When
did you hear the birds around you for the last time?
My
daughter, who was here on summer holidays, on a morning went with me to the
meditation class. At our current Villa-Asia location we do that morning meditation
on a plateau in the mountains with a beautiful view on the forest surrounding
us. After the class she told me that she had experienced a ‘surround sound show’
of bird sounds. It seems sometimes like you live here in a kind of giant aviary.
As
long as I live here now, I never heard the birds sing an unhappy song. Of
course, because I can’t talk their language as a human being, I am not sure
about that. But if you listen in silence to the sounds of those birds around you,
you hear and you experience only a kind of joy.
In
the morning we awake in the cheerful bird disco and at night other sounds come instead.
In the Western world you can get CDs to calm down with this noises. At the current
Villa-Asia place it is the standard and yes, also here you can put the sound 'off
'. You only have to shut your windows (and turn the air-conditioning ‘on’. But
... why would you? Safe energy and enjoy!
Those
birds are gathering or hunting for their food the whole day. Actually they are busy
with the bets on their primary necessities such as Maslow so beautifully described.
With ' security ', or 'possession', they have little to do. They always seem to
find time to every now and then sing a pleasant song. They live with and in the
moment.
Lots
of times I hear people say, “I want this. I want that. I ought to have this and
have that.” These people have their minds so set on the things they want that
they don’t stop to appreciate and enjoy what they have. I don’t know if people
like this ever notice the birds singing outside, but if they could stop and
listen, they might learn something from these birds.
According
me, this is the world of marketing. Craving for more. Often I say therefore
that advertising is actually only created for those things that you really
don't need. We have to enjoy what we already have. This is one of the little
secrets of life. If we don’t have this attitude we are too hard on ourselves.
In
the continuous rat-race called ‘western life’ to try to have more to become
happy in any case most of the times you do not hear the birds around you. Although,
they still go on producing their cheerful tunes. Perhaps as a reminder that you
also can be happy with ‘little’ or to teach that you just enjoy everything what
you already have.
And
if that is difficult for you anyway ... try to give attention to that
continuous surround show around you. You'll be surprised what you all didn't
hear till that moment but always was there, just for you.
Frans Captijn
Host / Catalyst / Talenteer at Captijn Insight
Captijn Insight: “Catalyst in your process to new sustainable flow. Whether you are an individual, couple, team or an organization.”
captijninsight@gmail.com
