https://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.png00Lori A. Noonanhttps://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.pngLori A. Noonan2024-02-09 11:50:322024-02-09 11:50:34Caring
https://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.png00Lori A. Noonanhttps://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.pngLori A. Noonan2022-07-29 22:57:132022-07-29 23:04:49I observe, I experience
What may be lesser known is this: Soon thereafter, Descartes revised his own saying, to: “I am, I exist.” (1641) Now, THAT’s the spirit!
When you’re thinking, you’re ‘mulling.’ You’re ‘somewhere else.’ Thinking takes you away from, or out of, the present moment. For more on this, refer back to this recent edition of Soul Notes, here.
Take the Olympics, for example. The athletes have prepared years if not even decades, yes. They’re in the best physical condition of their lives, also yes. They’ve ‘put in the work.’ Indeed. And yet, are they thinking much while they’re setting world records? Maybe. I suppose there is still some cognitive strategy at play. Are we thinking as we watch? Maybe, a little.
What draws us in as witnesses to these events, however, is the series of ever present moments. It’s the single points in time and space where everything converges. That’s where the magic is. That is when we are most inspired. That’s when we are in awe. That’s when we are all one.
For Your Consideration
If you’re not thinking, does that mean you no longer exist? This is not a rhetorical question. Of course you (we, I) exist! It is not our thinking which makes it so.
Okay, your turn:
As a carryover from last moon’s edition of Soul Notes, I ask you: Is thinking overrated? I invite you to share your observations, feelings, and experiences by leaving a Reply in the Comments section, below. Soul-to-soul!
“It’s become so automatic, I don’t even think about it when I’m doing it.”
“It is so ‘second nature,’ I could do it in my sleep.”
What if we put our second nature first? What if our second nature became our first nature?
When we say something becomes second nature, we mean that it’s not something we’re consciously aware of when we’re doing it. For example, once you learn how to drive a car, you’re not consciously aware of all the movements you’re making to drive the car, and to navigate from point A to point B.
It could also be something that we say we do by instinct — again, without really thinking about it.
“I don’t know how I reached out and kept that child from falling over the railing, it was just a knee-jerk reflex.”
In other words, it’s living from your subconscious. I wouldn’t say it is unconscious — it’s anything but that. Rather, it’s consciously living from what is there all along. Instead of relying on thinking to make it happen — we let the thinking take a back seat, and elevate the subconscious up to the surface.
We can invite it up and out to play all the time! Radical idea? Maybe. Worth it? Absolutely.
Is thinking overrated?
“I never gave it another thought.”
“I just did it without thinking.”
We say things like the above statements as if thinking is the central benchmark, the kingpin, the main yardstick by which to gauge our actions and experiences. Why have we given thinking such an elevated status?
Of course, in any given moment your brain never truly shuts off. It doesn’t completely disengage from your bodily functions any more than your lungs keep from expanding and contracting, or your heart stops beating.
It’s merely a part of you, and yet it’s not all of you. When your second nature kicks in — during any emergency for example — you bring your awareness into keen focus. You are bringing a blending in of all of you into and to that moment. You are one with the situation, each person in that moment, and truly one with all of creation. There are no boundaries real or perceived. I know this may seem trippy, and I assure you this is not a drug-induced blog post, if that’s what you’re thinking. What you’re thinking, see what I mean? We are a thinking-obsessed so called modern society.
For your consideration:
What if we allowed our thinking to fade into the mix of our lived experiences, almost as if we swirled our thinking into a can of paint, using a wooden dowel, and letting the thinking disappear into the whole of the paint? Would we miss it ? Or, would we simply allow it to swirl into the mixture that becomes the fully blended vibrant paint color? Did the prior paint in the can cease to exist, or did the new paint that was added in — did that no longer exist, once we mixed it all in together? Nope. It stayed. It melded. It only seemed to disappear.
We can step out of our thinking brain and experience all of creation in a 360-degree (up down, all-around) way. We can live life in a way that I would deem to be spherical.
I contend that our lives would take on a, pardon the pun, whole new dimension. I’ve been living this way the past few weeks, and it’s been wild as heck and soooo nice to give my brain a rest. I’ve been putting my brain on an ongoing moment-by-moment ‘time out,’ and it’s been wondrous. And, in living this way you’re never alone, because you are living from a place of being one with everyone and everything.
Okay, your turn:
Does this idea of living from what I am calling a place of spherical awareness — living wholly and completely from outside the thinking mind — does that appeal to you? Are you willing to give it a go?
I invite you to share your feelings and experiences by leaving a Reply in the Comments section, below. Soul-to-soul!
https://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.png00Lori A. Noonanhttps://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.pngLori A. Noonan2021-07-10 23:54:002021-07-12 00:20:53Making second nature first
There is something to be said about consciously evening out the wear and tear on something as much as possible. It keeps it refreshed. It prolongs its life. It prevents undue strain on any one area or facet.
