“In order to cause a shadow to disappear, you must shine light on it. You cannot cause a shadow to disappear by trying to fight it, stamp on it, by railing against it, or any other form of emotional or physical resistance.”
~ Shakti Gawain
Yesterday, I found myself a bit “irked” over a number of things. The main thing “pushing my buttons” and creating my irksome mood was my villa guests. On Friday, young spring breakers at my parent’s property checked out an hour late and left the home in massive disarray: A kitchen full of dirty dishes, trash strewn everywhere.
While I should have suspected it, I wasn’t prepared for the same deal at my own property the following day. To top it off, two of the guests unexpectedly ended up with us for another night. And while we gratefully extended our hospitality at no charge, I couldn’t help but find myself a little “pissy” yesterday morning after they departed. They hadn’t neatened up a thing, and the kitchen alone took me 3 hours to clean.
A friend of mine also found himself in an irritable mood this week, as spring break students added chaos to his normally smooth business travels …
I reminded him to “Find his OM” ….
Yet here the yogi in me was struggling yesterday to find her own OM !!!
It’s at times like these, it’s so important to have what I call “My OM Toolbox” ready:
1. Decide to Change the Channel.
I always begin by reminding myself of Debbie Ford’s “Emotional Remote Control” instructions in her book, “The 21 Day Consciousness Cleanse”. Debbie suggests:
“For a moment, imagine that you’re sitting in a comfortable, plush chair in front of a large, high-definition TV screen. You have a remote control in your hand, and you are just about to tune into a particular channel. So, with that in mind, what channel have you been watching? Could it be one of the following:
The Stress Channel, The Self-Pity Channel, The Peaceful Channel, The Self-Esteem Channel, The Health and Wellness Channel, The Insecurity Channel, The Fear Channel (a very crowded one!), The Romantic Comedy Channel, The Blame & Resentment Channel, The Bliss Channel, The Having It All Channel, The Divine Connection Channel, The Gratitude Channel, or The New Beginnings Channel?”
I start by recalling that my options are truly infinite. Feeling pissy doesn’t feel good, and I truly wanted to change the channel and be happy … 🙂
2. Reflect on Feelings with Awareness and Curiosity.
Before I learned about mindfulness, I could have let this pissy attitude linger on for days. Now, as the Buddha taught, I watch these negative emotions arise with awareness, and with some level of humor. With open curiosity and non-judgment, I reflected on why I was feeling irritated. I’ve encountered many messy villa cleans in my years, and usually it doesn’t get to me. Was I holding my young guests to a higher standard because they were from Yale? Was I still feeling irritated because these environmental students used so much water? Why was I missing the humor here? Was I feeling lazy? Was I just at the end of my rope from 6 months of balls-to-the-walls work?
With all emotions, the Buddha instructs us to consider the law of impermanence. This too shall pass. And the messier the clean, the satisfaction at the end is always greater !!!
3. Breathe in some Happiness!
I recalled Thích Nhất Hạnh lesson that I posted a few days ago: I breathed a smile onto my face, and into my shoulders. It’s nearly impossible to be in a bad mood, even with a semi-fake smile on your face 🙂
4. Channel Changed.
The Buddha also instructs that mind cannot hold two thoughts at once. If you are a meditator, you know this. Watch your thoughts, and you’ll see them arise and fall away, 90 seconds being about as long as the mind can hold onto something.
The key here is to actively replace the negative thoughts with positive thoughts. I put on some Top 40 tunes, and started humming as I moved away from the kitchen ……
15 minutes later, I was back to my happy go lucky self ….. And sure enough, come 5:00PM, my villa looked amazingly, sparkly clean. I departed with a sense of satisfaction and gratitude that my guests had left me such a mess to practice my mindfulness ….
May your own OM be with you in all that you do today.
As Debbie Ford writes: “Focus your holy energy and consciously choose the highest vibration possible. Program your universal remote control to the channels that will move your sweet soul, heal your heart, inspire you to take action, and give you a deep sense of peace at the very center of your being.”
