Category: Mindfulness

THE ART OF AWAKENING POSSIBILITY

“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life and see if I could not learn what it had to teach and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.”

Henry David Thoreau, from Walden

 

 

 

In every breath we awaken.  At least we have the opportunity to awaken.  What do I mean by awaken?  In this case what I am drawing your attention to is the possibility that is nested within each breath.

There is a potential for saying yes to your life, or the choice to stay safe and cling to ways of being that are “comfortable”, or in other words deeply engrained in your every day way of being.

What if you started feeling into the whole of the breath, the entirety of the journey here?  As in beautiful classical music, each listener is taken on a journey and each musician is on one as well.  Will they chose to linger over every note to “get it right”?  Or, will they feel into the whole of the journey and go where the music takes them, even when that means unfamiliar territory in the depth of expression.

Will life and breath play through you, or will you attempt to control life and contract your breath?  This is an important question to pose and live within.  I am learning that there is no control in a life lived freely and openly – there is only trust and being mindfully present to ones path.  Paying attention to your life as if it really mattered….knowing that each breath absolutely matters!

Benjamin Zander, conductor, teacher and speaker – among other things – talks to us about “classical music with shining eyes” on a TED talk which is below.  This is a brilliant expression of paying attention to your life as if it really mattered, and while doing so awakening possibility in other people.

Pay attention to the possibility in each breath….

TED talk with Benjamin Zander

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CREATIVE LISTENING – A GIFT OF LOVE THAT KEEPS ON GIVING

It takes only one breath to commit to stilling that single moment into a creative listening space.  A space that brings the depth of what it is to live and love NOW.  What better gift can we give to ourselves, each other,  and our planet in a time when there is so much stimulation to distract us from the importance of simply listening…being present.

Creative Listening by Wilferd A. Peterson.
One of the most important habits of a creative thinker is to be a good listener.  Stand guard at the ear-gateway to your mind, heart, and spirit.
Listen to the good.  Tune your ears to love, hope, and courage.  Tune out gossip and resentment.
Listen to the beautiful.  Listen to the music of the masters.  Listen to the symphony of nature–the hum of the wind in the treetops, bird songs, thundering surf. . .
Listen critically. Mentally challenge assertions, ideas, and philosophies.  Seek the truth with an open mind.
Listen with patience.  Do not hurry the other person.  Show them the courtesy of listening to what they have to say, no matter how much you may disagree.  You may learn something.
Listen with your heart. Practice empathy when you listen.  Put yourself in the other person’s shoes.
Listen for growth.  Be an inquisitive listener.  Ask questions.  Everyone has something to say which will help you to grow.
Listen creatively.  Listen for ideas or the germs of ideas.  Listen for hints or clues that may spark creative projects.
Listen to yourself. Listen to your deepest yearnings, your highest aspirations, your noblest impulses.  Listen to the better person within you.
Listen with depth. Be still and listen.  Listen with the ear of intuition to the inspiration of the Infinite.

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As you still the breath a gateway to Creative Listening unfolds.  Watch for the many forms that this practice can take.  It can be the self listening that these men did….

TC Bank – Dream Rangers

…or simply receiving the Words of Love from your local community…and Saying It Forward

BREATHE AND LISTEN....

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Breathing Globally – Join the Dalai Lama

After my neighbors dog took me for a brisk walk along my country road this morning I was acutely aware of how intimately we are connected with all that breathes and is alive.  This weekend we have a unique opportunity to breathe with people all over the globe in synchronicity.  As ElevateUs states, “The tides are turning, in all walks of life and all corners of the planet. Humanity is stepping out of the shadows of ‘what has been’ by calling into question the very fundamentals – how we live, what we serve, who we are.”

Each of us can choose to be a part of this.  When you harmonize with others in a flow of breathing it unites us in a way that is beyond the mind, and connects on levels of the heart and beyond.  Breathing together can powerfully unite us and is an intimate way to deepen the awareness of the interconnection that is always there.  We all share the Earth’s gift of breath.

Let us join with the Dalai Lama this weekend, and with each other every day this year, to elevate the practices of love, compassion, abundance, and joy throughout the world.  The Universal Breathing Room at Do As One has partnered with the Dalai Lama who has called forth 10,000 monks to help initiate the teachings of the Buddha Maitreya.  This is the first time in history that a Dalai Lama has conducted this blessing, intended to elevate love and compassion for all people. Breathe with them at this link: http://www.elevate.us

Take this practice and come to the Universal Breathing Room frequently to simply breathe in flow with others worldwide on a daily basis.  There is a global map where you can see where people in other locations are also joining in, and 3 other “rooms” you can go to – the Full Spectrum Breathing Room, where you can harmonize with the chakra colors as you breathe; a Universal Laughter room; and a Universal Om Room.

