Keeping it simple

As many of you know, I am currently at my cabin in Northern Manitoba (Canada). There have been a few forest fires up here, to say the least. What’s more is that due to the vast size of the Boreal forest, the fires will be an ongoing concern for months to come.

This means that spotting fires on the horizon is a regular occurrence. Thankfully, the trails of smoke rising in the distance have not been new fires. Rather, they’re hotspots that reignite with a gust of wind. The diligence of the international firefighting teams has been humbling, leaving those of us who call this forest a home free to continue to do so. Well, those of us who have not already lost homes in the initial fire storm that happened earlier this summer.

This doesn’t mean that nothing has changed. As there are active fires still burning, many who I know, and myself included, have been limiting our movements. Adventuring has become restricted for not only personal safety reasons but also to ensure that those who are fighting fires can do so without having to worry about people getting in the way and interrupting the process.

For me, this means that I have been keeping things simple. I have had my own kayak for about ten years or so and I usually spend my winters thinking about all the different routes and various lakes that I want to venture out on during the summer months. With the fires we have been enduring this year, all my plans have gone out the window. Only, it hasn’t been as disappointing as I imagined it would be.

Since I have been a wee girl, I have been exploring the lake in which my cabin sits on. Before I took to kayaks, my brothers and the gaggle of friends who grew up on this lake with me have been operating boats of various forms since the early 80s. Keeping things simple has meant a return to some of our old haunts that are closer to home. This got me thinking that maybe it’s not always about the distant shores on the horizon. Maybe whatever it is that I am looking for is right here in my backyard, so to speak.

This sentiment has been reflected in the teachings of the Zen Buddhist master, Thich Nhat Hanh. Thay, as his followers like to call him,  was exiled in France from his home in Vietnam due to his peace protests during the Vietnam war. Making his home in France meant that he became familiar with the Christian faith, and as a result, he made many connections between Buddhism and Christianity.  He once said that “the kingdom of God is available to you in the here and the now. But the question is whether you are available to the kingdom”. In other words, we don’t need to look for some other place, or some other time, or wait for circumstances to be different. Instead, he explains that “our practice is to make ourselves ready for the kingdom so that it can manifest in the here and the now”.

But what does this mean? How do we make ourselves ready? According to Thich Nhat Hanh, it’s through the practice of mindfulness or paying attention with a quality of open-heartedness, kindness and compassion. We access the kingdom of heaven through noticing the beauty that each moment has to offer- even the painful moments.

He then concludes his teaching by stating that “you don’t need to die in order to enter the kingdom of heaven. In fact, you have to be truly alive in order to do so.”

Being truly alive means to miss nothing. Sometimes when things, people, places become familiar, we can take them for granted. I seem to have forgotten that I don’t need to seek lakes or routes further afield. The ongoing forest fires have forced me to remember that everything that I need and the beauty of this land is all within reaching distance. I just need to pay attention. I need to miss nothing and keeping it simple has helped me to do so.

I can’t express nor quantify the peace, quiet joy and deep presence that I have felt right here, right now, on this forest floor beneath my feet. Not somewhere else in some other moment when the conditions are just right. But here and now, keeping it simple in my fire threatened backyard.

If any of this speaks to you, I invite you to join me on Tuesday morning at 10am Irish time at the Sanctuary’s online community meditation. Perhaps we can ready ourselves together. 😉

-Jane

Click here to join me at the Sanctuary’s online meditation session on Tuesday

As these sessions are free, and it is my birthday month, you might like to make a donation to the work of the Sanctuary by clicking here. Or, to the Red Cross to support those affected by the fires in Northern Manitoba by clicking here.