On Being

The alarm sounded

But I was awake already

My biological clock prodding

There is so much to do, and its 4:30.

An early morning

A run that invigorates

Shower, shave, breakfast

Now the real doing must begin.

I do the commute

I do the list of emails

Meetings and calls are made

Doing it all then doing it again.

I’ve been give the ultimate compliment

My “say” to “do” ratio is nearly 100%

Some like to talk, I prefer to get things done

A good day is a busy day of doing and doing.

Is there a place for being

And what is that anyway?

Is it a state of no next task?

Or perhaps accepting that I am okay?

There is beauty in being

A peacefulness that we see

A lot is actually accomplished

Perhaps even healed of me

We value the doing

We’ve short changed being

I am tempted to do being

I am sure there is a class for that

I have begun to accept

Both doing and being

Valuing both equally

Albeit not always

I think it is possible to do and be

I can have a conversation and be

I can run and experience being

I can retreat and purposely be

Mindfulness as a practice

Yoga, meditation, breathwork

These are how being is done

But ultimately I want to simply be

To see beauty around me

To smell the fragrance of rain

To hear the distant bird

To taste and savor each bite

To feel to powerfully feel

In my being I am receiving

In my being I am experiencing

In my being I am sensing

The wonder of life

I wrote this poem as I felt the tension of doing versus being. Perhaps this is a bit of a cop out but I landed on the fact that I can and must do both and even better - do both together. My runs are a perfect example of this. I have a calendar on my office door - a list of runs I have scheduled. I like the fact that I am doing something to achieve a goal. There is nothing wrong with doing…in fact it is invigorating. At the same time I have found that I am being while I run. It is my moment of complete presence. No thoughts of what needs to be done as a focus on my breath, the sounds, the now. Being does not have to be checking out and doing does not have to be missing out.

Are you ready to do… being?