.png)
Do you have morning rituals?
I haven't been very good about having one even though I know they're super helpful. This year, however, I decided to take lessons from the book Earth Medicine: Ancestor Ways of harmony for Many Moons by Jamie Sams. I incorporate the daily reflections as part of a morning ritual to help me cultivate greater clarity and sense of connection.
One of the lessons, Allowing and Noninterference asks:
Is there some area of your life that you can let go of long enough to allow Divine Intervention to happen?
As I read and make sense of the question, I notice my body relax and my shoulders settle back into my torso. I notice my breath’s pattern as it slows and I sense an easing.
I wasn’t holding up my body anymore. I was being held by my body.
For those few seconds mind, body, surroundings were in awareness. I was connected to the moment and felt a sense of balance.
It was alarming how, already, that early in the day, my body was in tension like a spring--ready to tackle all the day’s doings. Later, I thought of all the ways I feel dis-ease during the day because I’m not allowing and wanting to be in control of situations, other people’s feelings, or even my own.
The illusion of being in control, of wanting to be seen as responsible, good, better, or of should-ing all over myself (telling myself I should be doing something constantly) is alluring and distracting. It doesn’t allow me to let go long enough to feel Grace, long enough to remember that I’m held by love, by family, ancestors, and this Earth.
Luckily, our bodies remember and can tap into a cultivated sense of ease stemming from spiritual practices that include inquiry and curiosity, mindfulness, embodiment, and compassion. In practice, we engage in remembering and can make use of the potential energy stored in the body and in every moment in more loving and wiser ways.
Use these questions to begin your own inquiry and embodiment practices:
In what ways can you let go and trust? And how does letting go feel like in your body?
What does remembering moments you were taken care of bring to mind and body?
What would a supportive morning ritual look like for you?
How can you be more aware and loving to yourself and this moment as it unfolds?
Let me know what bubbles up. I would love to hear about it!