‘Everything on earth is being continuously transformed, because the earth is alive… and it has a soul. We are part of that soul, so we rarely recognize that it is working for us.” –The Alchemist
So often we hear that we live in a world of “me.” We are taught to fend for ourselves, fiercely clutch on to what we hold dear, and make the best we can out of life. Is that enough?
We like to think it is, with all of the day-to-day chaos that exists in life; we feel we don’t have the time to deal with anything beyond what’s going on in the moment. The bigger question, is however, the one that we don’t even really think about— what is the moment?
We tend to think of moments as spans of time instead of experiences. We have just a minute to look at a flower—we’re on a schedule after all—not enough time savor it or enjoy it; just enough time to notice it. Now imagine this moment as a true experience instead of a reflection of time. In other words, if time were on your side, how would the moment change?
You’d enjoy and appreciate it, right? You may examine the flower’s color, the content of its parts, the way it smells, or the way the wind blows its petals. Which is a richer experience? The obvious answer is the real experience instead of our predetermined time spent. Time is an arbitrary indication of ‘what we need to be doing and when we need to be doing it.’ Our self-regulated time, as it happens, takes us away from experiencing the universe fully and completely.
While we’re driving our cars, waiting for a subway, or rushing to a meeting, the world is blooming, and growing, all around us. Nature, in all of its self-sustaining glory, doesn’t work on our time. It works in the universes time, something much grander and richer. All living things beyond humans trust the earth to be their guide, why can’t we?
A plant doesn’t grow because you watch it; it grows because that is its responsibility to the Earth. So when we look at our own lives, what would make you believe that a life will bloom and flourish by living it by the clock? By holding it fiercely and tightly, we suffocate growth—experience anger, fear, frustration and bitterness instead of the complete essence of joy that is available to us when we’re in tune with the universe.
As souls of that universe, we may live in the guiding love of the Earth. Realized dreams, achievable opportunities and an abundance of joy are within our grasp and we don’t even recognize it; right there in our blind spot between truly living and surviving is our chance to find peace. To feel fulfilled, to know that we’re living our best life each and every day, we just have to know where to look for it, and most importantly, have the courage to embrace a concept much more elusive than our concept of time.