Concentration, Loving-kindness and Peace

     It's fascinating how as we "act out" progressively less, we see more & more clearly how fear & anxiety used to (& still do at times) fuel our unskillful behaviors. Acting out (behaving inappropriately) seems to be a dysfunctional attempt at escaping from our own fear & anxiety. 
     Another common dysfunctional, pre-action escape route, is avoiding present reality via the mind. We play games with the past or future to disengage from the present, particularly from the physical discomfort of the complex, poorly controllable present situation. Only in our dreams is reality simple & controllable - so we spend a lot of time daydreaming.
     Yet it's complete, open mind-hearted engagement with our own depth and whatever's at hand in the present moment that constitutes being fully alive. Intentionally we notice & let go of all the obstacles to this state of vital presence. Dipa Ma said, "In my mind there are three things: concentration, loving-kindness, and peace." Everything else is dead weight.
     

Jet, surveying her domain