You arrive here in the middle of living.
A life with history, experience, knowledge, relationships, responsibilities, habits and priorities.
We don't know what brought you here today.
Something may be bothering you.
Someone may have suggested that you come.
You may simply be curious.
Whatever the reason, you arrive with an understanding of your life and of yourself,
developed while living it.
Some things receive your attention.
Others don't.
Some things stay with you.
Others don't.
Some things return.
Some things you trust.
Others you question.
Some things become part of how you understand your life and yourself.
Some things become part of what you do.
Others don't.
And all of this continues to change while you live.
Most of the time, we don't think about living as something that needs to be examined.
We are busy living it.
Continuity and Change
Most of us live expecting a certain amount of continuity.
Tomorrow will probably be connected to today.
But while life feels continuous, it is changing all the time.
Responsibilities change.
Relationships change.
What matters to us changes.
The body changes.
Some changes happen suddenly; many happen quietly.
We adapt, learn, find another way, and continue.
Other changes can also happen quietly.
Movement can gradually feel different.
Sleep can change.
Something can be happening without becoming important enough to change the course of the day.
And then, sometimes, something becomes difficult to ignore.
Pain is one example.
Sometimes only then do we look back and wonder:
When did this begin?
What We Can Notice
Much of what happens within us does not enter our awareness.
We do not consciously follow our organs, nerves, muscles,
or the countless processes taking place while we live.
But we do notice things.
We wake up and feel rested.
We move without thinking much about the movement.
We concentrate on something and finish it.
Most of the time, we simply continue.
At another time, something catches our attention.
Perhaps we notice that we have been sitting for hours.
Perhaps breathing feels different.
Perhaps something in the body is bothering us.
We get up.
Movement feels different.
At another time, we notice something else.
We are tired.
Thinking requires more effort.
Sometimes we notice one thing.
Sometimes several things appear together.
We may wonder whether they are connected.
Sometimes we think we know.
Sometimes we don't.
Sometimes we notice, compare, ask and learn without understanding everything that is happening within us.
What We Expect
We expect things throughout the day.
We expect the chair to support us.
We expect the car to start.
We expect to sleep tonight.
We expect our body to do many of the things it did yesterday.
Most of the time, things happen more or less as we expected.
We get up.
We walk.
We continue with our day.
Often, we hardly think about the expectation itself.
Sometimes something happens differently.
We expect getting out of the car to be ordinary.
This time it hurts.
After a while, we may begin to expect it to hurt.
And one day, perhaps it doesn't.
When we do something, we usually have some idea of what we hope will happen.
Perhaps it happens, perhaps it doesn't.
Perhaps something else changes.
And sometimes we notice something we weren't looking for.
What We Know and What We Do
There are many things we know and do.
We decide to do something.
We do it.
Sometimes it becomes part of everyday life.
Something changes and we adapt.
We find another way.
We also do things we haven't done before.
We learn.
Ask someone.
Do something.
See what happens.
Sometimes it happens as we hoped.
Sometimes it doesn't.
Sometimes we do it again.
Sometimes we do something differently.
And there are also things we know but don't do.
I know I should...
Sometimes we begin.
Sometimes we postpone.
Sometimes we stop.
Sometimes we return.
We don't always know what will happen before we do something.
Sometimes we find what works for us.
Sometimes we learn something and do something differently.
And sometimes we find ourselves saying:
I've tried everything.
Taking Time Out
We already take time out in many ways.
Go for a walk.
Sit quietly.
Listen to music.
Lie down.
Drink coffee.
Meditate.
Sometimes we simply stop what we are doing for a while.
Sometimes we know exactly why.
Sometimes we don't need a reason.
Perhaps something is bothering us.
Perhaps we are tired.
Perhaps we have been concentrating for hours.
Perhaps something is occupying our thoughts.
Or perhaps we simply recognize:
I need a little time out.
Sometimes we relax easily.
Sometimes we don't.
Sometimes we know what we want from that time.
Sometimes we don't.
Over almost twenty years with CogniSpine,
listening to people has changed some of the things we pay attention to.
What they noticed.
What they expected.
What they knew and did.
What they stopped.
What they returned to.
What they questioned.
And what sometimes became clear only later.
These pages grew from some of that listening and learning.
What Stays With Us
You arrived here with your life.
With your experience.
With what you know.
With the people who matter to you.
With things you have done.
With things you have learned.
With things that have become part of what you do.
While reading, perhaps you recognized something from your own experience.
Perhaps something reminded you of something that happened before.
Perhaps someone came to mind.
Perhaps a particular thought stayed with you.
Perhaps something you already knew now looks a little different.
Or perhaps something new is only beginning to take shape.
Where it continues from here is part of your life.
Living Continues
You arrived here in the middle of living.
You read these pages within it.
Living continues from where you are now.