Impermanence Week 5

"It is not impermanence that makes us suffer. What makes us suffer is wanting things to be permanent when they are not."

Thick Nhat Hanh

Singer-songwriter Harry Chapin, famously wrote the early 70’s hit, about a son who tries, unsuccessfully, to get his busy father’s attention. At the end of the song, the son, now grown, is too busy to give the aging father attention. We think we have forever to get around to things. We don’t. But knowing this can set us free from disappointment and wake us up to getting on with things before the moment passes. It might be the letter you meant to write, the show you meant to go to, or even telling someone you love them. As we keep our awareness of impermanence, we may find it easier to do things, not having tricked ourselves into thinking we have forever. From the book I co-authored The Elevation Principles.

https://www.mindfulnessstudies.com/accepting-impermanence/

As you move through your day, and external forces cause changes, notice your body first, then your thoughts. Ask yourself, after a pause, am I fighting this change, or flowing with it?  This doesn’t mean the change makes you necessarily happy, it’s not about your happiness. It is about the ability to accept impermanence. 

What have you been putting off?  Why are you putting it off? As you come to understand that all things are impermanent, what action might you take moving forward?