"Your eyes are too big for your stomach." Although she didn't coin it, my mom was the first one I heard this phrase from.  We were at the local 7-Eleven.  This didn't happen often.  With seven kids and a mortgage, snacks or meals outside of the house were a rare treat.  I saw my older brother order a Slurpee and wanted the same thing, same size.  Her warning only emboldened me to want it more.  Of course I didn't finish it... well, not right away.  Truthfully, by the time the brain freeze was over, so was my taste for the drink which had become a slurry mess of liquid sugar. Likewise, I wonder sometimes if our hearts are too small for our souls.  We want--oh how much we want-- but settle for what rarely satisfies. 

The junk food of talking heads might temporarily appetize; tweets or posts that merely confirm my "position" might initially appease; pointing out what's wrong with this or that might-for a moment-appeal...but there arises a time when the deepest part of me just craves something better, higher or deeper; I need something more authentic, long-lasting and solid. Maybe it might help during these times to see the bigger picture.  For example, if you were only to see a dentist with a needle of Novocain, it would look barbaric unless you know it's going to help your child with her impacted tooth.  When I was given my Shingles shot, my body felt like I had done a 4-hour workout!  But I know what it will prevent, and that makes all the difference. 

Being able to have a wider view enables us to filter out and filter in)... who doesn't want that lightness of being?  It makes it so much easier to travel when you have less encumbrance. I firmly believe that by spending time in the quiet and still places within we can tap the inner, natural harmony we are designed for. To do this we need to learn how to tune out the mindless chatter that takes up vital space in our mind and heart.  To be in harmony's way is like stopping your ears when a beautiful concert is playing. As T. S. Eliot writes in The Four Quartets”

 "We must be still and still moving / Into another intensity / For a further union