A Wisdom Walk Insight
On my wisdom walk this morning, I came upon this banana peel. Totally photo worthy because it was just like in a cartoon. I imagined myself walking mindlessly, stepping on it, flying into the air, and landing hard on the ground. Fortunately, I noticed it and walked around it. Of course, pausing and turning around to take this photo.
I could not help but see this banana peel as a call to living mindfully. How so? Well, if we are moving through life distracted by our incessant thinking, directed with minimal awareness by our emotions, wanting to get past the moment, we miss seeing the banana peel. We then hit the pavement with a hard thud. Sometimes this shakes us out of our habitual state, but not always. So we get up and keep moving the same way, perhaps faster or harsher. “Damn banana peel. Who left that there?” Days, months, years go on, and we continue to miss the banana peel. SPLAT! Each time we fall, injuring ourselves or others around us. “Who keeps leaving banana peels on the sidewalk?”
How many times do we need to step on the peel until we learn to pay attention?
Pay attention to what? This is the key question. Each time you step on the banana peel is an opportunity to pause and collect your bearings. It is an opportunity to take a look at how you are living your life. Is it working for you? I do not mean externally, although that is a valid area of inquiry. For this analogy, I am asking about your inner world. The banana peel is the consequence of choices whether conscious or not. What within you continues to lead to stepping on the banana peel? What is the banana(s) in your life? What have been the consequences of not noticing it?
Now, who is dropping all those banana peels?
Thanks Wendy, perfect timing for today.