a present of presence

We put thirty spokes together and call it a wheel;
But it is on the space where there is nothing
that the utility of the wheel depends.
We turn clay to make a vessel;
But it is on the space where there is nothing
that the utility of the vessel depends.
We pierce doors and windows to make a house;
and it is on these spaces where there is nothing
that the utility of the house depends.
Therefore, just as we take advantage of what is,
we should recognize the utility of what is not.

Lao-tzu
Tao Te Ching

This is an exceedingly hard thing to do:
recognize the utility of what is not.

The western way is to constantly strive for what one does not have. By so doing, are we ever happy? Are we ever satisfied with what we have now at this point? Can we live in the present without concern for the future? Can we forget the past?
My travels have shown me we are incredibly lucky to be born into the situation that we have, yet Americans are leading the way to our own self-destruction: mental illness, obesity, mass-consumption. And from what I have seen, the world is following our example.

I have no answers, only heartbreak. But this too, is what is not. The world is imperfect, and there is utility in that. Don't you think?

Try this: close your eyes. count each of your breaths (an inhale and an exhale is one). see how far you can get without losing track of what number you are on. see how quickly the past infultrates the present, or how our desires for a future other than the present pull you away from your breath. can you get to 10? 100? its very difficult. but the excercise is very instructive to show you just how well you can be in the present. the happiest times in my life are achieved when i am completely present. that's where happiness lives: in the now.