continued from Part One: Force of Nature Part Two: Focus. (see previous posts)
In addition to focus, the other 50%, of gratitude is cultivating relaxed awareness. It is this aspect that I believe explains why gratitude finds so many of us when we are in natural settings. If we take away the mental aspect and just look at what is happening in the body, we will notice that usually, we are in some form more relaxed in our physical stance. We have dropped tension from our faces, our jaw, and our shoulders. And because of that drop in physical tension, we open the fuller range of our sensory experience. We smell and know that we are smelling. We hear and know that we are hearing. We feel the air; we taste it. We are physically experiencing our environment.
This is my very favorite way to cultivate gratitude. And, yes, there is a spectrum of the capacity to experience. When we deem an experience as unpleasant (or worse!) we tighten to protect and to survive. Sometimes it’s necessary and lifesaving. Let’s set aside those cases and make a case for non-life-threatening experiences.
We often tense on reflex even IF we would be ok to experience something fully.
Cold exposure comes to mind.
Non-life-threatening conflict comes to mind.
Normal ranges of hunger come to mind.
Attempting something new and hard comes to mind.
When we feel the body sensation to avoid tension and choose instead to relax and soften naturally, we open up the nervous system to receive the experience and expand our capacity. In receiving the experience, we receive the impulses and something richer because we bring an open willingness to it.
BRINGING THE PIECES TOGETHER
Gratitude is one of those things that we’ve all experienced but is a bit tedious to read about (and, if I’m honest, a bit hairy to write about).
When we talk about “our part” of cultivating gratitude there is overlap between focus of mind and sensory presence of body. They work in tandem.
So, as a practical way of illustrating, I invite you to imagine with me going on a tough hike. If you spent the whole time wanting to be somewhere else (focus), hunched your shoulders, scowled, and crossed your arms (closed body position with tension), even WHEN you got the top with the view I’d guess that the level of gratitude you receive would be more similar to relief that it’s over. And, the “lesson” you’d likely take away is something about “glad that’s done. I’m never doing that again”. Not wrong but worth noting.
Instead, take the same tough hike. But you allowed yourself to be there fully. You purposely looked at, listened and felt everything you were experiencing. (Sensory awareness). You zoomed in on the steps you were taking (and maybe the burn in your lungs) and mentally owned that you choose to be a part of this experience (focus).
When you got the top with the view, you’d probably still feel some relief and joy that you made it. And, there’s a strong likelihood that the lessons you were taking away (or the memories) would be far richer. And, I can almost promise that you’d be able to feel this unexplainable power flowing through you that both nourishes you and activates you. That energy would be gratitude.
Gratitude is a power player of softening when we want to resist, of humility and faith, and ultimately of claiming our greatest power --- our chosen response. Putting yourself in the position for gratitude to arise and then enliven the quality of your action and movement forward.
Cultivating the habit and position of gratitude is a lynchpin conduit of the Soul (the animating force) of Success.
Remember. Gratitude is not something you do TO yourself. It’s a force you receive.
Master your focus to see. Open your body to feel. Allow that enlivening force to find you and flow up and through you. It will significantly enrich all it touches.