why we should all actively seek stillness
first thoughts
In our past blog, a patient of patience I mentioned how we live in a world of constant motion, mentally and physically. Seldom a moment goes by that our minds experience rest. Our minds are rarely unwavered or not diverged, conflicted, distracted in something, on anything, some subject, feeling, emotion, happening. *deep breathed sigh*
StiLlNeSs… what does it taste, look, feel like…
Like the earth that spins and rotates at 1,000 MPH and orbits around the sun… it is not seen and we don’t feel it because we move with it, because it moves in constant, consistent motion and speed. That means that stillness is not without energy, but a flow of energy more concentrated, directed, and controlled and you have to want to be there and actively seek stillness. You don’t see it as a task… you are totally interested, submerged, invested and participating in it. Stillness is something to experience; I can’t tell you what it is like. The best I can do is try to describe it. I can tell you and describe to you what an orange looks, smells and tastes like; but you won’t really know until you experience it. Stillness is thrilling, beyond any influence a substance casts on you, it’s scary, exhilarating. Being with yourself, confronting yourself, forgetting yourself. It is prayer, it is dedication, it is being with God, opening your hearts ear to God, to listen.
Stillness changes, varies, breathes, fluctuates and stays the same. It is constant. Are you confused? Me too. On the site One World Still, it offers this thought: “Think of the space between the notes in a piece of music. What is that music without them?” Maybe it better to describe stillness as being without it. A day with no rest, no quiet. Imagine being at a loud concert forever. Maybe the root of your suffering comes from the absence of stillness, not taking the time for it. Your soul, your spirit, your true nature needs it. Without it, it suffocates. When it suffocates, there is no way that the other parts of yourself will not be affected. They are all intertwined and when one suffers, the rest will be affected too. It’s our job to figure this out, what lies beneath, what is at the core.
Hey do you have directions to the city of StiLlnEss??
Let’s tie this into awareness… do you know there is such a place of stillness? Have you experienced it? Maybe you have without calling it that or being aware of it. I think in order to not only lead a happy life but maintain some level of sanity it is absolutely essential to find this place and come back to as often as you can and practice visiting it in the strangest of places, which may also be considered the places you need it most. It’s a place to reflect, hear, learn, recognize to simply BE.
Do the math… Awareness + Patience = sTilLnEsS
So, by bringing your awareness to this place of stillness and having patience working towards it will allow you to arrive at the city of sTilLnEss. We are so used to instant gratification in our world whether it is instant communication via social media, text message, or ordering something online; we need to actively practice patience to reach this. So, don’t allow frustration or the need to be doing something, lack of focus or lack of commitment towards finding this stillness sway you because it is something to work for and sometimes it is easily found and had and sometimes not. AND sometimes you experience stillness and think OH MY GOSH THIS IS IT I FOUND IT HOLY @#&@#& and then you realize you lost it because now you are so excited that you found it OR you find it and it is so f*%$&*^ scary, you got out as quickly as you dropped in. You need to approach it, engage it, work with it. The point is seek it out. Be in it. See what it does for your world, your life, your heart. I mentioned the other blog patient of patience and there is a key part that I want to share again. Through this movement, this stillness, this stillness in movement and movement in stillness… When you have the ability to slow down and take a moment to see clearly, you can experience truth and that is so hard to do when moving at full speed all the time. Open your heart and your mind to open those beautiful bright eyes of yours.
Jeannie Savage
Jeannie has always been an energetic one that dabbled in many different activities, but took dance classes consistently for several years. She took her first hot yoga class in March of 2013. By the end of March 2014, Jeannie had completed a 250 hour hot yoga teacher training. She learned quickly the impact of this yoga, this practice, and thought of ways she could be more involved. By the end of 2014, she completed an additional yoga teacher training course earning her 500 hour hot yoga teacher training certificate. She is here to teach, to train, to learn and to experience.