Niki Spears
May 16, 20213 min
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, I have broadened my idea of what it means to be positive. While I still believe that we need positive energy in our schools, my focus is now on the power of BEing-- the energy of life, our purest existence. You see, our minds give meaning to the events that take place in our life. We are bombarded with habitual thinking, judging, and labeling, which is why it is so important to practice, what I call, BEing. We can do this by simply exercising stillness and allowing ourselves to sit quietly while actively giving attention to our breathing. I’ve found by guiding my audiences through a BEing practice prior to engaging them in a talk, my presentations have been even more enlightening, engaging, and fulfilling as we all prepare to become a Life Traveler.
With my new focus on the mental and emotional well-being of the students, teachers, and leaders I serve, I’m diving into meditation courses to further my understanding of the practice of BEing and how I can help myself and others find peace in our personal energy. I’ve learned that sometimes when we are doing nothing; we are doing a lot for our minds, bodies, and spirts. I've allowed myself to stop the constant load of working day in and day out and finding space to simply BE which has become an important component of my journey.
I would like to take you through a BEing practice today which I call The Life Traveler. Please clear your minds and hearts as you find a quiet place to sit in the most comfortable position and read the message below.
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Turn your mind and attention into an area of the body where you feel a sensation. It could be the cool air blowing against your face, a pain in your knee, or a tingling in your feet. Whatever it is, bring your attention to that area for a moment.
Now move your attention away from the sensation, to an area where there is no sensation. Now visit here for a moment. Travel back and forth between the sensations in your body to the non-sensation for the two-three minutes.
How do you feel? I’m hoping that you feel more relaxed and empowered to take charge of your journey.
Our bodies are like a large globe of sensations, feelings, and emotions and we are the travelers. As the traveler, you get to decide where your attention will go. Just like you moved between a sensation to a non-sensation, you have the power to select your focus.
Throughout the day, and sometimes within the hour, we make several visits to different parts of our life globe. We stop in to visit with joy, happiness, pain, frustration, anger, and occasionally, we stop by love. Although each space brings a new experience, the one thing they all have in common is that they are all temporary visits. Think about it that for a moment. No feeling, sensation, or emotion remains forever, nor is it meant to be indefinite. These experiences, like the air we breathe in and out each day – occurs in cycles. If we tried to hold on to a breath, we would suffocate and die. The same goes for these feelings and emotions.
This week embrace your traveler mindset and as you visit different parts of your globe of sensations, feelings, and emotions– allow your attention to stop in for a moment with whichever emotion you are experiencing, with the understanding that you will soon pick up and move on. Remember, no emotion is good or bad, it simply is. All of these locations on our life globe create a complete experience on this journey we call life. This is what it means to be positive!
Make it a great week or not. The choice is yours.
Niki Spears,
Author, Motivational Speaker, Co-Founder of Culture Cre8ion