Cutting It Up

There are many ways to create frameworks or structures for personal analysis and development. This is one mostly borrowed from "(need reference) Adult Relations?," and has been extended on each end to incorporate both most primal state of being conscious and being social.

These facets will be revisited in different forms in future chapters but they represent an understanding and opportunity to be and be a social being. How each of us do this is facilitated by our indoctrinations and our innate capabilities.

This scheme, as well as the book, is an indoctrination in its own right.

I'm Just Waking Up

Sometimes becoming aware of "now" is frightening. In the pure, solitary state of awareness, there is no refection or stream of history and no focus on any entities. We momentarily enter this state as we wake (and fall asleep?) and sometimes, through relaxation or mediation, by not attending to the business of thinking of things - abstract and present.

The state of awareness, in the absence of other conscious thoughts, is usually considered as a meditative practice i.e. quieting. This is valuable but belies the potential for understanding and using awareness capabilities in everyday life. Awareness is not simply an "absence of," it is the most primal state of "being in."

Awareness is the most basic sense of being conscious.

Scope & Focus

A aware mind is awesome but the priming of consciousness is not sufficient for living. Engaging requires focus and focus takes attention.

Attention is the basis for relation. To be and have focus necessitates "otherness," even if that other is you! Attention is also a type of priming, it primes the channels of abilities of awareness and affords the brain/mind a sensitivity to the object(s) of focus.

"In focus" means to be predisposed to gestalts relevant to the emerging relationship.

Getting Close to Real