There is a moment upon waking when the nocturnal tides begin to recede, but you do not recognize where you are. Or who you are. It is inside this fleeting transition that you can make yourself. Or break yourself.
Remember all the mornings you awoke already mired in a frenzied unconsciousness? So many things to do. So many tasks calling out to you. And you leap up and hurl yourself toward everything that clings to you. Forgetting what you are supposed to do. What matters most. A frightening consequence of the egoic mind.
The ego is mischievous. A shapeshifter. And a trickster. Enveloping you in superficiality. And hurriedness. Rushing here, then over there. Encouraging you to define your worth in quantities of things. Massaging your pride in the acquisition of things. Appropriating your identity in the appearance of things and colonizing your presence with thought. Your somnambulance exhausts you. And you never really wake up.
Opening your eyes is not enough. Getting out of bed does not mean you are awake. Remember, upon the first glimpse of consciousness, that you own nothing. All the things you identify with are not you. They never have been. And never will be. They are the machinations of your ego. A conspiracy to make you less than you are. Dark manipulations. A refusal to wake up.
There is an enormous spiritual void in humankind. It resonates in the heart as lingering grief. A well-guarded void is protected by the various institutions of the ego, such as the corporation, government, religion, and education. A fortress of unconsciousness collectively hurling us into the Anthropocene.
When you are waking, be kind to yourself. Grant yourself a reprieve. Remember that you belong to Creation. Feel the animating forces of life moving inside you and all around you. It doesn’t matter what you call it. What does matter is that you feel it. In the air you breathe. In the trees around you. In the sky over you. And in the light that finds you and leads you toward the day. And, before getting out of bed each morning, feel the wonder and awe of Nature everywhere all at once.
So, when you are waking and finding your way into the world for another day, let your heart remind you that Earth is your home. That Nature is your culture and true belonging. And that Spirit is the essence of your presence here. And, if you allow your attention to relax, you may catch a glimpse of the divine energy that makes everything possible. And then, upon waking, you will be made more.