Is it safe to travel overseas? What about going to concerts, football games or attending parades?
News networks and social media feeds lead with whatever bleeds and that constant barrage can make one believe that now where is safe. Terrorists and lone gunmen on the loose making us think twice about stepping outside the safety of our homes.
I am thinking about these things especially as I will be traveling through international airports, visiting bustling cafes, sightseeing historic places, traveling on subways and in taxis in multicultural cities.
But this is not a time to let fear cloud our judgment.
Instead, it is time to get on the good foot, to get things done. It is time to be mindful, conscious decision-makers. Asking ourselves: where do I want to be? Where do I need to be? How do I want to conduct myself? How do I want to move through the world? What are the principles that I want to live by?
Conscious decisions and questions are never more important than when traveling. I ask myself: Where am I called to visit? How do I feel? What energies can I bring to the cities, planes, and subways that I travel on?
As I get ready to travel, I prepare my mind, body, and soul to meet family, friends, and places that I want to connect with. I bring with me my enthusiasm and gladness. I bring with me the possibility and an abundance of light.
I ask my inner voice what focus/vibration to hold as I travel. I close my eyes and listen deeply. I breathe into my body as my senses settle down. I wait until I can feel a little whisper of a vibration. I feel pulled by a profound calm. It is refreshing as a fresh pool of water in a green, green forest. I move closer to this calm and dive into it. It feels so quiet and still. I sense The energy begin to move in my body filling it up. It is teaching me how to be as I move in airports and cities.
Once I feel the energy plump me up I open my eyes. I feel clear and present. You can do this exercise too before the beginning of any endeavor. It will create a laser beam focus and how and where to direct your energies.
Oh wait there’s an elephant in the room – fear.
We can work with fear just in the same way as the above exercise. Let’s try it together so that you have it down before you travel or for when you feel the jitters in your daily life.
Take a deep breath into your body and close your eyes. Allow your awareness to turn inwards and then ask your body where it is holding fear.
You may feel it or sense it. It could be your stomach or your foot – just take the first place that comes into your awareness. What does the fear feel or look like? Again, allow yourself to know it – become familiar with it consciously so that you can recognize it.
Now ask that place in your body what color or colors does it want to release the fear.
Take the first color(s) that come into your awareness and imagine it coming from the universe directly into the body part that is holding the fear. Imagine the color(s) dissolving the fear. Take as much color as you need. You may feel a shift or a tingling sensation.
Once it is cleared take a couple of deep breaths and open your eyes.
So, let us travel mindfully in our lives at home and abroad, knowing that we can bring awareness and optimism into any situation. We can bring good wherever we go and wherever we are.
One last detail- It helps to know the facts. The news narrative may not always accurately represent the situation. Statistics show that we are safer now than in decades past. Much safer.
How do you like to prepare for your holidays? Has traveling changed for you in recent years? Are you more cautious? Do you fear terrorist attacks? Share your thoughts with us.
*http://www.datagraver.com/case/people-killed-by-terrorism-per-year-in-western-europe-1970-2015