Deal with what is present rather than what is absent
Live here in the juicy spot of life, right in the middle.
Live here and face the unknown without fear, both in life and death. The in-between middle state is where you can see a moment’s clarity and ignore the past or future.
When you deal just with what is right in front of you, taking it all in, you act with what is present rather than what is absent. The real world is revealed by tasting, feeling, and seeing. You can be.
Deal with what is present rather than what is absent.
The Six-Line Prayer
SIX LINE PRAYER
- Be still and know that I am God.
- Be still and know that I am.
- Be still and know.
- Be still.
- Be.
The sixth line is the best; it reminds us to live here. That reality I understand that I am nothing, and that makes me everything. I choose what the sixth line means to me. It is that still moment, live here.
You ->nothing therefore everything. It’s when I chose to deal with what is present rather than what is absent.
Give in to Unpleasantness
While living here, don’t restrict your awareness. You give in to unpleasantness and suffering because that is part of life. While some suffering is necessary and just part of life, sometimes we bring the suffering onto ourselves. Usually, this is because we avoid feeling something. Stuffing those emotions down.
Instead, give in to unpleasantness. Deal with a shame storm. Feel inferior. Hate someone. Feel strong feelings because if you avoid the bad stuff, you will also dampen good feelings. But just because you decide to feel crappy about something for a minute doesn’t mean you have to live there. Live here.
Feel it fully, don’t judge, and forgive yourself if you do. The idea is to stop unnecessary thinking.
Hang in there and evolve beyond resorting to zones of comfort. Numbing is common, but no way to live your life if done in excess. There will be good and bad days, and equanimity is a good weekly and daily intention.
Live in the middle.
When You Live in the Middle
When you live in the middle, you can go either way. Almost spontaneously. You can choose between being present and being absent—no false bind of getting all caught up or being free. The fact of the matter is that most of the time we live somewhere in the middle.
When you live here, you live in a world where it is ok to feel a couple different ways simultaneously. And it is also normal not to feel anything for a good long while. You might have good weeks or months, but when you live in the middle, sometimes it is day-by-day.
Living in the middle is finding space to enjoy the moment. Find joy in the moment when you are your authentic self.
When was the last time you sang out loud or danced, or belly laughed? If you want happiness, figure out how to do all three of those this week. Seriously, do it.
This is a good time to think about your past: what made you laugh out loud as a child and adolescent? When you had less responsibility, what brought you joy?
Manifest that joy by doing it with your kids. If you have parents around, tell them about it, and live in the middle.
Excise Shoulds
Jam all the shoulds in your life into a closet.
Jam them in there, then slam the door shut. Next, feel all the evil emanating from that closet, the chill in your spine. Take all those evil shoulds and send that miasma up into the ether, away from you. Why can’t you do that right now? It is easy to visualize. Just take those shoulds that are not yours and get rid of them. Finally.
Next, there is that empty spot where those should use to live in your mind. Why not replace that empty space with pure light? Look at the lights or at the sun for a second and have that light replace the area in your mind where those shoulds used to reside. Link left and right hemispheres with this visualization; let go of the shoulds that are not yours.
The key is to let go of shoulds that are not yours. When you find your authentic self, you let go of expectations that aren’t yours. You let go of thoughts that aren’t yours.
When something in your head tells you that you should do something, stop and think for a second. This is the time for metacognition. Who is the voice that is speaking in your head? Is it your parent or a loved one, or someone else who is in your life?
Don’t should on yourself.
More likely than not it is an inherited limiting belief.
Something like 95% of our thoughts are repeats. Do we really need to pay any attention to those thoughts, especially if it is someone else telling us what we should do?
Deal with what is present rather than what is absent. Now, I can decide which thoughts are important to me, and those thoughts that are not mine become absent. Just let them go. Thoughts that are not yours – lock them away in a special chest in deep your mind. Stop other people’s shoulds; discover yourself and what is present.
Adore No Graven Image
What are you comparing yourself to?
Seriously, you want to be like that? That will make you happy?
We have nothing but graven images around us ever since we were children. Not just advertising but also our graven self-image.
Advertising is easy: assume any image you see is a brain parasite trying to suck your brain dry. I think that is the definition of a meme anymore.
Your self-image is a different story. Since you have no perspective of any other way to see yourself, adore it how you please.
Live Here
Live here. Deal with what is present rather than what is absent. Find that sixth line.
When you understand that you are responsible for your actions, feelings, and thoughts, no one else can tell your story, and you can choose what that story means to you. You can live here and decide what is present in your life and what is absent.
