Make room for Stillness

This is a relatively new practice for me.

I’ve been studying Eckhart Tolle’s work for over 2 years now and one of the practices he teaches is quieting the mind.

“Can you stop thinking, even for just a few seconds? ” he asks.

Those few conscious moments allow for presence or awareness to flow through.

It’s returning you to this moment, to the Power of Now.

Nature is so helpful for this.

When I sit outside in the morning to read and enjoy my coffee, I take time to look deeply at my beautiful red begonias. In those moments I’m not labelling them; I’m just sitting with them, appreciating them, noticing their beauty and stillness, and emptying my mind – no thoughts, no thinking.

As I hike through the trail by the river each day, I acknowledge Mama Earth, the trees, the river, the birds, the flowers, the rocks and all of the little friends. Finding moments to pause and just be in awe of all of the beauty.

Using your senses can be so helpful for this practice, feeling the wind against your face as you walk, the warmth of the sun on your skin, the beautiful scent of the flowers, the fresh smell of the fall wet fall leaves, the precious sound of the birds calling out, the water running over the rocks, the leaves rustling. 

Slowing down also helps me to become more present – it’s like I’m expanding time and things are going in slow motion so I can appreciate more of the details. 

Consciously taking each step up the stairs, enjoying the warmth of the water as I wash my hands, feeling the soft fur of my cat as I pet him, watching my coffee pour into my cup, watching the smoke from a candle, appreciating the soothing hot water rush over my body in the shower.

When my brain gets too cluttered and my thinking mind is on overdrive, I lovingly command it to empty, to come back, to just be – and then I return home, to my body and take a few conscious breaths.

Quieting the busy-ness of the mind at first may take a lot of conscious effort – but for me, it’s slowly getting easier. But it’s a “practice” – so I keep practicing.

And what could be more important than showing up fully for this moment and being fully available for Source to flow through?