Ta-dah! List

[oak]

BeanyBoo, yes, I think I have a sense of what you are getting at.

Can you provide an example of creating such a space?

[Beany Boo]

Yes, the second after I say something unexpected and then observe the prosody of my listener’s reply or if there are no words returned by them then I observe what goes unspoken in the silence between us.

[Beany Boo]

I had the latest of all the work-tasks, that I have been shoehorned into, to do today. Spontaneously at one point, I calmly decided that it didn’t matter whether the task was ever resolved. Instead, I simply had to participate in the now, and respond in whatever way was ostensibly available to me, before moving on. My brain was happy to let me, but without this time, falling into the grip of anxiety.

In a separate instance, I was working on a task that was particularly frustrating for me. At the precise moment that I sensed it was going to overwhelm me (as in, cause me to lose sleep), I became pointedly aware, and literally released the mouse, pushing away from the desk. Then I closed the desktop window and left it all for another day.

One of the best moments so far of this mindfulness journey.

The ta-dah! was knowing the exact moment to step in and take care of myself (and take my self-care seriously) in the turmoil of work, with only my senses available to successfully read the situation.

[Beany Boo]

Day 14 of daily 45 minute body scan meditations. It’s a heavy adjustment. Really feeling the edge of stress as something tangible though and able to regularly step back from it on cue. Starting to feel compassion for people without vicariously taking on too much of their suffering. Being kind to myself is not what I thought it would be, but I like it. It’s fairly wordless; a measured, targeted, modulating force; like filling a sail.

I also felt angry today without the compulsion to do anything about it (‘I feel angry’ is a complete sentence).

The ta-dah! is I felt safe and autonomous at different times today. It came and went but it was definitely there.

[Beany Boo]

I said no to my boss in a situation I knew would upset him. But I also knew it would transgress my own values to say otherwise so, it was a no-brainer. I realized I was more afraid of the feeling I would experience, if I didn’t say no, than anything he might say against me. It feels good to mindfully act in an ethical way towards myself and, compassionately towards him.

The ta-dah! was it all happened very quietly and gently, and yet with strength. That’s new.

[manuel_moe_g]

Man, good stuff as usual, Beany. Cool like a Zen Master...

[oak]

Nice.

Well done, BeanyBoo.

Keep these ta-da’s coming.

[Beany Boo]

Today I cleaned, without effort or loneliness.

No improvement, no goal, or threat. Just clean. Then stop.

The ta-dah! was that the more I took my time in the cleaning, the more time I had to clean. It also felt like more than just cleaning. It felt auspicious. Like part of a practice. Like cleaning is life-long.

‘Cleaner for life!’

[Beany Boo]

Today I pushed back against someone particularly demanding. I felt vulnerable and immovable at the same time. The task gave way favorably (if not the person). While I wasn’t happy about it, I definitely deeply felt a sense of myself; like my self-compassion is unmistakable in this moment.

The ta-dah! was the ‘I did it on my own’ of it.

[manuel_moe_g]

so rad, Beany!