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Sep
12
2016

Sharing My Favourite Metaphor

A picture says a thousand words

“A Picture Says a Thousand Words” ~ A wise saying

The month of September can be very challenging as we gear up for the September to June challenge. I would like to share a special metaphor that has served me well in life. I can thank my Dad for it. This metaphor has helped me be wise in difficult times.

I grew up in Toronto and at the age of 19, my Dad taught me how to drive. He drove me to Yorkdale, a large shopping mall, at night when no one was there. We would drive around and around. He insisted I learn a standard. We had an automatic, but he held firm despite my whining. He said total freedom to go anywhere in the world meant learning how to drive a stick shift. We all have different definitions of freedom!!

So I nervously stripped the gears, and the car leapt forward. Dad and I bounced around as I made one mistake after another. But Dad was firm and determined, so we endured through my learning. Over time, the mistakes became less and I was reading the terrain while managing the inside workings of the car. I had to stay alert. In an automatic you don’t have to pay as much attention to the motor so you can kind of be on autopilot, but not with a standard. Quite a difference between the two.

When I began lecturing at the University of Toronto, I remember thinking that life is like driving a stick shift. So many of us are on autopilot and snooze through life. We lose the muscle required to stay awake and “drive” with clarity.

We pop pills, have a drink, blame someone else (this is a biggie), zone out in front of the TV, or spend money. We don’t build the muscle of awareness and choice. We become more reactive rather than creatively alive. Discernment isn’t always a skill we learn.

Life requires us to read the terrain, know what is going on inside of us, hold perspective, observe, take action, and know when to go into our heart and when to use our thinking mind….so many skills. This is important for us to know about life. Life is like a stick shift, not an automatic. What a profound insight!!

Knowing when to move forward, when to pause and allow for integration, and when to reverse or step back is important for our health – emotional and physical. But is takes alertness, awareness and commitment. No snoozing, unless you are aware you are consciously taking a break.

In this month of September demands will come our way, and themes like pacing, listening to our bodies, and honouring our needs become important navigational tools. Most of us don’t listen to our bodies. We are thinking, and the thought navigates us rather than what our bodies need. This is an important month for self-care as we gear up for the fall and its plans.

In life, as with driving a car with a stick shift, we need to find balance of the external terrain and what is happening inside of us. It is important to be accountable to ourselves.

Enjoy this metaphor as a reminder of balancing life and staying wise.

Tags: alert, aware, balance, Beverley Pugh, choice, conscious, emotional, life, listening, physical
Posted in awareness, Choice | 5 Comments »

Beverley Pugh

Beverley Pugh

Beverley Pugh has international experience in Individual, Marital and Family Therapist services. Areas of practice include counselling in: individual, couples, family, anxiety, addictions, grief, depression, pain management, multicultural, workplace and others.

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Mastery Practice Tool

Step 1: Play with the following exercise. It can be very powerful.

- If you are a parent, imagine your child.

- If you have an animal, imagine your pet.

- If you love sunsets, imagine the sunset.

- If you love the ocean, trees, Pilates, standing on your head, then imagine this.

Now let the love you feel for it, flow towards it. It’s a great feeling. Just open up your heart and feel the love you have for this special being or person. Take a moment to feel your love for something that opens your heart.

Step 2: Now take that beautiful heart-felt feeling and give it to yourself. Let yourself receive it. That warm feeling of appreciation, of love, let yourself receive it and feel it. It’s your own valentine.

Resistance may come in. Just pause and breathe and stay with the exercise.

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My daughter, Trinity, attended her first Children’s Empowerment Workshop and she loved it! It has helped her deal with some of the real anxieties that all children go through - from the not so nice kid at school, to the imagination that runs away with her at night time, when we are getting ready for bed.

She practices her rooting and the different breathing techniques that she has learned, and has become stronger and more confident in dealing with different situations.

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About Beverley

Beverley Pugh has international experience in Individual, Marital and Family Therapist services. Areas of practice include counselling in: individual, couples, family, anxiety, addictions, grief, depression, pain management, multicultural, workplace and others.

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Telephone:
604-925-1513
Email:
bev@beverleypugh.com
Location:
120-1451 Marine Drive
West Vancouver, BC
V7T 1B8
Canada

Disclaimer: The information presented on this site about various psychological conditions, is of a general nature and is not a substitute for an assessment by a competent therapist and/or medical professional. If you believe that you or an important person in your life is in need of an intervention please seek qualified help as soon as possible.

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