Getting to Zen

After attending Dr. Dan Siegal's two day talk on his Mindsight book, I have been more aware that I need to become more aware.

Mindsight is based on the premise that there is is a state of integration that occurs with the convergence of the mind, brain and relationships. With the conciliance of various disciplines, he has forged new pathways in an area called interpersonal neurobiology, a fascinating look at the mind, brain and relationships and how the three are inextricably linked.

When an individual is mindful, s/he is better able to live life and be tuned in to relationships and experiences.

As I have been discovering, the default state in the busy-ness of everyday life is not be be calm and mindful and thus proactive, but rather the frenetic pace leads to carelessness and thoughtlessness which in turn brings on reactive responses.

Between stimulus and response, we each have the freedom to choose our responses and our response time. Being automatic leads to reactivity. Conversely, a state of mindfulness leads to proactive responses that are guided by clarity, calm and care.

Getting to the quiet, stillness of one's mind regularly allows for the mindfulness to emerge with greater ease. The key is to learn how to arrive at a mindful state. To find out more, visit Dr. Dan Siegal's website and go to the audio page for a mindfulness session: http://drdansiegel.com/home/

Spinning through Life

Meandering through life is quite like a circling top. Sometime it spins, humming musically along for a long and lovely time. Other times, the spinning top bumps into an obstacle and gets jolted into a new direction. Generally, a new course finds its own way and allows for more spinning.

Every once in awhile a top gets stuck, spinning in that very same spot, endlessly, almost enough to get dizzy and then nauseous. And other times, the top just topples over, needing to be restarted or fixed.

In life, when your top topples over, it is notably time for a change. It's important to remember that change is sometimes as good as a rest. We need change because some habits that we have comfortably nestled into may not be quite productive, or worse, may be harmful to our motion and momentum.

We must embrace change when it confronts us. Move forward. Fear not. Be brave. Go gently into the new spin. There is so much to see and do out there, in life. Your life. Spin happily.

Pipe Dreams

My dreams are often so lucid, I cannot detect the difference from reality when I awaken. I wake up feeling my feelings from the dream. Depending on the dream, the feelings vary.

Last night, before bed, I watched the movie Game Plan with Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson. So, I dreamt of Dwayne. Of course, I woke up feeling like a million bucks. Why? Because Dwayne was cutting up wood in my back yard. My back yard. Dwayne. Did I mention his arms are like solid steel pipes; strong, smooth and protective. My back yard. Dwayne. Cutting wood. I was elated all day.

Thinking of renting that Vin Diesal movie tonight.