OUR WHOLE LIFE COULD BE A RITUAL
We could learn to stop when the sun goes down and when the sun comes up. We could learn to listen to the wind; we could learn to notice that it’s raining or snowing or hailing or calm. We could reconnect with the weather that is ourselves, and we could realize that it’s sad. The sadder it is, and the vaster it is, the more our heart opens. We can stop thinking that good practice is when it’s smooth and calm, and bad practice is when it’s rough and dark. If we can hold it all in our hearts, then we can make a proper cup of tea.
- Pema Chodron
  My friend, Erin, over at In Search of White Space has been delving deeply and stirring up questions of who I am and why I'm here and what life is really about. When I read the above quote today from Pema Chodron I felt a click inside, a deep 'yes' that attention to what is, and holding it in my heart without judgement of good or bad is my way forward. Then I re-saw the photos of my grandchildren with their knowing of that truth. I made myself a cup of tea. |
JOURNEY INTO ELDERHOOD: It's a journey with many stops along the way and enriched by the people I meet. So, stop in and visit. You're welcome...
14 November 2012
How To Make a Proper Cup of Tea
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Lovely post.
ReplyDeletesmiles...it is a wonderful post...and so true...the tea party accentuates it so well, as well...like listening to the wind...and finding our weather....and tea...smiles.
ReplyDeleteBoth my grands like tea parties as do I.
DeleteSo adorable and a wonderful post. Thanks. k.
ReplyDeleteLovely, the pictures and the tea, along with the thought of making our entire lives into a ritual. In a way, it already is, but it's not usually recognized. Thank you, Mary, for making it visible. :-)
ReplyDeleteIt was a matter of the teacher coming along when the student was ready.
Deletepema chodron caused a click in me too, when i needed it most. it is uncanny, i think, how this happens. we must be open enough in those moments to receive the instigation for the click. i owe her a debt of gratitude.
ReplyDeletesimone weil writes a great deal about attention also. of course, every poet/philosopher, that is really what they are writing about, or at least the great ones:) "Attention, taken to its highest degree, is the same thing as prayer. It presupposes faith and love."
we are truly being here, i think, when we pay attention and by paying attention, by being here, we are giving thanks.
(i'm thankful for you, mary, and your patience. it was just today by some click of the brain...i have been wondering all this time...why don't i get mary's posts? and i clicked through to see...and then i saw. how could it have been that i was not following you? something led me here today:))) this is true.
there is GREAT ritual in pouring tea. i have had a personal argument with ritual. sometimes, i have argued, it can be empty and non-thinking, but as i am learning it can be a way to fashion the attention in a moment. these children certainly seem to be engrossed:))
xo
erin
Glad you found your way over here, Erin. I like the quote about attention/prayer. I was amazed at how very much my grandchildren liked having tea parties. I figured my granddaughter would based on some of her other likes but my grandson also requested them daily.
Deleteif we can hold it all in our heart..i like...i like coming into calm waters with a good cup of tea, inhaling life, taking small sips...lovely pics of your grandchildren as well..
ReplyDeleteYes, inhaling deeply and taking small sips…
DeleteI smiled at the tea. I also have felt what Erin said in her comment, that rituals are not necessarily important. But just last night (before reading here) I was reveling in ritual and recognizing that it is one of the healing ways of attention. It is important to have things that you love, material things, to hold, clink, drink from, to bodily live and partake of with loved ones. These photos are precious, and I am moved by them. I realize now that I must have tea with James when he is old enough. (His dad is a great tea drinker.)
ReplyDeleteI must say that Erin is always a source of inspiration. She has changed how I think and feel.
When my grands were here they so enjoyed our daily tea and requested it if I forgot, including my grandson. I cherish the memories. When my grandson came alone this summer he again asked for our tea together. Making memories.
DeleteI love her. My mother made such a lovely ritual of her tea. I miss her. (My race was on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. It was fabulous.)
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this! I am a coffee drinker, for the most part; but I also have here tea and teapot (and even a tea ball). I think I will make some tea today....just because of this!
ReplyDeleteSavor and enjoy.
Deletethank you for your words and thoughts today...smiles.
ReplyDeleteLovely. We have tea parties with no tea, but I think next time I'll brew one of the caffeine-free varieties for us. It will add a whole new dimension to the tea party, I'm sure. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteWe used a varitey of Berry Tea that the grands liked.
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