we thought of gravity as permanent until we landed on the moon.
we thought stars lived forever until we discovered black holes.
we think of relationships as forever until one person leaves.
we believe that if we figure out a way
to prolong or hold on to joy or peace,
then life will be worth living.
life will finally be perfect.
but relationships, jobs, and lives end,
just like stars eventually die.
money comes and goes.
peace of mind comes and goes.
people come and go.
people come.
and people go.
and sometimes how they leave stays with us.
and then we crumble.
and often, in time,
we pick up and carry on.
but have we asked the blooming orchid if it thinks of withering away?
does the apple consider or care
that the sweetness it is carefully cultivating
may never be tasted?
does the caterpillar fear or avoid
the excruciating pain it will feel
before it transforms into a beautiful butterfly?
do you see?
do you understand?
do you see and understand this beauty of impermanence?
can you fathom the miracle of every breath?
do you see how even feeling pain is a privilege?
do you see how privileged you are to even exist?
to make this perilous yet gentle journey on this rock?
do you see how truly beautiful this one life is?
and maybe what makes it all
so glaringly beautiful is
that we see ourselves
in the blooming orchid,
and in the falling apple,
and in the beautiful butterfly,
and we feel
the enormous gravity
of this fleeting moment.
Click for the most beautiful song: Sleeping at Last – Saturn
~e.i
Embrace Impermanence 