The spaciousness of the journal page calls to me, a yearning pulling into the open landscape of the page. Open, but well-protected. Quiet yet alert, ready to meet whatever needs to become.
The contrast with the DDDs (Diabolical Distraction Devices) could not be more profound. Giving space rather than taking. Gentle presence rather than aggressively pushing-in. Calming and relaxing rather than activating. Not a good activating though, a passive activation that exhausts with nothing accomplished, like a car engine revved up to max but with the brakes on.
The endless vortex of stories that are being generated in the news are in deep resonance with the highly tuned capabilities of the Diabolical Distraction Devices to present a never-ending sequence of stories. The mind is so highly pullable. The easiest form it is pulled into is a vortex, a whirlpool. “Did you see what happened now” - again and again and again. An infinite sequence of highly important stories. The pace of big stories has quickened immensely - it’s so hard now to sit in the middle of this hurricane and rest the mind.
But this is what we must do. Open the mind to the presence in the space around us. Open to the subtle experiences going on in your own body. they’re actually not subtle but only become apparent with an open mind rather than one caught up in the vortex of other stories.
Those stories are big and important, yes. But your own story is the one that you must bring your attention back to.
Open to the space in journaling. Get extremely intimately involved with your current, present moment experience. Not the infinite story loop on your DDDs. Put your attention on your own story first. If you don’t, then your story will inevitably be taken over by other stories with different agendas, different values than what you truly hold important.
Put down your Diabolical Distraction Devices and go outside and spend time with yourself. Ask your loved ones to be with you in connection and intimacy. Get back in touch with your own story. What do you truly want to live? Who is going to live your story if you don’t?
