Skye

Be still

Breathe, and be still with the image for five minutes.

Imagine yourself sitting by this pool.

 Read

I’m not sure why my meditation with this picture caused me to write the reflection that I did.

Our mind and our imagination are funny that way. Maybe it had something to do with how I felt standing in this spot. 

This picture is taken in Scotland on the Isle of Skye in an area called Faery Glen.

The land formations on Skye were immense and overwhelming. I’m not sure I’ve felt the same anywhere else on earth. Everywhere I stood I could imagine the huge land masses that moved in response to tectonic plates shifting to form the exposed rocks and cliff faces that we see today. Great swathes of land reaching high into the sky and sloping down into the rough sea. It was grand! It was majestic! It was….a little freaky. 

And of course, me being me, I was trying not to imagine what would happen if those land masses started shifting again! Where would I run? What would I hold onto? Would it even be possible to survive?

I felt so small. In order to enjoy the undeniable beauty that surrounded me I had to rein in my imagination. Welcome to the scary place inside my head. 

It required letting go of my need to be in control of everything. And my unfounded illusion that I had some kind of control, over everything. 

Oh yeah, that’s right. That’s why I wrote the following after I meditated on this picture. 

I hope it helps you when you’re feeling out of control or overwhelmed.

My reflection:

Sometimes we feel the weight of the world on our shoulders, don’t we? Like we’re carrying all the responsibility for life and it’s really heavy and there’s no time for anything else and none in sight. Our minds are so busy that even when we do have time, we think we don’t. Our calendar isn’t cluttered, our mind is.

One of my coping mechanisms is to zoom out and zoom in. 

It’s great if this can be done outside somewhere but it can be done anywhere. Imagination!

Close your eyes and picture yourself right where you’re sitting.

Picture the room and the space in the room. Then float above the house, or the forest or field. If you’re in your home, picture the neighbourhood. Imagine all the interactions happening in the homes around you. People getting ready for what’s next in their day? Work? Dinner? Bedtime? Everyone busy in their homes. Then keep panning out, stopping whenever you want, until you’ve reached airplane height. 

All the lives. 

All the things that need to be done. 

All the people working to get them done. 

Like an army of ants. 

Make sure you glance back to where you’re sitting. 

You’re just one of many. 

Not the only one. 

So much happens in a day, so much gets done that you don’t have to put your hand on. 

Then start to come back down. 

Back through the clouds and the neighbourhoods and the treetops.

Until you’re right there in front of you. 

Put your hand on your chest. 

Feel your being.

Breathe deeply and be with yourself. 

This is all you’re responsible for. 

One breath at a time. 

One decision at a time. 

One concern at a time. 

One solution at a time.

If you aren’t well, you can’t help anyone else. 

It only takes a few minutes.

Breathe. 

Write

What do you keep trying to take control of but is not really yours to control?

Is there something you can do, even symbolically, to help you let go?

If you let go, what do you fear will happen?

What is in your control? (Remember, time is limited).

Make a list prioritizing the things you value the most, starting with the most important.

Which of those should be attended to daily? Are there some that would be absolutely fine to accomplish only weekly or monthly?

Make a plan. Not too detailed and not too rigid.

Make a list of the things you are doing. External work and internal work both count, even though you only see the results of external work.

Peace to you friend.