Welcome, Dear Creator!
Welcome – to the lights, sounds, and colors of Spring!
Whereas I’ve described getting out in winter as a challenge and adventure, being outside in the spring is just pure delight. Now, the nights and early mornings can still be downright cold, but there’s just something magical and comforting about the pleasant temperature of a spring day. Moving without the need to generate heat to stay warm, being able to sit without getting cold, and just feeling the sun’s rays truly warming the body.
It’s delicious, to slow down and notice, because there’s just so much to see.
Feeling our feelings. I talked about that the last few days. How we often fear the tough feelings, and doubt our capacity to hold and survive those feelings, so we try to go numb.
Our feelings are messages from Our Spirit, telling us something. Maybe it’s anger at injustice or mistreatment, maybe it’s pain over an unhealthy job or relationship we’re in, maybe it’s grief over the loss or suffering of a loved one, or a part of ourselves. Maybe it’s excitement over a new opportunity, delight from our deep practice of creative self-expression, or a sense of belonging found in the deep connection of community; wonderful in themselves, but filling us with foreboding when we forecast their eventual end and our inevitable loss – fear that every joy and hope simply sets us up for another disappointment and more grief.
When we avoid these messages because of fear, Our Spirit finds another way to get our attention. Our body becomes the receiver for all the messages Our Spirit is sending us.
When we stay in a job or relationship that distresses us, Our Spirit lets us know. When we ignore and numb ourselves to these messages, the tension shows up in our body.
When we love to sing, dance, or express some other form of personal creativity, but we avoid it, because we get self-conscious, fearing judgment and disapproval, Our Spirit longs for that delight. When we don’t feel the message, that longing becomes an ache in our body.
There is a strong connection between the flexibility, energy, and health of our bodies, and the joy and fulfillment of Our Spirit.
When I was learning judo, we were taught that resisting a force strengthens it. Imagine a person pushing against a wall. If you take the place of the wall, and you push back, the energy between you and the other person increases. By resisting, you make the force greater, and it will eventually wear you down.
In coach-speak, we say that “what we resist, persists.” It’s the same concept. When we put our energy into resistance, we actually make greater the thing we’re trying to resist.
That – psychologically, physically, and spiritually – is exactly what we do when we listen to the fears of our ego and lizard brain.
In judo, the solution is to use technique to pivot and combine your energy with your opponent. Imagine the person pushing against the wall, when suddenly the wall disappears. The person’s energy will overbalance him and make him fall forward. When you take the place of the wall, and then get out of the way of the push, and you turn and combine your energy with your opponent’s energy, he is overbalanced, and you throw him forward with the combined force.
What’s my point?
When we resist – our fears, doubts, and feelings – we are pushing back, actually making things worse; stronger.
When we allow the feelings to come, and we understand the messages from Our Spirit, the energy doesn’t accumulate in us; it flows through us. When we use the messages to inspire our actions, we use the energy toward Our Purpose.
Consider this Prompt:
As you sit (perhaps outside in your Sit Spot), notice any tension or pain in your body. Pinpoint exactly where it is. Describe it – what color, texture, and shape is it?
Does it have a name? Speak to it, and ask it directly what its message is for you.
I bow in gratitude for this reminder, Dear Guides!
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