A daily mindfulness practice for planting a new vision
2 CommentsWhile the status quo crumbles around us, try this contemplative mindfulness practice to simplify distraction and water the living seeds of a new world.
3-min daily contemplative practice. Inspired by this incredible poem I’ve re-shared below by Poet and Spiritual Guide, Mark Nepo, this contemplative mindfulness practice calls us back to listen again to what’s really here. To be with whatever that is no matter how uncomfortable. This practice calls us to let go of distractions, to simplify, refocus our energy and “water every living seed” we want to grow right now into this new world we’re anxiously standing right at the very edge of.
“And we can churn at all that goes wrong
Mark Nepo: Yes, we can talk
but then we must lay all distractions
down and water every living seed.”
For some background … I first discovered this poem on June 1 (this week) about six years ago. At the time I was deep in the first few years of my own, more conscious, spiritual journey. It struck me then. And, seeing it return on my Facebook feed, it strikes me again now with even more depth and meaning.
The last two weeks, for me, have been challenging, have felt overwhelming at times, and have been an emotional carousel. Between the changes and reactions to COVID-19 globally and how this virus has single-handedly bubbled up to our collective surface all the ways the status quo is not working for all of us—from systemic, economic racism and grave inequalities in access to basic resources and healthcare during a pandemic, to broken food, healthcare, financial and justice systems.
The truth is that if business as usual was working, then why does it need a bailout? If capitalism is the answer, then what happened to the markets working themselves out? If governments, businesses and communities were operating “normally” than why are people of color dying disproportionately? Why are we allowing our Mother earth to be raped and ruined for paper money and a “progress” that costs so much for so many? Why have we lost so much of our reverence for Life itself that we’re willing to either dominate or discard any living being with the spark of creation running through it?
“no longer trying to make sense of pain
Mark Nepo: Yes, we can talk
but trying to be a soft and sturdy home
in which real things can land.”
I hope this poem and this contemplative mindfulness practice shed some light on the immense and ancient pain we’re all experiencing right now. I believe that this pain is a critical step in our path together as a human family. A step that brings us that much closer to dismantling the unjustness, inhumanity and imbalance in the world we’ve created for ourselves. I hope this practice leads us into the loving action of watering the seeds it will take to create a world that we can all thrive in.
I invite you to try this contemplative practice daily for 30 days alongside me. I’d love to hear what you discover are the “living seeds” you’ll water along the way. Please share in a comment below or you’re welcome to share on my Facebook or Linkedin pages.
Our contemplative inspiration: a poem by Mark Nepo
Written by poet and Spiritual Guide, Mark Nepo, from his 2016 book The Way Under the Way: The Place of True Meeting.
Yes, we can talk
Having loved enough and lost enough,
I’m no longer searching
just opening,
no longer trying to make sense of pain
but trying to be a soft and sturdy home
in which real things can land.
These are the irritations
that rub into a pearl.
So we can talk for a while
but then we must listen,
the way rocks listen to the sea.
And we can churn at all that goes wrong
but then we must lay all distractions
down and water every living seed.
And yes, on nights like tonight
I too feel alone. But seldom do I
face it squarely enough
to see that it’s a door
into the endless breath
that has no breather,
into the surf that human
shells call God.
Step-by-step daily contemplative practice
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Time needed: 3 minutes
- Sit somewhere quietly where you won’t be disturbed (too much).
I suggest sitting in your favorite spot in your home or in your yard or a local park (if it’s open to the public and you’re complying with your local social distancing requirements).
Settle your body by sitting in a chair or on a comfortable pillow or cushion on the floor. Or, find a patch of grass, some leaves, a stone or a tree trunk to sit upon.
Turn your focus inward by closing your eyes or having a gentle gaze toward the ground. - Ask yourself this question.
When you’re ready, ask yourself either aloud or internally, whichever is most comfortable for you:
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What distractions must I lay down right now?
☾ ◐ ✕ ● ☉ ◯ ☉ ● ✕ ◑☽ - Answer yourself.
Using the responses that arise naturally from your experience in the present moment, answer yourself. Responses may look like: a sensation. An emotion. A memory or story or even words. The face of a coworker, a friend or family member. An obligation. A job or project or something you’ve agreed to whether energetically or contractually. All of these are answers and insights into the distractions you can lay down right now to simplify and refocus your energy on what is truly important.
- Now, ask yourself a second question.
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What living seeds do I want to water in my life?
☾ ◐ ✕ ● ☉ ◯ ☉ ● ✕ ◑☽ - Answer yourself again.
Using the responses that arise naturally from your experience in the present moment, answer yourself. Responses may look like: a sensation that comes. An emotion. A memory or story or even words. The face of a friend or family member or the image of a place and time. All of these are answers and insights into the living seeds you may want to water into being.
- Repeat the process of asking and answering these contemplative questions.
Continue to ask yourself the question for the next few minutes. You can continue for as long as you’d like—from three to five to up to 10 minutes if you need it. Your responses may change or evolve. They may shift and change form.
- Notice what being in the present moment feels like.
Take note of what you learn as you continue to ask yourself these questions and allow yourself to answer. Notice your own process. Is there a pattern? What helps your process? What gets in the way?
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Beginning in 2011, she invested more deeply in her own mindfulness exploration and education as a Sahaja yoga/meditation guide and two-time apprentice of spiritual teacher and humanitarian, Vanessa Stone. Carolyn is an Ayurvedic Sadhana Consultant, having completed training in 2018 under her teacher, Maya Tiwari. Maya served for two decades as a Vedic monk belonging to India’s prestigious Veda Vyasa lineage and is the founder of Wise Earth School of Ayurveda.
Carolyn is currently immersed in her practicum after graduating from a two-year comprehensive Hakomi Mindfulness-Centered Somatic Psychotherapy practitioner training through Hakomi Institute Southwest.
Founder of Conscious Content, a mindfulness movement for business that serves the greater collective good, her intention is to bring ancient mindfulness technology first to individuals, and then their teams and organizations to connect them more authentically with themselves, one another, and their tribe.
Conscious Content’s guiding inquiry is: what would business look like if work became our sadhana—our personal growth practice?
Her chosen name, Koa, is of Hawaiian origin and means fearless and courageous.
Her given surname, Elder, is of Scottish origin and signifies one who is wiser, older and quite possibly born near the Elderberry tree.
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