Every morning the alarm clock goes off reminding me it’s time to wake-up. I hit snooze once before getting up and starting my day. I’m one of those people who like to take naps, not possible because work gets in the way, but staying awake is obviously an important aspect of one’s life.
I started thinking about my years in college and all those who tried to stay awake to study and took No-Doz. They fought to stay awake, but really were they were doing was staying up, not awake. Then I began to think about our lives today and how many people are taking No-Doz in life and simply exist, not living.
I guess what I’m really wondering, is there a way to stay conscious, equating to staying awake? Are there times in our lives when we find ourselves dozing, not paying attention and as a result things slip by us unnoticed? I find this happens when I’m knitting, which I use as a spiritual practice, I go on auto-pilot not paying attention and lo and behold I make a mistake. It’s almost as if I need to be like a race horse and put on blinders to stay focused, but don’t know how I would do that with my mind.
Now turning to your health, being “awake” means paying attention to what’s going on with your body, mind, and spirit. Are you aware of how your body is feeling? Are you aware of any changes that you need to notify your medical team about? These are important questions because you take an inventory of the physical body you can head off potential problems if you let them go too far. The same goes for your emotional and spiritual life. If you allow sadness/depression to spiral out-of-control, unchecked you become prone to feeling hopeless impacting your journey to health and healing.
What will you do today to start your “stay awake” efforts? How will you remain conscious through your day? I encourage you to take note of your level of consciousness and see if staying “awake” serves as a catalyst for health and healing.
Pilgrim Pathway/Surviving Strong 