So, I’ve been thinking lately…”how am I of service in my day to day life?” Does it still count as service if I’m not being paid for it? In fact, is it really \”service\” if I am being paid for it?
Conscious Service is Energy
I am noticing that Conscious Service is an energy we can bring into our lives no matter what we are doing and who we are with. And whether we are paid for it or not.
I had been thinking of service in terms of what it means in a professional helping relationship or in my relationships with colleagues. How does Conscious Service inform my practice as an adult educator?
These are great questions. I know now that I can also reflect on the energy of Conscious Service as I walk through each day with my loved ones and the strangers I meet on the street.
What does this look like in my role as a mom, a grandma, a partner, a daughter or a friend?
Transcending Judgement through Self-Connection
How connected am I to myself? I mean really connected. Sure, I am aware of all my irritations and frustrations in response to what is happening or not happening around me but does this really represent a deep sense of connection within my being or simply a focus on mental chatter and judgement?
I think the answer is obvious. A deeper sense of self-connection results in the ability to transcend the judgement and frustration and look beyond the annoyances. Rooted in connection to myself, I find something more interesting to focus on – something lighter, something joyful. I find peace and patience. And I often have a good laugh!
Sit With It
I don’t know if this is true for you, but I am most challenged to stay connected to myself when I experience uncomfortable emotions – sadness, depression, anxiety – fear!
It can be so difficult to really sit in those feelings and just allow the emotion to exist without becoming identified and defined by it. But, in fact, this ability to sit with it is the remedy – the practice required to move to that deeper place where peace can be accessed – even if only for a moment. This is the key element in mindfulness practice – the ability to be present to whatever is without analyzing it or wishing it away – simply observing it.
To actively witness your emotional self can provide a sense of security and comfort that you could probably never really receive from anyone or anything else but you.
Disappearing Acts
Do you ever feel like you disappear from yourself sometimes?
I have experienced this many times in my life. Times when life has changed unexpectedly leaving me feeling sad and lost, worried and afraid. Times when my first instinct was to run and resist as opposed to embrace my circumstances. The last thing I wanted to do was the very thing I needed. Yoga. Walking. Writing.
Eventually, I get tired of the heaviness of pushing aside what cannot be avoided – smothering and ignoring what is already there – as though doing so will make it go away.
It is worth ploughing through the mucky mess to regain myself again – to reunite with the part of me that is hopeful, resilient, creative, and loving. Conscious Service will proceed from these resources – I can trust that I will be guided to the opportunities for contribution that I can make today.
So, off to yoga, I go!
Let’s get started!
What activities or practices ease your ability to sit with the tough stuff long enough to feel it?
You do know that feeling it is the first step in releasing it, right?
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