Being with what is…

In this moment, what is happening for you? How do you find yourself? Are you calm, peaceful and contemplative or are you restless, agitated and unhappy? Regardless of what is going on for you, however you find yourself is what is happening. It is what is. Being with what is can be joyous or it can be difficult. We don’t like being with uncomfortable feelings and cling to blissful experiences. In this week’s blog, I thought I would explore the phrase “being with what is”.

Being with all that comes up for us is not always easy. Our feelings can be quite overwhelming at times and we may find ourselves uncomfortable with how we feel. This experience surfaces for us at times when we have done something unintentional that has caused another to feel hurt. We can’t take back our words or our actions. A sincere apology is all we can do but often it feels insufficient. As a result we are left with our feelings of how we have negatively impacted another. All we can do is be with what is. Some try to escape by distracting themselves or living in denial but the truth remains and we must bear our fruit by sitting in what is.

Similarly, we may experience disappointment in ourselves. Perhaps we have not lived up to our own expectations or of those we believe another has of us that we look up to. Our actions have spoken for themselves and all we are left with is being with what is. In these moments, there doesn’t seem to be anything that can ease the uncomfortable feeling within us. We simply must be present to what is and learn from our experience.

Sometimes the feelings are elevating such as when we rise in love. A new relationship comes into our lives and we feel enriched because of it. Our elation is so exhilarating that we want to do everything we can to hold onto the feeling. We feel on top of the world and as though nothing can bring us down. The world is brighter, richer and somehow slower. We stop to watch the sunrise, listen to the water in a brook or find great pleasure in the company of the beloved. At these times, we love being with what is and seek to prolong its manifestation. Yet, we cannot hold onto a feeling as they come and go with the wind. Clinging never makes something last longer it only intensifies the experience and pain when it slips away through our fingers.

There are times when being with what is challenges our thoughts and beliefs. We feel uncomfortable and stretched to a point of breaking. Our ego has run up against a wall and we find ourselves at a decision point, either go forward or retreat. In these moments, being with what is can be very uncomfortable and challenging. Going forward means letting go of something, surrendering to the moment. Retreating seems like taking a break but that is illusory. There are no time outs in life, it is just postponing the inevitable as we will cross the same path again another day or in another life time. Limiting beliefs will always be challenged whether we are ready or not.

All of the experiences in our life are our own creations. They are the children of our thoughts. Our mind is constantly thinking new thoughts, which are often hard to trace back to their origin. The energy we put into our thoughts determines which ones are manifest and which simply pass like clouds in the sky. Those thoughts that we focus upon manifest and we must journey them to completion. In essence we become attached to them. The more attached we are the more challenging it is for us to let go or in some cases to simply be with what is. We have been manifesting from the moment the thought first came into our minds and we continue to manifest until we are able to let go and become detached.

Yet, there is another way of being with what is without creating intense journeys of suffering. We can see the first inkling of a thought as a cloud floating upon our canvas of the sky and simply watch it come and go. We don’t have to jump onto the cloud, onto our thought. We can be with what is without getting attached. Neither putting energy into a thought nor pushing it away but watching it wash through us like a river passing by. We can be more conscious about what we manifest by being aware of the seeds that we want to plant when a thought surfaces. We have the ability to consciously choose those thoughts that we want to keep manifesting. Just like a farmer planting his crop for the new season, we can plant the thoughts that serve us, while keeping the weeds out of our garden so our seeds can grow. Catching ourselves in the early stages will help us to create a life filled with conscious choices, more aware and fulfilling.

Making wise choices at the beginning is easier than trying to back track and let go of those things we can’t shake off and are having difficulty being with. Once we have manifested it is too late and we must journey its existence. Knowing the stages of manifestation can help, which I have provided below.

1. Consciousness – being alive
2. Thought – surfacing words or concepts
3. Sensing – Hearing, seeing, touching, tasting
4. Feeling – assigning a feeling to the thought and sense
5. Attachment – holding onto a belief or perspective

Being with what is whether in the initial stages or fully manifested the final stages speaks to owning what is surfacing for us as our own. We must be with what is as we are experiencing it therefore it is ours. We may not want to acknowledge that we have created our experience in any moment but that is the truth. We cannot escape our creations whether in thought form or in experience. After all where can we go? Where ever we go, is where we are.

Namaste
Wayne

As always you can post your thoughts or email me directly and I will respond (wporterfield@shaw.ca)