As I think about and encourage people I work with to take personal lifestyle inventories before attempting to make big changes, I am reminded of the ways we are programmed to think rigidly, dualistically and competitively.
Through our many institutions: the nightly news, schools, testing, media, religion, sports, the job market, the judicial system etc., we are organized and trained to compete, to find fault in ourselves and others, to look through lenses of right or wrong, black or white, and good or bad in all situations. As a result, we have not been encouraged to live in or explore the grey where much of human reality lies.
When assessing our personal lifestyles, we often overlook our gifts, positive contributions to ourselves and to the world. For example, when thinking about our diets or exercise habits, we can ignore anything healthy we’re doing or have done. Instead we may create negative judgements or go into a denial and justify the junk we consume, the lack of physical movement, uses of our creativity, etc.
Practice: I would like to offer you a meditation: Think about some part of your life today and spend ten minutes holding a grey consciousness. See how it feels and notice what floats before your eyes, any images, feelings, or words? Please share anything you care to. I welcome your comments and contributions. Thank you.
