Catch Yourself (But Not in the Judgy Way)
Have you ever caught yourself in a negative pattern?
Eating sweets when you told yourself you wouldn’t
Realizing yet again, you haven’t made space for yourself to exercise or meditate
Feeling short tempered and agitated by someone against your best intentions
In order to make a shift, there needs to be a change, and that includes a change in your energy or how you’re feeling.
And it begins with catching yourself, i.e. becoming aware of how you’re feeling and what you’re noticing.
But let me be clear about something -
Instead of catching yourself in a judgy way, or feeling like you’re “being caught” in the midst of a crime - I invite you to think about a different kind of catch - the same kind of catch that would happen during a trust fall.
The suspense during the moment of falling before you are caught opens up a gap of time, a space for a new possibility for being willing to be where you are in the moment. Realizing the awareness of where you are in your body or your life allows you to be really clear with yourself if that’s where you truly want to be - or if that’s how you want to be behaving. And this allows for you mind to open up outside of your tunnel vision. To see outside of yourself and have a broader perspective.
Having faith that you will be caught in this positive light allows you to feel different and to reorient.
Bring some loving attention to yourself, have faith that you will catch yourself, let yourself be in the thrill of the moment and the possibilities available to you rather than being in fear of the suspense of falling and once again behaving in the way you have been historically.
Patterns die hard: It takes time to make change... and most importantly, it takes all of you - your thoughts, beliefs, actions and how you feel. And what is important is having some space for your body and mind to be present.
So start with allowing for a gap to occur when you catch yourself in a negative energy around something that you have been wanting to change.
How do you do this?
You can practice creating a gap by taking a few deep breaths in and out, allowing yourself to expand on your inhale, and then expand your awareness as you exhale... letting the moment become fuller and yourself to be more present.
Pema Chodron asks: “What’s the most important thing to do with each day, with each morning, each afternoon, each evening?” Her answer: “The most important thing is to leave a gap.”
Have faith. Create some space for yourself to expand your awareness.
Your awareness is always available to you.
Wishing you a warm holiday season creating some space for yourself.
