Day 341: Spectator Mode

Prerequisites:

• A place with lots of activity (e.g. a night market)
• Not standing out (e.g. being a medium-sized Asian person wearing a mask among many medium-sized Asian people wearing masks)
• Safe surroundings

Optional:

• Noise cancelling headphones and a playlist of mellow music

Start walking. There is no destination.

Merge with the crowd. Walk at their pace. Let your body navigate and respond to obstacles without thought. Go with the flow. Become invisible.

Notice the thoughts that appear as you encounter different scenes. A young couple share a snack and you remember a trip you took with an ex. Let the memories arise. Let the feelings come. Then let them go.

Notice the people around you. A father consoling his daughter. A woman assisting an old lady in a wheelchair. A stout figure pushing a food cart across the street.

As you pass by the sea of faces, reflect on how each individual is living in their own world as rich as your own, complete with their own stories, worries, hopes, and dreams. While the contents differ, the essence is the same. The film is different, but the screen on which it is playing is the same.

Let the boundary between self and other dissolve. There is no you, no them. There is no inside and outside. There is just this.

Rest as awareness.