I feel exposed. With my book “On the Verge: Wake Up, Show Up, and Shine”now available for the world to read, I feel more vulnerable than ever before in my life.
The other day on my drive to Verge Yoga I slipped through a yellow light just as it was turning red. My mind was elsewhere and I was in a rush. If I had been paying attention I would have slowed down and stopped.
In the exact moment that I sped up and raced through the light, I gently scolded myself: Not aware, CB! What are you doing?
Lucky for me, the consequences of my mindless action were minor — this time.
I know from experience that not being aware most certainly has consequences — sometimes very big consequences. I would venture to say that most incidents, from traffic accidents to minor bumps and bruises, occur when we are not aware.
My little yellow/red light slip up was a big wake up call. I realized that everything I do matters and has consequences — EVERYTHING!
I am always exposed to the world. And by the way, so are you.
I believe that when we show up in the moment fully, we do everything better. When we wake up to what is happening, right here and now, we don’t screw up.
Sneaking through that traffic light woke me up to how my actions speak louder than my words. For me right now, if I am distracted, there may be big consequences.
If I’m asking you to believe what I teach, I must walk my talk.
Every moment I must wake up and show up to the best of my ability.
Granted, I am human and there’s potential for mishaps and lapses of attention. I am not going to try to be perfect, but I can be more aware. I’ve done enough work to recognize that beating myself up will get me nowhere; gentleness and kindness is the gateway to being awake and aware more often.
My gentle and kind self tells me that the takeaway is that I noticed that I ran the yellow/red light. I noticed that I was not aware, that my mind was busy, and I was not present. I was trying to figure something out while trying to get somewhere fast. And by the way, this was the same busy mind that caused me to lose my wallet and my car key last month as I shared about on my blog Mindfulness, a Wallet, and Car Keys.
All we can continue to do is consistently notice what we’re thinking about and what we’re doing. Then instead of beating ourselves up we offer ourselves patience and compassion. This is how we show up and pay attention on purpose more often.
Wake Up. Notice. Be Kind. Pay Attention.
I want to walk my talk. I want you to believe what I teach. I’m committed to waking up and shifting beyond my scattered and sometimes foggy busy mind.
I’m committed to showing up in this moment — on the verge — on purpose.
Are you?