Take 5 minutes a day to join in and check in with the energy, feelings, and insights that catch your awareness!
Take a Deep Breath NOW!

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Beyond Our Own Boundaries

Eyes of A Child - Photography by Dewitt Jones

“If we want TRULY EXTRAORDINARY VISION then you have to continually expand your horizons, take risks.  If we don’t push our edge we’ll never expand our view.. It’s not trespassing to go beyond your own boundaries.”

–Dewitt Jones, National Geographic Photojournalist

Going beyond our own boundaries is an expression of creativity as I see it.  The expansive artist knows this well…and that artist is within all of us if we only let down the walls separating ourselves from the heart of our own unique vision.  I never quite know what I am going to post for the week on this blog, but somehow it always appears. How does that happen? I stretch out and open to see what comes in….and then creation is born.

Last year I found an amazing photojournalist, Dewitt Jones,  who works with National Geographic.   For me he represents that wild, creative, and curious soul that isn’t afraid to wait for opportunity to present itself.  He inhabits a breathing space of promise, possibility, vision, and the sacred in the practice of everyday creativity.  I was so taken with him that I posted a video that left me inspired to tap my own deep well of creativity and see possibility everywhere.  I give it here for you again in “Celebrate What Is Right With The World”.

http://www.viddler.com/explore/bethechange/videos/1/

Visual Banquet

“Every evening nature sets before us a visual banquet.
How often do we join her at the table?” D.J.

My favorite part of finding Dewitt is that one of my readers, Sheila Finkelstein, who is an inspirational artist/photographer herself, was so excited about discovering this man and his work that she e-mailed him last year…and he responded back!  Well to make a long story short she is now interviewing him at the end of this month and the information for that interview is below.

 

I invite you to join Dewitt and Sheila by clicking on the link below.   On this call you will learn that “creativity is not about being artistic, but about an attitude! An attitude that can change our perspective, invite limitless opportunities, and help us see the extraordinary.” DJ

http://www.throughandfromthelens.com/dewitt111.html

This interview is Tuesday, January 11, 8:30-9:30 EST so please go to the link above to sign up soon.  It is free of charge and an MP3 will be made available to you if you can’t be on the call.   Even if you don’t consider yourself a photographer, or better yet wish that you knew more about it, the time with both of them will take you to an expanded breathing space of how you “see” the world around you!

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Welcome Home – Sharing a Breath of Kindness and Generosity

“Do a deed of simple kindness; though its end you may not see, it may reach, like widening ripples, down a long eternity.” -Joseph Norris

This being my last post of 2010 I wanted to make it something that we can not only reflect on, but something quite simple really that each of us can take action on every day of 2011.


Be Selfish Be Generous

How many times a day are there opportunities for you to touch someone with kindness and generosity?  I would guess that they are actually unending.  It is simple to bring smiles to people, to lighten their load for the moment, to completely surprise them in a good way, and perhaps to inspire them to pass on the kindness to others.   This of course extends to all living things on this planet as well!

While I was living in the Bay area of San Francisco I would often pay for the person behind me on the Golden Gate bridge.  It is amazing to watch how people receive these random acts of generosity and kindness.  Some would honk as they passed by or hurry to pay so that they could catch up to you to smile through the window…and others would stay at the ticket booth for awhile – I don’t know how long as I had to drive forward – and seemingly argue with the person collecting the toll not quite understanding that they had just been “tagged”.  Letting go of the outcome is part of this “game” too, but somehow there is always an effect that is generated!

Similar to what Jim Norris said in the above quote Mother Theresa said, “Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echos are truly endless”.  Words, actions, smiles, creative, spontaneous, and anonymous acts of kindness and generosity all contribute to being the change we wish to see in the world.

I had to put this video on the post as every time I watch it I smile.  Put out by T-mobile it is an example of what can happen when a person is made to feel special.  In this case it is like a virus that runs through an entire airport terminal.  If you get a chance listen to the comments of people afterward that are from passengers that were arriving at the airport.  (separate video on the right side panel)

Welcome Home – Life is for sharing (t-mobile)

Let this New Year be one in which you practice what I call the sharing of a breath of kindness – a breathing space of acknowledging that through these simple kind and generous acts of humanity we are making the life of someone or something else better…. even for just a moment…and in turn it truly does ripple out forever.

Why not make this a New Year’s Resolution.  Below I have given you a link to receive free of charge something that will assist with this commitment.  The site also has great stories from people across the globe to inspire you to take action.

What is a “smile card”? It’s a game of kindness — do something nice for someone and leave a card behind asking them to pay it forward. To date, 861,401 cards have been shipped without any charge.

http://www.helpothers.org

I invite you to share your stories throughout the year on this blog… I know I will!
2011 – a year for acts of generosity and kindness!  I’m in…are you?

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