The Dream

I know that after a retreat, I should be paying attention to my dreams. They often seem to carry the teachings forward in a way my waking mind cannot. After this past retreat in Italy, I had a number of beautiful dreams, but one in particular has stayed with me, and I'd like to share it.
In the dream, my younger sister and I had returned to the apartment where I grew up. As  was usual, the place was a mess. My first reaction was disappointment and annoyance.

I found a large cardboard box and began cleaning the kitchen. I started filling it with things to throw away. As I cleaned, I noticed something surprising.

It wasn't that bad.

The stuff around me was just objects.

Over and over in the dream, one simple phrase came to me:
"It's simple."

The words stayed with me when I woke up, and even now they are still here.

It's simple.

Just do it.

As I kept cleaning, I realized I didn't need to get emotional about the mess. I simply needed to throw things away or put them where they belonged.

My mood changed.
My frustration changed.
My entire relationship to the situation changed.

That message has stayed with me.

Whenever I come home from a retreat or have a deeply meaningful experience, I always wonder, What will remain? What teaching will continue to live inside me?

For me, this was a big one.

It's simple.

Whatever needs to be done, simply begin.

Without adding stories or emotional weight to every task, life becomes surprisingly lighter.
That lesson proved itself almost immediately when I returned home to a house that needed far more attention than I had expected—thanks to both the dog and my son. There were messes to clean, weeds that had taken over the garden, and a long list of tasks waiting for me.

Normally, I might have felt overwhelmed.
Instead, I remembered the dream.

It's simple.

Just start.

Everything was finished more quickly than I imagined.

Today, facing another full schedule, I find myself returning to that same teaching. Do what is in front of you. Whatever gets done, gets done. Whatever doesn't, surrender it.
Trust that what was completed is exactly what was meant to be completed.

After all, "getting it done" is never just up to us. There are other people involved, other circumstances, and other unseen forces that either support or delay what unfolds. We are not doing life alone.

Our job is to show up wholeheartedly.
The rest is not entirely ours to control.

When we surrender to that reality, we may not accomplish more, but we almost always suffer less.