April 17th, 2017: Morning Habit, Take 2.

This morning, the two readings seemed to relate: The first was about training the mind for meditation, and the second was about attention.  So, what about worship.....with attention to "worship?"  

My mind is so busy.  I imagine it as a stove with many, many burners - at least 18 if not more.  Though something may not be in front of my nose, it may still be on a back burner.  One day, as I was singing with my guitar, I became aware that my body was playing the guitar and singing, but my mind was somewhere else...my mouth was singing, words were coming out and no one would have known that I was thinking about something else.

And, when that third component became available - i.e., the awareness that there were two things going on at once in my mind - well - "baby makes three" or so the adage goes.  However, while there were 3 layers in my mind, there was only one of me.  So, where was the attention?  I could worship with my singing, but my attention was......where?  The writing compared teaching our minds to attend to attending primary school.  At first, it will be all we can do to keep our minds on the school grounds.  After some time spent, we will begin to be able - little by little - to attend to the many lessons throughout the day. 



The other reading was about attending to relationships, with the idea proposed that training our attention to focus on a relationship over time is what will sustain it.  His story described Romeo losing his attention to Juliet, and turning it, instead, to Juliet's cousin. While modern day advice might say "follow your bliss," the writer's argument was that it was clearly better to refocus attention on Juliet.  I don't "buy" the second story, given that some relationships - no

matter how much attention - are not good for the people in them.  The learning for each individual may lead them out of the relationship and onto another path.  It seems, then, that attention to worship - attention to Spirit - must come first.  And once we dwell within "that," then attention can be given elsewhere.


Perhaps I need to "locate" my entire 18+ burner stove in Spirit, first, and then do all of the cooking and simmering within that sphere.

See that banyan tree?  Today I am going to imagine that my  stove is right in it's middle.