Freedom Within Confinement

The restrictions here serve the same purpose as in a meditation hall: The very limits contribute to a freedom of mind.

I know the schedule for main line meals. Twice a day on weekdays, three times on weekends, I stand behind the blue line during recall. The structure designed to contain me became the container for the deepest practice of my life.

Most of the enemies you’re fighting live in your own head. When you rest in the clear, steady part of yourself—the part underneath the weather stirred up by everyday happenings—the attacks have nothing to land on.

Free of my phone, my email, my constant orientation toward bad news or hopeful news, I notice what’s left. It turns out what’s left is everything.

I redesign my days as a curator. What are the few jewels we do have, and how do I place them so they shine?