I’ve been taking a little space lately. In lots of ways. Space from my school and my practice. Space from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Space from idle chitchat and meaningless conversation. Space from socializing. Space.
I took some more substantial space this past weekend, choosing to go on a retreat for rest, meditation and healing.
People know me as a ‘doer.’ I’m active, engaged and on the move a lot of the time. I commute 100 miles one way to my office in Boston to see my clients each week. I don’t drive in to the city every day – my doer would come undone! But I’m there weekly, and teach on many weekends.
My inner call for space happens annually, around the time of the Solstice. I crave quiet, solitude. I seek to be internal, within, ensconced in self-awareness. I meditate more. As the pace of the holiday season ramps up, I slow down.
And each year I learn something new. In the quiet, the stillness, the mindful movement of my days, I learn something new about myself, my life, my desires, my interests.
Want to know what I’m learning this year from my foray into the Grace of Space?
I’m re-learning and re-membering that my organic nature is like a turtle. I like to move slowly. I like to take my time. I like to do things at a pace that is unhurried, easy, peaceful. Now, go back up to the paragraph about me as an on the move doer. Do you see the problem here?
I first re-learned my turtle nature in 2002 when I closed down a corporate consulting practice and took a year off to restore and repurpose my life and work. That time was transformative. I learned the turtle thing plus received about a thousand other insights. And the turtle was the most profound. You could have knocked me over with a feather. So you’d think I would have retained that awareness, right? But I forgot.
And it’s easy for me to forget. Cuz I’ve learned to be a capable doer and I like to git ‘er done. And now I re-member. And I believe I’ll retain the remembrance this time. And I’m anticipatory about my return to my more expanded life through the archetype of my turtle.
So enough about me. Let’s turn the spotlight on you. Ready? Because I’ve got a few questions I’d like to ask.
When was the last time that you had the grace of space? The time, the presence, the hours that stretched out in front of you to surrender to being instead of doing? To contemplate instead of actuate? Do you remember when?
Do you remember what happened with your internal rhythms? The cadence of your thoughts? The way your body moved?
What word or phrase would you choose to describe your rhythms, internal and external?
Do you remember the caliber of your thinking? The insights that you gleaned? The releasing and letting go your true nature evoked?
What image or feeling comes to mind as you reflect on your thoughts, insights and evolution?
What do you remember about your energy level? Your vitality? Did you feel alive in some different way, more consciously attuned?
How would you describe your energy, vitality and attunement to an interested listener?
Sitting in the grace of space that comes from the practice of extended meditation, rest and healing is a gift without measure.
I have a vision of 4 National Retreat days/year, where each individual is invited to retreat, restore and release. To meditate and heal. To cultivate inner awareness and consciousness.
In the meantime, while I begin conversations with Barack to get this Retreat thing going on, I’d like to ask for your thoughts.
Would you be interested in some sort of web-based Retreat group? We’d prepare as a group via webinar, retreat for one day and then reconvene the morning after to share experiences and create intentions for healing, meditation and energy practices.
Would it be something you’d like to try? Would you feel supported knowing that you were joined in the experience with others?
If you like the idea, please comment or email me to begin a dialogue. I’d love to hear from you.
And keep your vital energy flowing.
