Moon: Point of Contact for Becoming our Essence

The Moon Within Us All

There’s an old Zen saying:

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“Mindful practice is the finger pointing at the moon.” 

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Not the moon itself; just the finger.

Because the moon, in this metaphor, is our essence. It’s our radiant, inner being that reflects each moment with clarity, compassion, and awe. Like the actual moon overhead, this awareness can shine so brightly it lights up the whole inner night.

But just as easily, it can vanish behind mental clouds or drift out of sight when life throws us a wild pitch. One moment, we are present and alert; the next, we're blindsided by a curveball we didn’t see coming. Sound familiar?

That curveball might be a difficult conversation, a loss, or an unexpected detour. And like any good batter, we step up to the plate, thinking we’ve got it this time… only to realize the ball has whizzed past us like a meteor, miles from our zone. We missed it, and sometimes badly.

Swinging Toward Greatness

But here’s the thing about missing. When we miss, we learn. Every swing we take, every miss, every solid connection, it’s all part of refining the art of living. We don't practice just to hit the ball. We practice to remember who we are, to point at the moon again and again until we become the moon.

As someone wise (and playfully anonymous) once said:

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"Each swing, each pitch, is a step closer to greatness."

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That’s not about hitting a home run every time. It’s about showing up. It involves both practicing and witnessing. It is about adjusting our stance when needed and laughing when the bat flies out of our hands.

Pointing at the Moon and Becoming It

Mindful living, active Zen living, trail running, yoga in the woods, and forest bathing under the canopy of trees; it’s all a way of pointing to the moon. These practices are the “fingers”, they are one-way road signs to our essence, and they keep bringing us back to it.

Mindful practices restore alignment so that when life throws another breaking pitch, we are more aligned to the essence and intuition. With this essence and intuition, we can gracefully decide when not to swing. We begin to know when to watch and then feel when the moment is right.

And sometimes, beautifully, everything aligns and we hit a moonshot: that soaring home run that arcs into the sky and disappears into stillness. We didn’t force it. We just showed up, clear and calm, and let the moment carry us.

The Art of the Strikeout

Let’s get one thing straight: there will be strikeouts. Plenty of them, and that’s not failure; that’s our training ground. It’s the Zen monastery disguised as a dugout. Each time we swing and miss, we aren’t losing ground. We're learning the shape of our unique rhythm, refining our swing.

Without those miss-hits, we’d never find our flow. We’d be stagnant, just watching life pass us by without engaging. But when we step in, bat in hand, under the moonlight of awareness, we begin to embody life’s game with heart.

We build momentum and gather presence. We become attuned to the whispers of our own nature, like a batter who can feel the curve of the pitch before it leaves the pitcher’s hand.

Becoming the Moon

The truest expression of mindful living is when we are no longer separate from our practice. The finger and the moon become one. We’re no longer chasing clarity; we are clarity. The inner mirror reflects all things: joy, challenge, movement, and stillness with radiant presence.

Even in a season of strikeouts, we shine on. We hydrate, lace up, and return to the plate with a little smile and muddy shoes. And one day, we’ll hit that moonshot that leaves us in awe, not because it’s far, but because it feels like home.

So whether we're forest bathing under the stars, painting a masterpiece, composing a melody, meandering through pine-lined trails, or simply sitting in our backyard watching the moonrise, remember: our essence is luminous.

Point to it. Practice. And when the moment comes, swing with your whole spunky, mindful heart.

Our moon smiles and shines knowingly!

Cheers!

Kether

Spunky Mind

"Your love for the game is

the greatest motivation of all"

-Unknown