It’s amazing how many life lessons we can get from watching how we perform simple tasks.  Right in front of our noses, if we care to look.

In the last couple of weeks, I’ve been enjoying getting out riding my bike again. I love how it gives me more confidence and freedom to explore places I might not when walking.  It’s so much more fun to explore knowing I don’t have to rely purely on my own leg power to get home if I bite off more miles than I can chew.

However, we do have a few little battles with each other now and again. There are these awkward moments where I lift ‘her’ over a stile, and I think she’s facing her sweet antenna handlebars one way..  only to find at the last minute she turns her head – (presumably to check I’ve lifted her back wheel high enough to clear).  Then boom, she smacks me round the head with one of her hard metal ears…😠 It seems we have a way to go before we’ve merged into a flowing and trustworthy symbiotic rhythm. Although to be fair, she is blimmin heavy!  Anyway, I’m learning a lot from this relationship and the most recent was this..

What are you focussing your attention on?

My eyesight is not quite what it was, and I have found that as soon as I notice a big stick, a pothole, a jagged rock or bit of glass (basically anything that I would wish to avoid riding over).. I say to myself ‘eek nope, let’s move around that’,… but by some miracle, we hurtle absolutely bang on towards it;  nine times out of ten ploughing straight on through it 🤦‍♀️

Later, upon pondering this rather vexing annoyance (whilst sipping my Carob-Vanilla-Matcha Latte which you really need to try), I realised the reason why..

Back in my Acro Yoga days, I remembered that we (the flyers) would often be spun about on our partners feet, not knowing which way was up or down, so were taught to ‘always focus our eyes on where we want our feet or hands to land’.. and then nine times out of ten, that is exactly where we would land… (notice a theme here).   

My slightly deteriorating eyesight had caused me to be ‘on alert’ for anything I should avoid.  The irony with this strategy is that by being ‘on alert’, my brain is literally sorting through all inbound information from my senses, for the very thing I actually want to avoid!  Knowing that my eyes (and me) will land in whatever that thing is, this is not really the best strategy.

So fast forward to this week…

Firstly, (skim over this bit if you have low tolerance for strangeness), I had a brief conversation with my bike, suggesting we might like to come into harmony with each other, and that I wished for us to have a symbiotic relationship.  Presumably she agreed, because finally all the head bashing has now stopped – hoorah.

Secondly – I now set my internal Sat Nav to carve out the most pleasant pathway through the woods and have been practicing taking my eye gaze out further.  And would you believe – no more pothole collisions. It was as easy as simply making that choice!

So to cut a long story short, where we place our attention is everything.  Are you attracting a smooth, free flowing adventure with your eyes fixed on where you want to head – or have you been ‘on alert’ for the obstacles?  Something to consider 😊🙏❤