||| AS THE PARADIGM SHIFTS BY ROSIE KUHN |||
“Today, like every other day,
we wake up empty and frightened.
Don’t open the door to the study and begin reading.
Take down a musical instrument.
Let the beauty we love be what we do.
There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground.” Rumi, translated by Coleman Barks
I love this poem. It awakens me to the essence of me that knows life beyond empty and frightened. It encourages presence and engagement with that which expresses beauty—the beauty we love.
I love experiencing beauty. My heart aches with joy when I do. It’s the good kind of ache!! And interestingly, science says it’s the kind of ache that makes your heart healthier. Not only that, but it also actually cultivates wisdom and happiness, too. I find that fascinating.
This week, there was a fire near Deer Harbor. Relatively speaking, it’s rather close to where I live. Worry and concern arises. Will fire ravage my property and home? Will I lose all of my material possessions and be forced to move?
Early this morning, as in Rumi’s poem, I woke up empty and frightened. A wind was blowing, such that I needed to get up and tend to awnings and umbrellas that could topple and break. I could smell smoke in the air, and I concerned myself with whether this is from the fire from yesterday or one yet to be detected. I went back to bed, comforting myself with the thought that it is most likely not something to worry about—hoping I was right!
Worry, for me, has been a constant companion. It’s actually an addictive pattern of creating and imagining stuff I don’t want to happen. Though it is a hard habit to break, more and more often, when I catch myself worrying, I ask myself, “where’s that getting you—you’re just making it up! If you are going to make stuff up, why not make stuff up that’s uplifting, delightful and beautiful?” I’m working on it! Trust me!
I have to really work hard to stop making up the stuff that upsets and worries me. The angst in my chest is not like the feeling I get when I focus on the beauty that is all around me. Science also says that worry and angst isn’t good for your heart, it doesn’t grow wisdom or happiness, like positive thoughts do. I find that is fascinating, too!
More and more my focus is on this moment, here in my little sanctuary. The simple beauty of nature is exquisite. I train myself to see it, hear it and immerse myself in it! I’m growing my capacity to be comfortable in the rapture of beauty. Every one of us knows this state of being in rapture. We can actually grow our ability to sustain it to greater and greater degrees—“Let the beauty we love be what we do.”
I don’t have a musical instrument to take down, as Rumi suggests. I do, however know hundreds of ways to shift my focus to be here now—what Rumi calls, kneeling and kissing the ground.
Though I wake up empty and frightened, every day I read my tried-and-true books, the ones that inform and inspire me to see things differently—from “God’s” perspective, if you will.
I truly believe in the Divine Presence within all things and beings. Don’t try to argue facts with me—it won’t get either of us anywhere but frustrated and perhaps disappointed. Every one of us have our own unique way of being with what is—to kneel and kiss the ground. Truly, there is not right way or wrong way. I’m just sharing my way.
Again, I’m having to ongoingly exercise restraint from, “Yes, but, what about….” And then I fill in the blanks with all the stuff that causes worry and angst. I stop myself, over and over again, gently calming that aspect of myself that so tightly grips the “truth” of how horrible things are in the world. There is so much beauty and goodness all around us. The world is getting better and better in so many ways. We just have to be willing to see it, hear it, and know the truth of it. My practice is to focus on that!
Neuroscience encourages us to never stop generating new neuro-pathways. It will keep our brains healthier and happier through steady practices of thinking differently! So, as I continue to grow my capacity to experience the beauty that is all around, everywhere, I’m also giving myself a healthier brain and a happier wiser heart. It’s a big win!
I would love to hear your comments, questions and feedback.
If you’d like more of Dr. Rosie, check out her website: www.theparadigmshifts.com. You’ll find blogs, books, videos, podcasts, paintings and more. And her books are available through Darvill’s. She is available as a thinking partner and coach.
