A teacher to a student:
“What’s the matter?”
“I’m worried. I just don’t know what’s going to happen.”
“Do you have to know?
“Well, no. I don’t know. It’s just that…”
“What will knowing give to you? And what will it take away?”
“It would give me a sense of clarity, I suppose. And security.”
“Predictability.”
“Right.”
“And what will it take away?”
“Anxiety, I guess. The fear of what may happen, and if I’m doing the right thing. The uncertainty.”
“Precisely that. Herein lies the danger. For it is only in the raw energy of uncertainty that magic can take place. It is the missing ingredient in so many lives. Everybody has uncertainty in life. But when a person looks down uncertainty's dark corridor, one of two things happens: Either they turn and run, retreating to the tiny room at the end of the corridor in which they exist…”
“Or?”
“Or, they breathe deeply, take hold of their faith and walk away from their safe but rigid confinement. They go free.”
“And what if they walk into a bad situation, find themselves in some kind of trouble they could never have prepared for?”
“I see you left your faith in the other room.”
“I’m only being realistic.”
“You’re being short-sighted. You’re forgetting that there are other conditions that must be met in order for the universe to orchestrate her magic, offering help and protection.”
“Such as?”
“For a man to carry on in good faith he must know two things firmly. The first is that the path he follows has heart. How does one know this? One just does. Listen to the body; it will never lie. Visualize the path in your mind’s eye. Can you picture it with some clarity? Or is it only vague? Once your vision of the path is clear, hold focus and pay attention to your chest and gut especially. Has your pulse increased? Can you feel a wave of lightness spreading through your body? Does your heart flutter?”
“Flutter?”
“You will know it if it does.”
“Right.”
“Then there’s the gut. Feel for the weight of it; watch to see if it grows deep like an ocean or if it sits still like the reflection on a puddle, undisturbed. Does it move you? Or does it leave you feeling indifferent, uninspired? This is how you know if a path has heart. And if you see that one doesn’t, you change paths immediately.”
“I think I understand.”
“Don't think, accept. Now, on to the second. A man must be aware of his state of being. Not only must he travel a path that he has determined has heart, but he must do so in a ready state. It is a man’s responsibility to ensure his energies are balanced, that his mind, body and spiritual plane are maintained and healthy. Firstly, he must be aware that these aspects of Self exist and then he must work every day to better himself in these areas. This does not mean a man must be perfect, balanced or enlightened. Far from it. Magic helps those who are ready. But to be ready one must be doing the work. And the work is never finished.”
“Doing what work?”
“Spiritual maintenance! Self-maintenance. Living in truth and authenticity, with eyes wide open to the reality he creates for himself both inside and out. Awareness is key. Even a man who is making poor choices and living an unbalanced life but is aware of his state and is doing the work to break free is more ready than a man who is living a conventionally healthy and moral life but is unaware of the Self and its many aspects laying dormant within.”
“I see. How could a man like that even recognize that magic happened, if it did?”
“Exactly. You’re getting it now.”
“I think—no. I know I am. I can feel it.”
“That a boy.”

Reflections from a long and powerful meditation on the waterfront in Queenstown, New Zealand. 

A tree is the ultimate teacher in the practice of meditation. A tree spends its existence sitting in its own silence, even amidst the noise and chaos that surrounds it. In contact with the earth at all times, it excels at stillness, only its branches, like hair, blowing in the wind. It never ceases to breathe -- it exists to breathe -- taking in carbon dioxide and exhaling the oxygen that is required for our life. In this way, the tree exists in a state of giving, whatever the world requires for joy and life: oxygen, shade, shelter, wood, recreation.

​It doesn't question its purpose on earth, to provide these things, It doesn't stop breathing, being. It doesn't open eyes to gaze out at the chaos with any sense of judgement. It sits, rooted in the earth, and breathes -- even when the bees swarm, the rain falls, the children climb, the young woman leans against its trunk to read. In silence, it sits and breathes, never ceasing its powerful meditation. In this stillness, this silence, it exudes life; it emits from it energy, smells, colors, soft rustling, fresh air, in which all those in witness rejoice. The tree is respected, revered, a subject of dreams and poetry, though it has never spoken a word. The tree will exist in this state of joyous nirvana until a power greater than it ends its life.

