"Well," said Pooh, "what I like best ---" and then he had to stop and think. Because although Eating Honey was a very good thing to do, there was a moment just before you began to eat it which was better than when you were, but he didn't know what it was called. And then he thought that being with Christopher Robin was a very good thing to do, and having Piglet near was a very friendly thing to have; and so, when he had thought it all out, he said, "What I like best in the world is Me and Piglet going to see You, and You saying 'What about a little something?' and Me saying, 'Well, I shouldn't mind a little something, should you, Piglet,' and it being a hummy sort of day outside, and birds singing." "I like that too," said Christopher Robin, "but what I like doing best is Nothing." "How do you do Nothing?" asked Pooh, after he had wondered for a long time. "Well, it's when people call out at you just as you're going off to do it, 'What are you going to do, Christopher Robin?' and you say 'Oh, nothing,' and then you go and do it." "Oh, I see," said Pooh. "This is a nothing sort of thing that we're doing now." "Oh, I see," said Pooh again. "It means just going along, listening to all the things you can't hear, and not bothering." "Oh!" said Pooh.
Nothing is something we all, unfortunately, have too little time to experience in between the Hustle and Bustle of today's busy modern society. Kids are torn between art lessons and soccer practice and adults have to run carpool, commute, put in long hours at work, shop for food, help out the kids, and somehow still manage to find time for themselves during a day that has remained 24 hours long. It is hard sometimes, to remember to appreciate the Joy of that Moment just before you Eat, yet it is essential to human happiness that we learn how to Be in our lives, rather than always rushing off to what Will Be. No matter how much time you think you have or don't have, to be a healthy person you must reserve some time out to experience the Something that is Nothing. Schedule it into your daybook if you must, just be sure to ink it in as certainly as you would a "real" appointment. Because it is very important to have time during every day where you allow yourself not to Bother. Personally, I like to practice Yoga as a way
to achieve harmony of body, mind and spirit, but every person needs
to find his or her own Path. For some it may be a candle-lit
bubble bath, and for others it might be walking in a park, or playing
with the dog. Whatever works. (Details of my personal Life
Practice can be found here) Everyone
is looking for the Answers to Life Itself. But how do you expect
to Hear those Answers if you leave no space for them in which to
come? Listen for
the things you Can't Hear; you'll soon find that you can hear them
after all. Let the voice of Destiny, perhaps the Loudest One
of all, guide you on your life's journey--but it's up to you to check
in from time to time, forgiving yourself for letting one or two of
the things you Had to do Today slide (after all, the In Box will
not be empty when you Die). In time, you'll find that a little
Not Bothering goes a long way, and that when you are doing Something,
your mind will be more focused after you've given yourself the time
you needed to Rest, and filled your spirit with the Nothing that
is Everything. Try it, and I promise that all your days will
be just a little more of the Hummy sort...
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