Hello and welcome to today's morning meditation.
The title of this meditation is called Escaping the Normalcy.
While listening to this talk it is important to keep your attention anchored to your breath or any other body sensations that you prefer.
Thank you for listening.
Wake up,
Eat,
Go to work,
Check your phone,
Check your email,
Eat some more food,
Do some more work,
Go home,
Go to bed,
Etc.
When did it all become so normal?
As children we saw every day as an adventure,
We saw strangers as friends,
We saw our toys as characters in the stories that we would create.
But at what point in our lives did this awe and wonder at the world turn into disinterest and normalcy?
Did the world become less interesting?
Was it never interesting or magical to begin with?
No,
We just stopped paying attention.
We just got caught up in the day to day struggles of being a person.
Being a person is hard.
Being a person is really really hard.
It's no wonder we revert to the normalcy.
Now it is also unrealistic to want to live in a state of awe at the wonders of the world 24 7.
But that is not the goal of this meditation.
The goal of this meditation is to pay just a little bit more attention to what is good and wonderful about being alive.
Remember to continue to follow your breath and watch as it transitions from an in-breath to an out-breath.
The breath is automatic.
This is not something we need to worry about.
The breath is the gift of life that keeps on giving every single day.
There was a bang.
The planets were created.
The earth was created.
Single celled organisms evolved eventually into humans with brains that allowed us to understand the entire history of the process that created us.
When we see the truth of the abnormality of our situation we can't help but feel grateful.
The year is 2018.
The furthest any human beings have ever been on the timeline of our existence.
Everything is led up to this moment right here,
Right now.
By no means is this the normal situation.
So why does it seem so normal?
I mean,
Evolutionarily it makes sense.
A caveman that's tripping out about the wonders of consciousness is probably not going to be passing any genes down.
But nowadays,
Instead of lions preying on our family,
We have technology,
Media,
And the powers behind them preying on our attention.
Selling our attention.
Do these powers have our best interests in mind?
Are they bringing our attention to the things that will bring us the most happiness in the long term?
Of course not.
If they brought us long term happiness then they would be losing a long term customer.
This widening of perspective often comes after a big life change.
But what if we catalyzed this change of perspective ourselves on a smaller level with simple daily meditations?
Imagine all of the joys and wonders that slip through simply because we're not paying attention.
There's an untapped well of happiness that is right within reach if we just stop,
Slow down,
And pay attention.
Now expand your attention to your entire body.
It's not often we pay attention to our bodies.
And if we do it's usually because something's wrong.
But right now just listen.
By making this practice of meditation normal we can escape the numb normalcy of everyday life.
Thank you for listening and remember to stay meditating.
