One.With.Life

One. With. life. This is a phrase that Eckhart Tolle uses in his book "A New Earth" to describe happiness and how he conceptualizes well-being and peace. To me this seems like the ability to willingly accept everything as it is and everything as it appears in our lives. If we boil down what is making us depressed, anxious, angry or stressed, we are just resisting, and sometimes fighting, what is happening in the moment. For example, I could be depressed about decisions I made in the past because I have a lot of regret about what I did or didn't do. I could be worrying about what's going to happen tomorrow because I don't want certain things to happen. I could be upset or angry with what is happening in the moment because I think it "should" (remember shoulds!) be different than the way it is. Traffic is a great example of resisting what "is". All these things cause us to feel stuck and are the result of resistance. Thankfully, our consciousness is able to get us out this "stuckness". The moment we realize that we are resisting something that has happened or may happened or is happening, we can change and allow it to be as it is. Thus, the flow of life continues and we go along with it. We are one with it. As an exercise, try this the next time you are feeling anxious, depressed, or angry.

Notice what your thoughts are about the situation. Determine if you are in any way resisting it (the situation: past, present, or future).

Acknowledge that you are doing this. You may even say out loud (in private), "Ah, I see I am resisting that I have to do my taxes today." Then, find a way to accept it.

Accepting doesn't mean liking or wanting what "is", it just means you realize that it can be no other way. If you're able to do this, over time, you may find a lightness in your body that wasn't there before when you were resisting. This lightness can grow and be transformative in your daily life and help you learn to notice your thoughts and feel your feelings without letting them get you stuck.