Fast Food

We live in a fast food society. We thrive on instant gratification.

Have you ever gone over to the microwave, frustrated that the baked potatoes aren't done yet? Do you have any idea how long they take in a conventional oven?

We put a meal in the microwave, then anxiously tap our feet for the grueling two minutes we have to wait.

We growl and curse as we sit at the fast food window for three minutes and thirty seconds. "What is TAKING so long!?!?"

Take a moment today to slow down. Stop and smell the roses, literally if you want. Today I saw something I had never seen before. I had never stopped long enough to notice that the Eastern Red Cedar bursts forth in little blue berries. So I stopped. I looked.

So today,

stop.

Look.

Another Challenge

One of the things I would like to teach at East West is the joy of rising to new challenges.  It is hard to meet new challenges without new experiences, so my challenge today is to find an appreciation for something new.  

I'm learning how to grow bonsai trees now.  While learning about it, I'm also developing a whole new appreciation for the art form.  When I took my trip to China in 2002, one of the places we visited had several bonsai on display.  At the time I did not have an appreciation for the art.  I walked past them without a second glance.  If I had the appreciation then that I do now, I'd have studied them and taken dozens of pictures.  

So the challenge is to find something that you don't understand why some people love it, be it a sport, an art form, a restaurant, and try to find out what all the buzz is about.  You don't have to start liking whatever it is, just try to find an appreciation for what it is.