Sculpture and Contemplation
Rainbow Trout, 2023 Private Collection
Mindfulness and Action
Welcome to the site. The purpose for the site is to share a journey of exploration and to process theories of growth across disciplines, in the marketplace of ideas. The foundation is based on mindfulness or contemplative processes and the action of creation. Working to process thought and emotions through activities and projects leaving a record of this journey of exploration.
Thoughts, Emotions and Behaviors
The work will be disciplined in contemporary Western counseling theory or psychotherapy, which primarily focuses in three areas: thoughts, emotions and behaviors. Some argue that knowledge and work in these areas were the foundation of ancient mystery schools: work in the areas of thinking, willing, and feeling. With the advent of the internet, little information is mysterious, the challenge is the development of knowledge through a schema of organization that can work within our diverse culture. For the purposes of this site, we will use secular counseling and psychotherapy as a foundation for this knowledge base. Spirituality has its place in this schema, along with contemplation or mindfulness.
Mindfulness
Mindfulness is the foundation and central figure in our exploration of thoughts, emotions and behaviors. In our exploration of mindfulness we start with a definition and determine its role in our exploration and development of thoughts, emotions and behaviors. For our purposes we will use Jon Kabat-Zinn’s definition of mindfulness, “The awareness that arises out of focusing on the present moment, on purpose, without judgement or attachment.” Mindfulness will be our tool for creating awareness.
Awareness
In working with our thoughts, emotions and behaviors, we first must become aware of what we are thinking. Thoughts are the breeding grounds for beliefs. Awareness is important as we notice how sensations in the body related to emotions and rise and fall in the body. We become aware of our impulses and our habits: patterns of behavior. We bring the unconscious to the conscious to initiate change with awareness.
Focus
Focus is a tool that brings awareness, and focus is an instrument of change. As we try to focus, we notice a constant stream of thoughts, sensations in the body and impulses or behaviors that may otherwise be below the level of our consciousness. Often times we are so engaged in our thoughts that we lose track of the reality unfolding around us. As we exercise our ability to focus, we fine tune our instrument of change. For example, to have an emotion, we must focus on the stimulus that is causing that emotion, if we change our focus away from the stimulus of an unwanted emotion, we can change our emotional state. This focus is a foundational skill that will become very helpful as we look forward into how thoughts, emotions and behaviors interact to keep us struck or facilitate change in our lives.
Present Moment
Our home base for our focus, as we practice, is the present moment. The mind is amazing as it can reach back into the past to learn or project into the future to create. The challenge becomes as we reach and project, we judge, assign symbols, creating cognitive material, which, in reality does not exist, they are pictures in our minds. While these pictures can help us to avoid pitfalls of the past or lay plans to build a wonderful future, they can also plague us, as we judge ourselves and replay the memories of all the things that we have done wrong, until we judge and believe ourselves to be no good and not worthy of happiness or love. Or, this same mind may dwell on all of the bad things that could happen in the future until we are paralyzed with fear. The antidote and catalyst of change begins with bringing our awareness to the home base of the present moment.
Without Judgement and Attachment
This exercise and process of awareness, through focusing on the present moment, is done without judgement or attachment. The exercise is to bring awareness to the environment around us and to internal processes. Our goal is to build awareness and tolerance, befriending our internal cues, not judging ourselves because our minds continue to produce thoughts or we get butterflies in our stomach. Everything belongs and everything is seen as information. We are not fixed upon an empty mind or being the best or great, we are just creating awareness with a sense of compassion and kindness towards ourselves and others.
Connection and Compassion
Connection and compassion towards ourselves and others will be explored along with self-defense and setting boundaries. We explore spirituality as a relationship to that which we cannot grasp with our thinking mind. Awareness, or being, beyond or deep within ourselves, that, we may not be able to capture with the symbols of thought nor our known senses, but can experience as we develop and open ourselves. Evil is also in the world and others may have or seek to hurt us. We set boundaries and defend ourselves seeking equality in our relationships with other people.
