Friends, what I want to tell you is this…
You have a stunning life. The beauty and the wonder. The terror and the pain.
Don’t miss it.
Too often, we lose our life in the midst of our calendars. We numb the difficult parts with cocktails and television. We try to capture moments in snapshots, only to tuck them away in shoeboxes and computer files.
In the rush, in the avoidance, in the tasks of the day, we lose touch of our humanity. Our gratitude. Our surprised laughter. Our heartfelt tears.
What if you could see your life not as a blur, but a symphony?
Will you do something for me today? Will you take these next few minutes to notice what Mary Oliver calls your “one wild, precious life?”
Get into a comfortable Noticing Posture:
(To listen to me talk you through this posture, click here.)
- Ground your feet by connecting them to the surface below you.
- Drop your tailbone into a neutral position so that it’s not tipped forward or back.
- Stack your vertebrae on top of this base to align your spine.
- Lift your shoulder blades up as high as you can and the let them drop away from your ears. Imagine your head floating above your neck like a helium balloon.
- Swallow to relax your jaw.
- Take three conscious breaths. Breathe In. Breathe out.
- Prepare to direct your gaze.
Bring your attention to this day. Take a welcoming breath it its direction. Without judgment or plans for change, take 3-5 minutes to Notice…
- What do I feel? What initial emotions arise when I become still?
- What do I see? What objects, colors, and textures greet me?
- What do I hear? What sounds greet me in this space?
- What do I smell? What scents does the space carry?
- What would I name this moment? Pick three descriptive words that capture this moment.
- What else am I noticing right now?
This is your life. The hot and the cold of it. The hurt and the joy of it. All its real bits in all their real glory.
Cherish it my darlings. Mold it, and make it, but most of all just notice.
Is your life moving by too fast? Do you need some help with noticing? Tell me what you are noticing about your life today and I’ll put you name in the hat to win a seat in our next round of The Art of Noticing.
May awareness and presence be your withmates today.
Much Warmth,
Rachelle
Today I’m noticing the gift of warm but not hot weather, birds chirping, and my need for a cup of tea.
Today Im noticing that anything is possible in my life , that I can work at my dreams , if I do just that . Work at them . I am also humbled by what is around me . I have a beautiful home in the country with birds chirping and I remind mysefl that my life is awesome . Most of all I have a wondeful husband/ soulmate.
P.S. good luck everyone , I hope I win! teehee ; )
Wow… Thank you for this. I am ever-reminding my clients to do this but what a blessing it is to receive your message for myself.
Noticing is where choice lives.
I am noticing that I don’t actually have to worry about things all the time. Things mostly work out anyway.
After participating in this exercise…I notice the depth of the wine I am tasting right now. Thank you. ~ I will breathe and slow down~
I set aside today to work on choreographing a piece of movement theater that I’ll be performing in a few weeks. This art work brought my whole being into a state of receptivity and noticing. I noticed gestures that wanted to come forward and gestures that wanted to hide. I was shocked, joyed, saddened, surprised all in turn and together.
Then I stopped for lunch…and without NOTICING what I was doing I started dancing to music in the kitchen! Joyful, delicious, dancing. Then I was struck down…I realized how my body needed this, craved this and how my theater piece was also calling out for this. So I spent the afternoon wraping this new dancing and movement into my work.
And now I sit noticing how my whole body is full and content and present. I am here, sun turning over toward evening, silence, clicking keys, and what comes next I don’t know.
I’m noticing the sweetness of my daughter’s kiss on my cheek, and I’m noticing that I have overscheduled myself yet again.
today I am noticing the colors and sounds of summer all around me…
thank you..
Karen
Today I am noticing how simple is good I don’t need to do a gazillion things in one day to feel good about my day. Noticing a caterpillar and a woodpecker with my kids is enough.
I love reading these beautiful, sacred moments each of you are Noticing. Thank you for sharing them with me.
I’m going to do the drawing on Friday, so if you are just arriving, let us know what you are Noticing today.
I’m noticing how I’m supported by the Universe with encouraging connections throughout my day…I’m noticing and I’m grateful for them!
This is something I should to more often.
)) It immediately takes the haste out of my body. Although I feel an unwillingness to let go of that haste.
I feel the tiredness in my body, I feel the turmoil that I keep deep down.
I see blue painted in a flowery way. I see red and yellow, all bright colors.
I hear keyboards, people talking in the distance; white noise around me.
I smell the air after rainfall. (moist)
I would name it alone in my bubble.
I notice my desire to break the bubble and get out of my cocon and actually meet people.
thank you for this reminder..
This is so important, and so easy to forget. I often get caught in the trap of trying to do more, get through lists and achieve goals and forget to just notice all the beauty around me. Thanks for the reminder.
I am noticing how beautiful all the flowers smell…right.now. Everywhere — I’m being mindful to not just “see” them but to sense their scent and it’s wonderful.
I’m noticing freckles…mine and other people’s and how unique they make us.
I’m noticing faces and expressions — when people don’t realize that they are being looked at, their facial expressions reveal so much. It helps me to notice on what level to approach and direct my dialogue…softly, with laughter or with a more direct approach.
Today I’m noticing my breath, how quickly the branches of the mulberry tree in my backyard grew toward my bedroom window, birds chirping outside, the sound of the shower running, rain falling, how my front body feels just a liiiiiittle more open than it did yesterday.
Thank you for this post!
Today I am noticing the silence of being the only one in the office on a Saturday…
I love all the simple beauty you all are noticing. (Especially the freckles.)
I put all your names in the hat and Sylvia Black’s emerged. Sylvia will join us in our next round of The Art of Noticing this Summer. (Welcome Sylvia!)
May each of you notice that which you most need to see today.
Much Warmth,
Rachelle
Thank you! I’m honoured
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