Pathwalking 228
Just be.
Two simple words that convey far more power and meaning than we realize. Two words to sum up our very existence.
Our culture feels equally obsessed with the past and the future. Frequently we are inundated with messages about how we need to go back, return to what we were, restore something how it used to be. On the other side of the coin we frequently are deluged with the messages about how we need to go forward, prepare for the future, look ahead to what can be.
There is nothing wrong with having nostalgia for the past and considering the future, but we cannot live in either of these places. We live in the now. And in the now it is important to learn to Just Be.
I’ve written before about the idea of living in the now. Rather than giving our intentions and attentions to the then, be it past or future, we need to focus on living in the now. Seeing the world as it is here and now, and taking that into how we live each and every day.
When we Just Be we are more able to live in the here and now. We can better cope with what we have going on around us, and we can more thoroughly experience the wonders of the world we live in.
When I Just Be, and keep myself in the present I have had some simple experiences that take on greater depth. For example, I grabbed a bite to eat on my way home last night. Often when I do this, and I eat on the go, food is simply fuel. I eat, but I really don’t experience the food. Rather than just wolf down my late dinner, I took my time, I ate slowly, and I chewed every bite. As such I didn’t just refuel myself, I enjoyed the taste and texture of my meal, and appreciated my food for more than just the sustenance it provided me.
I live in a society that is all about rushing. We’re constantly in a hurry, frequently striving to do things as quickly and simply as possible. When we’re on the go it’s at a rapid pace, because we want instant gratification and prompt results. This society then gets frustrated when the end is not achieved at the desired pace, and from that we become stressed.
In the process of exploring Pathwalking, I have come to see the value of working on living more in the present, and striving to Just Be. I am discovering that I don’t need to pay a visit to Sedona or some other fancy place to experience a deeper, richer world, I have the power to more thoroughly experience life every day by just being.
I have been striving to meditate more frequently. I really want to do this daily, because in meditating I am completely and totally Just Being.
A lot of people believe that meditation is this complicated process where you need to clear your mind, stop thinking, and focus on nothing. You meditate to still the mind, to calm yourself, yes, but in truth the process of meditation is to Just Be. In this moment where you have chosen to be still you get comfortable, whether that’s the traditional lotus position or lying down or seated in a chair, and be completely present in the moment, breathing.
I focus on my breathing when I begin my meditation routine. Putting my focus on my breathing puts me completely in the here and now, and I begin to just be. As I go through this I sometimes take mental trips to explore my path, to speak with unseen guides, to review what was and what may be, but no matter what my mind may explore for a time I am Just Being. I always return to focus on my breathing as I practice.
Meditation lets me renew myself, allows me to be in the moment, and to free myself from concerns and worries and stress and everything else negative that I might be working with. The reason why this is so powerful is that when I meditate, I Just Be.
When we can Just Be, and we are in the moment and in our own heads and in the here-and-now, ultimately we empower ourselves. We can take the moment and build our lives up, and better choose how we want to live.
Pathwalking is a means to self-empowerment. In this crazy, often bizarre and confusing world each and every one of us is best capable of making our own lives. Nobody else can live my life for me, nobody else knows my mind and what I want to do and who I want to be…so why would I give away my own empowerment? When I Just Be, I am complete, I am whole, and I am empowered.
Just Be. It is amazing where this can take us all if we put just a little more time and effort into this notion.
How do you go about just being?
GOAL LOG – Week 18:
Diet: I am continuing to write out what I eat daily. I am working on doing better with eating healthy and eating less. Had a complete and total cheat day last week, however.
Exercise: Fencing happened twice last week, and I got to the gym twice. Since acquiring a Fitbit I have been more attentive to walking every day as well.
Writing: Four days of writing and editing again. Lot of focus on completing my Steampunk novel.
Meditation: Only got in 2 day of meditation last week. And I noticed the lack, and need to improve on that.
Gratitude: I wrote out 5 things to be grateful for every day last week. I am past 30 days in a row of this practice, and I feel really good about keeping up with this process.
This is the two-hundred twenty eighth entry in my series. These weekly posts are ideas and my personal experiences in walking along the path of life. I share this journey as part of my desire to make a difference in this world along the way.
Thank you for joining me. Feel free to re-blog and share.
The first year of Pathwalking, including some expanded ideas, is available here.
If you enjoy Pathwalking, you may also want to read my Five Easy Steps to Change the World for the Better.
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