Yesterday was the Summer Solstice – the longest day of the year. How did you spend your hours of sunshine? I enjoyed mine inside. Before you start to roll your eyes at me for not taking my own advice and getting out in nature, let me explain. I had the house to myself! Cole spent the night at Grandma and Grandpa’s house. Christian went for a late night bike ride at the oceanfront. Alex was exhausted from his evening skateboard run. I took advantage of the quiet and practiced yoga and meditation. Lately my yoga practice has been lacking. When I do practice, I have been opting for the shorter version. Last night I indulged and did the extended practice.
Yoga I have missed you! No big surprise – My hips were tight. My shoulders didn’t want to open up. I was patient with my body. It soon opened up and let me in. I think everyone loves Savasana (corpse pose) – the last pose in the practice when you lay on the floor like a dead corpse. My body completely melted into the floor. Sweet Relief. About half way through, Eoin Finn said to relax your neck. That is when I become aware of ALL the tension I was holding there. As soon as I recognized it, I sent my breath to my neck and instantly felt it relax. I literally felt tons of tension and stress melt away. (hmmm…no wonder I have had a headache for two weeks). I even felt it pop a few times. Note to self – relax your neck!
Following the yoga practice, I did my 10 minute mediation with Eoin. Last night’s mediation focused on energy and space. It focused on feeling the vibrations of the world around us. To be honest, I don’t remember anything he said. My brain has never been so intune yet so disengaged. It was exactly what I needed. (I even had a dream last night that I did a study on mediating in different yoga poses.)
This morning I woke up headache free! Hooray for small miracles. Now that my energy is back and the morning sickness is going away, I need to be more diligent with my practice. Right now I am running 4 days a week. There is no reason why I can’t practice yoga 3 times a week. There is no reason why I can’t take 10 minutes to myself each evening to sit quietly. It is definitely something my body needs and craves.
All that we are is the result of what we have thought;
it is founded on our thoughts, it is made up of our thoughts. ~(Dhammapada, Chapter 1:1-2)
Can you believe it is summer already? The whole world feels alive during summer. It is the perfect time of year to take inventory of our lives. In what direction do you want your life to go? Take the time to sit quietly. Sit in a hammock. Sit under a tree. Sit in your favorite spot in your house. Taking the time to visualize your wants and dreams will lead you down the path you need to go. It’s time to remove negative thoughts from our daily process. Take ten minutes out of your day and sit quietly with yourself (No books! No cell phones! No babies attached to your hip! Just YOU!). Focus on all the good that exists within you. Focus on all the good that is around you. Tell yourself that you love you! Changing your thought pattern from a negative critical mindset to a more open, loving, and accepting mindset will give you the foundation to embrace yourself and your world. We are all worthy of having 10 minutes of quiet to ourselves (and if you think you don’t have ten minutes to spare. Email me. I will find 10 minutes for you during the day!)
Recently, this poem by Pablo Neruda was posted on the blissology website. Use it as a starting point for your 10 minutes of quiet time tonight. Enjoy!
Keeping Quiet
Now we will count to twelve
and we will all keep still.This one time upon the earth,
let’s not speak any language,
let’s stop for one second,
and not move our arms so much.It would be a delicious moment,
without hurry, without locomotives,
all of us would be together
in a sudden uneasiness.The fishermen in the cold sea
would do no harm to the whales
and the peasant gathering salt
would look at his torn hands.Those who prepare green wars,
wars of gas, wars of fire,
victories without survivors,
would put on clean clothing
and would walk alongside their brothers
in the shade, without doing a thing.What I want shouldn’t be confused
with final inactivity:
life alone is what matters,
I want nothing to do with death.If we weren’t unanimous
about keeping our lives so much in motion,
if we could do nothing for once,
perhaps a great silence would
interrupt this sadness,
this never understanding ourselves
and threatening ourselves with death,
perhaps the earth is teaching us
when everything seems to be dead
and then everything is alive.Now I will count to twelve
and you keep quiet and I’ll go.
by Pablo Neruda
Kristy Maute 