REFLECTING

REFLECTING

Reflecting means stopping. Stopping to look, to observe carefully, which is the threshold of seeing clearly, of lucidity, of the development of consciousness.

It also involves waiting, maturing, actively contemplating, scrutinizing with care and time. It means, firstly or carefully, considering something before taking a step, which may be big or small, or it can be crucial, decisive.

So much suffering we would avoid if we thought more and better before deciding things. Even in small daily decisions, the choice made with reflection (what we buy, to what we devote our time, attention and resources, who we trust, etc.) could change the world. If we are seven billion people and take decisions —important or light— like, about fifty billion per day, we go with three hundred fifty billion decisions that turn around this planet along with the sun every day, I insist, just in one day… Imagine we gained any lucidity in a small part of them, just ten percent, we would have thirty-five billion of decisions taken from the consciousness against inertia, momentum, unconscious habits and all.

We reflect when we look, when we analyze our own feelings and thoughts, when we exercise criticism not only on the outside, but on our own (unusual habit for us). It’s good to think before acting. Reflection is a friend of prudence and truth. Reflection, properly understood, is honesty and patience’s sister —without them it cannot exist.

Along with meditation, that cleanses the thought and soul and connects us essentially, reflection helps us build simplicity in living, growing wisdom for it.

Reflection also opens the doors of empathy, because it helps us to put ourselves in the shoes of another, and compassion, because from that inner gesture we can feel the suffering of our neighbour, our partner.

I’m always surprised of how little value we put in those simple gestures that can really transform a life. Reflection is one of them, no doubt. We seem to live in a world that values intensity over depth, the firecracker more than the kiss, the banal rather than the truth, the headline more than the poem, noise instead of silence. This is going nowhere. And all this would be fine with a better dose of meditation and reflection. Because action that emerges from them tends to be (no guarantees, though), more mature, more systemic, more human.

Reflect means taking into account. And being considered is the seed of care. Whoever reflects is a careful person, and caring for someone or something leads to respect and builds up trust and commitment. That person acting out of the goodness of intention and from honest and unbiased reflection, provides oxygen and purifies the emotion’s air we breathe.

A synonym for pondering is “pay good care” (by the way, a very beautiful expression but less and less used), ie, pay attention, consider, give importance to what is worth it. Hopefully this space, this digital diary and the other two blogs, with different success, read with agreement or disagreement, create parentheses for reflection, to stop, to look inside, to look out and see what is really worthwhile and makes sense, and from there, to offer it to the world.

Have a nice day.

 

Kisses and hugs,

Álex

Alex Rovira