Hi, welcome back to

your Daily Mindfulness.

In today's session we're going to

talk about the thousand year view.

So I'd like to start by sharing

a quote by Warren Buffet.

He said, "Someone is sitting in

the shade today because someone

planted a tree a long time ago."

I like this.

The, the thing is we're more wired

to make short term decisions, because

from an evolutionary perspective,

the short term decisions were more

related to life and death for us.

This is one of the reasons why, if

there's a piece of sugary cake in front

of you and you tell yourself, well, I

shouldn't eat this because in 30 years,

I want to be able to hike this mountain

with my grandson or granddaughter.

Like, it's not going to have

that much of an impact on you.

But instead if you go, Hmm, I shouldn't

eat this because if I do, in five

minutes I'm going to feel maybe a sense

of regret, but also my body won't feel

good and I'll feel a blood sugar spike.

I'll feel lethargic.

I'll want to take a nap.

And the immediacy of that tends

to cause us to make behavioral

decisions differently than

more longterm perspectives.

However, long-term perspectives are

really important, especially as it relates

to the generations that are inheriting

the earth, the planet coming after you.

This could be your kids,

grandchildren, or just all who

are coming after us in this world.

And so that, that extended view of what

are you doing now, what are the seeds

that you're planting now that are creating

shade for people to come, can be something

that tends to go against our evolutionary

wiring, but it's really important for

the world that we're trying to create.

And this is where I like

the Zen perspective.

Because in the Zen tradition, they

talk about having the 1000 year

view, the 1000 year perspective.

That what you're doing, you may not

see the impact of it in your lifetime

right now, or even for your kids.

But in a hundred years, 500 years, a

thousand years, something may happen.

There may be a ripple effect that you

won't get to experience directly, but the

world and those who come after you will.

And there's something I like about

that, the idea that this good deed I'm

doing right now, the work I'm doing

today, the seeds that I'm planting,

even though I might not see the fruit

of them in my lifetime, others may.

It allows me to take a more long-term

perspective and not get too caught up

in the short-term gains of something.

And I think if we all took that

relationship to our lives and the

world we're trying to create, it

would actually create a world that

is more inhabitable and enjoyable

to be in for generations to come.

So I hope this gives you

something to think about in your

mindfulness and meditation journey.

Thank you for your practice.

Let's settle in for today's meditation.