Mental WOD Friday, May 16, 2014

Mountain: Emotional

Purpose : Release negative emotions such as anger, fear and sadness as they relate to holding onto past hurts.

Description:  Holding onto negative emotions can and does have negative effects on your health and well-being, as well as the ability to freely relate to people.

Actual drill: In your mind’s eye, imagine a person and an incident where you felt hurt or betrayed.  Feel fully the experience so it’s not just an image in your mind, but feelings in your body and particular physiological reactions such as changes in perception and sensations.  Take the totality of the ‘hurt’ experience and bring  it visually and kinetically into your heart area .  Breathe deeply and slowly see the pain and suffering you felt melt into the fullness of your own heart.  Allow the pain and hurt to be transformed in your heart into a deeper understanding of the other person, their limitations and personal challenges.  See them in  a heart felt way as a human being, the way they know how to be.  Let the hurt and pain go.  Allow the love in your heart to take it in and transform it into forgiveness.  Forgive them their trespasses.

Reflection question:  How was that experience for you?  Where you able to transform even slightly the totality of the pain you suffered into forgiveness?   Why and/or why not?  How do you know it was transformed?  How do you know it was not?  Can you make the distinction between forgiveness ( letting it go in your heart) and dependence on the pain ( allowing it to drive you in this and other relationships)?   Can you forgive but not forget?   Does forgiveness mean forgetting?