Creating Pockets of Soft, Slow, Still

Creating Pockets of Soft, Slow, Still 

It was so lovely to share time with some of you at our day retreat at The Oak House this December, creating a pocket of soft, slow, still.

While spending longer with these qualities holds huge benefits, day retreats aren't the only option.

Finding small ways to slip them into our everyday lives also holds huge value, particularly in the winter months. Winter is asking us to slow and still, but the festive season is asking us to be bright and glossy. We can feel this push, pull within us, which when we try to ‘do it all’ simply leads to exhaustion.

Sometimes, particularly when life can feel frenetic (which this festive season can involve) we feel that we simply don't have time to press pause. 

Or maybe we worry that if we paused we would collapse and there would be no getting up. 

But in reality, to avoid burning out, we need small moments when we press pause, when we allow ourselves time to feel and tend to what is here, where we remember to listen to the messages our body is giving us rather than forever being hijacked by the demands (often the 'shoulds', 'musts') of the mind. 

One practice we took at the weekend was simply letting ourselves sit with the words and noticing how it felt for them to flow through us. 

So you might like to pause for a moment and try it for yourself.

Find a comfortable seat, where you feel grounded, steady and relaxed.

If you find it helpful, close your eyes (after reading the instructions!)

Tune into the felt sense of your body.
 Notice anywhere that is holding tension (maybe the jaw, shoulders, buttocks, hands)
As you inhale feel aware of your body. 
As you exhale let the words "soft, soft, soft" gently flow through you. 
See where in your body might soften as you say these words.
Stay with this for a few breaths. 

Now tune into your breath. 
Notice its rhythm. texture and where you sense it most easily in your body. 
Invite the breath to become slow, smooth and steady. 
As you inhale, breathe slowly into a softening belly. 
As you exhale let the words "slow, slow, slow" flow through you. 
Stay with this for a few breaths. 

Sense how it feels to pause for a moment with nothing to 'do'. 
As you inhale sense the stillness of your body. 
At the top of your inhale sense the pause before the breath flows back out. 
On your exhale let the words "still, still still" flow through you. 
Then notice the pause at the bottom of the exhale before the breath flows back in. 
Stay with this for a few breaths. 

 

And you need an even shorter pocket simply pause and ask yourself. 
 

Where can I soften my body?
How can I slow my breath? 
What do I notice when I become still?