Attention Energizes and Intention Transforms
I am currently meditating every day. This is not something I have ever done nor is it something I would have chosen to do before the pandemic hit. My friend, Mary Sullivan, has been meditating for years and I have seen, from the point of view of an observer, the positive effects it has in her life but I felt I never had the time to mediate. Then, when we became quarantined, I did. Mary generously started leading meditation sessions every morning on Instagram and I tuned in. To be honest, I started doing the sessions with my daughter to add some structure to our very bizarre days and hear and see my friend Mary. After 4 months, I found meditating really calmed my mind and was something I noticed was making a difference in the way I think. It turns out it doesn't really require that much time and it has brought some peace and mindfulness into my life when everything was and still is feeling extremely turned upside down and frantic.
This has been and is going to continue to be a very challenging time for people. How and what our minds are thinking about is going to be very important. As a trumpet player, I will probably not be playing in public much for the next year and the Leighton Art Centre made the very difficult decision to postpone 'Wandering with Wonder' to September 2021. So where are we now and what does the year ahead look like? Well, this morning I was listening to Deepak Chopra and he said something that really resonated with me:
“What we place our attention on expands in our lives and our intention for the object of our attention will orchestrate the forces of the Universe to support our desired result.”
Last summer, when I was writing 'Wandering with Wonder', I knew I was trying to create something about slowing down and listening. Listening to ourselves, listening to each other and listening to nature. I kept telling my friends and family that it hadn't escaped me, that as I was writing about slowing down and listening I was doing neither of those things very well. The pandemic has required me to slow down and I am starting to listen better.
I plan to spend this next year placing my attention on the artists who I will be collaborating with and the community I will be creating in. My intention for the objects of my attention is to see us through this time creatively with purpose. My desired result will be several performances on the land that leave the artists and audiences transformed.
What is your attention going to be focused on for this next year and how will your intention for that which you place your attention on support your desired result?