I met a man called Al the other day who was involved in a serious motorcycle accident about 9 years ago, so serious that he remembered his hand and his leg hanging on by only a tendon and piece of skin.
Miraculously, his hand and leg are now in good working order (I met him on the beach and he was playing bat and ball and swimming etc).
We got talking about yoga, mindfulness, and then his morning routine and he was saying that most mornings he will walk outside and stand barefoot so he can feel the ground under his feet. He will think about the feeling of the ground under the foot he injured, (is it stoney, grassy? etc), he will then spend time thinking about how fortunate and grateful he is for still having the ankle and foot which he could have so easily lost.
Then he will start moving his hand, clenching his fist and relaxing it, and think the same about his hand.
This conversation served as a welcome reminder for me.
It is very easy to get wrapped up in micro frustrations, whether they are small issues at work, the chance of a second lockdown, or whatever it might be, whilst overlooking our fortunate macro situation. I’m alive, I have a roof over my head, I can do nearly all the things I want to do, etc.
This encounter really reminded me to keep perspective when the little things in life can get a bit overbearing. It reminded me to spend time thinking deeply about what I am grateful for and why.
Something Jonny on Morning Mindset has run us through before, but something so simple can often be easily overlooked.
Cheers for the reminder Al.