Zen

"The only zen you find on the tops of mountains is the zen you bring up there."
~Robert Pirsig

My Mum, sister Karen, and baby niece Melody flew from NH to OH to visit me this past weekend. It was a delightful whirlwind of baby baths in the kitchen sink, diaper changes, feedings with many, many spoons, and lots and lots of Graeter's ice cream for the grown-ups! It was my niece's first plane ride, and she's only six months old. My first flight was when I was 18, and I chose Paris, France as my destination (daring, yes?). I have loved everything about flying since that first jaunt to Paris: meeting random inspirational people in airports, trying to squeeze into a bathroom stall with a rolling suitcase, take-offs and landings, cocktail napkins with cheesy airline slogans, etc. But my absolute favorite thing is the window of time right after I breeze through security and arrive at my gate and right before my flight starts to board. Those are true moments of zen for me (please note: I always arrive 2 hours early, so this gives me plenty of time to just hang out). The only place I have to be is right where I am. I don't have any responsibilities to distract me like laundry or cleaning. I can just sit back and relax. I often people-watch, and I do a good deal of writing in these moments of presence. The announcements over the loud speaker serve as a lullaby to calm my nervous system. I am usually so jazzed up about flying to wherever I am going that it helps for me to have some down time to pause and reflect on the here and now. We have all experienced these moments at one time or another, and this peace that we discover can be tapped into at any time. The trick is knowing how to access it. I would recommend thinking back to a time when you felt centered and totally in the moment. Connect with your 5 senses to re-create the location, smells, colors, and energy of this moment in your mind. Any time you feel like you need a mini-vacation, you can tap into your inner zen moment without even having to get on a plane!

What are some of your favorite zen moments?

Choose love,
Grace