Spring in Maine

Are you the Coyote or the Forest?

The coyote is always hungry.  When he isn’t hungry, chasing prey or feasting on a fresh kill he fights for his place in the pack or a mate. Most of us live our lives just like the coyote. The coyote in us is our ego. Our ego only cares about us, about how we feel about ourselves or perceive others to feel about us. It’s number one job is to make sure our most basic needs are met but when that job is done it’s still working just as hard. If we don’t learn how to tell the ego to stop we are always tired, always hungry.

This is the root cause of almost all our problems as humans, it’s why we cheat, why we overeat, why we murder, why we spend money we don’t have, why we gossip about others at the same time feeling jealous of them. It’s why we always feel we have to increase our wealth, gain popularity or status, acquire new things. It’s why we are always chasing after excitement just to feel a very short lived moment of bliss after attaining what we so desperately wanted.  In those rare times that we find ourselves with the bliss having faded and no new desire to take it’s place that’s when we truly feel despair. Without thought we frantically look for a new desire to replace the last.

But you can break the pattern and transcend it all by stepping out of the coyote and instead becoming the forest.

The forest just is. It is timeless. It is now. The forest nurtures. The forest does not judge the coyote for preying on the rabbit but it nurtures both. It has no knowledge of past or future or memory of what it was or ambition for what it could be. It is perfect as it is. It doesn’t question this, there is no question.  

Our ego is the coyote in the forest and the forest is our soul. The problem with this analogy is that no animal no matter how predatory or vicious could ever rival the human ego and no animal possesses an ego. This is what separates us from animals. This is why animals are so beautiful both in form and in spirit.  

“He didn’t acknowledge me, she doesn’t respect me.”  “I’m not attractive enough.” “One more scoop of ice cream and I’ll be satisfied.” “I’ll feel better after I buy this.” “I’m unhappy because I haven’t met the right person yet.”

The ego puts our thoughts into words. The ego is the voice in our head. The voice that won’t ever, ever shut up.

The soul doesn’t use words. The words that describe the thoughts of the soul are hard to define, hard to describe. The forest is love, compassion, creativity, wisdom.

If you are starving or in terrible danger you will almost always be all ego. Most of us have to be the coyote to navigate through life and work. Some people are the exception to this, and exceptional they truly are.

The problem is that most of us are no where near being in danger of starvation or homelessness, yet the ego is the ever reigning king and dictator of our lives and not only does he make decrees but he also filibusters constantly. 

Happiness is a step away. Just step into the forest.