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The show we performed this week (and will be touring the US starting this October) is called \u201cWaking Up In America: Those Were the Days\u201d – referring to all the great songs that made it around the world and connected people (and still do) regardless of their backgrounds. I invited the audience to wake up each day with an intention to bring more love but less fear and anger into the world.<\/div>\n
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I have to admit, I\u2019ve been really affected – and deeply saddened – by last week\u2019s horrible events – the mass shootings in Texas and Ohio.<\/div>\n
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So, I wrote this reflection. I hope you enjoy it and are inspired by it.<\/div>\n
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What do you do when you feel fear come over you?<\/div>\n
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I\u2019m talking about fear about your future; fear about your current life circumstances; fear about the unknown.<\/div>\n
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The first (and probably the most important) thing to do is to ask yourself, Where is it coming from?<\/div>\n
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You might think it\u2019s coming from one place, but if you tune into yourself a bit more, you might begin to see what\u2019s really going on. In our hurried lives today, we often neglect to stop and be still in order to be able to fully discern where our fear is coming from (and if it\u2019s there to truly protect us, or if it\u2019s a fear that\u2019s not serving us).<\/div>\n
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Check your emotional response – what is it telling you to do? If your actions carry on that fear (for example if you are compelled to move to another country, or to hire bodyguards, or never leave your house), you will only perpetuate the problem.<\/div>\n
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So here is what I learned about managing fear (from being informed about and practising \u201ccontemplation and action\u201d and from a program we teach at prisons):<\/div>\n
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Let yourself\u00a0<\/b>feel the fear<\/b><\/i>\u00a0(or anger, sadness, revolt, rage, despair, compassion). Acknowledge it and sit with it.<\/div>\n
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Don\u2019t just scroll through your social media feeds or watch media coverage. That will only feed your emotions, and you will find yourself in a spinning circle.<\/div>\n
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Sit with it, get silent and still for a moment, and let the emotion pass.<\/div>\n
Connect with the place of Love.\u00a0<\/b>Become aware of the peace that still exists around you (in nature) despite the human destructive behavior. And THEN when you are at peace, look for solutions that will bring that peace back into our human interactions.<\/div>\n
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