Just be aware. Got it? Practice awareness!
Ehhh. The idea of journeying this life with awareness isn’t as simple as saying, “just do it!” We tend to rely on our experiences, narratives, and perspectives to process our thoughts. Awareness challenges us to root ourselves, each and every day. Awareness gives us pause to observe and if necessary, respond, not react. Awareness enables us to live a life without the knee-jerk reaction we tend to have to life’s ups and downs. Take moment and walk with me through the personal release of living mindfully aware.
The Power Within
Awareness is already accessible to you. It is our power within. It is also likely it is one of our most underused powers. Each day we process a multitude of thoughts but what we do with those thoughts reveal if we’re tapping into this power of awareness. Imagine you are walking through a grocery store and someone gives you a certain look, does it evoke a deeper emotion? Does it offend? Does it cause you to hurt? Did this bring to the surface a positive memory? This process of observation comes from our experiences and perspectives, which can vary on a great scale. Processing our interactions can also drain our emotional well very quickly. Let’s revisit that experience at the grocery store with awareness in mind. If we process that same look through awareness, we no longer allow our experiences to exclusively guide our reaction. With awareness, we simply see a person, shopping in a store, of whom we made eye contact. No emotion attached to the interaction. Awareness allows us to forgo the mental dialogue we create and simply observe a person that glanced our way. We become rooted and clear of mind. We release being caught up in our thoughts.
The Fog
Living a life without awareness is similar to walking through a fog each day of your life. Having no root in awareness can let your emotions run back and forth each day until your mind is bogged down in emotional stress and fogged with confusion. You can become irrational and discontent with people. With humanity. With situations. Relying on our perspective, alone, to experience this life journey can cause us to dissect each moment of the day. Did I say something that could offend this person? They haven’t responded to my text yet; they must be upset with me.
We can easily overload our minds with internal dialogues that cloud our thinking. We create a story that isn’t even realistic. This can cause a plethora of mental and physical stress. This can also confuse and paralyze your ability to live a life that is rooted and empowered.
The Now
Awareness requires us to remind ourselves to live in the now. When we feel those thoughts invade our reaction and response to moments in our day, it’s wise to pause, recognize our pattern, and remind ourselves not to overthink.
A very helpful activity to embrace awareness and exist in the now is to close your eyes. Imagine an object. Let’s say a tomato. Ask of yourself: How shiny is the tomato? How big is it? Does it have its stem? Can you imagine the taste? The smell? Through this exercise, you walk yourself through simply observing, not judging, the object. As you grow in this process, you will be able to transfer that same thinking into your daily walk. Replacing the tomato with the example earlier, the look at the grocery store, you will be able to simply observe and not judge. This activity releases you from attaching unnecessary narratives to life. It allows you to live in the now, completely aware.
If you would love additional guidance on practicing mindfulness and awareness, I am honored to journey with you. Contact me, today: 704-540-2855
Source: The Power Of Awareness: How To Cultivate Mindfulness In Your Everyday Life
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