It is quite early in the morning and as usual as soon as I wake I get out of bed. Ajahn Sumedho says training yourself to get up is skillful. Lingering feels like a poor use of my limited time on planet earth. many years ago I heard something that really stuck with me.  When on my deathbed, nearing my last breaths will I wish I spent more time on Facebook or watching tv?  For me the answer in a resounding NO!

Funny enough after writing this post a NY Times email arrived with a title of "How to rest"  it begins by th bargaining and delusions we have waking up on a Saturday of a long weekend. It says "You play that trick" .  If you want to read it search for "rest stop" on the NY Times website.

However just knowing in the back of our mind that something is unwholesome, a waste of our precious time is not enough to usually change our behavior.  We need to be more present to see these things that are usually time fillers in between things we have to or want to do.  Do a search of how many seconds and minutes an average human life is, or weeks and months - it kinda blew my mind.  It certainly feels too short. It is the  truth of impermanence that the Buddha taught, everything that arises will eventually cease, A flower, a season, a pet, a person, the sun.  Nothing at all lasts forever.

This can be a sad thing if we don't understand it or take it personally. This is simply the way of the world.  In fact the more we understand it, meditate on the truth of impermanence the only skilfull response I have come to is cherishing. Because those I care about will not always be here. Maybe I will go first, who knows. Because of this fact, because I spent some real time meditating on this truth with the Tibetan Lamrim practice and the Buddha's Satipatthana Sutta (Four Foundations of Mindfulness) I realized my time is truly finite. In my teens and twenties I thought I would live forever and the way I lived mirrored those beliefs.  These practices really blew that to shreds.  At first I felt scared and angry that I only had so much time left with those I care about, with myself.

But upon continued practice I began to understand that truly our next moment is not promised, let alone next week or 50 years from now. I wouldn't want to know when my death is anyway. We all have a life sentence, we are all dying in that sense, since the cause of death is birth, but if you are reading this you are alive. What are you going to do with this most wonderful and rare of gifts?

Cherishing as I said is the answer for me  Cherish my wife, my family and friends, people I don't know. Look people in the eye and tell them you love them. Say hello to strangers, watch birds, look at the moon, listen to your favorite song three times in a row. Check in on old friends and family often enough, hug people.  Live.  Love, enjoy - really.

But hearing this truth was not enough for me. I needed to meditate, I needed to sit on the cushion and develop a deeper practice. The time spent on the cushion give me the ability to be mindful of the present moment, at least from time to time in the beginning, It was like holding a mirror up to myself at moments about the day. I saw when I was not being kind or when I was frustrated short with people and these truths of impermanence reminded me that this is not my true heart, this is not my Buddha Nature. This is not the way I want to live. I don’t want to develop regret after regret. My friend Moon describes himself as a "love guy" and it is an appropriate self view he sure is. He is full of love, always giving and loving and kind,  I realized that was what I was working towards, kindness or Metta and Karuna or compassion.  Not romantic love, though there is nothing wrong or unwholesome about that, but simply loving and caring towards others. That is where seeing the truth of impermanence has led me. And what a change in my behaviors and relationships it has been  simply by meditating on the truth of impermanence, gaining some insight and being mindful when I can moment to moment.

The teachings of the Buddha are always valuable but sometimes on the surface they are not what they seem. Who would think impermanence would lead to love and caring?

Will you allow the teachings to percolate in you and open your heart?