Emotional Learning: What is to be Listened to

Pastel painting by Penina Horowitz

You know
sometimes we have these feelings,
"feelings" like in emotional stuff,
but really, all "feelings" have a feeling part in our body, too,
a physical component.

And maybe we can play with this:
if we "feel" the physical part of any given
"feeling"
does that feel like we are expanding
or
contracting?

So, say: you feel "happy?"
And the physical feeling is like wanting to
dance,
or jump up and fling your arms in the arm,
or reach out and embrace someone,
or
sing for joy.

All that "feels" expansive,
wouldn't you say?

And then, let's go the other way:
we feel worried and abandoned,
say,
and what goes on in us physically?
Maybe we crunch in on ourselves,
and breathe less,
maybe we tighten up our belly muscles
as if protecting (from ???),
and hunch in our shoulders,
almost as if we want to curl up in a little ball
and
escape the world.

And that doesn't sound expansive,
does it?

So,
let's play with this today:
phooey on all the positive and negative
emotion stuff,
let's just "feel" what our feelings are feeling,
and notice:
do I feel expansive
or
do I feel as if I'm contracting myself?

Now, there's an interesting thing to do with both
sets of physical manifestations of our
"feelings:
and that's this,
the good old fashioned
pay attention
wake up
be aware thing.

Feeling happy?
Great.
Notice the sensations in you
and since they are nice,
maybe act on them
or exaggerate them,
or at the least,
just enjoy them.

Feeling sad, mad, bad, afraid,
whatever?
Skip the words in your head
about all that
and just concentrate on the physical sensations.

Don't judge or condemn the sensations,
but pay them patient and kind attention
and see what happens
if you put attention/ awareness
on your
tension/ contraction.

Life can get interesting in the moment.

Life is almost always amazing and at least semi-miraculous
in the moment.

Give it a try,
and see what happens.