This is the first in a series of articles I’ll be writing. These are philosophy articles, but not like typical writings of that nature.

Now that we are all stuck at home in quarantine, it is a perfect time to evaluate your choices and reflect on the mysteries of life. I’ve been doing a lot of that, and it’s actually quite refreshing. When you realize some deeper meanings, you feel serene and almost like a sage. I guess you could call it mindfulness, but instead of a focus on the present, I emphasize the past. The weird thing is that you don’t know that you have a particular piece of knowledge, until you actually utter it. Many times I’m faced with an analytical type of assignment, then I go spouting off ideas and philosophy. I’m surprised; surprised that such ideas came out of my mind. I didn’t think I knew these things. It’s weird, but a good kind of weird.

I’ll just call my knock-off version of mindfulness, “universal flow.” I say knock-off, not because it doesn’t work as well, but because I’m not licensed in anything, and so I have no real authority in this subject matter. Universal flow has two parts to it. The first part is the introspective reflection where you dwell within your feelings and experiences. This can be done inside or outside the house. It’s especially good if you reflect while doing a task that you don’t really have to think about, like chores or sports. There is a sort of flow within you whenever you do something without thinking. On another note, utilizing music will bring strong results in a reflection session. Music speaks to the soul and evokes all sort of reactions. Sometimes, you might receive only a little relaxation from universal flow, and sometimes you might realize a big idea.

The second part is finding an outlet for you to spawn those ideas and be able to articulate and elaborate on them. The outlet could be anything. It could be an essay or poetry. You could read something that speaks to you and evokes the ideas you learned. You could watch a TV show or movie and that could spark articulation. I’ll include a list of movies and shows that were my outlet. Interestingly, the knowledge can come when you are happy or sad. You may comfort a friend, uttering wisdom you never thought you learned before. You yourself might be sad, staring out the car window at the passing scenery, and realize something about life. You may not expect it, but something will trigger the release of that knowledge that you gleaned from reflection.

While mindfulness and universal flow are rather similar, there are a number of contrasts. A key difference between universal flow and mindfulness has to do with feelings. Mindfulness stresses that one must take into account all of one’s feelings, and attempt to observe them objectively and compartmentalize them. Universal flow asserts that one should embrace all of the feelings that one feels. It’s okay to feel everything, to let all the sensations flow throughout your body. These are your feelings, they are what make you, you. Let them manifest themselves. It is okay to laugh, cry, be angry, etc… Just feel it in your reflections. You will feel great afterwards. Another important difference between the two calming strategies is that mindfulness tends to place a heavy emphasis on the present and being in the now. Universal flow recognizes that while the present is important, the past and the future are also a part of who you are, and so should be reflected upon to a larger degree than the present. The past is important because the past places you in your present situation and you can learn from the lessons of the past. The future is emphasized because it gives you a vision of how you want to progress from the your current situation in the present. With past and future in mind, you are able to judge your situation accordingly, and choose the actions that lead to your desired results.

And, I should think that universal flow leads to a better acceptance of yourself. Having analyzed your past and your feelings allows yourself to come to terms with your present situation, so that you may progress and advance to a bright new future. Also, reflecting deeply upon yourself helps you to find new ways to improve yourself, and become a better person. After using enough universal flow, you start to notice a few changes. You move lighter, and are more relaxed. The feeling is like you are floating slightly, and the air buoys you and carries you along. You are more apt to smile and laugh. You are more cheerful.

While universal flow doesn’t yet have the credibility of mindfulness, I ask that you all try it. Who knows? It might help you and if it does, please comment down below. I will be overjoyed to learn that something I created helps another person. And here is the list of stirring movies and TV shows:

• Spirited Away* (I really enjoyed this movie because of the ideas of love. That, and the fact that “Inochi no Namae” is stuck in my head).
• Inside Out
• Story of Yanxi Palace* (I loved this series. It’s plot and characters were great. And the OST… I feel so sentimental whenever I hear “Sigh of the Red Wall” play).
• Advisors Alliance
• The Unbeatables I, II, and III

And… that’s all I can remember right now. The ones with asterisks indicate that these will definitely give you the feels. The others are good, but you might have to search for the meaning, or they have situations that don’t quite apply to you.

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