in Colorado after the Columbine shootings. I'd like to share part of this with you, as it paints a picture that sets the context for the importance of Spiritual work in the practice of or living the allusion that we call life.

“The paradox of the time that we live in is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider freeways but narrower viewpoints, we spend more time working yet have less to show for it, we buy more but enjoy it less, we have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences but less time. We have more degrees but less common sense, more knowledge but less discernment, more experts yet more problems. We talk too much and love too seldom and hate more often."

( I'd personally like to interject hear that often when what looks like love is given, it is given conditionally, for example, there is an element of “What is in it for me?” that comes across loud and clear rather than love that is just given completely without an expectation of any return.) Now back to our writer:

"We've learned how to make a living, but not a life, we've added years to life but not life to years. We've been all the way to the moon and back but sometimes have trouble crossing the street to meet our neighbor. We've conquered outer space but not inner space. We've gotten better at clearing up the air but have polluted the soul. We've split the atom but not our prejudices. We have higher incomes but lower morals. We've become long on quantity but short on quality. These are the times of tall men of short character, deep profits and shallow relationships, the days of two incomes, yet more bills and more divorce. And finally, fancier houses yet more broken homes.”

(To view this quote only, click here)

I think that there is a lot of accuracy in this young girl's picture of the world of today. It's not true for everyone, or the prettiest of pictures, but there is a fair bit of truth in her statement. And more, I think that the Spiritual Power that we know that we have, the tools that we have to think, emote and feel, can create the kind of lives that we really want to live. This is where our hope lies. We can look out upon the larger world and see things that need to be different or we can look more closely into our own lives and see where change needs to happen. We have the power and the potential to bring about these changes, first within ourselves and then within the world. Remember Marianne Williams' statement in her book, “The Healing of America”, “We have a mission of power and of love. The world needs healing, like a bird with a broken wing. People know this and have prayed. God heard our cries. He sent help. She sent you.”

One way to live simply is to hold up a lens to our lives and ask ourselves; what truly matters most to me, what truly matters most to my family; what truly matters most in my Spiritual life, in my church, perhaps in my work? What truly matters in the Big Picture? When we ask ourselves these difficult questions and wait for the answers that actually emerge quietly from our heart, then follow those answers; we will find that we live more gently on the planet. We'll be kinder to one another, we'll live overall more meaningful lives. We may find ourselves actively doing a little bit less and enjoying it a whole lot more. We will find that we create and nourish the relationships that we really want in our lives, and the others that we might have been keeping out of guilt, pity or obligation or even just involvement rather than real commitment, we'll let go. The difference between involvement and commitment is simple. Think of skiing or fishing or boating. Do you do these things only on sunny days or are you out in the river or on the mountain every time you possibly get the chance? The answer to this question gives you your answer. Many people do their Spiritual life on the level of involvement and then are surprised how sideswiped they get, when trouble comes along. All of a sudden they may go back to church for a quick fix but unless they keep up their practice, be it in a church community or at home, the fix won't last.

When I think about the common thread among Spiritual Practices, as I see so many different speakers from different traditions pass through our doors, I see truth. There is not one Spiritual teacher from any tradition that suggests that the way to happiness is to get more stuff, spend more time punching in the clock hours at work, or spending more hours stressed out compulsively cleaning and less time with those that you love. Yet we all need to ask ourselves what really motivates how I spend my time? How much time do I spend connected to my real self as opposed to my small ego self? How much time do I spend each day connected to Spirit? How much time do I look at what I consume versus what I give unconditionally to others? If you ask a Master teacher, such as the Dalai Lama, what do you need? He would most likely reply, “I need nothing. All that I need is in me already.” and then quietly he would walk away with a beautiful smile on his face. How wonderful it would be to have that kind of profound inner peace, to have the knowledge that we, too, have no inner need. How wonderful would it be to live a life that is not driven by a need to be doing something, or acquiring, or overcoming; to live instead a life that knows that its validation comes solely from within and never from the words or opinions of another. How do we cultivate more of that feeling in our lives? No I do not have all the answers but I do know how to begin a practice to get them. I do know what tools I have in my tool box. They are my thoughts, my feelings, and my emotions, and I know when and how to best use them. I'm certainly not saying that I always use them properly, often I am lost in my own personal pity party, but I at least know now, when it is happening. I also know that I am never alone and neither are my loved ones.

As I said in the opening of this lesson, someone will come along or a book will fall into my lap and say just what I personally needed to hear, if I am prayed up, open, and receptive. Part of the picture, even when I am in the most angst, is to ask myself, what is really important for me to hear at this moment, then I smile, say thank you to Spirit, and wait. This is a day-to-day practice, staying in the moment, totally open, alive, observant, and waiting for a truth to come. Few of us are there even half of the time. I know I am not now, but I will be.

Thich Nhat Hanh uses in one of his practices the tool of breathing in and out to practice letting go of whatever mental monkey mind turmoil is going on in his mind. He says, “breathe in, breathe out, pause; breathe in, breathe out, pause” as long as you need to in order to slow down that monkey mind. Then when all is quiet, “Ask and the answer will come.” Wendy says that for those of us who have way too much on our plate, way too much to do, to take on a meditation, an inner time of quiet. It seems like more but it is the best one more thing for us to do.

A long time ago I saw a woman illustrate how to live a peaceful happy life. She placed two empty mason jars on the podium. One jar she filled first with a cup of rice and as she did, she listed everything on her “to do” list for that day. It was a lot, laundry, get groceries, go to work, pick up children, watch daughters' volleyball game, make dinner, correct papers. It went on and on. Next she pulled out some horse chestnuts representing all the Spiritual things that she wanted to do. As she named each one, she placed a horse chestnut in the jar. They were things like read and do Sunday school lesson, pray, meditate, listen for Spirit to answer, read inspirational reading, call Silent Unity for a friend, find time for a quiet meditative grounding walk, do some yoga poses and breathe. It was obvious to all of us that the horse chestnuts would not fit in the now full jar, some still sat on the podium. She then took the other same size mason jar and filled it first with horse chestnuts, saying all her Spiritual expectations and desires for the day, not leaving a thing out of her previous list. They of course all fit in perfectly. Then she took the rice and read her “to do” list. As she did so she poured the cup of rice into the mason jar. The rice easily slipped in among all the horse chestnuts and all fit in quite nicely. Nothing was left on the podium. If you remember nothing else from this talk, remember this last story. When we put Spirit first, miracles happen. Try it yourself. You might be as surprised as I was, when I first saw it. It works.

Namaste,

Barbara