2015 was one of those years. We all have them, I’m not feeling sorry for myself. It was a year where lots of shiz went down, and fortunately I’m wiser for it.
Now that’s out of the way we can talk about focus.
As I was walking Rella Brazella this morning I was thinking about the finer details of some of the not so fine things that happened in 2015. Why? Because that’s what my brain does. It seeks out ways to sneakily invade an otherwise benign moment with sordid details that are largely irrelevant to the present moment yet, slowly but surely torture the idle mind.
As I dove into those thoughts that made me squirm I took a moment to pause, and notice what was happening to my body. I noticed that my shoulders had slumped forward, I noticed that my breathing felt contracted and I had started to feel pretty dour. I noticed that if I was to move into action (even verbal action) guided by these thoughts it probably wouldn’t be good news.
I stopped.
I shifted my focus to all of the amazing stuff around me right now.
I smelt the gum trees and the freshly graded dirt underneath my feet. I heard the birds and the sound of Rella’s claws hitting the road. My friend calls this ‘coming back to your senses’, it’s truly the case.
Instantly, everything shifted.
I realised right then and there the true impact of focus.
And just how unwell a negative focus can make someone, or even a collective of people.
Nobody gets off this planet alive, or unscathed. Every single person has stuff to deal with at some point or another.
But that doesn’t mean we have to deal with the stuff every waking moment.
This isn’t about denial, it’s about choosing when to deal with things, to cease rumination and thoughts that just spiral downwards.
It’s about maintaining a balance of healthy thoughts and noticing when they are sliding way off track.
My new year’s resolution was to use my language in a way that is supportive, abundant and positive and already I can feel the power of this decision as positive words not only come out of my mouth, but also find their way into my inner thoughts.
It’s not actually easy, and the temptation to gossip, criticise and justify remain, but every single day I’m building those muscles – because it feels good.
Your thoughts??? What are you focusing on?
