Mindful Awareness

I've been meaning to become more observant since I started watching Psych. Unfortunately, I have to wait until I get new glasses, since with this six-year-old pair I can't see past my hand.

heh nice reply im pretty sure you were being sarcastic but maby i did not elaborate good enough. i meant awareness by knowing where you are, who you are(not like "oh im so and so i know who i am dummy")and all ways knowing what your doing and what you say(which is good cuz you can be more kind or know what your talking about and have good judgment).

Ohhhhhhhhhh. No, I wasn't being sarcastic, but I thought you meant being aware of your surroundings (hence my mental jump to Psych; its main character is incredibly observant).

I guess the opposite of what you're proposing is the sort of person who goes through life without really forming an opinion. Ask them anything from 'what's your favorite color' to 'what's your stance on [insert political issue here]' and they'll give you a blank look. A good way to remedy this is to actually think about these things when you're in private (I've found that journaling is one good way to really solidify such processes). I actually had a book when I was thirteen or so; I can't remember the title, but it was a huge journal with different headers at the top of every page, things like 'what I think of my parents' and 'what I would do if someone close to me died'. Filling in those blanks really helped me figure myself out.

yes, in fact i have a book of ideas, thoughts, theories, philosophies and random stuff i think of and decide to write it down. it comes in handy.

I love Psych! I wish I could be as observant as Sean!!

Back to the original question... I have also been trying to practice Zen. Some days I feel like I am pretty successful and others I do not. For me, my Zen is when I concentrate on the present and try not to worry about the past or future. I try to be grateful for everyday and just cherish everyone in my life and every opportunity life gives me. Ive been doing this for a few months, some days more successful than the others. Just keep trying, its worth it. I would imagine 5 years from now that I will still have some unsuccessful days, but I hope that I am still trying. Whenever I think about giving up, or start to worry about a future event too much, I think back to a successful Zen day and try to remember how I felt and that is enough motivation for me to keep trying.

Actually, Baylor, pretty sure his name is spelled 'Shawn', as in 'Shawn of the Dead'. It surprised me, too. Edit: Yep, his name is Shawn Spencer.

Now that I think of it, this whole discussion sort of reminds me of God Is Here, a book I've been meaning to read. The summary says it all:

You know that perfect feeling? That life-is-good moment on the open highway with the windows down and the radio up, when the perfect song comes on, and you sing along with carefree, top-of-your-lungs abandon? When joy and contentment and life well up from somewhere deep in your soul?

What if you could live that way?

A 17th-century monk named Brother Lawrence figured out how, and wrote about it in the devotional classic, The Practice of the Presence of God. He found a way to connect with God moment by moment, to experience the joy of His divine presence every minute of every day - whether during deep, contemplative prayer or while washing a sink full of dishes.

-"Book description"

Of course, this book is Christian, not Zen, but I think the idea is similar. Man, now I really want to go read it!

Ahh, I was wondering if it was Shawn or Sean. I don't know if they have ever showed his name written down on the show.. but alas I digress once again!

That sounds like a good book to read. I have never heard of it but there are a few positive customer reviews of it on Amazon.

I mostly knew the spelling because of the closed-captioning.

Alright, once I'm done with Grave Peril (is it any surprise that Michael is my favorite character?), I'll start on God Is Here.