This is a week of arrivals and departures, when many of us will be traveling to see family and friends. For some our gatherings bring joy. For others duty dictates that we manage aversive dynamics. Often it is a mixture of both, compounded by delays from traffic or weather en route.

For those of us whose destinations are filled with fun, friendly repartee and abundant food, arrival is a boon and parting a drag. For those who must navigate contentious currents the exit can’t come soon enough.

Either way, if we pay attention to our energy accompanying our arrivals and our leave-taking, occasions like the coming holiday hold lessons for us about being present. Focusing on the jewels of insight in each moment, even when difficult, becomes more and more precious.

Yesterday’s entry from A Year with Rilke titled “Spectators” struck a chord.

And we: always and everywhere spectators, turned not toward the Open but to the stuff of our lives. It drowns us. We set it in order. It falls apart. We order it again and fall apart ourselves.

Who has turned us around like this? Whatever we do, we are in the posture of one who is about to depart. Like a person lingering for a moment on the last hill where he can see his whole valley – that is how we live, forever taking our leave.

How much of our lives do we spend watching ourselves come and go, overlooking what beckons before us? Do we linger over parting, or are we quick to say goodbye? After all, it is the “stuff of our lives” even when it seems burdensome.

My wish is to focus more and more on gratitude each day before the final leaving taking arrives.