Give up waiting

The moment we stop waiting, joy is present.

When we wait, we diminish the present and give more power to the future. We become anxious for the next best thing, because it promises to be better and richer than the current thing we are experiencing. It will fulfill us. It will complete us and then we will be whole, complete, and enough.

Waiting steals from the present and makes us beggars of the future. We lose out on the gifts and opportunities of the present, because instead of focusing on what exists, our attention is on the future. Not only do we miss possibilities of the present, but when we get to the future, we arrive unfulfilled because we did not get everything the present had to offer. Instead of arriving full, we arrive lacking and yearning for the void to be filled in hopes of gaining something better. When we finally do arrive in the future, we can’t receive everything, because we first have to fill the void.

When we are not full, and act as beggars, we give from a place of lack, and with expectations and/or attachment. We expect, beg, for things to be a certain way and are attached to the ideas we have about it. We become the unattractive and helpless beggar, and may even be seen as a nuisance.

When we give up waiting, we can find joy and richness in the present. We can maintain a full cup, and give from our overflow without expectation. When we fill ourselves with the gifts of the present, people see our light, and receive our light as a gift instead of us parceling out what we think they need. Giving then becomes easy. The doing, the giving, come from the being, and instead of giving in hopes of getting something in return, we can simply be—strong, rich, beautiful right now—nothing is missing. Enjoy now because every now is full of wealth. If we want everything in life, we must be present now to receive the fullness.

What are you waiting for?