“On and on the mind spins its tales.”—Eckhart Tolle
In interviews, I’m often asked about mentors. Who do I look to for advice? What books do I read?
And while I admire SO many teachers and have read thousands of books, my current guru of choice are the birds right outside my window.
They come in different colors, different sizes, different species and, yes, they occasionally jockey for the best territory on our bird feeders.
But never, as far as I can tell, do they hold grudges or ruminate or make up stories about their differences.
If they had a human mind, they’d be squawking a story like this: “Can you believe what that woodpecker just did to me? He thinks he owns this bird bath. He has no consideration whatsoever for my feelings. How could I ever be expected to trust him again?”
And this is why my practice is to bypass my human mind and rely instead on the deeper awareness that’s underneath it all. I’ve found this inner aliveness (hidden beneath my mind’s squawking) is much kinder, more compassionate and has no interest in keeping the crazy going.
The mind, on the other hand, constantly spins its wheels, furiously attempts to solve things.
“Just give me a problem, any problem,” the mind urges.
But my mind, I’m discovering, isn’t capable of solving problems. It’s extremely gifted at creating problems, projecting falsehoods, exacerbating suffering. But it doesn’t solve a lot of problems. In fact, its insistence that there’s a problem is where it all begins.
We live in a culture driven by the mind, driven by the will. Our penchant to think we have to figure everything out confines us to a conceptual straitjacket. “Create your best self,” the mind likes to shout. But the mind only sees a teeny slice of reality, most of which is spiritually drained and echoes nothing but old perceptions.
So my mentors will always be the birds, the trees and the alive dance of presence that lives south of my neck, forever waiting patiently for me to catch on.
#222 Forever!
Pam Grout is the author of 20 books including E-Squared, E-Cubed, Thank & Grow Rich and her latest book, The Course in Miracles Experiment: A Starter Kit for Rewiring Your Mind (And Therefore Your World)
27 Responses
Brilliant!
The birds, trees, flowers, and bees have so much more to offer than our minds.
Thanks for this reminder to really tune in.
xox
Pamela Joy
Thanks!!!
Dogs are mine!! I love their ability to be loving and present with zero sense of “time”.
That’s a good way to put it–zero sense of time.
So true, Pam! May all of us forgive, that is to choose the awareness.
I love you!
Yes!
Perfect🙏🙏🧡
Why thank you!!!
Love you Pam
Love you, too, Anthony!
Always good to hear from you. I mean really good. Merry Christmas.
And to all a good night!
All of your emails are very good. This is the best one ever!!!
Oh, and happy holidays Pam!
Beautiful reminder of the simplicity and power that lives within nature. And that lives within us too. Much love to you from Australia.❤️🙏
So true, Pam! Another great quote by Einstein that resonates with your post: “Look deep into Nature, and then you will understand everything better!”
Best wishes to you for a wonderful holiday season!!
Brilliant message! Thank you x
Thank you for sharing. I love it! I love birds too.
Thank you Pam
Merry Christmas , Happy New year to us all.
Sincerely
Marianne
You are so loved, an inspiration, a beacon if light. Thank you so much for sharing your words 🙏❤️
Brilliant insight and lovingly delivered, as always. Thank you. Love you.
This soothes my soul! Gosh I appreciate this! I can just feel this new awareness can change my life into a tranquil paradise! Instead of the busy road in my mind.
Thanks Pam for reminding me that nature is the great teacher. Merry Christmas.
Life gets SO MUCH easier when we realize there are alternatives to letting our brain call all the shots and run the show. Your succinct reminders are always useful, though, because sometimes I forget. Thank you! 💞
The alive dance of presence that lives south of my neck- love this. Thanks Pam!
You often deliver your words exactly when I need them most!
This morning I did a heart opening meditation and came out of it feeling elevated. Soon after I opened an app I share with co-workers. It’s mostly a place to complain. My habit took over and I started to create a problem in my mind to engage the others in. But, I really didn’t feel like it. Why would I go searching for a problem? Why would I create one? Be a bird, be a bird…
Thank you always for sharing your joy and wisdom!
It’s one of the reasons I post a new assortment of nature portraits each Monday morning for my friends on Facebook. Now some of them say they even look forward to Monday mornings. Keep up the good work, Pammy Sue. Hugs, Richard Matukonis
Oh how I loved waking on Christmas morning to read this. While the birds are outside taking turns on my feeders while singing their praises for another glorious day💜