One of the things I love is being able to find some silence. It’s precious, golden, priceless to have moments with no outer distractions. Sitting in my Centre before the Drop In or later in the evening when the day is winding down is an opportunity to step off the planet for a while. I let the silence envelop me and listen to my mind running on about all the everyday concerns. It’s not quite like a meditation. I’m not trying to still my thoughts. Actually I want to listen to them to see what themes are going round and round in my head. It’s a way to let the worry and fear surface from the corners I’ve pushed them into so I can find out how I might be holding on to stuck stuff.
We are very good at keeping going. It’s one of our most impressive abilities. We can persevere in the face of many of life’s challenges by our focus on getting through. When we are out the other side of the challenges we often think that we still have to keep going, putting on a brave face and being strong. Letting silence surround us so that thoughts and feelings about what has happened can emerge can be the last thing we want to do. Or to let our thoughts about the future concerns come to the front of our minds. Most of us have been socialised to worry about the future. We plan for it, save for it and have expectations about it. It takes our attention off the here and now. In the background of our everyday thoughts there are strands of ideas all about the future and how we wish it will be. Getting to that future seems fraught with more challenges so we worry or are fearful that we will miss out on what we are hoping for.
When I sit quietly in the golden silence I notice all of these strands bouncing around my mind. I have the opportunity to check out if any of the worries or fears are actually real. I also have a chance to see if they are tied into my past experiences in case I am dragging my fears forward with me. It’s also the time when I notice other feelings and thoughts. Ones that seem to belong to someone else or more than one person. Letting the precious silence in gives me a chance to listen both to my higher self – my Spirit – and to my Guides. What I ‘hear’ is inspiration, encouragement, creative solutions and practical suggestions. There is a lot of comfort gained in letting other voices speak inside my mind. It’s also an activity that keeps me firmly in the now. Silence supports mindful practice because there are no outer distractions to remove your attention from the inner experience.
Our spiritual journey is always first an inward one. We have to find out and understand who and what we are before we can offer ourselves back out to the world to be of service. And being of service to ourselves and others is at the heart of practicing spirituality rather than simply talking about how spiritual we are. If we honour the silence by paying attention in it we will be ready to turn to the outer world much sooner. So for me, silence is golden. It is the most valuable time we can spend because we are spending it on and with ourselves. It is a space where our inner Light can increase because we are paying attention to truly knowing ourselves. Do you allow for silence in your life? Is it time to make room for the silence of contemplation and reflection? Why not start enjoying the silence right now!
Day 153 of my blogging challenge.