I’ve been blessed to return once more to the quiet of the foothills of the Vindhya mountains in India.
Emerging from morning practice, immersed in the sounds of nature, life takes on a different quality. The cacophony of bird song. The joyous howl of the horns wailing from nearby ashrams calling the faithful to prayer. Bollywood beats straining to be heard from the crackly ancient radio. Shrieking peacocks, chittering monkeys chased by barking hounds…the mellow roll of cowbells as cows stroll freely, wandering as they will.
Looking out across the landscape from the shelter of the rooftop, the morning mist rolls across the hills and lends a ghostly glow to the shapes and shadows emerging in the morning light. In this space of betwixt and between, in the pause of the year before January gets rolling, I am invited to contemplate and reflect on the past year and months.
These are testing times, when the difficult & stressful can feel more familiar than rest.
2024 was not kind to many of us. Tumultuous, exhausting and heartbreaking are just some of the adjectives that come to mind. These are testing times, when the difficult and stressful can feel more familiar than rest.
Reflections…
Leaning into joy – has been my theme of the year. Finding joy with friends in exploring exhibitions, theatre, singing in choir and travel has reminded me that humans are social creatures. Babies’ brains do not fully develop without social interaction; bereft of that connection, life is poorer. Continuing to embrace that which brings joy and nourishes the soul will be a pillar for me.
Listening to my body – Long Covid sucks. Healing takes its own time, as much time as your body needs. It is a process, and I am not the one in control. Healing is a team sport, from expert medics and their teams to my own support network as much as my own efforts with sleep, diet and rest. Learning to slow down and adapt my activity to available energy and capacity, rather than allowing my to do list to dominate has been a pivotal shift, and an ongoing aspiration! The unknowingness of whether today is a good day, and whether I am in balance, or in another cycle of energise/rest is frustrating. It is a daily practice to sit with grace and remind myself that my compassion is incomplete if it does not also encompass myself.
Limiting online media – I feel tired, overwhelmed and bombarded by the negativity online in the news and social media. Reducing my consumption to a once daily check in on newspapers rather than tv, and timeboxing and constraining my social media activity has been a blessing. Learning not to end my day with the evening news has been magical!
Where can we find respite from the noisy outer world that demands our attention?
So how do we create daily rituals of contemplation and space to reflect when life often feels so far away from the liminal spaces of retreats, shrines, temples, churches and other sacred spaces? Where can we find respite from the noisy outer world that demands our attention?
Here are some suggestions for daily contemplation and reflection rituals that you may wish to incorporate:
The Gift of Silence – find your way to silence, whether through mindfulness, meditation, prayer or simply sitting outside and enjoying nature, allow your mind to rest, and your body to be held in the quiet. If you are truly brave, try daydreaming!
Moving the body – find time to be outside to walk (or run!) and talk, whether by taking that call outside, or simply enjoy being with a friend. Your body will move more freely as you find rhythm in movement.
The magic of a digital detox – whether you observe a digital sabbath, timebox your online screentime, delete distractions from your phone, keep meals digital free, or enlist friends or apps as a kill switch to help you refrain from peeking at your phone, allow your mind time to wander, drift and float free of constant stimulation.
Celebrate joy – create a joy jar to store folded notes of joyful moments, so you have a place to dip into and remind yourself of the place joy has in your life when times get hard.
Space – allow yourself space to breathe and be, either at the beginning or end of the day, and take a moment, even if it is simply a few breaths, to breathe in potential and breathe out release. Reconnect with your breath and your sense of who you are.
Allow your mind time to wander, drift and float free of constant stimulation.
May 2025 be kinder & gentler for us all.
May you give yourselves the gift of compassion to allow more space for contemplation and reflection, the pause amidst the clamour.
May you find space to simply be.
Main – Photo by Tommy Milanese
