Hope and fear come from feeling that we lack something; they come from a sense of poverty. We canโt simply relax with ourselves. We hold on to hope, and hope robs us of the present moment. We feel that someone else knows what is going on, but that there is something missing in us, and therefore something is lacking in our world.
Pema ChodronOver time, as the thinking mind begins to settle [through the practice of meditation], weโll start to see our patterns and habits far more clearly. Sometimes this can be a painful experience. I canโt overestimate the importance of accepting ourselves exactly as we are right now, not as we wish we were or think we ought to be. By cultivating nonjudgmental openness to ourselves and to whatever arises, to our surprise and delight we will find ourselves genuinely welcoming the never-pin-downable quality of life, experiencing it as a friend, a teacher, and a support, and no longer as an enemy.
Pema ChodronWhen you begin to touch your heart or let your heart be touched, you begin to discover that it's bottomless.
Pema Chodron