What if You Had___?
Today is going to look a little different. Today we are going to explore some questions in hopes of learning more about ourselves and areas that we may need to give a little tender loving care. The way this is going to work is we will read a couple of different questions with follow up questions associated with each one. Then we will be asked to explore, via thought, writing, art, movement, etc., what comes up for you. After that we will do a little review around why this exercise. Please don’t read the bottom before completing the top!
Here we go with the first question.
What if you had 24 hours to do anything that you would consider nourishing to your body and soul?
What would you do?
How would you feel?
What would be challenging about having this 24 hours?
What would be easy about having this 24 hours?
Now that you have read the questions, take some time to reflect. Engage in writing, art, movement, poetry, or anything else that works for you to see what emerges for you. Give yourself the time and space for this exploration. It doesn’t have to be a ton of time, but enough so that you can do some thoughtful introspection. When you are ready, transition to the next question.
What if you had 24 hours to do anything that could help humanity for the better?
What would you do?
How would you feel?
What outcomes would you like to see?
What would be the hardest part of the 24 hours?
What would be the most fulfilling part of the 24 hours?
Having read the question, take some time to reflect. Engage in writing, art, movement, poetry, or anything else that works for you to see what emerges for you. Give yourself the time and space for this exploration. Again, it doesn’t have to be a ton of time but enough so that you can delve into the sensation. As you feel ready, transition to the next question.
What if you had 24 hours to check off as much stuff from your to do list as you could?
What would you check off?
How would you feel?
When you looked back at the end of the 24 hours what would you like to have seen accomplished?
Now it is time to reflect on this question. Engage in writing, art, movement, poetry, or anything else that works for you to see what emerges for you. As before, give yourself the time and space for this exploration. Not necessarily a ton of time but enough so that you can explore. When you feel complete, transition to the last question.
If you had 24 hours to spend with anyone or any group of people, who or whom would you spend it with?
What would you do together?
How would you feel?
What impact would that experience have on you?
For the final time today, reflect on this question. Engage in writing, art, movement, poetry, or anything else that works for you to see what emerges for you. Again, give yourself the time and space for this exploration. Remember, it doesn’t have to be a ton of time, but enough so that you can do some exploration. When you have finished your exploration of this question, continue reading.
There are a couple of ideas that we can take away from this experience. First, what if questions have the power to hurt us in certain situations. On the flip side, they can also allow us to dream and engage in a journey to encourage meaning in our lives. Many of us have heard the following question. “What would you do if you knew you could not fail?” There can be freedom in the “if” depending on what we do with the “ifs” in life. Another idea that we can take is where we put our energy. Maybe if people struggled with the first question about taking care of ourselves but found the to-do list question rather easy, it is a sign that your energy is directed more in that direction. There was never a right or wrong answer to any of the questions. They were meant to encourage everyone to explore and find areas where we need to spend more time exploring. There are so many facets of ourselves and the overarching question is, are we spending time honoring the ones we want or are we spending too much focusing on what we think we should be?
Hopefully, this exercise was thought provoking and encourages us all to reflect.
Tiles that spell out “If not now when.”
Take Action Today Moment:
The above was all about action. Now that you have completed the exercise, take some time to recuperate. Maybe that is drinking a cup of tea, going for a run, or playing the guitar. Sometimes learning needs the time and space for integration.