Welcome back to lesson three in the Everyday Miracles 12 week course. Today we will be talking about The Art Of Living And How To Turn Daily Living Into An Act Of Grace
There is also a meditation that goes along with todays lesson called Nature Therapy. You will find the link to this meditation just below.
In a life that is full of options, it is easy to become overwhelmed. After all, we live in a culture where we supposedly get our comfort from accumulating an abundance of stuff, whether that stuff be physical things, experiences or career successes.
In our busy and harried world, with overbooked schedules and not enough time in the day, it can sometimes feel that life is just passing us by. If you are like myself and so many people I know, then chances are that all too often you probably feel like more of an observer in life as opposed to being an active participant?
Today’s resource is focused on the art of living well. I will share my thoughts on what intentional slow living can do for our souls and how choosing to seek out the extraordinary within those everyday ordinary moments can become a life-transforming practice.
Modern day theory says that we should all strive and work hard in order to achieve and become. For many of us, this mainstream thinking then turns daily life into a constant act of ‘striving to become’, where hours are wasted and frivolled away as we spend big portions of our days over achieving, over impressing, over analysing, over complicating, over doing and so forth. Modern day culture is all too often responsible for us losing our innate ability to ‘just be’ and as a result we have disconnected from the art of living well.
We only have to look at the continual uprise of anxiety, depression, overwhelm and stress to realise that modern day living is geared more towards striving than thriving.
We complicate living so much, we obsess about what’s good, bad, unfair, healthy, right and wrong. We fill our heads with a constant thought stream of complexity. We feel like we must control and understand life in order to live it ‘right’. However, thousands of years ago caveman never over analysed life – they just lived.
Same goes for your dog, an elephant, a lion – all they know is ‘the importance of the here and now’. Your cat has no intention of being a better cat than the one next door, it’s just focused on enjoying being a cat – eating, playing, getting a pat, warming itself up in front of the fire ….and so goes.
I talk a lot about all things spiritual, and truthfully there is nothing more spiritual than the process of living daily life. Whether you are a religious person or not – daily life should become a living prayer, a work of art and at the very least your own masterpiece.
Every day we are connected to things outside ourselves – which also happens to be a very profound thing. We are changed by how we choose to live our daily lives, this not only changes and affects the events of our own life, but we also hold the power to positively impact others and things outside of ourselves.
By choosing to live each day with intention, mindfulness and an appreciation for the hours in our day, we will in turn find meaning, purpose and happiness within our own life.
***Todays lesson is accompanied by a meditation below. You can access all audio meditations and lessons for this course here [YouTube] or sign up to our Podcast
How we choose to go about our everyday routines and choices is our most profound engagement with the world around us. Life is about a series of relationships, it links us to other people and other forms of life. This connection has become invisible to many of us because we live in such a mindless way – not consciously aware of ‘life and being’. Unfortunately, for many of us, we have grown to take the very act of living for granted.
However, actively choose to rediscover the links and connections of the natural world – and watch your everyday and ordinary moments become moments of ‘beauty and grace’.
How we live our daily life is the perfect opportunity for us to express our true authenticity. What we choose to do and what we choose not to do is a wonderful way to embody what we care about.
When you take time to ponder the small things….you quickly realise just how miraculous all of life is. You will soon find contentment in the simple things – and you will be grateful for every breath you take thereafter – for you will realise that it is in fact ‘life itself’ that is the true gift to us all.
So many of our problems arise from the collapse of not living mindfully and within the present moment. We mindlessly go about our everyday routines – hoping to get them over and done with quickly. We spend moments agonising over past decisions and mistakes, as well as moments future tripping and worrying about how things will turn out.
We are also rushed. We are so rushed in life that a sense of panic about time is part of what has disconnected us from the very act of living. The present moment has become inaccessible to many of us. But if we choose to really attend to what we are doing – then we can reclaim the present.
Whether your chopping onions, ironing clothes or on your morning commute to work. Learn to be in the moment. When your ironing – just iron. No matter how small or mundane the task is, choose to absorb yourself in the ‘act of doing’ and you will find that the world just slips away – and it is here that inner stillness will rise to meet you for the occasion.
The art of living well starts when we can find stillness within. For stillness enables us to be able to see ourselves and the world around us more clearly. Our senses become heightened, life itself becomes the miracle and everything you have and are, suddenly all become enough.
It is these little moments, decadent and opulent moments, of quietness and stillness within that keeps our enthusiasm and joy alive.
You don’t need adventurous holidays, new beginnings and expensive luxuries to feel uplifted, inspired and nurtured. It is about turning the everyday things and events that are easily accessible to you into a sacred ritual.
The journey to stillness begins when you reconnect with your breath. Allowing the breath to wash away all the external noise from both your ego and the outside world. Dropping your awareness whole-heartedly into what you are doing in that moment. Allowing your senses to be heightened as you keep your mind on your breath, on the present moment and on what you are doing. Then; after a few mindful breathes invite that space of stillness within to rise.
As you go about your day do your best to stay in this state of intention and mindfulness, and what you will discover is that your everyday moments will become moments of ‘being’ instead of ‘doing’. You will experience life with all your senses, while holding a deep sense of inner peace and stillness within. It is within this space of ‘being’ that you realise this is where life begins and that this is how life is meant to be experienced.
On the journey to discovering the importance of stillness within, one can go from being soulfully numb to spiritually alive; it has the power to melt the consciousness into a new existence. It will inspire and uplift, giving one the ability to find beauty in their current life, exactly how their life stands today.
Taking the time to re-examine your own life and prioritise finding stillness within will reignite your passion for life. You will clear out the clutter and replace it with things that have more meaning and substance; bringing more inner peace and contentment to each day no matter what your income, location or situation.
The truth is that every moment of the day is a sacred occasion and we should take every minute more seriously.
Our innate instinct is to find meaning and purpose within our life – but we are giving it up by finding meaning in things outside of our selves. We are seeking meaning in the opinion of others. We are seeking meaning by trying to label and understand everything. We are seeking meaning by overcomplicating the simplest of things – even life itself.
Living in the present moment – what a rich opportunity – and its available to all of us. We can all get back to the basics of living in the moment (no matter what your circumstance) and so many good things will be born from that – your health, your happiness and so forth.
There is something in the nature of living with mindfulness that will take care of your overall happiness and contentment. Maybe it’s because we get back to the core and simplicity of our human spirit and fall back into the natural rhythm of life.
From today forward, start living a little more intentionally by actively choosing to turn your daily chores and everyday life into a transcended moment. Choose to turn the ordinary into the extra-ordinary. Take some time to notice the things you would normally overlook. Smell the roses, breathe in the fresh air, marvel at the little forms of life growing in the cracks of concrete and so forth.
Whatever you are doing take a moment to really feel what it is your doing. The smell, colour, texture and so forth.
Grace is at the core of stillness and intentional living. Stop and make yourself aware of what this moment is. For life is rhythmic – and if you allow yourself to fall in to its natural beat you will discover a world of such endless beauty and grace.
After all is said and done, at the end of the day we make meaning in our own life. Rethink and re-evaluate your relationship to the natural world and your perception to it.
If you liked this article then make sure you check out my free Everyday Miracles course here >>>. Alternatively, if you are inspired to slow down a little in life then maybe head over to my blog post Embrace The Slow Living Movement