Exercising: Cultivation

The irritation continues
To grow,
Even though I know
It’s of no use at all,

I either have to go
Somewhere else
Or practice right effort
To let go of this folly;

Cultivating more skillful states
With determination and persistence,
Not letting my resistance
Get in the way of happiness,

No matter what’s going on,
To practice regularly,
For present benefits,
As well as long term returns,

To sustain, even temporarily,
Feelings of well being,
Abandoning bad habits
That evoke only misery and sadness;

Yet, not judging
Mistakes and lapses,
Instead investigating these
And learning from them;

Not a very original approach,
Nevertheless worthwhile
And creating good results,
If I keep trying;

As soon as the annoyance fades away,
Replaced by calm
And steadiness of mind
And an open readiness.

Exercise: Right Effort

Practicing,
With a smile,
Making effort
After a while,

To bring enjoyment
To whatever’s in
This moment,
Whenever I can,

Regardless of
What’s happening
Or what irritants
Are present

And that can be
Very challenging too,
To know what to do
When life really grates,

When so many events
Trigger such uncomfortable reactions
Or frustration erupts,
In response to multiple distractions;

Sometimes the annoyance is
That the pattern is so predictable;
That I know what people will say
Before they begin to speak,

I know what the will do
Before they act
And I know how
I will react.

You’d think by now
We’d both stop
But we keep going.
It’s almost amusing,
How foolish it gets!

Except: Becoming

Wanting to have something
To take seriously,
That’s worthwhile
And not finding it;

Getting irritated, agitated
And minding it,
Downright exasperated
About it;

What a contrast
To what
I was thinking about earlier,
Enjoying the leisure and the scenery,

Where did that go?
And where did
This come from,
This becoming?

Moving through
One state
To another,
From lightness to provoked,

Change the location,
Alter the frame of mind,
From home to work,
A huge transition, apparently;

From intermission,
To full of steam,
Feeding a dream,
To accomplish something important;

Seeing so clearly
The suffering of becoming,
Getting that point,
Nay, the entire quiver of arrows!