CHANGING YOUR TONE

Our inner narrator is constantly interpreting the world, filtering our experiences and perceptions and pigeonholing them into what we already know.

This narrator can be either a parasite or an ally. For example, if I stand in front of the mirror and pay attention to my thoughts, I might hear something like this: “Miguel, you are fat, you look horrible, and you need to lose weight now!” In this way, my inner narrator is operating as a parasite, pushing the agenda of domestication and conditional love.

But if when I stand in front of the mirror and I hear this: “Miguel, I love you very much, and you may want to lose some weight just to be healthy,” then my inner narrator is functioning as my ally. I hear my thoughts without any judgements, without any justifications, and I say to myself, “This is me, and I love it.”

Practice

Go stand in front of the mirror right now, look yourself in the eye, and say, “This is me, and I love it!”

Living a Life of Awareness

~ Don Miguel Ruiz Jr.