Trying to get to the Eckhart Tolle Retreat in California + How to stay present when your consciousness is challenged?
On my way to the Eckhart Tolle Retreat in California, I experienced 16 flight delays, 3 canceled flights, and security lines around the block. Instead of arriving on Thursday, I arrived on Friday after a chaotic 3 days, with many hours spent at the airport. On my return, I experienced a similar scenario…I believe the universe sent me this experience for a reason, to see how I would “use” my consciousness to shift this experience. And also to share it with you!
How do you stay present?
At the airport, as you can imagine, passengers were stressed out. People were missing important appointments, graduations, etc. The gate attendants were overwhelmed trying to keep people calm. On Thursday alone we spent 9 hours at the airport and people were losing their patience.
How do you stay present in these kinds of experiences AND use this situation to level up your consciousness? AND to impact the collective consciousness?
Amid all this chaos, I reminded myself that the key to handling situations like this one lies in our mind, body, and spirit. I focused on those three things.
Focusing on my Mind:
What are the thoughts that I’m thinking? What thoughts are creating peace for me? Or, what thoughts are creating consciousness? Any other thoughts that don’t align with that picture of peace, I simply eradicate because the only thing I can control is what’s going on inside of me.
Focusing on my Body:
What am I putting into my body? Am I hydrating? Am I eating healthy? Giving my body the nutrients it needs because a bunch of sugar or fast food is not going to help make me create that peaceful experience or raise my consciousness levels. It is going to make me more anxious and stressed.
Focusing on my Spirit:
What do I want to create in my environment? Once I’ve looked at what I want to create inside of me, I look outside myself. That might mean just bringing a smile to the faces of the flight/gate attendants, who have been standing there for hours, trying to help grumpy people. Or maybe it’s bringing them water or buying them dinner. (They didn’t want dinner but I was able to treat them to cookies & cupcakes at a bakery nearby) It could also mean chatting with fellow passengers and/or sending a good vibe to them. That creates impact, that creates a powerful shift in other people and in the collective consciousness.
A byproduct of this is that others can feel elevated in their consciousness and more present, more connected. Peaceful inside. And isn’t that what we all want?
Your Challenge for This Week
Think about how you can use these insights the next time you're stuck in a difficult situation. When you're faced with delays, cancellations, and chaos, remember that the key to staying calm lies in focusing on your mind, body, and spirit. There are small changes that you can do that will have a big impact.
Check-in with your thoughts— Choose to focus on the positive ones and let go of the rest.
Take care of your body by staying hydrated and eating healthy.
Create a positive atmosphere around you by being kind to others - offering a simple sincere smile or a helping hand.
And most importantly, next time you're in a tough spot, remember—you have the power to shift your experience and make a positive impact on those around you. The Power of You.
Want to read about my experience at the actual Eckhart Tolle retreat? Stay tuned for next week’s blog post!