e were in a narrow little space off of the monastery’s main building called the Work Director’s Office. The one thing that saved it from being a simple closet was the enormous window that spanned the entire length of the wall. From this window, you could see an expanse of forest.

My teacher, another senior monk, and I were having a quick business meeting late that afternoon in the Work Director’s Office. We wanted to address some monastery issues and get guidance on them.

The other monk and I were quickly making our cases for what was most important. We went back and forth with our arguments. Both of us hoped our teacher would see the wisdom and logic in our presentation and choose our suggested course of action.

Suddenly, in the middle of our debate, she gasped, “How breathtaking!”

I remember looking up at the other monk who stood across from me. I was able to catch her incredulous expression that likely mirrored my own. For all I know, I may have even sighed in annoyance.

We both shot our gazes to our teacher’s face. Her eyes were wide in amazement. So, of course, we both peered out the window to see what caught her attention.

The light streaming through the trees was indeed breathtaking. We lived on over 380 acres of stunning forest in the foothills. You couldn’t take a step anywhere on the property without some natural beauty stopping you in your tracks.

Immediately everything that seemed so important, “my view versus my opponent’s view,” dissolved.

In my head, I could hear the voices screaming at my teacher for interrupting us.

“How irresponsible. Hasn’t she seen views like this before? Why now? This is so disruptive. Now we’ll be off-topic. Can’t she pay attention? Must she be so distracted? She’s a Zen teacher for crying out loud!”

But I got it. I knew that she just helped us both disidentify from the grip egocentricity had on us. I could tell by the resistant energy arising in me that she broke through and got us to the other side. To the present.

You see, when the voices have us, and our worldview is small and limited, it’s time to drop it.

There’s a bigger picture here, and it’s waiting for us to see it: Life is magnificent, and we can choose to exist in the present.

When we’re in the present, we can then consciously resume our business. We can continue with a clearer head, a more extensive worldview, less urgency, and room for exhilarating insights, which includes breathtaking views!