Less is More….

Having less, doing less, can often bring the biggest reward.

Sometimes keeping it simple, not overworking anything, brings the best results. We’ve all heard that fewer calories eaten each day lead to a longer life. Along with that, less sweets, carbs, red meat, and processed foods also bring a healthier way of life. Plus, the first bite of any food is always the best, since our taste buds are primed for a full sensual experience. Any tastes after that, and especially those dreaded second helpings, aren’t really as good since our taste buds have become desensitized. Now we learn that doing 8 sets of interval training for only 20 min of exercise a day, with 30 sec of high intensity movement, followed by 90 sec of slower movement, is the best for your heart, arteries, good cholesterol levels, and weight. Less is more for your total well-being.

It works for art, too. Keeping to a simple dose of something, reducing an energy down to its essence, often brings a profound, potent quality to life. A simple pulling of a dry brush across the canvas can create the illusion of a shimmering lake. Drawn down mottled tones become a shadow. A streak of color turns into a low mountain range. Mixing together no more than 2 colors creates a crisp, brilliant tone of something new.

All these lead to living a life in mindfulness. When we slow way down, are patient with ourselves in all we do, and look very closely, beauty is found everywhere. Wabi Sabi presents beauty as a dynamic feeling that occurs when you consciously interact with another thing, being, or experience. It’s a spontaneous event felt in a particular circumstance producing awe, filling with grace, producing a rising spirit in the moment. You become one with all your surroundings, see with a new clarity, and possess a deep feeling of connection. This becomes an extraordinary perception of life in the moment. We transcend the mundane to touch the very subtlest essence of life.