Moving Beyond Labels
Seeing with Fresh Eyes is an accessible mindfulness practice of shifting focus to see what’s before us. It’s accessible but not always easy because words get in the way. Language has obviously been a great boon for human development. However, it creates a barrier to the here and now. Our brains jump quickly from seeing to labeling to judging.
See -> Label -> Judge
If I see an insect moving on a plant, my brain does a quick scan to identify and label friend or foe. Lady bug is friend. Japanese beetle is foe. If I see something moving on the fence, again my brain quickly assesses the situation to identify and label. Robin is friend. Squirrel is garden thief and foe. In truth, they are just organisms getting on with their lives on the planet.
Seeing What’s There
Labeling breaks my connection to the present moment. But I can change that by shifting my awareness and letting the experience of the garden wash over me. When I do this I notice that the wings of Japanese beetles are beautifully iridescent, especially when the sun reflects off them. I notice that squirrels are a frenetic bundle of moving energy, amazing gymnasts, and kind of cute. I still can choose to keep them out of my garden (or at least try).
Beyond Good and Bad
And when I move beyond thinking in terms of good and bad, I can look more deeply at the garden. Drinking in the flow of colors and the moving shapes. Noticing the ebb and flow of plants peaking and declining from blossom to seed. Taking in the entire gestalt of this place, there is an awareness that it is all connected. I am a part of this intricate dance of color, light, and energy. So I am one part of the world opening my eyes in wonder on the rest of the world. How cool is that?
This week the mindfulness focus is fresh eyes, shifting our focus to take in the connectedness of the world beyond words.
For more information on weekly mindfulness focus words, click here.
“Wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the world
The heart has it’s beaches, it’s homeland and thoughts of it’s own
Wake now, discover that you are the song that the morning brings
But the heart has it’s seasons, it’s evenings and songs of it’s own”
Jerry Garcia & Robert Hunter, “Eyes of the World”