Let's explore,
rob koehl
Welcome to the site. The purpose for the site is to share a journey of exploration and to process theories of growth across disciplines, in the marketplace of ideas. The foundation is based on mindfulness or contemplative processes and the action of creation. Working to process thought and emotions through activities and projects leaving a record of this journey of exploration.
Thoughts, Emotions and Behaviors
The work will be disciplined in contemporary Western counseling theory or psychotherapy, which primarily focuses in three areas: thoughts, emotions and behaviors. Some argue that knowledge and work in these areas were the foundation of ancient mystery schools: work in the areas of thinking, willing, and feeling. With the advent of the internet, little information is mysterious, the challenge is the development of knowledge through a schema of organization that can work within our diverse culture. For the purposes of this site, we will use secular counseling and psychotherapy as a foundation for this knowledge base. Spirituality has its place in this schema, along with contemplation or mindfulness.
Mindfulness
Mindfulness is the foundation and central figure in our exploration of thoughts, emotions and behaviors. In our exploration of mindfulness we start with a definition and determine its role in our exploration and development of thoughts, emotions and behaviors. For our purposes we will use Jon Kabat-Zinn’s definition of mindfulness, “The awareness that arises out of focusing on the present moment, on purpose, without judgement or attachment.” Mindfulness will be our tool for creating awareness.
Awareness
In working with our thoughts, emotions and behaviors, we first must become aware of what we are thinking. Thoughts are the breeding grounds for beliefs. Awareness is important as we notice how sensations in the body related to emotions and rise and fall in the body. We become aware of our impulses and our habits: patterns of behavior. We bring the unconscious to the conscious to initiate change with awareness.
Focus
Focus is a tool that brings awareness, and focus is an instrument of change. As we try to focus, we notice a constant stream of thoughts, sensations in the body and impulses or behaviors that may otherwise be below the level of our consciousness. Often times we are so engaged in our thoughts that we lose track of the reality unfolding around us. As we exercise our ability to focus, we fine tune our instrument of change. For example, to have an emotion, we must focus on the stimulus that is causing that emotion, if we change our focus away from the stimulus of an unwanted emotion, we can change our emotional state. This focus is a foundational skill that will become very helpful as we look forward into how thoughts, emotions and behaviors interact to keep us struck or facilitate change in our lives.
Present Moment
Our home base for our focus, as we practice, is the present moment. The mind is amazing as it can reach back into the past to learn or project into the future to create. The challenge becomes as we reach and project, we judge, assign symbols, creating cognitive material, which, in reality does not exist, they are pictures in our minds. While these pictures can help us to avoid pitfalls of the past or lay plans to build a wonderful future, they can also plague us, as we judge ourselves and replay the memories of all the things that we have done wrong, until we judge and believe ourselves to be no good and not worthy of happiness or love. Or, this same mind may dwell on all of the bad things that could happen in the future until we are paralyzed with fear. The antidote and catalyst of change begins with bringing our awareness to the home base of the present moment.
Without Judgement and Attachment
This exercise and process of awareness, through focusing on the present moment, is done without judgement or attachment. The exercise is to bring awareness to the environment around us and to internal processes. Our goal is to build awareness and tolerance, befriending our internal cues, not judging ourselves because our minds continue to produce thoughts or we get butterflies in our stomach. Everything belongs and everything is seen as information. We are not fixed upon an empty mind or being the best or great, we are just creating awareness with a sense of compassion and kindness towards ourselves and others.
Connection and Compassion
Connection and compassion towards ourselves and others will be explored along with self-defense and setting boundaries. We explore spirituality as a relationship to that which we cannot grasp with our thinking mind. Awareness, or being, beyond or deep within ourselves, that, we may not be able to capture with the symbols of thought nor our known senses, but can experience as we develop and open ourselves. Evil is also in the world and others may have or seek to hurt us. We set boundaries and defend ourselves seeking equality in our relationships with other people.
Let's explore,
rob koehl