how to be aware in an unaware world

Tag: love

Appreciation
Following up my last post on humankind, and all the reasons to be there for one another more now than ever, I wanted to reflect on how mindfulness and appreciation are two of the most connected topics.
With more awareness, we see the whole picture of our lives, neither good or bad, right or wrong, but what simply is.
One thing I have found rises to the top of simple awareness however is an appreciation for everyone and everything around me.
Anywho, this is the aim of this post, to uncover not just what appreciation does to us, but how to cultivate and feed the profound act of appreciation each and every day. Hope you like it!
“Appreciation is a wonderful thing. It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well.” – Voltaire.
Appreciation changes the mind of pure observation and adds a most important ingredient: gratitude.
Appreciation shifts the perspective of an experience from simple observance (which is often turned into judgmental observance because of the ego) to blessed observance (which is appreciating the fullness of an experience through the lens of gratefulness regardless of if the experience is good, bad, or ugly).
Blessed observance fully counteracts judgmental observance because it makes light of everything, not just the good.
And making light does not imply all attached emotions to the good, bad, and ugly aren’t there (in fact they are seen even greater). It means those emotions are lit up, illuminated by the light of appreciation for them.
You can appreciate something without giving it a pass. You can appreciate a bad or ugly experience without saying it’s okay.
It can very much not be okay, and action or speech must be taken to call out wrongdoing or injustice.
But even in those situations we are observing from fullness of appreciation and not partially from judgement.
So then, with the confidence and knowledge that appreciation is not just “good” for us, but rather essential, how do we find a way to express authentic appreciation each day?
This is where mindfulness comes in! During the daily practice of meditation, we open our hearts and minds to all that surrounds us, again, not tainted by any judgement of those surroundings.
If what we see, hear, and feel brings us down; then we can appreciate the light at the end of the tunnel they show us, and make steps to change our immediate environment.
One way during my meditation that I am able to hone in on appreciation is asking a simple question, “What are you blessed with?”
Then I name ten things on each finger that I am presently appreciative for in my life.
1. Family, who love and care for me deeply.
2. Friends, who enjoy my company.
3. A roof over my head.
4. Food in my belly.
5. Clean water to drink.
6. Clothes that keep me warm.
7. The profound practice of meditation.
8. A healthy body to run around in.
9. The gorgeous state of Utah I get to run around in.
10. A great car that gets me anywhere I want.
Appreciation for the littlest of things to the largest of moments. From the very breath I am taking right now to my beloved sister Amanda who passed away when I was eighteen.
Three More Things:
1. Read – How to be more apprecaitive every day.
2. Listen – Appreciating what we already have.
3. Watch – Want to be happy? Be grateful.
April 23, 2026
Happiness
As mentioned last post, I am kicking off a new post series on the most common human emotions: Happiness, Sadness, Anger, Fear, Surprise, Disgust, Love, Jealousy, Anxiety, and Excitement. I hope I can bring some insight and breakdown of probably the most sought-after quality in this life: Happiness.
“Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.”
– Mahatma Gandhi
This description by Gandhi is one of many ways to think of happiness because in reality, happiness may have universal qualities we yearn for, but it is highly personal too. How about this take from Emerson:
“For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
Or this one from the great Roman Emperor:
“The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts.”
– Marcus Aurelius
Happiness is a quality to look for not only in yourself, and that which makes you happy, but in those close to you.
Very Well Mind defines happiness as such:
Typically, happiness is an emotional state characterized by feelings of joy, satisfaction, contentment, and fulfillment. While happiness has many different definitions, it is often described as involving positive emotions and life satisfaction.
The way I like to define happiness in my own experience here on this short yet exciting ride called life is less characterized by a set of things achieved or obtained, but rather a feeling developed through suffering:
Happiness is the short yet sweet realization that the breath flowing in and out of your lungs is a gift of divine intervention.
Without the (literally perfect) conditions of this planet, we wouldn’t have a “breath” to breathe, balanced at about 71% Nitrogen and 21% Oxygen, we live on a miracle spinning at roughly 1,000 mph and tilted at exactly 23.45 degrees on its axis.
It’s absolutely incredible we are walking, talking, and doing anything really on this rare rock.
All that was mentioned to strengthen the notion that we are experiencing a time and place in this universe at just the right moment. We are walking, talking, and breathing miracles.
That realization, if nothing else comes of this life, is enough to be happy.
