It's November and it feels like the usual "how did we get here so fast", but at the same time, this year has seemed to drag on. Caught somewhere in between trying to 'just be' and and 'make something of ourselves', it can be challenging trying to figure out which energy to follow. Many of us will be without family this holiday season and some are blessed (or cursed :) ) to be with more loved ones. Either way, we might experience of mixed bag of feelings surrounding the pandemic, the everlasting election and holiday stress and even sadness. Our duty to ourselves and each other is to get clear about what needs nurturing. This so called duty is a challenge in itself, but if mindful, takes only a bit of awareness and kindness.
You can feel it when the world is pulling on you. You can feel the urge to try and keep up, hurry up and don't dare mess up. As humans sometimes do, we become untethered from our hearts and seats and let this magnetic energy pull us this way and that and, before we know it, we are overwhelmed and on edge.
The good news is that bringing ourselves back to Center is both a practice and not at all rocket science. There are various ways to practice the art of Sacred Pausing. Try these with me...
Notice the in-betweens
Close your eyes and bring your attention to your beautiful breath. Begin to equalize the breath, same duration in and out. As your breath becomes smoother, bring your awareness to the spaces in between inhale and exhale, then in between exhale and inhale. After a few rounds, see if you can stretch out the spaces in between, retaining the breath for about half the duration of your in and out portions of the breath. Open your eyes and notice the shift. See? Not rocket science.
Be kind to yourself
When you're feeling a flood of super strong emotions, bring one or both hands to your heart and close your eyes. Hands on the heart instantly turns us inward and alerts the nervous system to rewind and settle down. Name whatever emotions are there as if you were the observer of your experience. "Angry", "sad", "not enough" "overwhelmed"... Keep that and as if you were speaking to a loved one, say, "It's OK, sweetheart". This is a phrase coined by Zen Master, Thich Nhat Hanh, and gives you direct access to self-compassion. Stay there...hand to heart, awareness of emotions and, "It's OK, sweetheart". After several rounds or more, open your eyes. Notice the shift.
These two practices serve as a sort of true refuge within. When it feels as if there is no where or noone to turn to, turn inward and practice this timeless art of giving yourself the gift of inner peace. As you slow down in this way, you are suspended and connected. It feels like home when you have felt miles away. You get to experience YOU and so does everyone else around you. And if you happen to be quarantining solo, you just found a better best friend in yourself.
So much love and light to you and yours,
Whitney