Lessons in the Spaciousness of Annoyance
‘Can you please turn it down a bit?’, I plead,
as I stand next to their tent, loud music blaring on a clear starry night,
in a campground cuddled amidst the vastness of the Mojave Desert.
No reply. Just more music coming from inside the tent.
Sighing, I walk back to my tent,
unzip the fly and lie down, looking up at the stars, the Big Dipper, the cosmos.
‘Why do they have to spoil the beautiful solitude of the desert?
I’ve been waiting months for this camping trip,’
my annoyed mind reminds me.
‘Yes, my love, that is frustrating,’ my compassionate mind whispers.
‘But do you have choices? The campground is full. You can’t switch campsites.’
A meteor rushes across the sky as my mind shifts upward.
‘Let go of that which you can’t control.
Soak in that which you are blessed with:
the stars, clear skies, the gentle autumn breeze, the serenity of the desert.
Embrace moments which are growth opportunities:
learn that you don’t have control over all things,
but you do have a choice where your mind goes:
towards the noise in the tent, or the beauty of the sky.
Realize that others’ actions ought not to control your reactions.
I slowly ease my body, as the loud music continues,
my mind and soul grateful for the lessons that annoyance drizzled on me,
for the traits that I’m slowly building,
strengthening and nourishing my personality,
as the cool breeze blows kisses across the tent
and over the grateful being that’s nestled in it.
