Hello friends.
Today I'd like to share a little practice for bringing yourself into a state of flow,
Of being in the zone that you can use anytime during the day.
It's useful to notice for each of us what helps to bring us into a state of yes-ness,
A wholeheartedness,
Openness to life.
For some of us that can be brought about through meditation or dancing or listening to music or walking in the woods.
It's really helpful to notice our own individual sensibilities and what's helpful to us.
But sometimes in the midst of a day you might have time to take a walk or to meditate.
And so this little practice helps you to come back into alignment whenever you need it.
And I learned this at a workshop given by a teacher named Patrick McManaway.
He talked about ruthlessly getting into the zone before anything we do in life.
Whether it's answering an email or opening a car door,
It's pretty radical to put the quality of your consciousness before anything else,
Making that your highest priority.
The irony is that when we do this then everything else we do becomes much more efficient because it comes from a place of clarity.
So a question you could ask yourself throughout the day is,
What percentage flow state am I in?
Or to what degree am I in the zone?
Or what percentage state of grace am I in?
And the symptoms of being in a state of grace would be ease,
Synchronicity,
Delight,
Contentment.
And this is not to be mistaken for everything going right in your life or in the world.
It's more about our relationship to those things.
When we're in a state of flow,
Things arise and the response that we need is right there for us.
So when you notice that you're out of flow,
When you feel thwarted,
Or frustrated,
Or disconnected,
Or a sense of lack,
Or fearfulness,
Those are all signs that perhaps in that moment you are out of flow,
Out of grace,
Out of alignment with yourself.
That your heart and your mind are not in coherence with each other.
Very quick ways to help yourself in the midst of a day come back into alignment.
One would be simply to stretch.
Another is to notice the quality of your breath.
It helps to have the exhalation a little longer than the inhalation.
So perhaps two beats on the inhalation and three on the exhalation.
But the one I want to highlight today is random gratitude.
Studies show that a practice of gratitude greatly enhances our overall sense of well-being.
And when we think of gratitude,
We might naturally go to the things we're most grateful for in life,
Our loved ones,
Our home,
Meaningful work.
But this practice is actually something a little different.
It's a practice of random gratitude,
Of noticing whatever is in your awareness right now.
That could be as simple as color,
The color of a tree against the sky.
It could be a matter of sound,
Perhaps,
If you listen,
You'll notice bird call,
Or even a neutral sound in your environment for which you can express random gratitude.
It could be the feeling of your clothes against your skin,
Protecting you.
It could be the support of the chair you're sitting in,
Or the temperature in the room.
Anything that comes into your perceptual awareness at this particular moment is something you can express random gratitude for.
Bring your attention to even notice the beauty around it.
Surprising beauty.
This is a little instantaneous practice that will reset your heart and mind,
Bring them back into coherence.
Bring your whole being back into a state of flow.
In some sense,
Random gratitude is the lowest rung on the ladder for bringing ourselves back into a state of grace.
I have found this practice very useful,
Very surprising.
Its randomness suggests that it shouldn't work and yet it's quite profound to simply be grateful for whatever comes into your perceptual awareness at this moment now.
And then letting it go and moving on,
Responding to whatever is next for you in your day.
So simple.
So that's my offering to you today,
My loves.
I wish you well.
May you be safe and protected and free from inner and outer harm.
May you be happy and contented.
May you be healthy and whole.
May you experience ease of well-being.
Until soon,
Friends.
Bye bye.
