I have always felt the most alive and the most myself near the ocean. It calms and energizes me in a way nothing else can. I always find that I naturally pay less attention to my phone and feel less distracted and overwhelmed by everything. This is true of nature in general, but to a slightly lesser extent - the ocean just really calls to me differently.
i LOVE everything you wrote here Julie. The "Situational Awareness" section was especially happy for me. Why happy? i couldn't tell you. Ha!!
I have learned from nature that I belong. That I have a place that is meant for me to fill. And that with that, there is a role for me too, something i am meant to be doing in the larger ecosystem web of relationships. And that i am one among a multitude. Small. A just right size that makes me feel safe and comfortable with in the whole bigger scheme of things.
Julie this is beautiful. Firstly, the mountain lion! That felt like an initiation of sorts...so potent and real and otherworldly at the same time.
I really appreciate what you write here about situational awareness...your words here
"Life flows, forever in constant motion, even in its unhurried ways. Even in its dying and decomposition. Yet there is this tendency to try and domesticate the moment. Making it an external morality on how to be. Then labeling it, packaging it up and trying to sell it." Oh why do we need to do this? Why do we need to analyses and label and put things in boxes... Julie your post is liberating and enables me to breathe out. Thank you.
Ps/ my favourite landscape is the ocean. The sound of the waves. Sitting on cliffs overlooking the unlimited horizon. Swimming in the ocean and knowing that I can't touch the floor... oh how I love it. I have too see the ocean from my window to be close enough to it. I need to smell the ocean air and feel the change in the breeze because of the ocean... maybe I'm a selkie...
"Situational awareness is not just being present, it is the ability to flow from one moment to the next. Meeting the arising of life that is currently unfolding, navigating its waters rather than holding to a static belief or fixed stance."
I really love how you're applying the idea of situational awareness to something much bigger. I wonder if it's the difference between situational awareness (how it is often used) and Situational Awareness (with capital letters), where the latter refers to what you are describing here?
I grew up with walks in the great outdoors with the safety of never meeting anything more dangerous than possibly an adder. That's changed a bit since moving to Portugal, but wow, mountain lion - what an encounter!
This was beautifully put together, your story and message perfectly woven. And those park comments - still shaking my head in astonishment!
Wow, what a magical encounter you had with a mountain lion! ♥️✨ I saw one in the wild once, on a cliff above me (not nearly as close as the encounter you had). We had that moment of stillness, looking at each other like you describe, but then she went on up the cliff away from me. Something about those experiences weave themselves into our very cells, don't they? I love your take on situational awareness and how it equates to mindful/bodyful presence. Being fully with the moment and responding in that whole presence. I love that! And, omg, those comments from park visitors are hilarious. 😂
"Situational Awareness" has always been something my aunt has echoed to me no matter what I am about to do !!! This spell is always singing in my mind. What a powerful experience with the Mountain Lion - I have longed to meet with one in person (in a safe outcome situation) for YEARS. I often dream of them and feel deeply connected to the spirit of big cats.
I love this Julie, I have spend so much time inwards that I have been forgetting to look outwards into nature. I am ready to roam free again and allow the fresh air to bring in new life and new breath. I will often walk down to the Nature Reserve near where I live and in a few weeks time when I move it will be on my doorstep. I’m ready to be out and be connected again. 🙏💫
I have always felt the most alive and the most myself near the ocean. It calms and energizes me in a way nothing else can. I always find that I naturally pay less attention to my phone and feel less distracted and overwhelmed by everything. This is true of nature in general, but to a slightly lesser extent - the ocean just really calls to me differently.
i LOVE everything you wrote here Julie. The "Situational Awareness" section was especially happy for me. Why happy? i couldn't tell you. Ha!!
I have learned from nature that I belong. That I have a place that is meant for me to fill. And that with that, there is a role for me too, something i am meant to be doing in the larger ecosystem web of relationships. And that i am one among a multitude. Small. A just right size that makes me feel safe and comfortable with in the whole bigger scheme of things.
Julie this is beautiful. Firstly, the mountain lion! That felt like an initiation of sorts...so potent and real and otherworldly at the same time.
I really appreciate what you write here about situational awareness...your words here
"Life flows, forever in constant motion, even in its unhurried ways. Even in its dying and decomposition. Yet there is this tendency to try and domesticate the moment. Making it an external morality on how to be. Then labeling it, packaging it up and trying to sell it." Oh why do we need to do this? Why do we need to analyses and label and put things in boxes... Julie your post is liberating and enables me to breathe out. Thank you.
Ps/ my favourite landscape is the ocean. The sound of the waves. Sitting on cliffs overlooking the unlimited horizon. Swimming in the ocean and knowing that I can't touch the floor... oh how I love it. I have too see the ocean from my window to be close enough to it. I need to smell the ocean air and feel the change in the breeze because of the ocean... maybe I'm a selkie...
"Situational awareness is not just being present, it is the ability to flow from one moment to the next. Meeting the arising of life that is currently unfolding, navigating its waters rather than holding to a static belief or fixed stance."
I really love how you're applying the idea of situational awareness to something much bigger. I wonder if it's the difference between situational awareness (how it is often used) and Situational Awareness (with capital letters), where the latter refers to what you are describing here?
I grew up with walks in the great outdoors with the safety of never meeting anything more dangerous than possibly an adder. That's changed a bit since moving to Portugal, but wow, mountain lion - what an encounter!
This was beautifully put together, your story and message perfectly woven. And those park comments - still shaking my head in astonishment!
Wow, what a magical encounter you had with a mountain lion! ♥️✨ I saw one in the wild once, on a cliff above me (not nearly as close as the encounter you had). We had that moment of stillness, looking at each other like you describe, but then she went on up the cliff away from me. Something about those experiences weave themselves into our very cells, don't they? I love your take on situational awareness and how it equates to mindful/bodyful presence. Being fully with the moment and responding in that whole presence. I love that! And, omg, those comments from park visitors are hilarious. 😂
"Situational Awareness" has always been something my aunt has echoed to me no matter what I am about to do !!! This spell is always singing in my mind. What a powerful experience with the Mountain Lion - I have longed to meet with one in person (in a safe outcome situation) for YEARS. I often dream of them and feel deeply connected to the spirit of big cats.
I love this Julie, I have spend so much time inwards that I have been forgetting to look outwards into nature. I am ready to roam free again and allow the fresh air to bring in new life and new breath. I will often walk down to the Nature Reserve near where I live and in a few weeks time when I move it will be on my doorstep. I’m ready to be out and be connected again. 🙏💫