Time is of real value yet we hand it over so willingly and sleepwalk our time away. Often we spend this time on endeavours that we are not actively choosing. Many have been hijacked by the technocratic ways of our world but I believe that we have a responsibility to become aware of our choices, to actively ensure that the moves we make on this beautiful speck in the universe are conscious. What I mean by this is that we must pause. Pause the mindless scrolling, the lack of boundaries on our time, the attachment to our phones, to mainstream media and entertainment, to overconsumption. We must pause. If only for a minute. To check in with our mind, thoughts and imagination {our reality} to see if this is what we choose for ourselves. If this is really how we wish to think, feel, act and spend time. If it is, then carry on as you were, safe in the knowledge that the beliefs you hold are your own. This is not an exercise in judgement towards ourselves or others, this is not an opportunity for self-flagellation and a tirade of ‘shoulds’. I am also not saying that to spend time ‘well’ that we must be productive in some way or active. It is an exercise in compassionate self-reflection and an opportunity to choose conscious living rather than prescribed existence. 

If upon pausing, you feel deeply uncomfortable, let that feeling sink in and show it compassion. Become curious, ask yourself where this feeling is coming from. If you feel frozen, overwhelmed and anxious then press unpause but keep the seeds of change in your hand, ready to plant when the time is right for you. Go back to the way you were but take one piece of advice: rest more. More rest will create more space which may just let enough air in for you to breathe once more, stretch your legs and plant those seeds. By rest, I mean sleep well, spend time alone, have a bath, take a walk without your phone, cook from scratch. Make just a little more space for these sorts of moments. It doesn’t need to be a big deal. We become ready to contemplate these big questions when there is space. 

Our entire reality is our responsibility. Our reality is made up of our imagination, thoughts and feelings. What we choose to focus on is where we spend our energy. Energy is finite, each of us having our own energy blueprint {something else worth understanding} so using your unique energy wisely or at least consciously is preferable for a life well-lived.

Our reality is vast and varied so to begin and offer a practical application of this idea, I have begun to break life's contents into categories, topics and experiences. Now, with compassion in mind, we can begin to examine our thoughts, feelings and beliefs. This is something that should be ongoing and revisited whenever called. 

Compassion is, for me, the most important element. It was a turning point in my personal story. Realising that staying soft, loving and compassionate eased my anxiety. Allowing myself compassion meant that I could be loving to others. This is an important value to on balance.

So let’s explore how we frame the things that happen to us, around us and for us. 

When we change the way we see things, the things we see change.

PRACTICE

How we frame things, how we feel about things, and what we think about things is our human reality, it’s the only reality that we know. My reality is different to yours and so on.

As soon as you are born, you are indoctrinated into an interpreted world. When we talk about taking responsibility for how we view the world, we mean through which lens you choose to see. Your lens is your beliefs. It is of vital importance that you pause throughout life to examine where you hold habitual certainty and question it. Or as Terence McKenna said, “don’t believe anything. If you believe in something, you are automatically precluded from believing its opposite”.

So let’s begin,

From where do we take on our ways of thinking and feeling?

What has influenced our minds throughout our lives?

Here are a few people and places that have no doubt helped formed some of your beliefs:

Parents

Wider family

Education

Media

Friends

Take some time to add to that list, then take some more time to think about how these people and systems have shaped you into the person you are today.

Here are some life topics to consider. Take one topic at a time, examine your current belief, investigate the origin of this belief then contemplate if it feels true to you.