Rock Illusions

Sitting near a creek today I easily slipped into meditation, lulled by the sound of the rushing water.  I felt a bit like a monk, poised on a tree stump over the creek, contemplating the illusion of water and rocks.  At first I thought I was watching the water, but realized that my attention was fixed on a single rock in the middle of the stream.  It seemed to be a still point for me to steady my gaze upon, but only if I looked at the rock itself.  When I was aware of the water rushing over the rock, I was overcome with a sense of instability.  The surface of the creek was constantly moving, changing, but beneath was a still point, many still points, unaffected by the rushing water.    The rocks of the creekbed showed me how their true essence could not be changed by the constant erosion of the water.  Even though they become more smooth and polished over time, they are still rocks, forever, until there is nothing left.  At this point they reveal their true essence, as a greater part of nature, and not just a rock.  There is something more to a rock than the rocky-ness of the rock. 

Go deeper. 

When I shifted my attention to the water effortlessly flowing over the rock, I would lose some of my sense of the rock itself – size, details, but I could still know that the rock was there.  The energy pattern of the water held the impression of the rock below.  I could see the effects of the rock in the water.  The water was always changing, swirling around the rocks.  Its power and beauty lie in the fact that it has no form.  Water can take any shape or color, revealing or hiding what it wants.  There are no obstacles for the water to go around.  Nothing blocks the water. The rocks show it how to present itself. 

Where are the rocks in your life?  Do you see them as obstacles, or defining moments?  Can you be like water, allowing what is stable to define your shape, but able to ebb and flow?  What do you think you are hiding under the swirling motions of your life?  Will your true essence be revealed by the polishing effects of movement and change?