Baby Blue Bronco: August 18 - 24

Last year my friend bought a baby blue Bronco. It is a beautiful car. Since then, I notice baby blue Broncos everywhere. This is the power of awareness – the superpower we cultivate week by week through mindfulness. Like all superpowers, awareness can be used for good or for evil. Focus on fear and you’ll see doom and gloom around every corner. Focus on kindness and you’ll witness daily acts of goodness.

Never forget we possess amazing power. In my personal meditation, I’ve noticed when my mind gets entangled in worry, not only do I see problems, but I also create and magnify them. I imagine disasters that never happen but nonetheless feel them in the pit of my stomach and replay them in my mind. Awareness gives me the ability to take a subtle fear and turn it into something almost tangible that I then carry around for days and weeks.

Awareness is also the antidote. In the stillness of meditation, I sometimes recognize the trap that I’ve fallen into. Recognition is the first step in breaking free. Shifting my awareness from fear to light is the next step. Gratitude for the beauty of nature, the love of friends, and the joy of life is the third step to freedom. These dark days are only as dark as we allow them to be. Here’s to finding hope along the way.

Practice

Breathe. Sense the body. Place a hand on the heart. Take a moment to arrive in the here and now. Take another minute to settle in a bit deeper.

Now imagine getting into a baby blue Bronco or whatever your favorite form of transportation may be today. In your mind's eye, travel to wherever your heart leads. It could be to the beach or mountains, to your backyard or dream destination. Close your eyes and open up the senses of the imagination. What do you hear around you? What do you see? What do you smell? What do you feel? Soak in the experience. Linger a little longer in this place.

In the distance, you notice a person approaching. As they get closer, you recognize something familiar about them. Maybe it is the way they walk, the sound of their voice, the way they look at you. Soon you know what visitor has come to spend time with you today. You walk together for a while. You share what's on your heart and mind. They listen and do the same. Take another moment to be deeply present. Before you two part, they have a specific word for you or maybe they place something in your hand. You ponder what it means.

Eventually it is time to return. You get back into your Bronco or plane or boat and arrive back in the here and now. You open the senses to the sounds and sensations around you. You feel your feet on the floor. Whenever you're ready you open your eyes and return to the day.

How do you feel now? This was an experience in awareness. Did this imaginary journey awaken true thoughts and feelings? Now use this ability to dream into reality the world you want to see.