These are tumultuous times. We are certainly experiencing a disturbance - in the group energy field, in the streets, in our thinking and emotions, and ultimately in our bodies. I have to keep pulling myself away from the weight of events to reference my spiritual practices.
My self-care practices are helpful while I am engaged in doing them. I’m not really noticing a residual or underlying difference right now, although I’m sure I would feel worse without them. I want to be open to what’s going on without the psychic numbness.
What to do? In the immediate now, I am compelled to sit in any dedicated spiritual space, whatever the religion. I longed for churches, the temple, and the zendo during the pandemic. When I’m in a space like that it holds me in silence long enough so I can actually start feeling – and allow the feeling, the tears, and the intensity to come forward.
As we move through a time of incredible change, we need to take a moment and mourn the easy way we used to be in the world - with each other, in our pre-pandemic lives, and with faith in the future. We are called to witness war, violence, and the pain of division in the world - and in our own country. It’s a privilege to feel safe, and that feeling of security is hard to find these days.
For now, here’s a prescription to try:
STOP Stop and feel, however you can get there. In America we’re generally uncomfortable with “feelings” because they are messy (see my blog “The American Chakra” for more). Change is always chaotic and destabilizing, rapid change even more so. We always want change - the good kind! - but even then, going through it is unsettling. So many factors are in play now that electrify the rage. it’s truly a dark night of the American soul.
DROP Next, drop down and let it go. Become a part of something greater than you that can absorb all of the suffering; the earth can do that. Lay down - on the ground, on the floor – and relax into the support (it’s all eventually earth if you keep sinking down). Feel your weight, be heavy, and give it up (this is even a bigger relief if you’ve taken time to feel first.) Be held; be nourished. I do this in a grassy meadow almost every day, and every night before sleep I am enveloped by the universal field of love.
ROLL Hopefully not with the punches, but with the flow of events, with the times. Make the world a better place in whatever way you can, small or large, in thought and action. To do any less is to live in despair. If we see clearly and act, eventually we will come out the other side with new structures, new realities and a re-imagined world - but only with your participation.
The tide of events can be overwhelming. It can be hard to figure out what constructive action would look like given our particular situation. During the first few years of the pandemic, my way to contribute was offering free Covid healings. What do we need here, now, in our broken country? Aside from spiritual practice, I’m sitting with that question.
“All right action arises from Being.” - Krishna to Arjuna, in the Bhagavad Gita
“Well something’s lost, but something’s gained / In living every day.” - Joni Mitchell, “Both Sides Now”
Peace, love and healing -
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