Sometimes,
When we have a problem or an issue,
It can be all-consuming.
It seems so enormous that it's all that we focus on.
It feels hopeless,
Like there's no way around it,
No way to get through it.
It's all we can think about.
By giving ourselves a little space between the issue and the solution,
Often we can see things for the size that they actually are.
In this practice,
We're going to use a zoom-out technique,
A technique that allows us to put the stress or the issue and see it in the broader context of our entire lives.
Of course,
We're not trying to deny the intensity of the emotions that the situation or problem brings,
But instead a moment to stand back and say,
I see you from the entire point of my life.
And when we do this,
What has a hold on us,
Grips us so tightly,
Can sometimes soften and begin to loosen.
When we step back,
We can drop the story that is attached to the problem and see things as they truly are.
So sit quietly,
Perhaps close your eyes,
Maybe in a place that is far away from your issue or your stress.
Take a few breaths and begin to feel into your body.
Where do you feel the stress in your body?
Where does it dwell?
And then what does it feel like?
Is it just a little nudge or a giant irritation?
Note where it is located.
Does it have a size or a color?
And can you name it for what it is?
Stress,
Annoyance,
Confusion,
Sadness,
Anger,
Maybe indecisiveness,
And imagining as if you could step back from your body like you were zooming out on a Google or Earth maps.
Look at the stress as a particle inside your body while you begin to float above your body.
Look back at the stress as if you could look at the house on your street and then begin to follow this outward path.
From the house on your street to the street in your neighborhood.
From your neighborhood to the community to the hills and the seas.
Go beyond the sphere of the whole world.
Find and follow your path through the stars and the planets until you can look back and see that tiny speck,
That microorganism of stress.
As you look back,
The original abrasion has become so little that you don't even notice it.
When you are able to view it from a space like this,
It seems so insignificant compared to the incredible story of your entire life and who you are.
When you can see it for what it is,
Slowly return through the planets and the stars,
Back through the earth crust,
Back to the community,
The neighborhood,
The street,
The house,
The room,
And then finally returning to your body,
Letting go of the stress,
Letting go of the tension,
And just being at ease.
