The Objects of Our Attention

 

How dependant are we on obtaining objects?

Last Monday I overslept and was running late. I had a quick shower, some coffee and gathered together the things I needed for my work day. Hurrying to get out of the house, I realized I didn’t have my car keys. I panicked. For that moment, that tiny object, a small piece of metal, mattered more than anything else. Racing back in the house, I rummaged around in yesterday’s clothes, searched the kitchen table, the laundry basket and the desk with the computer. No car key. Agitation, anxiety and wild thoughts took over.

I finally spotted the key on the coffee table. I had sat on the couch to take off my shoes when I got home the night before and must have put the keys down on the coffee table. My whole body relaxed. Inner peace returned and I returned to the car. My forgetfulness had triggered panic that I could have avoided thru mindfulness.

Our world is full of objects. If I think of the number of different objects that come to my senses every day, I couldn’t possibly count them. It got me thinking about how many different things I see on a daily basis or how many things I hear. Then add to that all the different smells, tastes and things I touch. I might also describe all that goes on in my mind as objects as well, because thoughts, attitudes, states of mind, memories, plans and the whole range of feelings, emotions and reactions exist as objects of our attention.

Day in and day out, we have become involved with objects to the point that we might describe our life as going from one object to another, moment after moment. There are times when the importance of an object is brought sharply into focus — like my car keys.

Our relationship to ‘things’ affect our sense of well being. We might give an object- whether it is a person, item or idea — great significance. Sometimes we claim that an object causes our happiness or is responsible for our unhappiness. We grant significance to objects and give them power to make an impact on us. Our mind swings from elation to despair, according to the way we see things.

Does possession of an object really matter? What is so important about objects that we have granted some of them such overwhelming importance in our lives?

As I practice mindfulness, I’m learning to see objects as objects, free from desires and needs and to explore the interconnectedness of all things and experiences. This helps me to stop investing too much of myself and projecting my desires onto objects.