MINDFULNESS WEEK 2
Last week we spoke about how we usually automatically want to fix things when they aren't going the way we want. So we follow on from that today: what if we really do have a problem?
Today we take some time to look at the idea of separating the external challenges we face from our inner responses. Which is really learning to sit with our feelings, accept the present moment, and respond with clarity and kindness.
Have you had any problems recently? Maybe work, family, or something mechanical like your car or your phone? Whatever it is, there are usually two layers to the problem —the outer problem, like a mechanical failure, and the inner problem—how we feel about it. These two aren’t the same thing.
Imagine someone saying, “I’m leaving and never coming back.” If we care about them, it doesn’t feel good. If not, it doesn’t feel like a big thing. In fact, if its someone we don’t like, it might even feel like a relief. In this case it's not the words; it’s our response that creates the problem.
We can fix external problems easily—drop the computer at a shop. But internal problems? Different story. They require a deeper dive. Mindfulness teaches us to understand what’s actually happening—separating the situation from how we feel about it.
Instead of jumping to fix things, mindfulness invites us to sit with our response, accept what’s happening, and then act thoughtfully. Acceptance isn’t about rolling over; it’s about acknowledging reality as it is, even if it’s tough.
In Sanskrit, the word Svīkṛti (स्वीकृति) (pronounced Svee-kree-tee) means taking or accepting. The Sanskrit dictionary explains it as follows:
1) Taking, accepting. 2) Assenting, agreeing, promising, an assent, a promise.
Svikriti means both “accept” and “agree,” which makes sense, right? When we learn to sit with / investigate our problems or feelings, it’s like agreeing with the present moment rather than trying to force things to change, or immediately trying to make it what it is not. It's not about liking it, but seeing it for what it is.
As Pema Chodron - a Buddhist nun - says, “Nothing ever goes away until it teaches us what we need to know.” Maybe we struggle with reality because we don’t like how it looks right now, and we just want it to disappear. But running from it won’t help—it’ll just show up in another form.
So, what if instead of fixing every problem, we paused, to take it in, and accepted what’s in front of us, and responded from a place of clarity?
Why do we do this? Because this practice helps us gain perspective, enabling us to make clearer choices and respond in a more balanced way. Finding that space, the place we call "pause", can become a place of acceptance, and is also the place where we find real peace.
Have a wonderful week
_/\_
Metta
