A PLACE FROM WHICH TO STEP
One of the skills we learn in yoga and meditation is the ability to observe our conditions as they are without the urge to change them right away. When we can soften the impulse to run away from things that might initially overwhelm us, we create the space to respond, rather than react to challenges.
Over time (and with heaps of practice) we get better at finding our footing in any situation. If we can stare life in the face with greater awareness and a calm acceptance we are better placed to make our next move, whatever it may be.
The poem below really captures this idea. It’s one of my favourites, and I hope you love it too.
One quote…
Ground is what lies beneath our feet. It is the place where we already stand; a state of recognition, the place or the circumstances to which we belong whether we wish to or not. It is what holds and supports us, but also what we do not want to be true; it is what challenges us, physically or psychologically, irrespective of our hoped for needs. It is the living, underlying foundation that tells us what we are, where we are, what season we are in and what, no matter what we wish in the abstract, is about to happen in our body, in the world or in the conversation between the two.
To come to ground is to find a home in circumstances and in the very physical body we inhabit in the midst of those circumstances and above all to face the truth, no matter how difficult that truth may be; to come to ground is to begin the courageous conversation, to step into difficulty and by taking that first step, begin the movement through all difficulties, to find the support and foundation that has been beneath our feet all along: a place to step onto, a place on which to stand and a place from which to step.
David Whyte
One question…
What are the circumstances you need to accept right now to find solid ground? And what is the next step you’ll take from here?
Sent with love,
Melissa x