Dear Jack:

I read your poem in my mind, rapping it while reading, yes, I can hear it being rapped and well. Part of the rap is “this thing they call self-love
what is it?
time it paid me a visit”

and of course I have the answer… just kidding. Maybe I will ponder it this morning with a “beginner’s mind”-

Self love is… when you take a big, big stamp with OKAY on it and stamp it on yourself, all over, okay, okay, okay. You stamp your body, all over, this is okay and that is okay and you stamp your brain, your thoughts, okay, okay and you stamp your feelings, okay okay and you end up with I AM OKAY. Approved.

Using my beginner’s mind I will also try to answer Inky’s question: “what do we do when we wake up at 2 in the morning having an anxiety attack?” You go to A place in your brain where there is no panic or anxiety attack, a place in your brain that is protected from attacks (reserve such place, table, “occupied” sign on it, so when anxiety attacks it does not sit at THAT table)

From that place you observe the other place or places under attack. You breathe and think realistic thoughts, not just any thoughts, but true to reality thoughts and breathe in and out.

Like when your foot cramps and it hurts, you see it from all the way up, from your head looking down and you know that not your whole body hurts, only your foot and you can figure out what to do from your brain. You are not ALL cramping foot.

No, that was not beginner’s mind, I realized some time into my answer.This is a well practiced strategy I use.

anita