Blog Alan Seale, Apr 20, 2020 | Intentional Living
Nearly 150 people from around the world joined us during the last few weeks for the free webinar series, Global Connection: Hearing and Responding to the Callings of Our Times. Participants referred to these sessions as “a lifeline,” “a grounding and centering point for my week,” “reminding me of what matters,” and “providing a focus point to pull me back to myself when I start to get lost in all that is happening.” Offering these webinars turned out to be a great gift to me as well. The topic for this last webinar in the series was: Collecting Self, Holding Each Other, Finding Our Way.
In the last few weeks, I’ve been coming back to the somewhat old-fashioned phrase, “Collecting myself.” People used to speak of “collecting themselves” before speaking in a difficult moment, or before stepping out in front of an audience, or making a significant choice. As this pandemic stretches from weeks into what could be months, inner stress and tension intensifies. More and more, I feel the need to “collect myself” before I begin my day.
When I first awaken in the mornings, it takes me a few minutes to fully land back in my body and attempt, as I did the morning before and the one before that, to comprehend all that is happening in the world. I use those few minutes before getting out of bed to “collect myself”—to gather all of the parts of me that are still flying around in the night—to remember who I am, why I’m here, and what brings meaning to my life. From there, I can begin to find my way into the new day.
After walking the dogs and savoring a first cup of coffee in front of the fire, I begin my morning exercise routine. A half hour of stretching and strengthening exercises helps me “collect myself” further. I am then able to fully inhabit my body as I settle into my meditation chair for the last part of my morning “collecting” ritual.
On this fifth and last call of the Hearing and Responding series, we began with a practice for collecting ourselves, and then for holding space for each other as we find our way forward together. If this topic speaks to you, take 30 minutes to listen to the recording. Klik on the link
http://transformationalpresence.org/downloads/global-connection-call-5-2020-04-16.mp3