If you want to meditate but are struggling to find your own silence in the midst of life's chaos, try sitting beneath a tree. Gaze upon it and extend to it a thanks for its life-sustaining gifts and deep wisdom. And then join in its meditation, Close your eyes and breathe along with the tree, focusing on your constant exchange of oxygen for carbon dioxide, rejoicing in the symbiotic nature of your relationship -- the pattern of giving and receiving that underlies every moment of our lives. In contact with the earth, perhaps even the roots of this tree, sink deeper into this feeling of security. Feel as the breeze blows your hair along with the branches of the tree, or note how its absence leaves you both in total stillness. Embody the tree, with every sound and other reminder of the external chaos, sink deeper into your internal silence, your stillness. Know that, like the tree, you are a beautiful component of the landscape, emitting energy to any form of life that may surround you. 

This is your purpose, and you fulfill it with ease. There is no need to open your eyes now, for in your internal stillness, you bear witness to the entire cosmos; you are the cosmos. In this knowing, you are filled with a sense of bliss and exist only to breathe. Oxygen in -- thanking the tree -- and carbon dioxide out, returning the gift of life. You have found balance, a state that always exists within you. You and the tree are one, mirrored parts of the same life force. You exist in this state of joyous nirvana for as long as you please. You are free, you are the tree. ​

Find the fire --
The flickering of life
In the pit of your gut;
And even though it will
Burn the dry, dead earth
Beneath your feet,
Fan the flames --
Watch them clear the way
For the emergence of
New life out of ashes.
Withstand the heat against
Your face and
Feel as — drip, drip --
Stagnancy and 
Years-old pain
Melt away.
Water with sweat, 
With tears of submission,
A garden, a field, a forest 
Born of your potential
Of your faith
Of your courage to say:
Yes, I am driven
And 
Yes, I am the driver
And 
Yes, I will live
A life that honors 
The divinity in me,
That reignites the embers
Of exploding stars
That have propelled me
Into my very existence.

Habits to Help You Get Out of Bed Easier in The Morning:

1. Open your eyes - One by one or both together, it’s up to you. Open them wide and exercise movement. Don’t forget to check in with your peripherals; this is often where the little, important things are hiding, affecting you from the sidelines, their very existence clandestine. Acknowledge everything. 
2. Put on the kettle - Remind yourself you are getting ready to drink, from the overflowing cup of your life. Let this pull your blanket down from your chin, and then swing your legs to dangle off the edge of your bed. It’s ok if you need a little time to wake up. Think about the liquid you are about to ingest. The first swallow of the day. Whether you choose to drink water, coffee, tea or whiskey, remember that the choice is yours. 
3. Wash your face - Cold water awakens your sensory preceptors. Let go of your compulsion that life should hold you like a warm bath, like your mother’s womb. Let the tap flow freely. Splash the water on your wide eyes; remove yesterday’s garbage. Relax your furrowed brow, leave your muscles free to smile. Embrace the change.
4. Oral Hygiene - What we don’t clear away will rot our mouths from the inside out. Get it out. Swirl the water around, through your teeth and across your sharp tongue and spit it out. Spit it out gently, don’t aim at somebody’s heart. But do not hold it in for fear of making a mess. You will choke on your own decay. 
5. Gentle stretching - Easy as it is to lie still, to live we must move. There’s no need to push yourself into heavy exercise, this will lead to fatigue and injury, keeping you longer in bed. Feel your need for movement, and embrace it - slowly, at first, until you are limber and ready for bigger steps. Breathe in as you lengthen your limbs in any direction or manner that feels natural and good. Exhale your fatigue, your stagnancy, your memory. Bask in gratitude as you feel your body loosen and thirst for more movement. This is growth. 
6. Get to work - Your work should lure you out of bed, call to you even before you have opened your eyes. If you see this step as a deterrent to rising from your slumber, you are in the wrong line of work. Write a task list that leaves you lusting for its content. Fill your days with challenges that energize your chakras. Do not read want ads on the internet. Sit in silence and flip through the pages of your gut. Shake loose the back issues of your soul, and collect the fragments of anything that falls from their pages. Cut and paste these treasures together into a collage of what your life will be. Get to it.