This morning i read a beautiful passage about the “the monkey and the river” by Mark Nepo. I’m going to link it here in case you want to read the full story. https://parabola.org/2020/01/31/the-monkey-and-the-river-by-mark-nepo/
In the story, a spiritual apprentice is told to sit by the river and learn what all it has to say. After 3 days, a monkey comes and splashes loudly in the stream next to him. This cracks him open and he begins to weep. He returns to the teacher, who says that the monkey has heard the river, whereas he has only just listened.
Here are my ponderings and take-aways:
1) The simplest and hardest thing to do each day is to be here–fully, completely, without turning away.
2) Sometimes, we get so lost in our practice and devotion that we forget that the goal is to get wet. The difference is that the man only watched the stream, whereas the monkey jumped in the middle. The man forgot / kept missing the point, which was to play. In this life, we are meant to experience — yes, to learn and to grow — but also, to participate!
There is only so much we can learn from watching, but observing at its best enlivens us to participate.
The aim of watching the river of life is to join the river of life (to become fully immersed in it).
Have you been getting wet enough? Don’t forget to experience life, as well as observe it. The water is fine. Let’s go swimming.