Lately I’ve been focusing on cultivating a sense of being. Non-judgmental being. I notice when I come into a state of judging myself, judging others, and sit with that.
Through writing, through mothering, through teaching, through researching, through mentoring, through exercising, through gardening, through sitting. All of these practices provide opportunities for being. Yet they also provide opportunities for which doubt, suspicion, or judgment might seep in.
In a state of being, I notice. I breathe. I experience sensation in my body. I pause to listen to what I need. I listen to and notice the potentiality of needs that aren’t being met. I drink water. I move by body. To the extent possible, I adjust the light, sound, and sense of distractions in my present surroundings.
A yoga and wisdom teacher recently introduced me to the RAIN technique. Recognize, allow, interrogate, and nourish. The RAIN practice invites you to:
recognize – notice thoughts, feelings, sensations, emotions, acts of social participation;
allow – to the extent possible, allow yourself to be fully immersed in those thoughts, feelings, sensations, or practices;
interrogate – become gently curious about those experiences, and wonder; and
nourish – embrace with heart centered energy, warmth, and love.
Through practices such as these, or variations on them, again and again, I cultivate a sense of being.
Nicole L. Fonger 