Just sitting

Today we went to Capitola and just sat by the ocean watching the waves and the sky. It was beautiful.

We didn't talk much. I didn't think about a whole bunch of stuff either. It was good.

On the way home as I was thinking of how little we sit and do nothing, I remembered something from a James Herriott book. He wrote about a family, I think it was a sister and two brothers, who lived on a farm, and after their day of work, they ate supper, then sat on a bench on the porch. And that's all they did, just sat for some time and then went to bed.

I thought, too, of this British comedy I watch called "Good Neighbors." In that story, a husband and wife try to be self-sufficient in the suburbs, living off the land. In the evenings they sit on two kitchen chairs facing their big wood-burning stove. And they, too, just sit. Of course since it's t.v. they talk, but still they're not watching t.v. or anything, they're just sitting.

I sometimes feel guilty that I want to occupy my mind all the time. When I'm doing boring things in the kitchen, I much prefer to listen to my iPod while I work. Or when I walk or exercise. If I don't listen to something while I walk or exercise my brain seems to absolutely lose its ability to think. After a while I start mindlessly counting my steps. It's agonizing. Even when I've tried to use that time for prayer, after a while I can't think of anything more to pray about and it's 1, 2, 3, 4, aaauugh. You'd think I could be alone in my mind for a while!

I've heard it's a discipline, it takes practice. I guess I don't want it bad enough to put in the time. Shallow or not, I think I'll keep listening while I work or walk.