Take a moment to reflect:
What in your life right now could benefit from a little rotating? Sure, it could be your mattress (ha!), but what about different parts of your lifestyle or your life’s journey? Is there a particular area of your life, or your thought patterns or beliefs, that’s been stuck way too long in the exact same position? Has there been so much pressure consistently applied in a single place, that it’s worn out? If not physically, then intellectually or emotionally?
You’re at choice to do something about it. Can you flip it? Rotate it? Turn it upside down? Inside out? Even simply envisioning doing this can create a magical revelation for you. Try it!
Okay, your turn:
Did you try rotating something in your world? If so, what did you notice? If you haven’t tried rotating anything, will you soon?
I invite you to share your thoughts, feelings, and experiences by leaving a Reply in the Comments section, below. Soul-to-soul!
https://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.png00Lori A. Noonanhttps://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.pngLori A. Noonan2021-06-10 05:06:332021-06-10 16:29:37Things we rotate
When we hear (or say) that we are destroying our planet, are we not indeed acknowledging that we are destroying ourselves? Does not nature (and we are nature) come with its own divine structure? When we build up artificial structures, only to dismantle and destroy them, what value remains, if any? When you hear the word infrastructure, what does that connote for you?
Okay, your turn:
Do these lines of inquiry present any new awareness for you? Would you rather not pay them any mind? Is there a risk in doing so? How about in not doing so?
I invite you to share your thoughts, feelings, and experiences by leaving a Reply in the Comments section, below. Soul-to-soul!
https://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.png00Lori A. Noonanhttps://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.pngLori A. Noonan2021-05-11 04:39:572021-05-11 18:29:14Deconstructing what we construct
During these times of global as well as for many of us local, uncertainty — in both the physical and political realms — it begs the question for each of us to consider:
What does this mean for me emotionally and spiritually? Where in my own life have I been met with uncertainty and challenges that may trigger previous wounds? Have those wounds been healed through my physical and spiritual growth? Am I willing to accept that healing and embrace the current (and future, because there will always be more) uncertainties and challenges from a place of healing and not open wounds? For me, the answer is yes.
Okay, your turn:
What does it mean to you to read words like these? What, if any, emotions arise for you?
I invite you to share your thoughts, feelings, and experiences by leaving a Reply in the Comments section, below. Soul-to-soul!
https://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.png00Lori A. Noonanhttps://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.pngLori A. Noonan2021-02-11 07:56:302021-02-11 17:12:28Wash away
(not to be confused with ‘currentness,’ which is something different, altogether)…
Love as currency
Caring as currency
Compassion
Respect
Understanding
Empathy
Oneness
Wholeness
The sustainability of each of us
And the planet
Depends on it
On us.
What matters to you?
Does it matter?
Yes.
It matters
No matter
what.
For your consideration:
Set a countdown clock on your phone or computer, for a quick 11 seconds. Without thinking, blurt out (and write down on a piece of paper), the first three things that matter to you. They can be lofty or grounded, simple or complex. No editing allowed. No filtering. No worrying about what others’ opinions may be. This exercise is for your eyes and heart only.
Repeat this process as many times as your heart desires. By the end of the day, take the entire list or sets of lists (remember, no editing), and put the paper under your pillow and sleep on it. Dream on it.
The next morning (again without thinking, without editing), jot down anything that arose for you since the previous day. Anything new that you discovered really matters to you? Anything that really doesn’t matter to you, after all?
On each new moon, if you so desire, revisit your list and see what still matters.
Okay, your turn:
Have you really felt into what matters to you? If not, why not? If so, what has been revealed? Anything surprising? Anything unusual? Anything you’d like to reprioritize?
I invite you to share your thoughts, feelings, and experiences by leaving a Reply in the Comments section, below. Soul-to-soul!
https://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.png00Lori A. Noonanhttps://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.pngLori A. Noonan2020-07-20 18:50:322020-07-20 19:30:36It is a matter of what matters
On this the eve of a new moon and solstice and on this Juneteenth day as I post this, I bring you an image. I painted it last week as I allowed what it was that needed to emerge.
I dedicate this edition of Soul Notes to all who have suffered injustice and as a sacred holding place for the possibility of:
What unites us
may
truly
unite us
~lori a. noonan
June 19, 2020*
—————————–
*One hundred and fifty-five years past June 19, 1865. It would be months later on December 6, 1865 that the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution, in an effort to abolish slavery, would be ratified and it became law.
https://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.png00Lori A. Noonanhttps://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.pngLori A. Noonan2020-06-19 16:20:372020-06-20 02:04:35Healing heart
https://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.png00Lori A. Noonanhttps://lanoonan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Logo-transparent-300x72.pngLori A. Noonan2020-04-21 18:42:122020-04-22 16:21:30The new normal and the value of patience