There’s a Japanese proverb that says “Fall down seven times, get up eight”.

Between “failing” and “falling” there is only one letter difference. From my audio book “Freedom From Habits of Body & Mind(c)”  I write:

“We live in times of great instability. For many there is not much consistency. There are both inner and outer circumstances that can knock us off our feet, literally or figuratively. There is no such thing as always being stable or ‘in balance’…there is no once and for all. We experience balance because we learn how to make friends with change…inner or outer.”

Recently I was prompted to reflect upon something that I was passionate about as a child. The memory that immediately surfaced was a young one who loved to be outside in the warm summer sun cracking stones open.

I was endlessly fascinated by what was on the “inside”: what sparkled in the sunlight as I turned each stone this way and that in my small hands.

“The most important thing for you to know is this: There is nothing that has ever happened to you that damages, weakens, or stains the essence of who you are. No negative experience great or small can harm your true nature. To rest into the truth of that offers both safety and possibilities.”

When we are aware of our body sensation, we know when we feel safe, we know when we don’t, and we know when we override our need for safety. There’s the kind of physical safety that comes from an obvious act like locking a door and there’s the kind of subtle safety that is about felt sense.

“It is possible to learn to nurture what keeps us within the gravitational pull of our own “enoughness”. It’s not a matter of adding anything to who we are but rather uncovering the goodness within.” ~Meg Rinaldi

There are those in this world who do not have the basics. The uneven distribution of resources is an ongoing challenge. If we have the means we should address these inequities with generosity whenever we are able. As a Buddhist meal chant says: “Generosity is the virtue that produces peace”.

I write and think about refuge quite a bit. One of a few of the most important questions I’ve ever been asked is: where do you take refuge?

Refuge is a state of mind as much as it is a place

These days the ante has been upped and now the most important thing to discover is how find refuge in our daily life. I was speaking with a new client recently who said:” I can be present to myself when I am alone but I am completely distracted when I’m around others.”