Stretching

It's warm tonight, but not too warm. Perfect for stretching. Knowing there will only be a few hours' respite between the heat from today and the heat tomorrow, not feeling sleepy as the house retains the day's warmth, and uninterested in sitting meditation at the moment, stretching is perfect. Kristin bought me these $10 cotton pants at Target a few years ago, and they still fit the bill. Some things never change.

Loosening my pelvic muscles and back, it strikes me that I am not always in touch with or interested in "meditative" states--the deep absorptions. Right now I'm bothered by no one, the ceiling fans keep a breeze going, and I can hear minimal late night traffic on the Interstate a mile or so away. It strikes me that this is an apt setting for me as a simple self--more drifting or contemplative than pinpoint meditative or resting in formlessness. This is more like vacationing in the shadow or echo of formlessness. It's like the seduction before the act itself and also like the quiet afterglow. The stirring of lemonade and clinking of ice cubes in the glass pitcher rather than the tart, cool sweetness itself.

I like this idea and feeling of a simple self. It does not "break through" like moments of original face and it is not as deep as eternity. It's an easy movement away from my everyday mentality but not needing to arrive somewhere else. Just the peaceful, enjoyable feel of stretching.