A number of weeks ago I completed a workshop training with Dr. Christopher Germer on mindful self-compassion.
During the workshop, Dr. Germer shared an interesting distinction that has lingered for me. To paraphrase…
Where MINDFULLNESS is purposefully paying attention to the experience of the here and now, SELF-COMPASSION is purposefully paying attention to the experiencer of that here and now.
What a wonderfully meta thought, isn’t it? To think about ourselves as the experiencers as we are paying attention to the experience of the present moment…To recognize that that present moment exists through our capacity as experiencer. It may exist outside our experiencing of it (and I suppose this line of thinking could carry us along on some deeply philosophical and spiritual conversation) but in that moment, that present moment, we become the lens through which the moment becomes.
But, within that present experience, we are not a mere observer. Our existence within the present experience – our physiological presence, our emotions, our thoughts, our senses – it influences our perspective of the experience. We are not separate from it, both influencing and influenced by the here and now.
Last week, I attended the University College Cork’s Learning Connections conference where we explored the pedagogical connections of research, teaching, and learning…spaces, people, and practice.
In the closing keynote at the conference, Dr. Marian McCarthy implored us to take notice of our spaces. Again, to paraphrase…
Document your spaces every day. The spaces you interact with each day will never be the same as they are right now. They change because of your interaction with them. They change through other factors. But they exist as they are right now, and you exist as you are right now in this space. Take notice.
Prompts to Reflect on Your Space and Role of Experiencer
What do you notice about the space you are in right now?
How does your role of experiencer influence the space?
How are you being influenced by the space?
And, since it’s nearing the end of the year, how has your interaction with this space changed throughout the year?
How has the space changed through this interaction? How have you changed?
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