This morning I was ironing a green table cloth and remembered the mindfulness exercise from a recent Creative Insight Journey course I took a while ago, to look at experiences from a child’s or alien’s perspective, for whom everything is novel and new and magical and full of surprises. As I was passing the iron on the wrinkled tablecloth it magically flattened out beautifully and so easily – it seemed truly as if by magic.
Same with our body functions. It’s totally mysterious how my body does it all for me without my lifting a finger – breathing, digesting, nourishing me, walking, talking, hearing. I never have to give it a thought. Then I was unfolding a receipt with a child’s mind and had to smile at the crunchy sound the paper made. After that, I listened to the toilet flush’s whoosh with a child’s mind and had to smile again, this time at the gurgling sound the water made.
This is a really neat exercise because everyday experiences become novel, almost fantastical when you leave your expectations and jadedness aside. Without expectations, when you’re present with an open and unhindered mind that is in the Now, the ordinary becomes extraordinary, and the quality of life ratchets up a notch.
As I am writing this I look out the window and see some evergreen branches moving up and down as if by magic. I can’t see the breeze, I can’t hear it either, neither can I feel it. My mind is open, the branches seem to move by themselves – magic again.
Best of all – experiencing life like this is free; it takes no effort, free sparkles, and glitter. All it requires is a shift. Try it!
