Mindfulness

How can we nurture mindfulness?

How do you interpret the world?

Mindfulness and interpretation

We constantly make sense of the world around us, interpreting signs of danger, kindness, friendship and risk. A mindful and compassionate interpretation includes and ideally is based on our knowledge of what we don’t know and an appreciation of our limitations.

“Excessive praise arises from the same bigotry matrix as excessive criticism.” - Stefan Molyneux

“While it has become “cool” for white folks to hang out with black people and express pleasure in black culture, most white people do not feel that this pleasure should be linked to unlearning racism.”  - bell hooks, Killing Rage: Ending Racism

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Challenge the Exploiters

The Exploiters attempt to appreciate others, and feel they 'belong', but conquer, exploit and abuse others by not acknowledging the power and privilege.

They are a reminder that in our attempts to make sense of the world we can exploit others despite our best intentions and feelings of deep appreciation. Our ignorance is often more influential than our experience.

The concept that someone can be objective is a purely subjective belief that the values one holds are universal. From this limited lens, others live on the margins of a central frame, bestowing the'objective visitor' a benevolent gaze. This colonizing belief obscures any need to negotiate with others about our shared realities.

Questions

How do we shape our lenses through which we see our world and tell our stories?

Who frames, owns and controls the stories and lenses?

How does it feel to be appreciated?

How do you negotiate boundaries?

How can you reframe the concept of objectivity?