My Station.
A station is a post; a place that we occupy. More accurately we could call it a mobile home or a vehicle, because I’ve yet to meet a single person whose station remains in the same place always. Time moulds us with its subtleties and we may believe that we remain unchanged, but that is just the careful hands of time not being disruptive, crafting you so adroitly.
It is important to me that I evaluate my station and take stock of its location from time to time. To do this is to be mindful, and to be mindful frequently is to place a bid on the process of doing no harm to others, and more importantly, yourself. Being mindful of your station can prevent the sabotage of your livelihood and your happiness. A firm mantra of mine and of Buddhism as well is that we are the guardians and caretakers of our own happiness. There is a sternal hatch located in the middle of our chests and we are the sole proprietors of the lever which opens this hatch, subsequently exposing the world to our hearts and our hearts to the world.
If you have read this, maybe it is time for you to evaluate your current station. Do you like what you have deduced about it? Do you grope incessantly for new things in your life to make you happy? Perhaps the acquisition of new things is not the answer, but instead tending to your inner happiness, cultivating it so that it may make everything around you shine brighter.
The nuances of my station have been simplified. I can remember a time when there were many rules and I racked my brain to know how to live in various scenarios. Lately I seem to embrace life without anticipation or expectation; instead allowing life to occur, and allowing myself to react to life in every moment. I have kept the sternal hatch open and provided affirmation for every new thing, thus being rewarded by so many new and wonderful experiences and people. This would not have been possible if I remained shut off, and remained tethered to my relic beliefs which exude safety and no element of risk.
Day to day, I believe in the very basic principles of working hard and being nice. A cathartic sweat and exchange of smiles are what compel me. Moments where the reputation of others are actionable to my judgements and criticisms are seeming less tantalizing, but it has not been easy to arrive to this foothold. (I say it is a foothold because I dare not declare mastery of my reservation of judgment.) I have found that if I continue to quell outward judgement and criticism of individuals, it eventually quiets the internal judgments I may manufacture. Less and less I seek to find the faults and pitfalls of a situation, and more and more I find appreciation for what is accessible to me, and what the situation affords. It is startlingly easy to bypass that which is inherently afforded in lieu of that which we do not have.
Rather than criticize, it is an adamant practice of mine to implement approval and praise for everyone. It is not because I am an idealist, but for precisely the opposite reasons: I acknowledge that we live in a cold and impersonal world. I feel the regard we have for one another erodes with every passing day as we all march like ants to our own personal desires. Perhaps if we took out the desires of our lives we would in complete shock and awe of the beauty and wonderful people all around us? Ponder that.
I challenge myself and I challenge you as well to not withhold praise from anyone, even a person who you find very difficult to be around. I challenge myself and I challenge you to understand that there is nothing to be gained from arguing and pointed intentions, because to argue is to forego listening, and to forego listening is to forfeit resolution. I challenge you and I expressly challenge myself to squash all impulses to berate and belittle others, especially behind their backs. When we speak, may we speak candidly and honestly, and may we pay close attention to each word that spills from our mouths to be sure that we do not deceive others and primarily ourselves. Always be in perfect balance of the unicycle of your conscience, and continually ask yourself “Is what I am saying true to myself and the world?”
What is your present station? I would enjoy knowing.
In my current job I actually have to point out what’s wrong. Though the ultimate aim is to help people improve, and whenever possible I point out the good. But in other areas I strive for the same goals as those mentioned above.