POSSIBILITIES FOR THIS NEW YEAR MAY REVEAL THEMSELVES IN THE STILLNESS.
Take some time to be still and listen.
Verbier, Switzerland
Stillness
Take a Moment in Stillness
On my to-do list for today:
TAKE A MOMENT IN STILLNESS. REFRESH, THEN CONTINUE ON.
Stop for a Moment
What do you do to catch your breath? stop for a moment? regroup? stay focused? This may be a daily challenge as national and international events affect us at breakneck speed. It gets personal. Our own psyche and nervous system get riled up.
I heard this week that quotations are one of the most popular postings on Facebook. They are short, maybe a single line or sentence. Many attempt to keep us positive, keep us going and keep us hopeful. However, our social media may also contain negative postings, opinions carved in stone, hurtful comments.
We need to take a break from our social media during the day. That’s a start. This past weekend I saw “A Star is Born” at the movie theater. Yes, I am one who likes to see movies on the big screen, to be in an environment in which that is all that is happening. It is a great movie with wonderful performances, totally engaging from beginning to end. I did note, because I couldn’t help it, that the woman sitting in front of me had her phone on the entire time. She dimmed the screen but kept it on her lap and looked at it periodically, so she wouldn’t miss. . . miss what? A text or tweet?
We want to get away from the news, take a break. But then we impulsively look at our phone, check into social media. Are we concerned we will miss something? Or is it a mindless think we do without really thinking about it?
I recommend we do think about it, take some time to find a bit of stillness in our day. Stop for a minute or two. Literally stop. Look around, up at the clouds. Watch the leaves falling off the trees. Join the old practice of people-watching.
I applaud you who are being mindful, finding stillness by getting out of your house and joining a class — yoga, meditation, tai chi. Join others who are taking an hour to find stillness which will reduce stress and anxiety. For me, teaching Tai Chi and being with students are are breathing and moving slowly to be in the moment is a wonderful way to develop tools for coping, for being healthy in body, mind and spirit.
What are you doing to catch your breath and stop for a moment? What do you do to manage your time on your phone or TV. Please share so others may benefit.
Time
Time changed today. We moved our clocks ahead this morning and lost an hour. Most of us didn’t miss it because we were sleeping. We lost an hour but now have an hour more sunlight in the evening. A sign that spring is near.
Two times a year we change our clocks and talk about gaining or losing time. Think about it though. Most of us easily lose at least an hour or more of time each day, just going about completing our tasks, checking our emails, texting, sitting in slow traffic as we commute to and from work. We easily can waste time, sitting in front of the TV, checking our twitter feed or by constantly making lists of all the things we need to do (rather than doing them!).
We tend to do the same things, day after day and think the same thoughts today that we thought yesterday. And often, the result is we feel like we’re not getting enough done and we have more and more to do without enough time.
Just as we’re reminded to check the batteries on our smoke alarm when we change our clocks, we should also be reminded to consciously think about how we’re using our time. For many of us, we don’t feel we have enough time. But, when we’re sick or waiting for a test result, time stretches out, can be agonizing. When we’re waiting to hear if we got the job, it takes ‘forever’ to hear any feedback. Time is relative and as the adage goes “Time marches on.”
Perhaps it sounds counter-intuitive, but a good way to gain more time is to take a time out. Take some time to reflect, empty out your thoughts and focus on the present moment. You can do that through a few moments of silent meditation, Tai Chi, Yoga or through reading a daily favorite reflection. Taking time to stop, breathe, be in the moment can enhance our well-being and feeling of having enough time. It’s worth a try. What will you do to have enough time?
The Twig
We are in an age of seeing and hearing “scroll down” rather than “turn the page”, “click here”, rather than “call to order”. Images and videos flash before us on our phones, computers, tablets and televisions. Some days it feels like a roller coaster of sounds and colors coming at us with dizzying speed. And then. . .
A calm, simple, still picture stopped me in my tracks. A picture on Facebook. A work of art by my friend, Janet. A twig. A drawing of a lone, bare twig. Janet said she spent 2 and 1/2 hours drawing a single twig. A graphite drawing by Janet S. Reed.
Its simplicity is stunning. Look at the long, slender stem, flowing slightly to the right. Each little nodule is carefully positioned to birth other little stems. And sometimes produce little flowers. The black and white enhances the beauty and marvel of nature.
Stillness. Stillness promotes calm. Stillness gives us time to reflect, to notice the wonders of what surrounds us in nature. Finding stillness promotes creativity and better decision-making. It’s stillness we try to cultivate through Tai Chi, stillness in motion. I think of, I feel the energy of Tai Chi as I sink into the wonder of this drawing. It connects me to the earth, grounds me.
Take a couple minutes to reflect on this twig. What energy comes from its simplicity? How does it make you feel?
Thank you, Janet for giving me permission to use your work of art, the twig. It is profound.
Stillness and Movement Can CoExist
We often think that we are still or we are moving. With Tai Chi we are shifting weight and focusing our mind to move our energy in specific ways. These gentle movements create stillness within.