Distracted Living
Now I could notice the flaming colors of the autumnal trees, the layers of white and gray clouds in the blue sky, my feet walking along the path crunching brittle leaves, the cool wind smelling of rain.
That’s the antidote to distracted living, and distracted driving as well. It’s simple. If we stay home in the present, and pay attention to what is right now, we will no longer miss out on opportunities to share love, beauty or joy.
What about when we are upset, angry, scared or sad? Amazingly, when we stop distracting ourselves from painful emotions and just sit there with them, we go through the difficult feelings more quickly. When there is no resistance, often the emotional storm rolls through and is gone. And sometimes, there is even a jewel of laughter to be found after the storm passes.
What are your major distractions? What helps you “stay home?” I’d love to hear from you! Feel free to share your experiences, concerns and wisdom on this topic.
I was checking my email and eating my lunch at the computer (enjoying neither, of course) when I stumbled upon this. How timely. thanks for the reminder!!!
You’re most welcome! Hope you are enjoying your day more now!
Hi Rahima,
I really enjoyed your letter. It reminded me of a saying from one of “my” Swamis: he used to say at the end of a lecture: Hari Om and then let it slide into: Hurry Home. The same idea like in your letter: be centered, be with yourself, relax!
Here in Germany women are called the multi-taskers, something men can’t do. It is seen as something positive.
I myself have no difficulty being centered when in nature or when listening to music. I get in trouble when I overload my
daily activities. A few times I was able to do what the Dalai Lama suggested once: When you have too much to do, then you have to meditate longer. When you think about it, it makes sense. But it presupposes a person who has done already some work on him/herself: learning to quieten the mind.
Hi, Monika,
Yes, the challenge is to ‘stay home’ when we are busy with daily activities. And I love that quote of the Dalai Lama: “I have so much to do today,I better meditate twice as long.” That sure is the opposite of the “hurry, hurry, rush to get everything done” attitude I get trapped in too often, especially this time of year with the holidays. But when I do manage to meditate even a short time, it makes such a big difference! I can ‘stay home’ for longer, maybe even a whole day!
Oh, my… the habits borne of avoiding discomfort sure do carry over into other parts of our lives. I often rely on three conscious breaths to bring me home.
It’s amazing that is so often all it takes – three conscious breaths to come back home.
Staying home, staying present, is one of the hardest things we humans have to do. It, however, is the one major instruction I’ve received in my being able to stand in balance in my world. It requires me to be conscious of each decision, to evaluate every single nuance of feeling flitting across my mind when I am faced with the next moment in my life. The thrill of course is after accepting whatever is going on around me and within me, is the flavors of life, to taste or smell or experience. The more I stay conscious the more fun I have. It’s amazing. I’m glad You shared this with your readers. It’s been one of the repeated themes of my own blog. Cheers for us staying in our home spaces.
Love this! It’s so true – staying home, being present, is really so much more fun!
“Distracted Living” … Rahima … this is so timely and welcome with the many apparent temptations demanding our focus … thoughts really have no power to enter our here and now if our focus refuses to entertain them … your antidote “STAY HOME” is right on … and no resistance … you’ve brought it out clearly, Rahima … this moment is the moment … it’s enough for now … I try to stick with that … with simple clarity you express so well … blessings, anna xoxo
Thanks, Anna!
When I catch myself multitasking in my mind, I simply switch to my mantra, which sooner or later centers me.
Thanks for the reminder! Xoxo
I’m extremely mental so I’m constantly thinking while I’m doing. Sometimes I let it go, it’s my nature but when I need to be focusing on someone else I use gratitude to keep me home. I appreciate what the person is saying, how cute they are, how glad I am that they are in my life. I find gratitude helps to keep me in the moment. Great post!!