Life is a series of moments—a series on Nows. What is the quality of attention you bring to each moment of your life? Each Now? Are attention and focus reserved for moments deemed significant? “Defining” moments? What about ordinary moments? What are ordinary moments, anyway?
The Meaning of Moments
There are numerous entry points into the examination of the moments of our lives—our subjective experience of what is occurring, moment-to-moment. A formal mindfulness meditation practice (“sitting”) is certainly one of them and is as rigorous (or not) as you intend (or not).
A few months ago, I pre-ordered the Greater Good Toolkit created by the Greater Good Science Center and it arrived a few weeks ago. No matter where you are in your exploration of your subjective experience, and no matter what your age or lot in life, this box of "Casual," "Moderate" and "Intensive" practices is akin to excavation tools. There are pickaxes that might cause some discomfort as they touch deep wounds, and there are brushes that reveal the intricacies of those wounds once they are completely unearthed.
The topics include:
Awe Walk
Expressive Writing
Feeling Connected
Making an Effective Apology
Affirming Important Values
Overcoming a Fear
And of course, Gratitude (in the form of a Letter)
Life is Change
Life is change. It’s a series of planned and unplanned events, no matter who you are. In a way, it’s a great equalizer. We all enter a new decade, and not one of us can be certain of what life has in store for us. Life is like that during times of transition, and life is like that every day.
Regardless of how we look on the outside, we all have our own internal experience of the many and varied twists and turns in our life’s story. That internal experience is informed by the particular way we meet life. Do we have a sense that life is happening to us? And if we scoff at that notion, claiming we and our free will are the navigators of our voyage, how does that notion hold up to scrutiny?
About The Toolkit
The thing that’s different about this toolkit is that its practices are science-based, as that's what GGSC is about. Each has four sections (this is taken verbatim from the box):
1. Why the practice is important.
2. How to do it.
3. Why it works.
4. The primary research to support it.
I highly recommend the Greater Good Toolkit. It's beautiful, inviting, and can lead to profound insights about habit patterns and the relationships with self and others. You can order yours here.