“When we get to looking at everything in terms of survival and profit as we do, then, the shapes of scratches on the floor seize to have magic…” ~ Alan Watts: Acceptance of death.
Most of us consider life to be a journey; we put it in time frames, the simplest being birth, life and death. Honestly I find no other way to look at it, but the problem lies in how we utilize the time that we have, more importantly, the now.
So often we think that happiness is a destination, when I make a million dollars or when I buy a new car I will be happy. Rather we need to be happy with what we have, and not postpone our happiness thinking we will get the time to focus on joy later.
Too many people take it for granted that purpose of our life is what is handed down to us, that is school, college, work, or family. Life has to be balanced – its not just about making a living, but actually living. One of my favorite poems comes to mind, Leisure by William Henry Davies.
Do you have the time to turn at Beauty’s glance, and watch her feet, how they can dance?
Its obvious that one needs money to
live unless you’ve achieved the art of self sustenance, but cultivating a talent that will reward you with sustainability is what we all need to push for.
After all we have to dance when the music is playing. As Watts puts it, “Life was a musical thing, and you were supposed to sing or dance while the music was being played.”
So don’t forget to make the time to dance to the music, stop worrying about tomorrow as “…tomorrow and plans for tomorrow can have no significance at all unless you are in full contact with the reality of the present, since it is in the present and only in the present that you live.” ~ Watts.
“Dance, when you’re broken open. Dance, if you’ve torn the bandage off. Dance in the middle of the fighting. Dance in your blood. Dance when you’re perfectly free.” ~ Rumi