Two nights after I woke up from the daydream of reality, I had a night dream. In it, I was eating a colorful treat from my childhood called “Smarties,” little round disks of candy-coated chocolate.

A month later I understand the meaning of this symbolic dream. When all the clutter of a mind preoccupied with thinking disappears, what remains is a kind of “intelligence” that is, well, really smart!

If I have to label the quality of this intelligence, it’s “intuitive.” By that I mean it’s not logical, linear and structured. Knowing arises from stillness with a kind of laser like clarity that the mind is unable to demonstrate.

So how does this new intelligence show up in my world? First, I find that listening is a new art and entirely fun! Lori used to listen impatiently, with counter arguments and questions arising in her head as someone spoke. Even in an active listening mode, counseling an emotional friend (versus say, a debate) the mind would formulate thoughts about that person’s upset, either thoughts in agreement with or in resistance to what was being said.

This might be a good place to point out that the mind is always moving toward or away from– it is never still, and never can be still. It’s nature is to move like a pendulum, swinging between the poles of belief, ideas, fears, values and conditionings.  The value of meditative practices to witness the mind is of course that chance to step aside from this incessant movement. The watcher of the mind is not-mind, but still awareness peeking in.

But back to this new found joy of listening. Just as luxuriating in stillness is a natural outcome of waking up, so is the experience of luxuriating in listening. When for instance, someone is talking (which there is a lot of when mind is in charge) I find that a deep stillness listens. In the absence of thought, nothing arises or something arises as a response. If a response does arise, it’s a delightfully simple one that shears through all the noise and circle-turning of what was said. Awareness points in one direction only—toward itself.

So what I am saying is this: Awareness is really smart! It doesn’t bother with a debate about how many angels dance on the head of a pin; nor does it engage with the surface angst of the mind moving away from ideas in fear or toward in desire. It simply observes. Quietly. Calmly. In stillness. And when, as Echart Tolle says, ‘stillness speaks” it’s usually a pithy one liner, or a question that gets to the heart of the egoic wound that is arising in the moment.

And lastly, did I mention that sitcks and stones might break my bones, but words can never hurt me? Well, another curious part of Awakened Awareness is the complete loss of the “take it personally” reaction. Nothing lands when it comes to verbal attack, opinions, and all-purpose blaming. Because the self that would react is gone. That self is the mind that would try so hard to be a “good little ego, a lovable ego, a worthy ego, a special ego.”

So here’s a sales pitch from this one expression of awareness writing this report. Wake up, Get Smart!

Awareness Is Here!

Lori Ann

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