2010/Jun/10/Evening - Sharpening
In the 4th century, Gregory Of Nyssa exhorted us to "[G]aze upon the infinite beauty of God". When can you do that this week?
Time is not my problem at the moment. I have all day long to myself, to spend as I please. For me, it is a question of discipline. It is a matter of putting aside the batch of muffins I want to bake, or the computer project I have assigned for myself, and taking those moments to focus on being productive in a spiritual way rather than a physical one. Time is interesting, though. As Denis often said as we watched hockey (To our dismay, the Stanley Cup was awarded last night, in the sixth game of a best-of-seven series, to the team we hoped would not win. The final score in the game, which went to overtime, was just as in the series, 4-3 for Chicago over Philadelphia), twenty minutes is too long a time to score a goal, five minutes, two minutes, or thirty seconds is just enough time to do it. Perhaps it is because I have so much time that I squander it, or at least spend it on things other than meditation. I can too easily put it off, thinking I have lots of time and can do it at a later juncture. In the middle of my ongoing lessons of how to wait patiently for my career aspirations to be answered by my potential employers, I also need to learn the value of "Act now!". Perhaps I should set an alarm for myself, a reminder to stop what I am doing and pause for some meditation. Harkening back to what I wrote a few days ago about becoming proficient through practice, maybe if I take a hard line of discipline about stopping to pray it will eventually become ingrained in me and come more naturally.
Ecclesiastes 10:10
If the ax is dull, and one does not sharpen the edge, then he must use more strength, but wisdom brings success
Perhaps it was inspired by this verse... I recall hearing a story about two woodcutters, one old and one young. The old one knew the value of persistence, and worked all day long during a competition between the two. He noticed that the young man took frequent breaks and walked away. At the end of the day, however, the young woodcutter had amassed a larger pile of wood. The old one asked the youth how it could be that he did so well even though he kept walking away. The young one replied, 'I was taking the time to sharpen my ax!'.
This verse relates directly to the rest of my entry. Diligence and discipline does not always mean hacking away at something without end. Taking time to rest, renew, recharge, and retrain is also important. Recently I have been trying to apply this, thinking that I should use my time off of work to improve my skills. It is one reason I am making use of what my friends have to teach and learning Russian from them. I know that it is one of the priority languages in the division where I want to work. If I make use of my imposed holidays to build up that skill, it may help me to eventually get into the line of work I want to do. The same logic can be applied to my spiritual life. I want to be known as one who is wise in spiritual matters. For me to grow in that way, I have to take the time to develop myself. To sharpen my mind and heart the way the young woodcutter sharpened his ax. When the day comes to the end, I want my woodpile to be large.
Time is not my problem at the moment. I have all day long to myself, to spend as I please. For me, it is a question of discipline. It is a matter of putting aside the batch of muffins I want to bake, or the computer project I have assigned for myself, and taking those moments to focus on being productive in a spiritual way rather than a physical one. Time is interesting, though. As Denis often said as we watched hockey (To our dismay, the Stanley Cup was awarded last night, in the sixth game of a best-of-seven series, to the team we hoped would not win. The final score in the game, which went to overtime, was just as in the series, 4-3 for Chicago over Philadelphia), twenty minutes is too long a time to score a goal, five minutes, two minutes, or thirty seconds is just enough time to do it. Perhaps it is because I have so much time that I squander it, or at least spend it on things other than meditation. I can too easily put it off, thinking I have lots of time and can do it at a later juncture. In the middle of my ongoing lessons of how to wait patiently for my career aspirations to be answered by my potential employers, I also need to learn the value of "Act now!". Perhaps I should set an alarm for myself, a reminder to stop what I am doing and pause for some meditation. Harkening back to what I wrote a few days ago about becoming proficient through practice, maybe if I take a hard line of discipline about stopping to pray it will eventually become ingrained in me and come more naturally.
Ecclesiastes 10:10
If the ax is dull, and one does not sharpen the edge, then he must use more strength, but wisdom brings success
Perhaps it was inspired by this verse... I recall hearing a story about two woodcutters, one old and one young. The old one knew the value of persistence, and worked all day long during a competition between the two. He noticed that the young man took frequent breaks and walked away. At the end of the day, however, the young woodcutter had amassed a larger pile of wood. The old one asked the youth how it could be that he did so well even though he kept walking away. The young one replied, 'I was taking the time to sharpen my ax!'.
This verse relates directly to the rest of my entry. Diligence and discipline does not always mean hacking away at something without end. Taking time to rest, renew, recharge, and retrain is also important. Recently I have been trying to apply this, thinking that I should use my time off of work to improve my skills. It is one reason I am making use of what my friends have to teach and learning Russian from them. I know that it is one of the priority languages in the division where I want to work. If I make use of my imposed holidays to build up that skill, it may help me to eventually get into the line of work I want to do. The same logic can be applied to my spiritual life. I want to be known as one who is wise in spiritual matters. For me to grow in that way, I have to take the time to develop myself. To sharpen my mind and heart the way the young woodcutter sharpened his ax. When the day comes to the end, I want my woodpile to be large.