This post was originally published March 22, 2015, and updated on October 12, 2020.
Practice Operating in the Both/And Universe
This Beauty Practice is in response to years of our society operating in an “either/or” mentality. It is one of the major constructs of our automatic pilot reflex. But we do not have to live in the polarizing “either/or” paradigm. All around us is evidence of a both/and reality, reminding us that we live in a truly diverse, amazingly inclusive, and paradoxically complex universe. Think sweet and sour, acid and alkaline, yin and yang, black and white, orange and blue, fire, and earth… the list goes on and on. It is not a divisive either/or, but the considered balance of both/and.
We can practice living in such a place. And once aware of it, we find it is beautiful, balanced, full of harmony — and yes, as well as the cacophony of chaos (but more about that later).
To Practice Living in the Both/And Universe:
1) Notice when you choose between one event (thing) and another. Does one preclude the other?
2) Notice when you disagree with someone and see if you can allow that viewpoint to co-exist with your own, allowing both to be. You needn’t agree — just let be.
3) Try dismissing time (that most stern driver of eliminations). Go forward without looking at clocks, but listen to your body’s needs/clock instead. You might find greater “time” to include more.
4) Challenge yourself: where have you excluded something through habit more than choice? An idea, a doingness, or someone’s company — because you believed it was an “either/or” circumstance. Was it truly?
I am very much an advocate of making clear choices for ourselves. This is not about undermining that. What practicing living in the both/and the universe is about is refining our process to reach those choices. A both/and “personal universe” is richer, deeper, and more inclusive. More aware of the field of infinite possibilities. It provides more insight into the dynamics of True Beauty. The sharp knife of an either/or situation is still in the proverbial toolbox; it simply should not be used as unconsciously or as rapidly as we sometimes do.
So speaketh La Lisa…
