Here is some inspiration for a little morning brush pen drawing.
I’ve been thinking a lot about this metaphor of the side of the mountain versus the top over the past week.
“Mountains should be climbed with as little effort as possible and without desire. The reality of your own nature should determine the speed. If you become restless, speed up. If you become winded, slow down. You climb the mountain in an equilibrium between restlessness and exhaustion. Then, when you’re no longer thinking ahead, each footstep isn’t just a means to an end but a unique event in itself. This leaf has jagged edges. This rock looks loose. From this place the snow is less visible, even though closer. These are things you should notice anyway. To live only for some future goal is shallow. It’s the sides of the mountain which sustain life, not the top. Here’s where things grow.” (Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance)
This book was not the easiest read, but it keeps coming back to mind for me. I think I could re-read it another two or three times and still find new things within.
Another excerpt in the same categorey and from the same book that gets to the point more succinctly:
“The past cannot remember the past. The future can’t generate the future. The cutting edge of this instant right here and now is always nothing less than the totality of everything there is.” (Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance)
Finally, the only recording I’ve re-listened a number of times on the subject of recognizing that the most important thing is right now: