All the worthwhile words that
haltingly come out of my mouth and occasionally travel from my index fingers to
keyboard (apologies to my high school typing teacher) are due to the confluence
of three things:
Presence
Like the caveat of many
contests, random drawings, and games, declaring, "You must be present to
win.", life also requires our in-the-flesh arrival. Whatever winning is,
perhaps life's rejoinder is, "You must show up to learn, participate, and
grow."
Observance
Being there is not always seeing
there. In order to truly recognize what's going on, we need more than bodily
arrival. Spirit, emotion, and intellect also need to arrive and participate in
the practice of presence.
Immersion
Finally, once we are corporeally,
intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually cognizant and engaged, we must
make a connection between the self and experience of others and our own selves.
This is where narrative weaves us together. We are listening to another's
story, not to find a pause or opening to insert our own tale, but to find and
settle into the places touching our own emotions, fears, hopes, and dreams.
It's that straightforward. It's
that frightening. It's that rich. What are you waiting for?
© 2015 Todd Jenkins
This is timely for me. And also it reads like a 3 step recovery process out of the half baked presence I've currently been practicing. Thank you, I needed this.
ReplyDeleteJust talking to the guy in the mirror, Becky. :-)
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