Clover, bee, and revery
To make a prairie it takes a clover and one bee,
And revery.
The revery alone will do,
If bees are few.
Emily Dickinson
I am taking my time adding two more words to my three words to guide my journey this year. This morning, while reading the following story by Terry Hershey, the second word came to me – mindful.
I once did a workshop where I asked the participants to describe life. One woman said, “Life is so. . .life is so. . .life is so. . .daily.”
Yes. She’s right. That is the secret.
Here’s the deal: The miracle is that there need not be a miracle–just a slow drip of experience. Being mindful of small things. If there are truly no unsacred moments, then the sacred is infused into this moment. This conversation. This person. Even the smallest or most banal thing deserves our undivided attention.
Or, in the words of William Kittredge, “Moments when nothing happened. What sweet nothing.”
In other words, we don’t run from the moment.
We don’t suffocate the moment with stuff.
We don’t sanitize the moment with platitudes.
We sit. We listen. We look. We taste. We smell. We see.
Now this will be a challenge for me, but the more I read and hear about the immense value of mindfulness in everyday life, the more I am convinced that along with gratitude, it is the key to peace and good mental health.
Learn by little the desire for all things
which perhaps is not desire at all
but undying love which perhaps
is not love at all but gratitude
for the being of all things which
perhaps is not gratitude at all
but the maker’s joy in what is made,
the joy in which we come to rest.
Wendell Berry
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Mindfulness helps to deal with post treatment phase
Another timely reminder for me of what’s important in life
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Do check out this report Marie: Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Benefits Breast Cancer Survivors mnt.to/l/43Ts
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Thanks for the link Fiona – I got an email last week about this research but haven’t had a chance to read it yet – thanks for the reminder.
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I just love Emily Dickinson so this was a lovely start to my day 🙂
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My but you are spoiling us with some beautiful poetry this week Marie…. really like the Wendell Berry poem
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Mindful is an excellent word to use, Marie. I’m also going to try to be mindful. Thank you for sharing those wonderful, inspiring poems.
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Marie:
Mindful is definitely one of my words too, Marie. In fact, it has been since I started my Meditation Monday posts over at WWGN. My other word is “gratitude”, which is the first gift of my cancer and the source of all my other gifts. Thank you for sharing such inspiring poems with us.
Survival > Existence,
Debbie
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I very much enjoy reading your Meditation Monday posts Debbie and hope that we can all encourage each other in being more mindful in the coming year.
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I will be joining you in the search for mindfulness and just being in the moment. TODAY is one of my 3 words and it is meant to remind me that I need to be HERE today. And one resolution I have made is to meditate at least 3 times a week for 10 minutes each. I hope to make it a practice. Thanks for always inspiring me and I hope your journey for mindfulness is rich with the small moments of simple wonders.
Deb xxoo
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I so agree with you Debbie – mindfulness involves a “be here now” attitude that allows life to unfold without prejudgment. Living mind fully means you regard every moment as an opportunity to live fully, to be aware to be HERE today.
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Mindfulness is an excellent word, Marie. Love the Emily Dickenson poem at the start of your post. To me, revery is one of the most beautiful words in the English language. The lines of your quote that so resonated with me are: “We don’t suffocate the moment with stuff. We don’t sanitize the moment with platitudes.” Amen.
XOXO
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I never thought deeply about the word “revery”, but since reading your comment, I became more curious about its meaning. It comes from Old French reverie (“revelry”), from resver (“to dream”), and I love the dreamlike quality of the word. I also have the lines of the Hoagy Carmichael song “Stardust”, sung by Willie Nelson, going round in head 🙂
Sometimes I wonder why I spend
The lonely night dreaming of a song
The melody haunts my reverie…
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I couldn’t agree more, Marie. Thank you for reminding me that being mindful in the small moments is all that matters. And it is doable!
I love this paragraph of yours the most: “The miracle is that there need not be a miracle–just a slow drip of experience. Being mindful of small things. If there are truly no unsacred moments, then the sacred is infused into this moment. This conversation. This person. Even the smallest or most banal thing deserves our undivided attention.”
Here’s to the slow drip of experience. 😉
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Very timely for me to read this post. I am now on my last day of holidays in sunny Florida, and tomorrow it is off to the cold north again. Today I took time to just sit in the sun and be MINDFUL of my surroundings….the smell of the ocean, the warm breeze on my skin, the sounds of the waves crashing on the beach….so peaceful. I will certainly carry these memories with me as I recover from my up-coming mastectomy.
Cancer Warrior
http://www.perksofcancer.com
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Beautiful x
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The words of this short little verse by Emily Dickinson have been going round and round in my head all day since I read them – I now know them by heart and they are serving as a wonderful reminder to stay in the moment – thank you!
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I also love Emily Dickinson. I have been complimented by “Your poems remind me of Emily Dickinson.” Which is great for me, not so much for Emily!
It is so important to be aware of each moment, each little victory, each good feeling that pops into the pit of your stomach, even if it is fleeting.
At 81, I become increasingly aware–looking past the aches, the ME, the breast cancer scars, the knowing that this life is not forever–that this moment is mine. This life is mine right now. My body is alive and present; my mind is good enough; my love still sits beside me.
Carpe diem! Thanks, Marie.
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I read many breast cancer blogs, but this one is my favourite! For this reason, I have nominated you for The Versatile Blogger Award. You can learn more at this link:
http://perksofcancer.wordpress.com/the-versatile-blogger-award/
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Oooh am honored!
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Poems on mindfulness. How amazing, Marie!!!
To me, mindfulness is about making the present moment beautiful. Unbeknownst, our thoughts preoccupy our mind and we fail to acknowledge the small things that goes to make life beautiful around us. Being mindful helps quieten our mind, so we may stop to look, listen and appreciate.
I close by quoting W. H. Davies in Leisure,
“WHAT is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare?—
No time to stand beneath the boughs,
And stare as long as sheep and cows:
No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass:
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night:
No time to turn at Beauty’s glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance:
No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began?
A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.”
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I love your comment on mindfulness Somnath and thanks for sharing this poem which is such a timeless reminder of the importance of being mindful in our daily lives.
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