Embracing Stillness
A couple times a month I sit in a park and read silently for at least an hour. I did it this past weekend and I plan to do it this weekend, too.
To be fair, I’ve left out a bit of context. I do this as a part of Silent Book Club, a book group where we all meet up, chat for about 30 minutes, and then sit and read for an hour. At the end of it all, we discuss what we’ve just read and head our separate ways.
I also lay in silence for a half hour to forty minutes once a month…with needles poking out of me while I get acupuncture, just me and the spa music.
Why am I listing out all of the major moments of silence that I regularly partake in? It isn’t just to make the parents of my readership jealous, I promise. It’s because I’ve started to realize how important that silence and stillness is.
If you’ve been a long-time client of mine, you’ve probably heard me say, “When I was in the shower…” and then hit you with an idea. I come up with so many of my great ideas (including the theme for this newsletter more than ¾ of the time) in the shower. It’s that same idea—the silence, or in this case white noise, opens something up for me.
Our world is so busy nowadays. We are running everywhere, jumping from task to task, and bombarded by messages from all sides. This is something I’ve grown up with, and generally handle well, but sometimes, I need to step away to create space. To welcome the different and new.
When I do, I find things come to me, almost out of the ether. It all feels very Big Magic.
These moments are critical for me; they allow me to reconnect with myself and what I value and how I express those values from moment to moment. Am I honoring my needs? Am I fulfilling my mission?
When the answer is yes, that’s when the greatness comes—those random ideas for business, clients, or just something that will bring me joy. When the answer is no, it gives me time to reflect on how I can fix that.
When it comes to Silent Book Club, it even goes one step further. I’m able to honor both my needs for community and my need to have quiet time at once while enjoying my favorite pastime. One that shapes the way I look at the world.
I’m sure you are all sitting here going, ok girl, we get it, you are a single adult who is living her best life. What about those of us who find it harder to get away, whether it be due to obligations, weather (I recognize I live in a very special place where sitting in a park is pleasant year-round), or many other circumstances?
To you, I say: find your version of the shower. There are all kinds of daily routines that give us this space. It could be cooking, cleaning, washing your face in the morning or night…the list goes on. But do yourself the favor of finding and honoring that place. Don’t let it be just because it is hard. You never know what you may learn when you do.
Lesson Learned: In a time when everything is loud and constant, give yourself permission to be quiet, to embrace stillness, and to open your mind to what you truly need. It gives you clarity and openness as you move through the world.
