nature's zodiac

Whenever I am in the midst of two or more children, with each of them craving my eyes on their actions, I become acutely aware of the potency of this thing we call attention. 

“Watch This!” they say all on top of eachother. I turn my eyes this way and that to the deep satisfaction of some and to the impatience of others.

My attention becomes palpable. It is like the wave to their surfboards, a real currency. Once I put my attention where the demand has been made, an impatient look becomes a swift jump into action. They don’t waste an instant for my attention might shift. I see the trick, the gag, the skill and they, in their chosen action, are recognized. 

What is this special world where the currency of attention can help fortify the selfhood of another? Teilhard de Chardin said, “The history of the living world can be summarized as the elaboration of ever more perfect eyes within a cosmos in which there is always something more to be seen.”

Does this ‘more to be seen’  extend into the nuances of another? Do the ‘ever more perfect eyes’ elaborate even fuller by a sincere presence? A joyful willingness to see more in another and a readiness to be surprised?

In the Aquarian Age, it is easier to understand attention as a currency because we are living in an attention economy. Like the child on the playground, the ad on your phone ‘knows’ it only has a brief second to make its pitch. There has never been a more pervasive time of attention-grabbing in history than there is now, with our click-bait headlines and surveillance-capitalism-tailored personal shopping suggestions.  

But it is you who hold the purse strings to this strange and potent currency. In his book Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi writes “‘The shape and content of life depend on how attention has been used.’ 

Visit your bank sometime. See what investments you have made. See what shape they are in. Consider other investments, or doubling down on some that you’ve already established. Play with it. Dream about what outcomes could manifest.

In a world where money rules too much, it is refreshing to remember that there still exists an ultimate currency. One that can make dramatic impacts in life. Our experiences depend on the way we invest this currency we call attention. The proof is in the smile of a child and the freedom felt in one’s heart.