An Art Therapy Exercise for Noticing

Open Sky Exercise

 Sometimes a shift, a change, a move, a new beginning can feel overwhelmingly huge and other times it can feel tiny. There is a Zen story about a student who thought that change would feel like falling off a cliff, but when he did it, it was more like stepping down from a curb.

That is how life feels right, now. That change, real change, is like stepping off a curb. It is not a huge leap, rather it is a silent everyday commitment to show up and do what I know I need to do to change. I want to be present, aware and awake in my life and it will not take a huge change, but a small significant shift. It will require a constant checking in, a commitment to myself. It will mean falling off the curb of being on autopilot, to stop living in my habitual historical self and to pause before falling into reaction. All I am trying to do is to notice, stay aware and witness when this happens. I want to witness myself being in life. That would be a shift worth doing.

Art Therapy Exercise for Noticing: Open Sky Exercise

Begin with some deep breathing or a centering exercise to feel settled, present and centered. You could use the image of looking at an open bright blue sky. Now use some oil pastels and white paper and let your hand guide you in expressing the witnessing or noticing yourself sitting here in the middle of that vast blue sky.

Now think of thoughts or feelings that emerge like clouds floating by. When this happens, express it on the paper, as you stay conscious of being Present watching the wide open sky and at the same time noticing the story or feeling of the cloud.