What does a good day look and feel like?
I start one of the invitations in Collisions of Earth and Sky with that question, so as I navigate this new season of ‘what comes next’, I’m attempting to take my own advice.
Open your eyes to the dawning of a new day and wander toward voices when you are ready for companionship. Embrace solitude if being alone fits right now.
I got up today before the sun rose (thanks, middle school early start times!) and spent a little time with the sleeping cats before putting the coffee on.1 Then everyone else got up, we all did what we needed to do to greet and get ready for the day, and my 6th grader got on the bus to school.
Stretch your body, swim, canoe, run, hike, whittle, knit. Let your body move how it wants to move as light fills the sky. Remember that you are a body, and your body is you—you are partners in this life, not enemies.
As the sun got higher in the sky, I wanted to move, so I took a little jog around our neighborhood to witness the community wake up. After my health issue of last week, I feel mostly good again, though I’m having to check myself and not obsess over every little twinge. Giving my physical body (imperfections, annoyances, aging and all) love and acceptance is part of the process of having a good day.
Nourish yourself with seasonal food and fresh water. Enjoy coffee if coffee agrees with you and avoid it if it doesn’t. Eat slowly and mindfully and welcome the energy of life-giving sustenance into your entire being.
After running, I heated up my coffee that I’d let grow cold on the counter and then set it back down again when I realized it wasn’t really what I wanted. After downing a big glass of water instead, I wandered around the hayfield for awhile, watching the frost melt off the long grass. Trumpeter swans flew overhead, strong wings and loud voices a reminder of what awareness and grace can look like.
Progress through the day with awareness and grace, whatever awareness and grace feel like to you right now. Don’t hurry but move quickly if it feels good. Stop and rest when you need to be still. Do your work with the elegance of full presence and hold the space that wants to be held. Be sure to put it down when you get tired. Let others hold space for you too. Discern the difference between surrendering to what life wants and giving up.
It’s not easy to let others hold space for you, or ask others to hold space for you, when you’re almost always the one holding the space. What space needs to be held for me right now? Honestly, I’m not sure. Truth be told, sometimes in the past few weeks, I’ve felt like ‘giving up’—I don’t really want to start another corporate or tech-heavy job, one that requires jumping through various quality assurance hoops and maintaining a willingness to be person who (at least professes to) ‘thrive in a fast-paced environment.’ Intentionality and slow living set me up thrive—but “slow living” doesn’t have a salary quite high enough to cover our monthly mortgage payments. I don’t want to move from our little homestead and bit of land I’ve come to know, so even when I feel like throwing in the towel, I’m trying to discern the difference between surrendering to what life wants and actually giving up.2
Take in more nourishment when you feel hungry, be it food, rest, play, or prayer. Be reciprocal in your actions, always conscious of the give and take that creates the harmony needed to fill the hours with the music of beauty.
These past few weeks have been full of feelings that I don’t necessarily want—being laid off makes me feel cast aside and unwanted. Interestingly, I don’t feel less-than or like I’m not enough, it’s more a feeling of being used and set aside. Like I’ve been taken from. Vulnerable, I suppose, when you distill the essence of the feeling. I’ve written enough about vulnerability over the years to know that it’s necessary to feel. However, knowing this doesn’t make it any easier to lean into. So I’m trying to be a giver instead of a taker—to move closer to harmony despite lingering dissonance, trying to add a few notes to the music of beauty.
End the day with slow movement and breath and stillness. Quiet your mind. Sit in the peace that fills the spaces between your thoughts. Tap into the place of rootedness that is always there when you cultivate it.
Yeah, so….sitting with the space between your thoughts when you suddenly have lots of unstructured hours and anxiety over a sudden, unforeseen, and unwelcome shift…..not for the faint of heart. It’s fair to say that ‘peace’ hasn’t often been present in the space between my thoughts lately, but I’m working on it. A sudden change in what felt foundational has left me feeling less grounded than I usually am—but that place of rootedness is always there. Here’s to continuing to cultivate it.
Close your eyes to the gentle sounds of night inviting the day to fade and give thanks for another chance to rest and begin anew.
And so we begin again.
UPCOMING EVENTS
The Book-Writing Lab: A Panel Conversation + Q&A with Kaitlin Curtice, Osheta Moore, and Heidi Barr
Monday, February 12 10am-11:30am PST
In today's world, there are many ways to get our writing in front of an audience, but there's nothing quite like the feel of a book in your hands. What does it look like to write a book? What are some of the practical how-tos, like how to organize your time or your ideas? Do you have to find an agent? What about self-publishing, or working with a small indie press? How does the publication process unfold?
Join us for a conversation demystifying the process of writing a book. Learn from each of their unique experiences with writing books, then join in for a Q&A moderated by Krissy Kludt to have your questions answered.
Cost: $50 Writing the Wild Cohort Member Cost: $30
Part of this time included cleaning up after their nighttime escapades.
LinkedIn is open in another tab right now, and seriously, the volume of job descriptions that include “must thrive in a fast-paced environment” and “change agile” and “must be passionate about our mission” and “must be seeking continual improvement” makes me feel tired. I just want to offer solace and peace to people through writing, offer my strengths in ways that lift others up, and add to the healing of the world. *has yet to find that in a job description*