So much of my practice has been about well and force. For years I have forced myself to cultivate metta, forced myself to contemplate loathesomeness but always at the wrong time.
I’m not proposing to do away with force and effort though. No, instead I think I need to first poor effort into calming down and collecting the mind with the breath and buddho. It’s funny because I have often felt frustrated by what I felt was Ajahn Achalo’s unnecessary insistence on cultivating the breath before moving on to other practices but it surely seems that I was both arrogant and mistaken.
May I cultivate the patience, persistence and humility I am lacking to reach the final goal.
Cattāri Brahmavihārā 
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