Sacred Zen Moments in Taiwan
I have done a lot of things in the past few years that I’ve labeled as 'spiritual' but nothing in my life has been more divine than this day on a tea + zen retreat in Taiwan. This was the view as we hiked up and down a thousand steps to gather water from a temple while practicing noble silence.
It became a practice of meditation as I carried the water jug, trying not to complain and possibly tainting the purity of the water. I recited the mantra 'my mind is pure, my mind is pure' with each step down. My body and spirit was so aware. In tune with everything. It opened me up. It got me feeling all sorts of feelings. Positive and negative. I cried into my bowl at a tea ceremony and had waves of uncomfortable, beautiful, pleasant, imperfect and emotional moments during the remainder of the retreat. Reflecting back, the lesson is that every moment difficult or pleasant is a chance to practice mindfulness. This experience has profoundly given me deeper meaning in my personal life.
There are so many sacred moments I prefer not to share publicly online because I believe in honoring some of our most precious moments to be experienced privately. I felt called to share this experience because I don’t want to paint a picture of my journey as all positive. The visuals are only slices of my real life. My life is far from perfect and not always positive - in case that is what it may seem. I create content and passionately document my work, travel, spiritual and wellness journey. Sometimes it feels so vulnerable to share moments of my life. However, I've seen the beautiful ripple effects that sharing my personal journey has translated into meaningful connections in real life. My intention will always be rooted in what I consciously create and do that lead to genuine, meaningful contribution for the collective good. As part of my practice, I have set the intention this year to be more consistent sharing on my VISUAL DIARY- to deepen this connection to myself and to my community. I am in deep gratitude if you have felt any ounce of inspiration from my creative work or experience.
