Life in the Zen Lane: For Balance and Well-being

By Monique Martineau

If the fast lane can be dangerous to your health, why is it so compelling? We think the faster we go, the quicker we'll get that thing that is sure to make us happy: financial security, job security, a successful relationship, or the standard of living to which we are accustomed. Is it really worth it – driving through life at breakneck speeds, weaving through obstacles, nearly running people over racing after what we want... honking out critical remarks if someone blocks our route?

If your engine is coughing, tires wobbling, and warning lights flashing, you just might need an overhaul. Are you ready? Take a deep breath, put your clicker on, and shift into the Zen Lane, before you crash and end up in an ambulance.

Life in the Zen Lane is a whole new paradigm for a whole new era. You've heard talk about it, you've felt periods of it... now it's time to have it permeate your being. I will be your new driver's ed instructor, trained by a Zen Master who has traveled this terrain for decades. I've traveled with him for nearly a decade myself, alongside thousands of others who are courageously merging into the flow and reaping the rewards.

This way of being has nothing to do with dogmatic rules of the road. It's about the essence of Zen: how to let go of the steering wheel and let a far wiser one within take over, allowing peace to preside. With the wise one at the wheel, the ride is quite a bit smoother.

Otherwise, the car can swerve all over the place, with all-too-frequent near misses. It's stressful having two drivers with two steering wheels inside. One is like the know-it-all teenager and the other is the benevolent mother, calm and wise. She allows her son to learn the hard way, but takes the wheel just before he goes off the cliff.

Are you aware of similar aspects within you? The know-it-all ego wants to live in the fast lane and sometimes gets too close to the edge of insanity. This aspect fuels rigidity, "shoulds" and "shouldn'ts," and beliefs that cause suffering.

The benevolent feminine, or True Self, knows the true way and patiently waits for us to turn to her for guidance. She will show us how to open and allow reality to be as it is, while taking right action peacefully.

How do we embody her? Continue raising awareness, reading, and listening to Zen-like teachers. Most importantly, pause often, inquire, and listen to your own Zen feminine within. Often only whispers of wisdom can be heard. One need only take time for silence for the whispering to become audible.

I'd be honored to serve as your surrogate benevolent feminine, while your own light brightens to guide you down the stress-less path to peace... in the Zen Lane.

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