It is very difficult for people to fundamentally change. One realizes, all too well, that whatever is written here, and in my other posts, will likely not have much of a meaningful impact for most who are reading this. People cling to their traditions, to what they have absorbed in school and to what they swallowed from others in the distant past; they cling to deeply ingrained conditioning, and (though they claim that they are changing) they are unwilling to really drop all of that baggage. It is unfortunate that most people cannot radically and fundamentally change.
If one merely reads these posts, accepts much of what is written, and builds a bunch of mental constructs out of it… it is not what is truly blossoming whatsoever. Awareness flowers when there is a flowering beyond mere conditioned responsiveness. That flowering has nothing to do with effort, agreement, absorption, practice, or dead tradition. (There, of course, remain to be oodles of religions, armies, and experts who are all too willing to give you more of those essentially unflowering falsities.)
Most people are very good at responding and reacting. That is what they were trained (i.e., indoctrinated) to do… and it is what they were trained to remain as. Practicing something to “be” in some state beyond that may be a foolhardy waste of time. As was written in the “Being and Becoming” posting: “Being and becoming are essentially the same thing. Being, as does becoming, reinforces the self, the center, with its dependence on sensations, pleasure, and time.”
A person can go out in nature and then be a series of mere reactions… seeing everything through a screen of images and mental compilations that one has “absorbed” from previous others in (and “as” the past). Then, a separate image of self is projected as a learned reaction, as an obtrusion of thought/thinking, and seemingly and pretentiously identifies that with images and with other mental compilations involving nature; it then claims “I am one with nature.” Unfortunately, however, mere reactions and obtrusions of thought may not be “one” with much of anything. Seeing with (and from) the past (i.e., from stuffy, old memory and imagery) is existing in (and “as”) the past.
As was written in the “Being and Becoming” posting: The intelligent mind does not try to be in a state of being, does not try to be what is non-becoming, nor does it try to be in a state of non-being. Such trying would be a further extension of becoming and would reinforce the self and its dependence upon time. In (psychologically) not trying to be or not be… the mind may naturally blossom as what is beyond greed, dependence (on others for how to get there), and measurement.
Awareness involves a depth, love, and a total perception that the limited domain of mere reaction cannot fathom. Such awareness, such love, and perception — though they are not separate things — go beyond being, beyond becoming, beyond measurement. Eternity is involved in such awareness.
Beyond words (1) Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2017
Beyond words (2) Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2017
Tom's Nature-up-close Photography and Mindfulness Blog 
Interesting read and view, Tom 🙂
We can be more or less aware of, what we are doing through the day. It demands lots of training to be able to just be, here and now.
Thank you, Irene! 🙂
It does not take a lot of training to just be, here and now. If it does, it’s some form of mesmerization or hypnosis. So-called being, in some kind of determined “here and now” requires psychological measurement and dependence on time-bound factors, which we are not interested in psychologically.
I found it difficult to learn, maybe caused my past, but now I do live in the here and now and feel very grateful to do this.
I like the second last paragraph. All the things I was brought up with, sounded just the opposite. You were supposed to let nothing affect you and be this kind of robot. Which made everything you did in life hard. And whenever you were supposed to meditate…my mind would never stop telling it to stop thinking. Ugh! Now I just pick and choose whatever works for me.
Unfortunately, RG, there are endless indoctrinated robots out there who do not really think or perceive for themselves. Additionally, they continue to be very good at programming others to be equally robotic.
Strange what we are conditioned to worry about isn’t it. Most of it doesn’t matter at all.
Most people are very good at responding and reacting & like me a tick like on your blogs is almost automatic but I always read and develop my awarness- I enjoy both the words and the pictures as I read across the sea inthe UK.
Thank you, Andy! 🙂 It’s a very small world and the UK (and all of us) are in this together. We can make a difference in the world… and we must all work on ourselves first.
Most people are very good at responding and reacting & like me a tick like on your blogs is almost automatic but I always read and develop my awarness- I enjoy both the words and the pictures as I read across the sea in the UK.
I had never made a connection between close-up photography and mindfulness before. I have a fellow aspiring photographer – she shoot Macro almost exclusively (often insects). I think she may be on to something.
Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, Bill. 🙂 I just happen to enjoy macro photography a lot and so add it to my mindfulness postings. One can add anything decent and good along with mindfulness without distorting it.
It is always a nice thing, and feeling, when someone finds that he or she has been inspired by something, but the so-called reaction, triggered by the respective source of inspiration, has gone beyond the inspiration itself, into a new creation, also maybe a bit beyond pre-configured responses or filters somehow. Such a nice grasshopper, looks both at home and a bit lost. 🙂
Yes, Nicole, we can go beyond mere reaction — regarding things — and touch something that is not second-hand and not merely another fragmentary part of a sequence. 🙂
Thanks re the grasshopper. They are always a bit apprehensive when approached.
Well said, Tom as always. I think mind is complicated. To me, blog is blog, we use it to share and connect with people. Readers may or may not find something they can relate to and agree upon.
Thanks, Amy! 🙂 If anyone deeply understands what i am writing about, then they will go far beyond agreeing or disagreeing.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and photographs! Always a pleasure to visit your blog!
Means a lot, Jessica! I enjoy yours too! 🙂
Woow beautiful visitor Tom! it augurs you very good luck for you Tom! 🙂 Great picture!
Thank you, Marcela! It’s from earlier in the fall! Much too cold now! 🙂
Continue writing Tom, I find your writings very interesting and very deep! 🙂
Real change often requires extreme measures.