We spend precious hours fearing the inevitable. It would be wise to use that time adoring our families, cherishing our friends and living our lives. – Maya Angelou
Ah, Day 12’s message speaks to us about how each one of us lives according to our own tempo, rhythm and flow of time. Our physical selves are optimally performing when we follow the daily rhythms of sleep and activity that work best for us. Challenges arise when we try to impose our style of personal time on others and today’s practice helped us to listen and focus in on our own unique view to personal time which in turn, teaches us to be mindful of everyone else’s view as well.
I’m sure we’ve all felt frustrated when our friends or family aren’t on our same schedule – either falling behind or rushing around too much, opting to sleep in too late, etc. When we honor our approach to time we are better equipped to allow other the space to honor their approach as well. This practice also provides a precious opportunity for something we are passionate about at The Swell, conscious communication! When we are communicating with others with intention and purpose and being clear about what we desire to achieve, it provides a higher likelihood that all parties are understanding of the mutual goal and what each person needs to do to help get there. Now, that said I am prone to feeling off kilter when a plan has been made and everyone knows what needs to be done to meet that goal whether it be waking up earlier than usual or preparing the night before, etc and things just don’t go as planned! However, I am learning to recover much quicker than I have in the past. I would maybe be quick to get irritated or frustrated if someone else was the cause of our delay or unpreparedness but I’ve come to understand that everything happens exactly as it should. Reacting that way only served to keep me feeling like a dark cloud and that didn’t help me bounce back and figure out solutions to the problem.
When I began viewing time as something that is fluid I was less rigid about my relationship with it. Do I still like to be punctual? Yes, but I realize that things happen beyond my and other people’s control sometimes that no one is at fault for and there’s always room for patience, compassion and understanding. When we are forgiving of ourselves it becomes much easier to be forgiving of others and that’s when our respect for folks in our lives comes to fruition. So in the vein of today’s theme: My Time, Your Time, and Our Time let’s continue to be understanding that there are always factors in play that we cannot anticipate and each of is always working to do our very best.
Leave us a comment and tell us what you think of today’s post as well the overall experience so far! This is the last meditation experience of 2017 hosted by Deepak Chopra and Oprah Winfrey via the Chopra Center Meditation organization. It began on October 30th and we’re really excited with the theme: Making Every Moment Matter.
