thoughts on wednesday's resiliency training
thank you very much for your question, johanna
for including your own mind and body experience in the
possibility of human experience
I recognize it - and you - as valid
real, alive, experiencing
studies have shown that in the collective human experience
most of us tend to over-emphasize the negative, the possible danger
as a means of keeping ourselves safe
it's a evolutionary strategy not quite in line with the dangers we face in
today's world: a honking car, harsh words from a coworker, a long line
at the grocery store
I acknowledge the possibility of other adaptations that we as individual humans make
to keep ourselves safe, what we've learned in the course of
our lives, our relationships
for example, I hate sitting with my back to a room, I jump anytime
someone enters, I am sensitive, vigilant for danger
my muscles are tense, feet restless, mind anxious
this is my means to safety.
what I am hearing you say
is that your mind emphasizes the good,
while your body carries the difficulty
perhaps this disconnect between mind and body
is your means to safety.
what do you notice in your body as I say this?
what I try to do for myself,
and what I offer to you
is to invite in gratitude for the pieces of myself
acting out of evolution and adaptation
to keep my physical body safe.
it sounds beautiful,
this part of yourself that is
perpetually optimistic, perhaps you'd like to
thank it for keeping your mind sunny,
for helping you get by on rainy days
see if you can invite that sun into your body
warming you, filling you with joy or peace
or the most beautiful feeling of love
whatever wellbeing looks like to you
over time bringing mind and body into harmony
the practice is different for all of us
and it is the same
we each have triggers and adaptations
that have helped us to survive until today
some are still beneficial, others are not.
we practice to be with our own triggers,
noticing when they drag us out of our zone of safety
allowing the tools and our training
to bring us back home
