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Writer and Musician, Jahnavi Harrison.

I was in Paris this past weekend. Sounds so glamorous when someone says that right!? It was actually work related and it wasn’t particularly glamorous, although in-between riding the underground trains here and there and getting accosted by souvenir vendors, I did see one postcard worthy sunset over the river.

On that same walk, we passed by the Notre Dame cathedral, all lit up as the sky darkened.

The outside of the building is covered in incredible sculptures, and so I wasn’t surprised there were hundreds of people taking pictures. What did make me smile was the overwhelming amount of selfie sticks!

I saw a couple kissing, well really they were pretending to kiss while one of them held an arm extended, a selfie stick and a phone poised to capture them with the view in the background. It was kind of hard to get it all right in one go, with eyes closed, so they were frozen like a very wobbly amorous sculpture for a quite a few minutes.

I don’t know what it is with selfie sticks - I find them a bit ridiculous even though I can definitely understand they have a very practical function. All that awkwardness avoided in having to ask a stranger to take a picture of you - and you can actually see what you look like as you take it, an innovation that will surely go down in history :) .

Selfies, and the sticks that make them easier,  make me think a lot about my tendency to act like I’m the star of my own movie. It’s embarrassing. If my mind was broadcast for all to see, god forbid - but just being honest here, it is self focused A LOT of the time. Technology doesn’t make me be that way, it just helps to facilitate it.

So I am really grateful for the spiritual teachings and practices that push me to think of myself as a servant of others. In Sanskrit the word for servant is ‘das’, or ‘dasi’ if you’re a ‘lady’ and I try to meditate on that every day, especially as the self absorbed thoughts wash in each morning like scraggly tangles of seaweed coming in at high tide.

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve got nothing against taking a picture of yourself, and if a stick makes it easier - go for it! I’m just trying to be mindful of my own motives, and more than that, just think about other people and what I can do for them more often!

That said though - some of my friends are saying they don’t believe we’re actually in studio together unless they see proof, so can we do a quick selfie today Chris?