How many times have you felt cornered in your life, just like this tree? No room to grow, to expand and to be who you are. Many of us experienced this feeling this whole year with the pandemic. No space to do what we want to do and what we are accustomed to doing – going to the gym or yoga studio, vacationing, theatre, baseball game or dining out. As we know, even though things are opening we still have a way to go to get back to pre-pandemic times.
This feeling of being cornered reminds me of the movie “Groundhog Day.” This is a reference that I myself have used this past year until I took a deeper look into the movie. Bill Murray’s character, a journalist reluctantly covering the special day of watching if the groundhog emerges from its burrow to forecast a longer winter or an early spring, is uninterested and unimpressed and can’t wait to get out of town but when he wakes up the next morning, he realizes he is reliving the same day. He relives the same day, over and over for many, many days. He can’t figure out how to stop repeating the same day. It’s when he changes his attitude, when he become more caring, giving and loving towards the people of the town that things start to change. He still wakes up to the same day, same circumstances but it feels different because he’s different. As he become more mindful of these same people that he meets every day, new opportunities open for him: he starts to meet new people, he has new experiences, and new interactions. The more he becomes fully present and engages with everyone and everything around him, little by little things start to change until one day, it’s a different day.
So, you know where I’m going with this, right? If you feel you are living the same day over and over, and you feel bored and exhausted, ask yourself are you engaged, truly engaged in your life? Are you being mindful and present with the people around you and the things you are doing or are you on autopilot?
The definition of mindfulness: mindfulness is awareness that arises
through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment,
non-judgmentally,” Jon-Kabat-Zinn
That is the challenge this week, to be and stay engaged in what we are doing regardless of the repetition or boredom. Remember, boredom is defined as - the fact that we are not able to engage attention and participate in satisfying activity. Best antidote, “engage and pay attention to what you are doing.” When you are engaged, there is no room for boredom or feeling like every day is the same.
