In a perpetual state of overwhelm and exhaustion, the tumescent mind lives at the low-grade level of complaint or irritation. Acknowledgment of good is cast as a necessary evil that must be employed to garner a result. It is difficult enough to lift oneself from a state of negativity with the idea that if only something were different, there would not be discomfort.
To actually see or find good in the midst of this, when there is work to be done, can feel like an insurmountable task. What we do not recognize is that withholding acknowledgment is a tool the tumescent mind creates to maintain the tumescent condition. This is because acknowledgment of good brings more good.
Let it be clear, acknowledgment is not a compliment. Compliments occur in the commerce-based consciousness of the tumescent mind as an extension of the attempt to acquire something. More often than not, compliments exist to salve or cover insecurity. Compliments say, “You are not bad.” Acknowledgment says, “This is the impact you or this has on me.” A compliment is for the receiver; acknowledgment is for the giver. It is a desire to empty out so more can enter.
It completes a cycle of reception and extends the process so that we are not merely working without enjoyment. Acknowledgment is the integration and sinking-into part of the process. A compliment is based on the perception of what we believe a person would want to hear; there is no investment or vulnerability. An acknowledgment is vulnerable in communicating that something is connected to us and has moved us in some way.
It permits a snapshot into our interior world and communicates that the impact of this is more important than production, and that we are living the process of having truth and beauty take precedence over obligation. There is neutrality to acknowledgment, and it is a several-step process. First, we take something in and note the essence rather than the surface, communicating that we have allowed ourselves to be moved and affected.
We then note, with specificity, the impact it has on us. We then match the energy by acknowledging each level of impact and do not dismiss or minimize, nor do we go above it by being empathic or exclamatory. We recognize that an acknowledgment is a natural-arising expression that is the full payment for any experience. It is succinct, direct, and clear—and when spoken, confers the sensation that tells us a cycle is complete.
Otherwise, there is no closure and it continues—due to a type of hoarding that is rooted in the idea there is not enough, and if we ended this cycle, more would not come. Ultimately, acknowledgment is the tool for building intimacy through linking up interiors by communicating how specific elements of phenomena impact or move our interior state of being.
