Who We Are When We Stop: A Gatha Meditation on Balance

We are all grains of sand

	passing through the neck of an hourglass

		flowing across time.



Honoring our centers, we flow like grains of sand.





We are all flocks of birds

	migrating across open and stormy skies

		following new and ancient pathways.

			

Cultivating minds like sky, we become grounded and free.





We are all laughing children

	pushing up then down on a see-saw 

		enjoying fleeting moments of parallel balance.



Free-falling and then rising, we laugh and play like children. 





We are all boats on a lake

	bobbing on waves 

		sailing away from and back to the shore.

			

Flowing along with the current, we anchor in moments of stillness.





We are all specialty ingredients 

	melding into a nutritious soup

		simmering on our stoves.



Recognizing our shared humanity, we nourish ourselves and others.





We are all an ecosystem

	collaborating together to survive, live, and thrive

		dedicating time for community and introspection.



Living together and separately, we help each other and ourselves. 



		

We are all musicians

	playing instruments and singing songs

		blending our melodies to create harmony.



Finding our music under the noise, we uncover symphonies. 





We are all a force of nature

	balancing gravity’s pull with the

		floating weightlessness of space.

			

Inviting in spacious awareness, we become present here now. 



Author: Terry Shamblin