“If we were not so single-minded about keeping our lives moving, and for once could do nothing, perhaps a huge silence might interrupt this sadness of never understanding ourselves.”
-Pablo Neruda
Following the theme for March of “Paying Attention,” I extend an invitation to engage with the questions below—as a spiritual practice rather than as an intellectual exercise. You’re invited to find a question that speaks to you and to sit with it regularly over a period of time. It’s about living with the question, rather than coming up with an answer. This different way of engaging with questions takes some getting used to.
In that spirit, I invite you to read through these questions about atention--and if one grabs you, to think about it regularly. I’d love to hear what you come up with. Of course, the most fruitful question about attention may be one that is not listed here, but one that you come up with for yourself.
1. As a child, which of your senses was your favorite way of paying attention to the world?
2. When growing up, what one or two things, above all others, did your family communicate were worthy of attention? Beauty? Duty? Kindness? Humility? Honesty? Reputation? Education? Loyalty? Success? God?
3. When was the last time paying attention left you astonished? What would it mean to have more of these moments in your life?
4. Do you need to stop beating yourself up for avoiding paying attention to an overwhelming or painful part of your life?
5. Is it time to finally pay attention to that overwhelming or painful thing you’ve been avoiding?
6. Are you wasting your attention and energy on people who take you for granted?
7. Wise ones tell us that we become what we give our attention to. What has more of your attention - and more of you - than you want?
8. As you’ve aged, what new things have grabbed your attention in a way they haven’t before? How are you a different kind of person because of this?
9. Where in your life would it help to say, 'Look what's happening!' rather than 'Look what's happening to me!'?
10. Have you ever given your attention so deeply to something that you suddenly felt one with it? How did it change your living and loving?
11. Are you paying enough attention to yourself?
(from Soul Matters March 2025 small group discussion guide)
Rev. Drew Frantz
March 10, 2025
-Pablo Neruda
Following the theme for March of “Paying Attention,” I extend an invitation to engage with the questions below—as a spiritual practice rather than as an intellectual exercise. You’re invited to find a question that speaks to you and to sit with it regularly over a period of time. It’s about living with the question, rather than coming up with an answer. This different way of engaging with questions takes some getting used to.
In that spirit, I invite you to read through these questions about atention--and if one grabs you, to think about it regularly. I’d love to hear what you come up with. Of course, the most fruitful question about attention may be one that is not listed here, but one that you come up with for yourself.
1. As a child, which of your senses was your favorite way of paying attention to the world?
2. When growing up, what one or two things, above all others, did your family communicate were worthy of attention? Beauty? Duty? Kindness? Humility? Honesty? Reputation? Education? Loyalty? Success? God?
3. When was the last time paying attention left you astonished? What would it mean to have more of these moments in your life?
4. Do you need to stop beating yourself up for avoiding paying attention to an overwhelming or painful part of your life?
5. Is it time to finally pay attention to that overwhelming or painful thing you’ve been avoiding?
6. Are you wasting your attention and energy on people who take you for granted?
7. Wise ones tell us that we become what we give our attention to. What has more of your attention - and more of you - than you want?
8. As you’ve aged, what new things have grabbed your attention in a way they haven’t before? How are you a different kind of person because of this?
9. Where in your life would it help to say, 'Look what's happening!' rather than 'Look what's happening to me!'?
10. Have you ever given your attention so deeply to something that you suddenly felt one with it? How did it change your living and loving?
11. Are you paying enough attention to yourself?
(from Soul Matters March 2025 small group discussion guide)
Rev. Drew Frantz
March 10, 2025
RSS Feed
