When I was scrolling through the e-affirmations that arrive in my inbox each morning, I glanced down the usual reminders about living in the moment and grabbing an attitude of gratitude. I stopped at one prompt on the list I hadn’t ever seen before. It read ‘Protect your Attention.’
My attention immediately went to the guy in the truck who honked at me the day before. I was in a playground zone, so was going slow – but not too slow. I did glance in the direction of my favourite little second-hand store as we drove along, and maybe I lingered a bit too long in my looking around. At any rate, the fellow coming towards me pressed his horn for the full length of the block. Maybe it wasn’t directed at me, but there was no one else around. Had I meandered into his lane a bit, I wondered. Had my attention been drawn off my driving? Protect your attention, indeed.
But maybe they meant protect the attention you pay to things that unwittingly come your way: fake news that might present as the real thing; people who make demands of your time; great big sales on Easter chocolate. Or maybe it meant protect your attention to the things you willingly cast your eyes to that you have control over: unfair gossip; reasons to keep holding your grudge; prowling social media for posts that will justify your bad mood. What you look for you will find, after all, so pay attention to what you’re paying attention to.
It reminded me of the time we all did a yoga practice together at a writers’ retreat. One of the writers among us was also a yoga instructor (maybe the two interests are linked). I’m accustomed to the resting pose at the end of practice, when the instructor may remind us to soften our foreheads, soften our breathing, etc. This one did that, but added: soften your tongue, soften your heart.
Whoa, what a yogi path that took me down! I totally thought she meant soften your tongue against speaking harshly to someone and soften your heart to welcome love. But when I relayed these gentle new prompts to my sister, she replied: what a great reminder – my jaw muscles get so stiff if I don’t remember to unclench my teeth.
There you have it – we can lend our attention to the messages that come our way and interpret them in any manner that serves us. Now I’m off to see if there’s still sale chocolate available!