It is a Saturday afternoon and the sun is blazing down from a blue sky. A colour I can best describe as almost Maya blue. In the distance I witness the odd wind-whipped cloud touched with just enough gray to remind you it will certainly rain later.
Leaning against the trunk of a palm tree I dig my feet deeper into the sand and feel a sense of peace washing over me. The faint waft of coconut scented tanning lotion reminds me of other pleasure seekers on the beach. However it doesn’t take long to tune out the sound of kids and shrieking adolescent boys. Funny how tuning out unwanted elements barely ever works on a crowded long-haul flight…
The revelation hits hard me as I reach out to grab my notepad. In that moment I realise just how mercilessly I have drilled “doing” into myself. To the extent that I almost feel guilty for not being busy with either an activity or at least scribbling a to-do list. Retracting my hand to rest on my lap I’m reminded of the documentary, The Quantum Activist where Amit Goswami compels viewers to opt for a more balanced (and catchy) Do-Be-Do-Be-Do as opposed to a lopsided just doing (all action - like me) or exclusively being (no action taken).
So how to BE? Closing my eyes I focus on deep breaths, filling my lungs with all the fresh air I can get. I open my eyes and all of a sudden the colours seem to pop out vividly. I feel the coarseness of the sand against my thighs while I hear a little girl’s voice to my left asking her mom for ice-cream. As I’m witnessing them from the corner of my eye I can almost taste and smell the ice-cream when she hands it to the girl with the pigtails. The smile on the little one’s face is just priceless.
I lift my hand again, not reaching for my notebook this time around but instead I rest my hand on the warm sand. Feeling the Earth through the palm of my hand I close my eyes yet again as I lean back against the Palm tree.
Happy and grateful to BE here.
