In my continuing efforts to simplify my life and teach in a simpler style, I have begun to value the wealth of imagery and emotion that one simple word can evoke. So the themes for my weekly classes are now pared down to a single word. One of the words this past month was “stillness.” As someone who loves to create, to organize, and to explore, I find stillness a challenge. As a teacher, I notice how many people find it difficult to be still in a yoga pose, and how many people jump up after a quieting class to dive right back into a continual stream of chatting, moving, and doing.
I love to sit still in the backyard, gazing up at the trees and the birds and the butterflies. I feel a communion with nature, and it nourishes me. Here, I embrace stillness. Then, as happens so often in those states of bliss, I am hit with an inspiration for some new project or idea, and I’m off and running again!
I think the key to finding stillness is to be aware of the grounded center of your being, whether you’re sitting in your backyard, pushing a shopping cart, or racing to your next appointment. The trick is to be still within, even while your body, your mind, and your life are moving.
Perhaps this is why I love qigong. It is stillness in motion. There is enough movement to keep mind and body occupied and enough softness to really let go, to sense from within, and to find that still center. What a rich harmony. My qigong practice has taught me on the most profound level how to be the calm in the midst of the storm.
Where and how do you find stillness in life? Can you find it, just for a few breaths, every day?
May we each be a beacon of stillness as we move through the world.
