By Christopher Emmanuel
You will find me near the shore
With a book in my hand
Nothing to do
Read I might but I will stare out at sea
Nothing to do
A bird might fly by
Maybe a butterfly too
But there is nothing to do
And if I do nothing right
God might smile at and me saying
You have found me
For like me you are No-thing
-Emmanuel
Many spokes converge from the rim of a bicycle wheel to the center axle, what makes the wheel easy to peddle is the space in between the spokes. In your busy schedule how often do you take the time for the spaces between events?
Doing nothing does not mean to sit around watching TV, talking on the phone, or planning your next move – It means to sit back and allow yourself the pleasure of empty space. Stopping and reassessing means to do nothing and allow clarity to come to the surface-like butter forming on top of milk.
The best plans needs to be left alone to become effective all on its own. Take time to do nothing and let your mind stop simmering and come to rest. Free time is an often-unrecognized gift. I remember the marvelous unstructured years of my own childhood. We had time to read, dream, swim, fish, play games, observe insects, make stick toys, watch the clouds, catch lizards or dragonflies, and build sand castles.
Children recognize the value of empty time. Just ask them what they want to do today. Most of the time they will answer “Nothing,” on their way to doing exactly that. Meanwhile you are planning your agenda, itching to get started to get it all done. Sometimes nothing is the right thing to say and do.
When you consciously stop seeing and thinking, you often start seeing things as they really are. You free yourself from your predetermined ideas and all your previously programmed conclusions, and allow room for new insights to become clear. There are so many activities that happen without you doing. Consider your body. As you breathe, your cells are actively protecting you from harm internally. Part of you right now is digesting your food and feeding your cells, all without you thinking or doing consciously. Many times by doing nothing everything gets done that needs doing. Enough said, I am going to practice what I preach and stop writing now and do No-thing.
Books by Christopher Emmanuel can be purchased at his Art Gallery in The Sunbreeze Hotel , Art of Touch, Pages Book Store, Black orchid Spa and Sol Spa.
