Attending

While you are doing the actions listed below, don’t blink your eyes on purpose, but by all means, blink if nature wants you to. Count the blinks.

And, try to do as many of the checking-in actions rapidly and in succession, even simultaneously if you are up to it.

Do the following list several times:

See if you can feel your heart beating within your chest.

Observe your breathing process.

Stop! Freeze! Now, without moving it, feel your tongue quietly resting inside your mouth.

Note the sensations coming from your left elbow.

Listen and see if you can locate the quietest of the sounds in your environment.

Try to name at least one smell you’re sensing.

Try to remember something uncomfortable that someone did to you recently, but only touch upon the issue and then stop thinking about it.

Ask yourself:

Why do I feel that my heartbeat is an automatic process and yet have pride or take the blame for the thoughts my brain creates in a way that is equalautomatic? Why would I feel foolish bragging to someone about the regularity of my heartbeats?

Why do I insist on being responsible for my thoughts despite all evidence to the contrary?

Am I ignoring, say, 99% of all the perceptual information that is constantly impacting my nervous system? Why would Nature have set it up like that? Why is everything on red alert, so to speak? A feather’s touch is felt instantly,if needed, and yet, mostly ignored? Who makes the decisions to pay attention to these various reports?

Have I ever, in my entire life, had a single thought on purpose? How would I get on the planning committee?

Of all the things I am ignoring–for years perhaps–is there anything on that list that it is really wrong for me to ignore? How would I know?

How can my mind have all these issues just sitting there for me to instantly remember, but, for the most part, I just ignore them, too? What is the message I’m giving to myself here? Don’t I care about my contents?

So much that is ignored! Am I literally in ignorance? Is my life, as far as my attention is concerned, boring?

What use is a well in a flooded place? Have I some secret knowledge that allows me to be so comfortable with my ignoring? If I could witness my dreams but remain fully awake, would the ignoring that my dream character does be the same type of thing? Do I know that everything is okay to be ignored, because I know (but am ignoring the fact that I know) the BIG PLAN of life and have surrendered to it?

Do I ignore loudly while I am sleeping?

Why am I so comfortable?