In my last journal entry, I talked about the idea of getting “out of our minds”. I mentioned a few methods I've used that fall more into the categories of escapism, procrastination, or gratification. However, I’m not here to tell you that you need to stop doing those things, or to tell you that you have to do a thousand other things to get “out of your mind”. Instead, I’m going to tell you the secret that works for me: just be.
It's truly so simple that we often forget to just be. We can call it consciousness, awareness, or whatever we want, but I prefer to keep it as simple as it is by calling it just being. What I mean by that is being your authentic self without the ego, which is your mind that includes your thoughts and feelings.
One of best ways to find examples of just being is to look at nature. I was recently listening to a song by Madison Beer called “Envy the Leaves” that demonstrates this rather beautifully:
I envy the leaves
That grow from the trees
They're all so carefree
Throughout the seasons, unaware of the fall
If only I’d see
It's quite easy to be
A drop in the ocean
With no worries and no questions at all
Have you ever looked at the trees and their leaves and admired their way to just be? Watched the waves roll in as you are in awe of the ocean’s very being? All the while not labelling any of the natural phenomena you are witnessing as good or bad, understanding that it just is? But the question remains; how can we just be?
The answer is to do the same with our minds as with nature - observe it without labelling any passing thoughts or feelings as inherently good or bad, accepting them as they come and releasing them when they’re done. They just are, and we are experiencing them.
“I am not my feelings” was one of the most important revelations of my life. Once I learnt this, there was very little standing in the way of my authentic being. Well, there was ooone more tricky little thing - my thoughts. And boy oh boy did those thoughts get in the way (and still do at times), provoking my emotions, particularly a persistent passenger called anxiety. So the vicious cycle continued with my thoughts feeding feelings and feelings feeding thoughts, until I realised that my authentic being is just experiencing them, and therefore, my being must be something separate from my thoughts and feelings.
When I no longer believed that my emotions were part of my identity (and I used to go to the extent of labelling myself as an “overly emotional person”), I was able to get “out of my mind” and find peace and quiet. Understanding this is the first step to just being.
Question: Am I aware of my thoughts and feelings or are they aware of me? (ref: The Greatest Secret by Rhonda Byrne)
Affirmation: I accept my thoughts and feelings as they are. I am the one experiencing them.
Yours Authentically,
Vanessa
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