"When the world pushes you to your knees, you’re in the perfect position to pray..." Rumi
In my last newsletter I spoke of "being brought to my knees..." during the process of saying my final goodbye to my mother, letting go of a job I loved and the general state of the world on so many levels. So there I was - in the perfect position to pray according to Rumi. When I was a child my prayers were the prayers of a child ... I would pray for material things, or to be a better person so my parents wouldn't be disappointed in me. I prayed for Farrah Fawcett hair and to be a brilliant figure skater. I prayed for snow days!
Now I am an adult and my prayers are centered on process rather than outcomes. I pray that I can continue to stay curious and present for this moment, for this breath, for this connection. I pray that my presence does not create more constriction in our ever constricting world... I pray that I remember the gifts of those final days with my mom - most notably realizing the power of being completely present for another human being. The final teaching I received from my mother - a new baseline for my relationships with others.
I also shared my desire to "return to my roots - (letting) my energy be used to work with people who find me because we are meant to work together.... letting word of mouth be my advertising and trust in the process be my business model." After my last newsletter went out, I loved reading and recalling all of the memories many of you shared in your notes. Knowing one thing I shared has made a positive and lasting impression in someone else's life is affirming for me as a teacher and as a fellow soma on the path of discovery.
Today as I was taking a long beach walk with the dogs, I was pondering how sensory motor amnesia is an insidious process that limits our options to choose in any given moment. I noticed that I always held rocks in my left hand and hunted with my right hand. I started to consciously chose my left hand to do the picking up and moving of these amazing rocks and let my right hand hold the rocks. It was clear that my entire system had adjusted to a certain way of "doing" during this activity, and when I mixed it up, I felt all sorts of sensations.
I noticed I was not quite as dexterous with my left hand, but more than that, my entire left side was being called on to participate in a different way. I could feel the ripple effect through my system. The minute I would shift my focus to something else, I would revert to my very entrenched habit of letting my right hand be the active hand. I started really paying attention to the way my weight shifted on the soles of my feet, how my sides responded to reaching and rotating. I realized that I had lots of choices/differentiations available when I would use my right side and not so many when I would switch to my left side.
As somas, we have the ability to sense inwardly the shifting atmosphere that we are. Many of you have heard me say how "we are giant balls of energy constantly shape-shifting in response to the stimuli in our environment." There is no right or wrong in this process... rather there are limitless choices. We lose our freedom when we lose our ability to choose. SMA is a limiting way of being because we are "stuck" in one pattern.
An effective way to release these patterns is by practicing and integrating somatic movements. I am ready to begin teaching again will be offering a 6 week class series on Saturday mornings at 10am Central Time. The series will begin Saturday November 6 and conclude on Saturday December 11. Cost is $100 USD. If you need to miss a class you will have access to the recording for that week. This class is for everyone - whether you have practiced somatic movement in the past, or whether you are brand new. We will cover the basics and beyond. I look forward to sharing with you through my teaching once again and I hope to see you soon! You can register here.
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