52. In the groove

I coined this term while I was in high school, struggling with my old LP player that would only play if helped along manually. I literally had to revolve the turn table with my hand for the first few rounds before it got going on its own. Turn it too quickly or too slowly and the harmony of the first few bars of my favourite hit got obliterated. The speed had to be exactly right for the music to be in the groove. I found that that applied to my life too. When I rushed through my day or when I succumbed to emotionalism and inertia, I ceased to make music. Life became distorted. When I got the speed right, perfectly harmonious flow resulted.

Being in the groove is like skipping rope. Only intensely present and in synch with the moment am I able to enter into the dance at the right time. Then I need to stay perfectly present and in time. Out of synch with the beat, I get smacked by the rope. In perfect timing in each moment, I am in synch and so synchronicity kicks in. Life becomes simple and struggle-free. I don’t think while in the groove because it destroys the magic. It breaks the confident, easy flow and makes everything pedestrian and plodding, pedantic and heartless.

The groove is what Don Juan calls ‘speeding’ or ‘left side awareness’. This heightened awareness is characterized by incomparable richness of personal interaction, a richness that our bodies understand as a sensation of speeding.

On the ‘right side’, too much energy and time is consumed in the actions and interactions of our daily life. On the ‘left side’, on the other hand, there is an inherent need for economy and speed. On the ‘left side’, we grasp the meaning of things with precision and directness. Every facet of action is free from preliminaries or introductions. We act and rest. We engage and retreat without any of our usual thoughts. For me, being in the groove is a feeling of living serenely in the fast lane. Things move forward very quickly, yet with complete tranquility and I have all the time in the world in the process.

Life was never meant to be a struggle. When the Now is your foundation and primary focus, your life unfolds with ease, elegant simplicity, and synchronicity. Unattached, you watch the perfect timing of events. When an experience is so good that it is hard to let go of, know that your centred space created it and it will create many more. If you let go of this one, there will be space for the next. Life is always new, always exciting and you’re in awe of its perfection for where you’re at. You respond to whatever comes your way, naturally doing what works best at this time in this situation.

Click here if you’re tired of being smacked by the rope.