We are mostly unaware of the reality of change in our everyday lives. There are times, for instance, when we catch a glimpse of ourselves in the mirror and wonder, with surprise and even shock, what happened to the youngsters we once were. Where did the time go? While we know intellectually that change is constant, our mental software leads us to believe in permanence.
During meditation this software is redesigned. We become aware that everything that exists is ever changing including our emotions. A feeling of peace can quickly be followed by fear or any one of a number of emotions. And sadness can be followed by love. There is no permanence here. Such body-based awareness means that we are less likely, in our everyday lives, to get stuck in one or another feeling.
When we meditate on the flow of thought we notice that there are moments of rest. The flow isn't permanent. Meditating on physical sensations, be it the rhythm of the breath or the beating of the heart, once again we are aware of restful moments. Even pain doesn't last forever; studying it, we realize that it arises, manifests, and fades.
Not that insight into impermanence offers an easy ride. It teaches that change is both constant and unpredictable, which means that whether you are kind or ruthless sometimes life goes well and sometimes it goes badly.
