Page 45 - Taming Your Gremlin A Surprisingly Simple Method for Getting Out of Your Own Way (Rick Carson)_Neat

your library and your vocabulary, none of your knowledge will amount to a
hill of beans unless you get serious enough to turn theory into action
through practice.

A PRACTICE SESSION

Here is an activity to help you learn to gain gentle control over your

awareness. I suggest you take a few moments to read the indented section
that follows, and when you’re in a mood to experiment and can arrange for
ten to fifteen minutes of uninterrupted solitude, find a comfortable place to
sit, close your eyes, and practice.

Focus your spotlight of awareness on your breathing. Gently
concentrate on a few breaths, noticing the movement of the air
through your nose, down your trachea, and into your lungs. Pay
very close attention to the movement of your abdomen as you

breathe, taking care to allow your belly to round out as you inhale
and allowing it to collapse inward as you exhale. Make certain to
draw into your lungs all the air that you want. There’s no need to
hyperventilate or to breathe heavily. Simply take in all the air that
you want and, when you exhale, exhale fully, blowing out the last
bit of air. Breathe at a pace that is comfortable for you.

Your awareness may drift. It may go to your mental processes
(the world of mind), to a sound (the world that surrounds you), or to

an itch or some other bodily sensation. It is natural for your
awareness to wander. However, at the point that you become aware
that this is happening, consciously bring your awareness back to
your breathing, tracing breaths in and out of your body.