Our truest life is when we are in dreams awake. – Henry David Thoreau

Things in life can get scratchy and uncomfortable.  My skin may feel too tight and my brain might feel brittle and fragile.  Lately I have been using a Headspace pack that encourages the listener to view life as if in a dream. Andy Puddicombe explains clearly that a dream perspective is helpful in lightening things up, in allowing the viewer to see the world and the things around him or her in a less self-involved way.  A dream perspective gives me fresh eyes and a sense of wonder. Using this technique separates me ever so slightly from the action so that I am able to stand back if I need to and pause to think rather than simply to react. It has been incredibly helpful in providing me with a gentler way of seeing my world and all of the people who inhabit it.

At work in the morning I start my day by going into the empty building and looking at my surroundings with a beginner’s mind.  The desk where I sit, the shelves in the back, and the layout of the rooms all change ever so slightly and I seek out the nuanced differences and then move on.  Each day I look at the same faces I have known for years and try to notice something new. I have been making it a practice to appreciate that which stays the same and provides me with a sense of stability and routine, and those things that are different and fresh and may offer challenges and opportunities.

This perspective is rather like a lens.  I can snap it on when I am mindful and soften my view and almost even slow things down enough to allow my brain to consider what is in front of me in a thoughtful way.  It is useful in dealing with what might otherwise be irritating or uncomfortable. For example, I was helping a customer who was upset about an issue regarding something she had requested and I switched on this “lens” and was able to see the situation with enough distance that allowed me to understand her irritation was with the disappointment and letdown of her expectations and not with me personally.  I didn’t get my own feelings or thoughts entangled in hers and was able to act out of patience and consideration rather than defensiveness. It was obviously happening in real time but the dream perspective made it easy to move through painlessly.

I understand that there are times when I want to feel completely involved but this new approach gives me a way to stand back just a smidge when I need to and still appear to anyone else as if I am right on the spot.  

When might you use this dreamscape to give your own mind the time and space to consider for a moment?  Share with me your thoughts on how this might be useful to you.