Comments on the current chaos: Per Anne LaMott the other day, when in the midst of turmoil such as exists now, a nap might be just the thing. When our attention is riveted to thoughts of events outside our spheres of understanding or influence, it’s a good time to let go, rest and revive. The reactions of a panicked or confused mind may not lead to helpful results.

It seems the last decade has been an especially good time to learn to meditate or do whatever you do that keeps you in touch with what you feel, need and love…whatever nourishes you and keeps you feeling whole and focused. Whatever allows you the space to function with a cool head. These times require keeping our focus where it contributes to our own and the collective well-being. Lots of distracting worries and fears afloat. It’s been exhausting, right?

But unsurprisingly, doesn’t it seem that we have collectively lost our ability to be still and pay attention? Distractedness appears epidemic. How many of us are fully, partly, ever present? Is it the ubiquitous phone? The state of the world? The media hype and misinformation exacerbating binary thinking and disconnectedness? Or our individual and collective sense of helplessness?

Have we forgotten that we are biologically capable of choosing where to put our attention? Do we not miss our own presence and well-being? Have we lost the desire to listen? Are we incapable of empathy? Are chaos and disharmony exciting for us? Are we projecting our own inner states onto others we will probably never meet and have no understanding of? If so, is it because, along with disinformation and selective ignorance, we have created monoliths for our convenience? Easy to judge strangers we have packaged into stereotypes? I am including myself, fyi.

Well, I don’t know all the particulars, but I do have a useful question. Where is the best place for me to put my attention right now? Where would it most benefit?

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Last night, I attended the ten-year anniversary celebration of *NARRATIVE 4, an organization I deeply respect and support. Their focus is building connectedness and empathy through story-telling. They have grown to become a global source of peace-making and earned a $25 million donation due to their proven success which will allow them to continue in perpetuity. The participants are immersed in experiences during which individuals, through listening to each others stories, and retelling them as if they were their own, develop empathy for someone they strongly disagree with. In other words, they learn to humanize rather than stereotype. They learn how to discover love where there had been fear, disgust, hate and ignorance. I was so moved by the presention of their projects and the artists and contributors who performed. It was a 3-hour love fest that left me feeling so inspired and grateful to be involved. I felt proud to be a tiny part of it. It was a perfect place to put my attention. I left feeling proud of the human race.

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Today, I called my neighbor to help me carry something heavy and in the course of the conversation, he mentioned having watched a news story about a group of neighbors fighting and ending with several shooting deaths. He said it had upset him so much that he hadn’t been able to shake it.

I can relate. I have always needed to limit my “news” intake and be careful about what I read. I am not talking about closing myself off from the world. I am talking about taking note of the quality of the news, what we take away from it and how it colors our perspective. If the news is a large part of my view of the world, and I, in turn, interpret that news as indicative of humanity at large, I am forgetting all the folks doing good things for others on the daily, ie, the larger proportion of the world. I like to consciously take time to learn about people who do things that inspire, that create beauty, well-being and health. I like learning about people who are passionate about what they do, so I enjoy Master Class. I love reading writers who lead me through their story of their challenges, exploration and growth. I find learning inspiring. I like my news intake to include stories of possible solutions, creative inventions that make lives better, tales of heroes and helpers, innovations in education, healthcare, politics, peace-making, industry? I need frequent doses of the arts in my life. Do I want the news that breaks my heart to take up the biggest amount of space in my psyche? Why do we need to hear so much about the destructive, dangerous and deranged? Why is so much of our attention pulled toward the unproductive?

What is the impact this has on us? What is the impact of our reactivity and failure to care for our own mental health on those around us? We lose our sense of belonging when we cease to attend to ourselves.

That, to me, is such a loss of humanity. It appears that too much of our attention is being consumed by useless or unhelpful stimuli, which leads us away from our deeper selves rooted in the here and now. We suffer when we lose touch with presence. We suffer more when we are lost in our reactive thoughts. We know this is a large problem among us.

When this is a problem for us, we need to become more mindful of the fact that we are not our thoughts. Realize we have a choice as to where we put our attention, and therefore, what we take in from the world. Realizing where we are putting our attention also directs our thoughts and what we end up sharing with each other.

We know we aren’t improving things by jumping into the fray. We need a clear head and open heart to make wise decisions–personal and political. So how can we each be a part of the solution rather than amping up our anxiety and mistrust in others? How do we slow ourselves down, recommit to our own self-care, get help if we need it, listen to our own hearts and souls, and reawaken to the fact that we all belong to each other. You matter. To me. To all of us. Whether you feel it or not. Your well-being is our well-being. We need each other for the long haul. Take care of yourself, eh?

* https://narrative4.com/