Reflections: Changes, and Rest
Looking for some inspiration this month, I have been browsing through the old archives of my newsletters, back to before I started posting them on my blog sites. I found this one from March 2009 when I was looking ahead to the end of a contract.
This year, six years on, I am in the same situation. At the end of May the current Outset Cornwall programme will come to an end, the team will disperse with big changes for everyone.
For a long time I have been planning to step up more into my Dare to Blossom work and have started developing plans for new workshops and programmes. However, I have also realised that what I need most of all is a rest. A real rest, not just an hour or so, not a rest whilst feeling guilty about not doing other things - a real rest.
So that is what I will be doing on 1 June, and for as long after that as I need. At the same time I know I will enjoy the time I will have for planning and creative development.
I have a feeling that many of you will share that longing for rest and time out. One of the ideas that is bubbling away in the background is to offer a chance for you to do that - in a way that would suit you best. The ideal is probably a retreat, or at least a full day somewhere beautiful and peaceful. And there are ways of providing a taste of that through reading, writing, coaching and participation in on-line groups.
This time last year i was looking forward to attending the first Conscious Writing Retreat at Glastonbury with Julia McCutchen. She is running another one this May, I think there is still time to book if this appeals to you. I can highly recommend the whole experience and hope to be taking part again in the future.
Another aspect of 'rest' that I am well aware of - but keep on being reminded by my body to pay attention to - is that I don't need to wait until... until the weekend, until my holidays, until 1 June. In fact if I do push myself more and more I am nearly always brought up quickly by something that forces me to take time out. Ideally I would listen more closely to the whispers of my body before it needs to shout loudly through illness and accident.
For you, in your meditations or journal writing:
- what would your body like you to do to rest, right now?
- write a list of actions you can take within your normal day, for example: five minutes of yoga; 60 seconds of mediation on your breath; ten minutes walk in the park; half an hour reading, writing or painting; ten minutes playing with your pet.
- over the next month, choose one or more to do every day, notice if you are able to do this and if not, why not. (Be kind to yourself, choose a less challenging action and try again). Journal on how it feels and what else you can do.
Looking for an image to illustrate 'changes, and rest', I came across this photo taken in the bluebell woods at Lanhydrock last spring. The flowers and the fresh green of the new beech leaves last for a short time before nature's changes move them on into their next phase. At the same time the cool shade, the soothing blue, the peace of the woods - all form the perfect environment in which to rest.
If you would like to explore for yourself how the Dare to Blossom Rediscovery Coaching Process and the Cards can help you rediscover your own power, please do contact me to arrange a time for a free twenty minute consultation.
As always, please feel free to comment below with your thoughts and comments.
If you would like to own a set of cards to explore their power for yourself please visit the dedicated page.
Thank you dear friends for visiting with me again this month and sharing my musings.
Until next time,
with love,
Mary
*find 'Dare to Blossom Life Coaching' on Facebook.
