“Smile, breathe and go slowly.” — Thich Nhat Hanh
A few days ago, I had coffee with a good friend, who happens to read my stuff. He asked me if I have been writing about writing at the start of many of these stories, because it seemed that way to him.
Because of how I write, a self-conscious, in-the-moment kind of thing, the act of actually doing the things seems like a natural part of my stories. I hadn’t really thought about until he mentioned it. So, I guess when I actually choose to sit down and write, I have trouble leaving it out. It’s what happens in between having the idea I want to work with and everything else.
Of course, I am doing it once again. I have had an idea in my head, since I sat on my cushion at the start of the week. When I settled in that early morning, I was immediately aware of a gentle smile, kind of kissing my face. Then, it clicked, like things often do in this weightless world of the Zen Sit. I knew, one way or another, my story this week would have to be about Smile. I also knew I’d wait until sitting down just like this, at the end of the week and see where we go.
Coming home this afternoon, feeling pretty good about what I wanted to write, including the bit about my friend, etc., I cranked up the sound system in my precious 2000 Lexus, something I’ve thought about, but never dared. I have always known it is a powerhouse, put together in the early days of precision audio. So I cranked her up and wouldn’t you know it, the Boss stepped out with Born In The USA. I actually felt the pounding of the bass in my chest. I am sorry, I couldn’t leave it out, because I am a shameless old rocker and this was a bona fide blast.
I had no choice, but to add the aforementioned sensory surprise to my story. Honestly, the way I do this thing, I simply am unable to totally disappear into a story and forget how I just arrived at this moment.
Now, we can get to the Smile business. I spend an inordinate amount of time, scouring the news for stories I want to include in my weekly, news podcast, Naked News. Now, let me tell you, if you spend even a modest amount of time, looking at what is going on in the world, no way you’re going to glam up, get down and party. It is incredibly bleak, no matter where you look
There are so many people having a hard time, mostly in places whose names are totally unfamiliar to us, like Eritrea or Lesotho. They don’t have the luxury of thinking about whether we will cross the precipice of a 1.5C rise in temperature and its impact on the world. Frankly, they don’t give a shit and why should they?
I don’t know if it is an affliction of age or too much time on the cushion, but I find myself looking at many things in a global sense, something I know I never did when I was younger. Let me be careful here. I am in no way implying I am anything other than the fool I have always been. Following the thread of my main man, the Buddha, every imaginable thing that has happened and will ever happen, boomerangs in a perfect pattern, everything folding in on itself.
When I felt my smiling face, as I sat cross legged on the cushion, I think I found a place in the midst of all this that works for me. This has been on my mind quite a bit for at least the past few years. I have very strong feelings about what is to come. I confess to thinking about it a fair amount of time, but it certainly doesn’t have a stranglehold on me. Trust me, it has not made my awful sleeping pattern any worse.
It is the smile that is writing this story. I realized that smiling is so incredibly simple. It is not something you want to put a timer on either. There is a timelessness about a smile, like it has been forever and lasts forever. It’s like basking in a soft light and its after glow.
Truthfully, when I think about this story, as I am finishing it, I smile. It’s like inhaling, taking life in and embracing it for just a second and then letting go, only to seamlessly recapture it. There is a split-second kind of confidence about this lovely dance. It is too fast to think about, so you just feel it, a far more potent force anyway.
I realized the smile is a magic potion, empowering each of us to deal with forces that often seem so much larger and so far out of reach. We actually hug ourselves when we turn the corners of our mouth up toward our ears!
If you’re still here, I appreciate it, seriously.
SMILE.