My life is a series of unfoldings -- incidents and occasions, agreeable or distressing. Each day is full of them, hour by hour, and this makes it difficult for me to take a detached view of all that is happening. I'm too close.
If these occurrences were like so many pieces of merchandise -- groceries or dry goods -- I would see them clearly, good and bad. Looking at the incidents of my life this way, I might be astonished to discover that the good far outweigh the bad. And yet, I concentrate so heavily on my trials and burdens that I hardly give a thought to relishing the pleasant and satisfying things that happen each day.
This noticing is an acute awareness of our surroundings and what takes place in them. It can be cultivated, like watching a play or a film. Today's Reminder: If I learn to see everything with a fresh eye, I will find I have many reasons for contentment and gratitude. When I find myself bogged down with negative thoughts, I will deliberately turn away from them. Let me observe with new interest even the commonplace things that happen in each new day.
Hey Breakaway,
Just had to note that text is really founded in Buddhist philosophy. The first part about life unfolding is a reference to what Buddhist's call 'impermenence'.
'Like watching a play or film' maps to the Buddhist slogan: 'Regard all phenomena as dreams'. In othr words, you should be able to sit back and watch life unfold around you, just like you might sleep and watch a dream.
Finding happiness in commonplace things, detaching and staying in the present are staples of Buddhist training.
My thread, Carpe Diem #4 Orig Thread: Carpe Diem #1
Have I told you we just got S12 diagnosed with ADHD-I. The I is for inattentiveness. I suspected something for a few years (8-9 lol ) now. The other day I told S9 a series of 5 tasks to complete. He did all 5. I gave S12 a similar 5. He got lost after 1.
FYI... my S9 is also ADD-I. We started him on Adderall this fall and it helped quite a bit.
My thread, Carpe Diem #4 Orig Thread: Carpe Diem #1
Yeah, I have inattentive type. One thing I've tried to explain to H over the years is that there are 500 possible things I could be doing in a given day. Where do you start, you know? And of course, living with him, it doesn't matter which ones I do, I didn't do such and such instead. Oh...and HE could do all of it no problem. Right, H.
....
Okay, gotta figure out what to do with my ADHD self...I have a day wiiiide open, and I think I could walk in circles for all of it. Maybe I should put some ideas on pieces of paper and then draw one out of a hat and do it. LOL
Ooh ooh! Purple puts her hand up. Me too!! I'm paralyzed and can't START Christmas shopping because there's so much else I have to do. The list never gets frickin smaller!!
h rolls his eyes (there you go, you're not alone) at my need to write lists. The busier I am, the more I have to write lists. If I don't have lists, nothing gets done, whether they're mental or on paper doesn't matter - though i do much prefer on paper so my I part doesn't forget what I thought was important 10minutes ago.
** Purple
As soon as you trust yourself you will know how to live. Goethe
[quote=techguy] Yeah, some of their books have some eastern stuff...and some Christian stuff...and the 12 steps and Serenity prayer really all go back to Epipictus or something like that. I can't spell it off the top of my head. I'll have to look it up.
Ooh ooh! Purple puts her hand up. Me too!! I'm paralyzed and can't START Christmas shopping because there's so much else I have to do. The list never gets frickin smaller!!
h rolls his eyes (there you go, you're not alone) at my need to write lists. The busier I am, the more I have to write lists. If I don't have lists, nothing gets done, whether they're mental or on paper doesn't matter - though i do much prefer on paper so my I part doesn't forget what I thought was important 10minutes ago.
Yeah, well I write a list and forget the list, or don't get the list out, or lose the list. Or have the list IN MY HAND and don't do what's on it. But the medicine is helping and I'm not even up to the full dose yet.
I like to shop online...it doesn't take as much organizational work simply to GO...and they send it to you. But I always wait til the dead last minute.
I read in one of Hallowell's books that to the person with ADHD there is only now...and not now. So if something needs to be done say, by next Wed, all I hear is not now...and forget about it til Tue night and I have an adrenaline surge that allows me to focus. Worked GREAT in college. I could write my papers in one night and get A's...crammed for all my exams at the last minute and got A's...but running regular life doesn't work like that.
I read in one of Hallowell's books that to the person with ADHD there is only now...and not now.
OMGosh, that is S12 TO THE TEE !! Now and Not now. He remembers everything at the LAST possible second. Then I have to run around like a crazy woman helping him. Ugh !
Techguy, Adderall is what we're trying. S12 says he feels a slight improvement, but he'd like it to be a bit more. We have a followup next week.
Bridge, I think my H has it as well, but he's found ways over the years to cope. I suggested he try meds for a month & just see, but that went over like a lead balloon. He's Mr. "I hate drugs". I'm the one that believes in better living through chemistry. LOL (teasing sort of) I'll send you a link to what I read that I used to diagnose S.
Hugs
M 19 years, MC for 8 months, DB'd for 8 months 4 kids; 18, 15, 14, & 10 I was never meant to be a doormat. It took me years of therapy to become assertive enough to stop his abuse.
Hmmm... went to Amazon and searched. Got three different books back with that title
Is it the one from the Dalai Lama?
No there's one that's a translation from the original Greek philosopher. I'll try to find what I'm talking about. I've never read it actually, I was just wondering if you'd heard about it. There's a meditation website that is tied into that as well...so it seems there is some universal truths there about accepting what can't change, and changing what can, and looking inward...the Western view would be to look upward as well.
(((Break))) how was your quiet day ?? I thought of you often in the midst of my chaotic day.
Hugs
M 19 years, MC for 8 months, DB'd for 8 months 4 kids; 18, 15, 14, & 10 I was never meant to be a doormat. It took me years of therapy to become assertive enough to stop his abuse.
