SHOW UP, PAY ATTENTION, LISTEN TO THE MUSIC

Robbie Williams was once asked why he thought he was so successful and he replied “I just show up”. Now although Robbie may sometimes be more known for the profane than profound, it was something that stuck with me. Is it that easy? Can we find the universal answers, our purpose, the raison d’etre by just showing up?

Well yes, in part, because as soon as we start searching, awakening, and following our heart, we start being given all sorts of opportunities to ‘show up' at places, connect with people, join events, that lead the way to our purpose and passions in life. The problem is that there are so many opportunities, so much overload of information, which one do you show up at?

We lived in a wildlife reserve in Africa and I remember our house had resident owls. They would often sit on the roof and watch the TV through our courtyard windows, kept vigil over the goldfish pond, and every now and then one of them, especially the owlets, would fall from the roof and get stuck in our courtyard. As it was enclosed they would crash around until we could catch them or they knocked themselves out and we would have to try and revive them. On a positive note, I’m sure any potential burglar was put off by the sight of half-naked figures running around the courtyard trying to catch an owl at 2 am in the morning when they were learning to fly.

 One particular night, there was an abundance of teenagers sprawled out in the back room watching a thriller, in the dark. At a pivotal scary moment, one of the owl’s radars went wonky and he flew from outside, into the room, brushing over their heads and searching from the exit - now the owl was in the house. The brave sheepdog was terrified, the cat was transfixed, owl poo was everywhere and the teenagers were screaming, convinced there was a poltergeist spirit in the house. Eventually, I threw a towel over the owl and I carried him outside again, where he flew back to the roof.

 I looked up the meaning of owl – it signifies ‘paying attention to the signs'. It is not enough just to show up, you also must pay attention. Mindfulness, paying attention to the present moment, and stilling the mind from the chatter of choices and processing is a key element of conscious living. Being mindful in whatever you do and entering a state of presence to what is happening at that moment, helps you know whether you are in the right place, or on the right track and you are far more centered to deal with whatever you are attracting.

 The full message was revealed however when I saw Wayne Dyer’s film “From Ambition to Meaning”. One line caught my attention - when going from ‘external ambition’ to ‘internal meaning’ in life, all you have to do is “show up, pay attention and listen to the music”. That final part is something we often forget, we are so busy doing everything, being everything, listening for signs, searching for our purpose, we forget to enjoy the ride, to being what we should be at that very moment, to smell the roses, laugh and appreciate the small perfections of life.

 Nature gives us so many opportunities to listen to the music, the sound of the wind in the trees, water flowing in streams, birdsong, and sometimes the music of nature is one of stillness and simplicity, of presence and conscious living and all that it brings. It gives us joy and hope and links the pathways of our senses, emotions, beauty, meaning and compassion around us to the connectedness of the unfolding moment.

 “Quiet the mind and the soul will speak”

Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati

 Perhaps this month we can show up in nature, and when making soul decisions or moving forward in life, take the time to be attuned to the signs and the music of the natural world whilst listening to our heart with mindfulness, before we move forward.