Happiness is a choice. It blows my mind when I find that some of the happiest people on earth live with the least amount of luxuries, proving that all the niceties of life actually get in the way of a nice life.
This doesn’t mean that creating a happy life is easy by any means, there are days in fact when it seems impossible, but that’s where mindfulness comes in.
Being mindful of the smallest joys, the tiniest gains, and the crumbs of hope can release dopamine and serotonin in impactful ways. These two chemicals work together in miraculous ways to regulate our emotions and responses to different situations, contributing to our overall sense of happiness and well-being.
Well then, what can I do to be happy you may ask?
There is no straight answer and no right path to happiness because it’s highly personal. To me, happiness is people. Meeting new people, spending quality time with quality people, and flying halfway across the world to see people.
But for a good friend of mine, it’s a sport, he absolutely loves teamwork and sportsmanship and getting involved in all kinds of games, and though he also loves people, it’s striving for a win, for success that makes him happy.
Although there is no single recipe for happiness, just as there is no recipe for depression, there underlies a way to increase what does make us happy, and it’s oh so simple!
Yes, you guessed correctly, it’s mindfulness!
It starts with practicing awareness and committing to at least 10-20 minutes a day to center the mind and body, asking how you feel constantly.
Then with the foundation of awareness, we can identify and jot down those things that bring a true sense of happiness and just do more of those things.
Oh, and you can chuck out all those self-help happiness guides because what provides a sense of happiness, contentment, and life satisfaction is right in front of us.
It’s all around us, it’s the small, seemingly insignificant moments when someone is kind to us or gifts a smile, it’s the compliment of our clothing or the touch of a friend. Happiness is here and now.
June 28, 2024
Worry
“I skate to where the puck is going to be, not to where it has been.”
– Wayne Gretzky
I found this quote in an investing and trading ebook. It was used in reference to a long-term approach in the stock market. The author’s guidance was to invest where the market will be, not where it has been.
It is also an equally great metaphor for life. The past is behind us, unable to be modified or relived, but the future is where possibility and opportunity lie.
(So I just realized this quote is much more about regret than worry, but I got carried away and reflected on worry instead, so I’ll post about regret next).
Reflection
Granted, the past provides much that can help us in the present (if we are aware of those past mistakes and learning opportunities).
Then there is the greatly significant difference between planning for the future and worrying about the future.
Worry may disguise itself as planning, but it couldn’t be any different.
Planning brings you back to the present after completion. Worrying leaves you in the future, contemplating endless possibilities.
Worry is an unfortunate side effect of the pursuit. Will it end up okay? Will I be successful? Will I be able to survive? Will they like me? And on and on.
It is actually a quite natural and albeit sometimes helpful emotion (when worried about a loved one, showing a deep connection and concern).
But I would argue that the majority of worry (like 90%) is really unhelpful and even destructive.
This is where mindfulness steps in and teaches us to step back from all kinds of thinking (worry or otherwise) and simply observe the present mind.
It takes a lot of practice (day after day for months) to truly realize the power of mindfulness throughout the day.
Meditation is not a practice with a completion, it is a transformation for a lifetime.
How does mindfulness help with worry in our ever-changing lives? I’m so glad you asked!
Worry enters the mind, say the worry about whether you will get a job or not in preparation for an interview, and you begin to spend a considerable amount of time thinking about that job.
Now, some of that worry is constructive (like the 10% when noticing the worry itself meaning you care a lot about the job and should take it seriously).
And the rest of that worry can be let go of: “Oh yeah, I’m worrying right now about this job way too much and I choose to let that worry go and move on to what I’m doing right now.”
Like I said, this sounds so easy on paper, but without devoted practice to noticing thought (worry) and letting it go, we cannot achieve this effect so easily, we will succumb to the thinking (worrying) and add a lot of unnecessary stress to our lives.
Encouragement
I encourage us to find the worries throughout the day today and simply begin to note them (in a tiny, cute notepad or on our bubbly, colorful notes app).
Literally. Jot down someplace all that worries you right now in your life, and again when you begin to worry in the future.
And when planning our complicated lives, look to the past for guidance, look to the present when we’ve got caught chasing the past or future, and look at the future for possibility and hope!
Thanks
Thank you again for worrying about me (lol just kidding, there is no need to worry about me!) But, thank you for your attention reading this post, it is a rare gift these days.
As always, feel free to leave a comment or share this post, let me know if you enjoy the posts. You can also Buy Me a Coffee if you are inclined to do so. Thank you in advance!
Links
November 9, 2023