Ski Meditation

       My sitting meditation this morning was interrupted time and again by nagging thoughts about the mountain of responsibilities currently on my plate.  After 15 minutes, I gave up and went cross-country skiing.

       Five inches of light powder, with more coming down, greeted me at the local quarry-turned-park where I often ski.  Oak limbs and mountains of granite boulders were piled high with fluffy white stuff.  Quietly gorgeous, the scene was absolutely serene – and I had it all to myself.

       I love the way beauty in nature, once attended to, melts the frets and frustrations of everyday life.  After just a couple minutes, I could feel myself soften - mind chatter giving way to sensory delight. 

       Somewhere in the body, I could feel/hear Mother Nature's gentle (and, as it turns out, poetic) instructions: 

"Soften your belly.

Soften your pace.

Sigh, surrender to

Beauty - this place.

No worries, no work -

Just savor each site.

Breathe each new beauty.

Drink deeply of delight.

Be here.

Be now.

Belong.

Be loved."

       Thanks, mom.