Little did we know when we brought Gracie-the chocolate-labradoodle into our home, that we were getting a four-legged, curly haired spiritual master. Kind of like our own personal Yoda. But cuter.
We learn from her all the time, and simply caring for her daily needs brings profound lessons. None more so than cleaning up her daily piles out in the yard. Because we are diligent to do so, we are not left with landmines to be avoided, or more likely, stepped in. Once stepped in, there is a whole lot more work to be done in order to clean things back up so as not to bring the un-dealt with shit into our home.
I don’t know about you, but that sounds like a darn good metaphor for life.
In real life, sometimes we procrastinate, neglect to clean up our messes, and just wait until it all hits the fan, at which point life gets a whole lot harder, not to mention messier. The nasty smelling stuff gets thrown all over anyone within striking distance, and there is a lot of clean up to do. But like little Gracie is teaching us, it happens, and when it does, it is so much easier to pick it up and deal with it, rather than leave it to accumulate.
When it comes to Gracie, we have a practice in place, and because we have committed to the practice, it has become a habit.
See the stuff.
Deal with the stuff.
Be done with the stuff.
I don’t know about you, but that sounds like another darn good metaphor for life.
See our stuff.
Deal with our stuff.
Be done with our stuff.
This, of course, isn’t a one and done deal. We will be cleaning up after ourselves for as long as we draw breath. But the stronger our commitment to the practice, the more deeply engrained the habit.
We can wait for the shit to hit the fan.
But it’s a whole lot easier to deal with if we don’t.
