An Evolutionary Playground

On the one hand: 

The All and the Nothing, 

the formless, the prior state, 

that which resides before the mind, before even the breath, 

that which infuses and informs all life.

And on the other: 

The manifest, form and function, the very breath of life, 

birthing, living, decaying and dying 

lovingly embodied in all her exquisite and terrible beauty.

And here we find ourselves. 

Played and playing in an evolutionary playground where direct experience always proves a winning hand regardless of the apparent outcomes.

The real game is beyond belief, it is before belief.

And it is here, in the living moment, the crucible of direct experience that the soul finds it's mettle, forged in sweat, love, and tears as it rises to the challenge again and again.

The human spirit thrives on challenge. 

We want and need the real thing.

This way we stay in touch with both ourselves and the present moment, the living currents of existence. This is where our feet touch the ground, and not in some mind's movie fantasy or idealistic conceptualization of how life is, or how it should be.

Unfortunately, it can’t just be in the mind, that doesn’t work, even though the mind would like it to.

Our minds are incredible tools, but they are not who we are.

Painting the inside of your cage with sky blue and fluffy clouds is a beautiful distraction, but it simply creates more disconnect, it widens the gap.

That’s like checking out, head in the clouds, whereas we are looking to check in, feet on the ground. 

In the end, it needs to be step by step.

It needs to be felt sensation, present moment awareness, in the body.

Moment by moment.

Breath by conscious breath.

Embodied, directly felt, faced, embraced.

In the same way that you don't 'understand' soul music, you have to feel it.

Right here and now, fully engaged, is where we learn and grow.

It's not always pretty, but it's always worth it.