"Awareness is like the sun.
When it shines on things
They are transformed."
Thich Nhat Hanh
Buddhist teacher and Zen master, Thich Nhat Hanh left this life very recently.
He was 95 years old.
His teachings held so much wisdom and I have several of his books, like the one above.
There are so many beautiful quotations in his books:
" Because of your smile, you make life more beautiful."
On the table, you can see my Tingsha bells, or cymbals.
I have had them for many years and love their sound.
Just listening to them gives me a feeling of peace.
If you would like to hear these bells you can do so on this link:
My bells are the 3-inch ones with a slightly deeper sound.
I am not Buddhist, but their teachings resonate with me.
When we set a pretty table for breakfast, we eat more slowly and consciously
and appreciate each mouthful.
This morning I made an apple muffin made with almond flour.
Being in nature and literally becoming part of it through my shadow!
The Witch Hazel is a welcome sight while the spring flowers are still shy of blooming
after a return to colder temperatures.
As I was walking back from the shops yesterday, I looked up to see this lovely
cloud formation, momentarily hiding the sun, but we can see some discreet
sunrays slightly above and below the cloud.
I am taking part in a private self-portrait group and this week,
our challenge was to take silhouettes.
When I was walking in front of my glass-fronted bookcase, I noticed
my silhouette against the window.
I bet you didn't know that I lived in a bookcase in my spare time!
Another bookcase photo, with my focus on the frame and the contents, but less on my silhouette,
making it look more dreamy and contemplative as if I were looking out of the window.
I found it interesting to note that the shadow of my head highlighted the gold writing
of a book entitled 'A New Earth' by teacher and author Eckhart Tolle.
Space, lightness and simplicity.
Have you noticed, that when there's too much going on,
we just need to create some space around us. let in the light and return to simplicity.
Finding my centre
Space, lightness, simplicity
Show be how to be.
I hope that you are finding lightness and laughter in your own life,
remembering that our smile makes life more beautiful, both for others and for how we feel inside.
A lovely thoughtful post with great photos. Thank you for being YOU xxx
ReplyDeleteHello there, Sarn! Thanks so much for your thoughtful comment! Thank you for being such a faithful visitor to my place!
DeleteI have enjoyed a little relaxing moment reading this post. Thank you. I listened the sound of the tingsha bells. I didn’t know the name. I like your first picture in the glasses of your book case and all the books and, yes... I have tried to read the titles.
ReplyDeleteHave a nice Saturday afternoon, thank you,
Miriam
Hello Miriam, so nice to have you visit. Thank you for taking the time to say hello and leave a comment!
DeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteI found the title of the book "Walking Meditation" so interesting. I do tai chi--moving meditation. I really like your bells and am going to investigate on getting some. Thanks for sharing!
Hello there! If you do Tai Chi and meditation, I feel sure that you will love the Tingsha bells! Thank you for visiting.
DeleteThe bells do sound lovely.
ReplyDeleteWe were just discussing Witch Hazel at work last week, and I had looked it up to see what the flowers looked like, so was very surprised to come across it here as well! It's a fascinating plant.
Beautiful self-portraits!
Thank you Sue for coming in to say hello! Those Tingsha bells do have a lovely sound, especially the deeper one. Witch Hazel is a fascinating plant and it has many medicinal uses too! I'm enjoying different ways of capturing self-portraits for our group!
DeleteSuch a calm and peaceful post, Sandra. I am not Buddhist either, but so many of their reflections resonate with me. The bells are lovely--thank you for adding the link. As always, I thank you for your beautiful photographs and thoughts ♥
ReplyDeleteThank you for your kind comments, Carol. It's always a pleasure to have you visit me here!
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