The last few weeks have been a bit of a struggle. I feel as though every time I find my footing, something else comes and sweeps me off of my feet. Rising case numbers; renewed lockdown measures; looming deadlines; another term of distance learning; back to back bad news from my most cherished. The offenders have been varied and plentiful and I was starting to feel their impact physically. A quick test confirmed that while my spirits were low, my pressure was high. A little too high.
I knew that I needed to press the proverbial pause button, as I seemed to be moving in fast forward.
The good news: I didn’t beat myself up for being in this place. That would have been my default reaction in times gone by. But not now. Thankfully, I now understand that we go through seasons in life. Some are naturally busier than others. So, instead, I tried to make small shifts in my day in order to come back to centre.
I couldn’t walk away from all that I had going on; but I could slow my pace and stop sprinting to the imagined finish line (which, by the way, is a moving target and is never fixed).
I couldn’t worry my loved ones into the answers they needed; but I could rally my faith instead of my fear.
Instead of waiting with bated breath for this season to pass, I could breathe deeply and purposefully through it.
One thing that I have found helps me to navigate tumultuous times is gentle movement. This morning, as I was following an online yoga sequence lead by my dear friend Stephenie at Inspire Yoga, I fumbled while trying to manage a simple pose. Tree Pose, she called it. As she guided me to gently lift my right foot and nestle it into my left shin I wiggled and wobbled, trying desperately not to topple over. And then she said something simple, yet profound:
“We can’t hope to rise up if we don’t root down.”
With that, I firmly pressed my standing leg into the ground and stood up tall and firm. There was so much truth in that simple statement.
We’ve got to be grounded in order to rise up.
The winds of uncertainty and fear continue to rage and, at times, manage to knock us clear off of our feet.
Billows of hardship and bad news send us into a tailspin and catapult us off of our footing.
Seasons of disappointment and despair sweep us from the place we stand and throw us into the depths of sadness.
But all is not lost. We can rise. We can get back up. We can stand firm again.
But first, we’ve got to be grounded in order to rise up.
Grounded in our faith. Grounded in our priorities. Grounded in love, in grace and in purpose.
We’ve got to be grounded in order to rise up.
So day by day, moment by moment, I will root down. I will dig deep. I will remain firm.
Firm in my beliefs.
Firm in my boundaries.
Firm in love.
Firm in grace.
We’ve got to be grounded in order to rise up.
And I believe we will not only rise. We will soar.
Oh, I needed this today, thank you, Angelina!
Blessings to you and your cherished ones.
Thank you, Ann. Sending many blessings in return!
What a wonderful and much needed post. I feel so overwhelmed right now. Father passing, getting property & items ready for public sale, navigating all that involves being an Executrix. Being rooted down, such truth. Thank you!
Oh, Linda, I’m so sorry to hear this. Day by day, moment my moment, we root down. And we rise. Sending love your way!
I hate being a Debbie downer to your beautiful post.
I am not grounded. I am uprooted and can not stand firm. I feel horrible.
I too, along with you am going thru stuff. Too many changes at once. Loss of job, finding medical care while unemployed, the complexities of searching for info and not getting the needed answers, having to decide if I put my mom in assisted living or try to care for her in my home with my husbands help.
I feel overwhelmed.
I feel so alone and sad.
I love your posts and look forward to them. I’m sorry I’m being so down. I will try to get myself grounded.
Thank you for the chance to vent!
Dear Li, we never need to apologise for feeling overwhelmed. The reality is that we have issues that pull at our hearts and minds, and they seem to compound by the moment. We can’t do it all, and we certainly can’t do it all at once. Start small. Very very small. And take one step at a time. That’s all we ever need to do. Sending much love and hugs your way!
A beautiful piece Angelina. I love the image of the yoga pose. Thank you so much. Be well!
Thank you, Rob! I’ll be sure to share this with my little photographer 😊
I needed this! Moving targets… yes. And I feel driven to meet the finish line so the targets and expectations can’t change another time. Thank you! I love your beautuful writing! Blessings to you for sharing yourself:)
Those moving targets!! I know exactly what you mean. Always sprinting to the finish line…But those targets and expectations change daily, if not more often than that. I’m reminded of one of my favourite quotes, “The day you stop racing is the day you win the race.”
Yes, the tree pose, a grounding asana. With breath and body attuned, we may weather the storm. Always articulate and self – compassionate. You nourish us, your readers, and I feel uplifted, sustained. Thank you.
We will certainly weather this storm. Thank you for these very kind words!
Slow and steady wins the race. Not that this is a race. It’s more like whatever pace you go is okay, you will eventually get there anyway. Nice steady pace without stress, but lots of peace.
I’m reminded that I want to start doing Yoga. I am so inflexible though. I like the thought of doing Yoga because I think it will slow me down mentally, as it seems the poses are done slow and steady.
I thought that I had to be flexible in order to try yoga, too, but a gentle beginner’s class was enough to convince me otherwise. The slow pace and deep breaths are wonderfully calming. You should give it a try!
Thank you for responding! I think I will look up on youtube a beginners guide to yoga, perhaps a 10 minute one to supplement the 10 minutes of mindful sitting I’ve been trying each morning… Thanks again!