Have you ever gotten behind the wheel of your car, driven somewhere, and then had the feeling of “waking up”? Wondering how you got there? Driving is a common area of unawareness in our daily lives because it becomes habitual (particularly when we drive the same route constantly). When something is habit, it moves from our conscious mind into our subconscious mind and we pay less attention to what is happening. Here are some exercises while driving to bring awareness and life back into this frequent activity.
As you drive, turn off all radio and audio. Listen to the sound of the car. Do you know what your car sounds like? Just as it is important to recognize when a person is sick from the sounds they make (coughing, wheezing, etc), it is also important to recognize when your car is in need of repair from the way it sounds. Pay close attention to the sound your engine makes when it starts up. Is it always the same pattern? How does it change on hot or cold days? What is the sound like when you first start moving? How do your tires tell you they’re moving? You may need to open your windows to become intimately familiar with the starting sounds of driving.
Once you’re on the move, what is the sound of the environment as it moves past you? How do other cars sound in relation to you? It is important to recognize sounds of alert — sounds of breaks squeaking, or a motorcycle coming up behind you. What is the sound difference between accelerating and decelerating? How does the engine sound at different speeds? Is it low pitched, high pitched, or both?
At your destination, what does it sound like for your engine to turn off and rest? Are there sounds that continue after you have turned off the ignition? What is causing those sounds? Practice of listening to your car will provide a new depth of awareness to an incredible invention, an exceptional feat of engineering, and treasured tool that transports you from one location to another.
As you drive, you may turn music on or leave it off. Try this exercise under both circumstances. Now listen to the thoughts that come into your mind. This may be challenging at first, for as you listen there may be a tendency to get caught up in the thought, and forget to listen to the thought. That is okay — simply recognize when you are thinking the thought and go back to listening and observing what thoughts pop into your mind.
If you’re driving a route that is very common to you (for example, to/from work), this is often the case where our mind relegates “driving” to the subconscious, and then starts to process items from the subconscious (if thought is not directed). See what your mind decides to start processing. Is it something to do with your destination or next task? Is is related to something that happened just prior to starting the drive? When our mind is active but running on its own, it typically moves from present to future or present to past. See if you can identify if the thoughts are related to the future or to the past.
If you’re listening to music or speech, examine what thoughts come into your mind as the music plays or person talks. Are you judging the audio as good or bad? Are you relating the audio to positive or negative experiences? How much of the audio are you actually listening and paying attention to, versus letting the audio become part of the background hum? I’ve often found when I’m listening to dry audiobooks, several moments may go by that I realized I wasn’t paying attention to what was being said. I’ll then replay that section of audiobook if I want to find out what I missed. This of course is inefficient action, which we look to optimize in order to live more in flow.
The car is one of the hidden sanctuaries where a person can say anything they want, however they want, without causing any disturbance. If you started ranting and raving at the top of your lungs at home, it probably wouldn’t be appreciated by your roommates or your neighbors. Do it in public long enough, and you’ll probably attract unwanted attention. However it is unlikely that any of your neighboring cars will hear what is going on — especially when you’re on the freeway.
So experiment. Experiment with talking out loud. Experiment with making strange noises. Experiment with yelling, and experiment with whispering. This is an opportunity to get to know your voice and what it can do. Just as a yogi moves their body in a variety of directions, see how many different dimensions of sound you can make. Whistle, laugh, make baby noises, make geriatric noises. It may feel strange and silly at first — but who’s to judge? Ultimately it will provide a sense of liberation.
After you’ve fully explored the physical expressions, play with the mental intent. What if you used the driving time to speak a journal? Much of the value in journal writing is to express, rather than to review at a later time. So by journaling out loud, you can gain the benefits of journaling (and record it if you really wanted to review it later). If you don’t know what to say (as many people don’t know what to write), start by describing what happened in your day. See how many points of interest you can recall. Then move to how you felt about each point. This is reflective journaling. Next try talking about is going to happen next, and how you feel with each point that is going to happen next. This is vision journaling.
What if you used the driving time to sing? When is the last time you sung? For many of us, it was not recent. Singing has always been an important part of human culture (and if you observe animals and the movement of life, it is part of nature’s culture.) Songs bond a tribe together and nourish the soul. This is why churches and most religious organizations have singing as a frequent activity. Start by choosing songs familiar to you, that you enjoy, and that you can sing along with. Explore songs from your childhood. Explore different ranges of song. See how it feels to freely sing. Many people have never really sung for fear of judgement.
Next time you drive — bring the life of awareness into it. Living in Los Angeles, my commute is often 20 or more minutes. I used to “switch-off” whenever I got into the car, and just zoned out while I waited to arrive at my destination. Now I recognize it’s an opportunity to play, discover, and grow. If only my car neighbors knew what was going on in the car right next to them!
Just as you observe the feeling of being still even though you are moving (ie sitting still inside a moving car), examine the part of you that is still even when your body moves.
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