March 2011 Mandala of the Month
Download the March 2011 Mandala of the month
wake up…Wake Up…WAKE UP!
Do you know where you are and what you are doing right now? Are you mindful of all you do throughout the day? Or do you operate in autopilot mode most days?
I catch myself operating most days in zombie/autopilot mode. What is that you say? Let me share just a few of my most recent experiences.
On line at the post office to ship an order to France recently, I felt myself to be quite present. I observed the other people in line, their packages, the workers behind the counter…assessing which one I prefer to have help me, and so on. The next thing I know I’m walking away from the counter wondering what happened. Did I put the packing slip in the envelop? Where did I put the receipt? Did I put my debit card back in my purse? How did this happen? It dawns on me that the whole time I interacted with the clerk, I set myself in autopilot mode, paying little attention to what I did during that time. Weird.
Last week I went looking for my camera. I know I had it at some point earlier in the day. Where was it? I roamed and roamed all the places I thought it should be. On a whim I went into my husband’s office and sure enough, there it was. While getting something out of his office, I failed to realize that I had set my camera down. But wait!…it gets better. Once back at my computer, I realized that my cup of tea went missing. I had it in my hand when I looked for the camera. Once again I roamed the house in search of something I failed to be mindful of when putting it down. I found it in the tv room, where I set it down while looking under things for the camera. But wait!…it gets better. Now back at my computer, I realize that the glasses I use for reading the computer screen are missing. At this point, I practical laugh out loud at myself. Again I set off on my quest for yet another thing I forgot to be mindful of when I set it down. It finally dawns on me to look down…hanging from the eye glass chain around my desk, I spot my glasses. Okay…how ridiculous. I wasted a good 30 minutes all because I went into autopilot mode…failing to be mindful of my actions.
When I look at this month’s MOTM I see what looks like a flag in mid wave trying to get our attention. Ever see someone spaced out and someone waving their hand in front of their face to get their attention…to wake them up? This flag waves to bring us back to life, to break our trance from all the other stuff that distract us from our lives; to be mindful of our actions throughout the day.
Another way to look at this would be to check in with how often we allow ourselves to be pulled this way and that with our endless mind chatter and fears; like the wizard saying ‘pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.’ How often do we allow ourselves to be governed by our fears or the opinions of others?
In the news of late we see the beginnings of people waking up in northern Africa and the middle east. The people woke up to the idea that they refuse to be led by a tyrannical/dictatorship-like government. We see more revolts, revolutions, and protests popping up everywhere as people being to stand up for themselves.
This mandala reminds us to take back our lives. How are we allowing others to determine/run our lives? How are we allowing the fears in our minds determine/run our lives? Are we living our truth? This idea pushes the comfort zone for most of us. We can continue to be like a frog floating in a pot of water feeling quite safe and comfortable little realizing that the pot sits on a stove slowly warming to a boil…or we can wake up, realize where we are, and jump out.
Ponder this as you color this mandala throughout the month of March.
And as you color the flag, how would you decorate it? what logo or message would you design?
Also…be sure to download/color Section 3 of the 2011 Mandala of the Year.
Happy Coloring!
joyfully, Maureen, The Mandala Lady
Read Full Post »
