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A Total Rest.

A total Rest, By the lagoon.

You are walking towards the lagoon park, as all the benches are occupied, take the footpath which runs towards the edge of the water, where you find a place to sit. The breeze which carries the salty smell of the lagoon comfort your tiredness of the hard-working day. The sky is gloomy as it appears raining in the far away mountains. There is only single Golden cloud although the sun already disappeared, it was his last attempt to remind the day he dominated had end. You feel happy. And you notice the happiness you feel is the reflection of the cloud that you just saw, and you notice how it disturbed the peace which already had. You think of taking a photo, of the golden cloud, however, do nothing. Try to understand the wind instead. Try to be the sky, the clouds and that annoying Noice which disturb the happiness and peace you seek. Notice how and why it doesn't last as you expected. Let it be a total rest; let it be a partial rest. And you let everything to come and go deliberately opening the door of your mind just to watch them appear and disappear like the waves in front of you.


lagoon
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What is A total Rest?


Can there be a thing like total rest? Once I wrote an article claiming that we should aim at resting instead of retiring. As I pointed out there, even after so called retiring we would not be resting. We might be still working, so resting is the only way we can seek the so-called Peace that we seek all our lives.


Often, I have taken rests, just like you. Sometimes, days after days trying to rest. Imagine you have a long weekend ahead. You may have done some extra work to get one day added to your weekend. And this weekend you are going to rest. You may decide to sleep until noon and order food. You may postpone any meetings, cancel encounters. You may choose to munch snacks watching Netflix, not just one movie, but a dozen of them. Just like when Bruno Mars Sang, nobody would dare say you cannot do it.

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Today I don't feel like doing anything

I just wanna lay in my bed

Don't feel like picking up my phone

So leave a message at the tone

'Cause today I swear I'm not doing anything

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I am sure you have don't it before. However, you may have noticed, you do not feel at rest at all. Why is this? Why is doing something you Favour, most does still make you feel drained, not rested?


The rest you are taking doing these tasks is not a total rest. Of course you let your consciousness freely float in time. However, a total rest is only achievable when you are mindful about your awareness. Which is by definition the Mindfulness. When you see your current status of the mind and accept it as it is, even when you are angry, even when you are sad, even when your mind is at peace, that is mindfulness. You just acknowledge and continue to be aware. You do not have a specific task to do. You can be aware of your breath in seated position in the beginning but once you have seen enough, just being aware is enough.


This remind me a quote that I heard a long time ago, "If you are aware, you are not there, no point in being there". If you think about this in relation to rest, we can understand why watching Netflix is not a total rest. As, if you are not mindful, any task becomes a futile process, even the rest. If you are not aware of the "Rest" it is like we have not rested at all. It is like waking up from a mini-Coma. At the end of it you will be back to where you have left, which is unrested state. Even our work would demand more consciousness than this.

Deer
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How to have a total rest.


So, what is the solution. Compared to above, some activities are inherently demanding mindfulness. Such as taking a walk in a new part of the city. (A paradigm shift) Or even an ordinary walk without music and friends or the dog would demand more attention to the present moment. For an artistic mind this could be some creative activity, like composing music or a painting. Although it is considered as "Work" these activities still can serve the purpose of a "Rest". So, the Key is to be mindful.


So, you may ask, if that is true, any activity can be a "Total Rest". And I would agree with you. But just like you I really find it difficult to be mindful watching the Telly. :)




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