Make a meaningful movie
From the moment you wake up in the morning till the moment you finally close your eyes at night, you are looking, looking, looking. You rush through the day, a camera on legs, making your very own daily movie that you seldom watch.
Your eyes scan the distance. Buildings. Hills. Sky. Then they zoom in close. Keys. Pen. Scissors. Cats. You create short sequences, take snapshots, long shots, and low shots. Your memory of the day is a montage of half-remembered scenes and vague objects.
You do a lot of looking but you don’t really see anything.
You miss the messages the physical world is presenting to you.
When you live like a film director who’s not paying attention, everything becomes a blur. Nothing makes sense. The meaning of your life is lost.
There is a simple solution to this madness.
Bring your attention to the moment you’re in.
How?
Just blink — and look again.
Do this technique throughout the day to bring you into the moment, so you really see what it is you’re looking at.
As Pema Chödrön said:
We are one blink of an eye away from being fully awake.
When you stop looking at things and start seeing them instead, two things happen simultaneously:
the intrinsic beauty of the object hits you
the symbolism of the object (the message it carries) is revealed
Everything — absolutely everything — is itself, and a symbol:
keys can symbolise unlocking yourself
a pen can symbolise a willingness to communicate
scissors can symbolise cutting through what is no longer required
cats can symbolise acceptance of whatever life throws at you, whether it’s a soft mat by a fire or a cold, dark alley.
Seeing objects this way enriches your day.
It takes you from a state of shallow awareness to a deeper state of mindfulness, where you sense consciousness connecting everything.
Everything carries a message for you.
Just blink — and look again.
Then ask yourself:
What is being brought to my attention?
What is this object telling me?
What message does this moment hold?
Remember, you are a camera on legs, directing your own movie.
Make your movie a meaningful one.
With love, Marlane
First published on https://medium.com/change-your-mind