In this first week of March, I’ve been aware of two swirling, opposing forces. I’m both exhausted by the uncertainty we’ve been living in (zoom meetings, tentative summer plans, texts about exposure events) and energized by the advancing of spring (beginning of Lent, receiving the vaccine, approaching daylight savings time and kid’s lacrosse games).
This past week John O’Donohue’s poem “For One Who is Exhausted” has walked with me through these weighty days mixed with the longing of returning to missed things and my reflexive fear of additional loss.
His poem is full of so many great lines….
laborsome events of will
marooned on unsure ground
forced to enter empty time
flow of unwept tears will frighten you
take refuge in your senses
But the one most challenging is this simple command:
Be excessively gentle with yourself.
Clear, plain words that mystify my instinct to prod, cajole and force myself forward when I feel listless.
What does this even mean? How do I live this out? Gentle, sure but EXCESSIVELY gentle? Really?!?!?! What will that accomplish?
Practice:
Choose one day to be excessively gentle with yourself? What do you give yourself permission to enjoy? What do you set aside? In what ways do you feel relief? What unwelcome emotions rise up? What do these emotions threaten?