Rest | Open Space Practice, (AKA: A Thousand Shades of Gray)

Forgive yourself.
You did the best you could.
You tried.
You made mistakes, bad choices, but you’ve learned.
There were moments when you were kind.
Be kind to yourself.

Forgive yourself.
Stop waiting for someone else to make you feel better.
Feel better.
And sit with it when you feel bad, sad, mad.
Your feelings are not the enemy.
Everything is workable.

Forgive yourself.
You have permission.
You are enough, there is enough.
The world is your oyster, the world is your sister.
Love is out there, and in here.

Forgive yourself.
Slow down.
Gentleness is your superpower.
There is strength in your quiet, your stillness.
Rest.

One of my favorite places is the Oregon Coast, and when I’m feeling tired or sad, I imagine our trip this summer, I close my eyes and see myself standing in the sand facing the water, and can hear the whisper of the surf, feel the spray.

*sigh*

One of my favorite albums is “Big Calm” by Morcheeba, and one of my favorite songs is track one, “The Sea.”

“I left my soul there,
Down by the sea”

At the end of yoga class this morning, Aramati reminded us that the stillness and peace we felt at the end of class was something we could access at any time, it was always there. There is a place inside of us, all the time, in our core, our center, that is quiet and spacious, just waiting for us to connect with it.

Sometimes it is hard to find it. We are too busy reaching into the past, getting hooked by our emotions and thoughts, grasping and clinging, working or pushing too hard, trying to force the issue or the project, making deals and plans, rushing into the future, wishing to be anywhere but here and now.

We can drop all of that, at any time. We can let it dissolve, loosen our grasp, let it go, and sink into that still center, sink into now, rest with reality as it is, in this very moment. Rest here, stay here. Be content. Be grateful. Notice, be mindful and aware–this can happen in any moment.

Why not now? Whatever it takes to get you there, however you do that, connect to that place, that space, that quiet, that stillness, that ease, and take this moment to rest there, rest here.