“All men’s miseries derive from not being able to sit in a quiet room alone.”~Blaise Pascal
"Spend some time alone everyday." -Dalai Lama
Who’s afraid of the big bad solitude?!
We want to create! We want to paint! We want to write! We want to BE…. To Be… be what? We think we know, we know we know, but do we really?
As artists and creatives we need time… time to ourselves, time to create, time alone. But as we have learned with each of our challenges, it is the things that we need the most that we have the most difficulty providing for ourselves.
To be our greatestCreative Evil Geniuses (week 6) we learned about how important solitude is. In week 7 we learned how important solitude is if we are to construct our Creative Universe as well as ways to find it, even in small increments…have you found your solitude?
“Focusing on the act of breathing clears the mind of all daily distractions and clear our energy enabling us to better connect with the Spirit within.”
Solitude is not a ‘time out’ it is not something to be endured, it is something to be enjoyed. It is a wonderful gift that we are able to give to ourselves at anytime almost anywhere. It is a practice that must be preached and a preach that must be practiced!! There are of course blocks to this enjoyment, as there always are for us creative types!
Often times we don’t believe we deserve such a luxury, but if you have been looking yourself in the eyes each day, which we practiced in Week 3 – The Eye’s Have It and complimenting yourself (Week 4-It’s Complimentary) then this shouldn’t be that big of a stretch for you by now. Keep in mind that these challenges are cumulative, and complimentary…we must do them the week we are challenged – to help us get over the hump, and continue to do them when we can to continue to grow our creative courage! If anyone has been taking the Pink Cadillac Challenge more than once, I’d love to hear about it!! Okay, pull focus…back to the task at hand, the blocks we have to getting our solitude….- One of the blocks to sitting in solitude for those of us who have a million things swishing around our minds is that we don’t know how to still that activity.
- One of the skills to removing that block about being still is learning how to be alone.
- One of the skills to help us to be alone is to learn how to breathe properly. Yep it’s true!
I know, I know…. You think you know how to breathe; I mean how hard is it right? We do it every moment of every day! In fact, we will take approximately 21,600 breaths each day, but the question is… are they the proper breathes??! Ahhh, that is the question! Proper breathing is the essence of our life, it is the most important function our body performs. It is the method we use to take in oxygen and it a way of eliminating 70% of all the body generated wastes.
Proper rhythmic breathing is one of Nature’s greatest gifts and can be used to calm us, reduce our stress and release pain as well as increasing our energy level…which opens us up to be more creative and our enjoyment of life! Who doesn’t want THAT?!! I do! I do! Pick me!!
“When you own your breath, nobody can steal your peace.”
So first, we must learn to breathe properly, so then we might enjoy our solitude more fully.
Try this experiment: Sit in a chair (not too difficult so far!) Place one hand on your lower the abdomen (or belly/tummy/stomach) and the other hand on your chest (or ribs/heart/sternum)…. Now take a very deep breath through your nose. Which hand rises? If your chest rises instead of your belly you are restricting your oxygen intake…and breathing improperly. Damn…now what?!
We are in luck!! There are so many ways to learn to breathe properly! Any yoga class or instructor is able to teach you. If you do not choose to find a class thenwww.myyoga.com is an excellent resource with a three part series by Vijai Sharma Phd, RYT breathing guide called “Breathe Right”. If you are more of the Martha Stuart student, there is a fine basic video on www.realsimple.com with a simple five steps to breathing properly. Or if your learning is more visual than that, there is a wonderful DVD from Max Strom called Learn To Breathe.
“Breath is the bridge which connects life to consciousness, which unites your body to your thoughts.” ~Thich Nhat Hanh
Correct breathing is a learned skill, and anyone can do it! I have been using breath to calm, energize and de-stress myself for years! I can actually either relax to distress or to energize and focus in just a few moments of breathing properly. There is NO reason to not learn…it’s free, the results are immediate, no planning or equipment is needed, such a simple thing provides great big rewards!
“You must learn to be still in the midst of activity and to be vibrantly alive in repose.” ~Ghandi
To be alone to sit and be still without a task at hand is often difficult for most people, not just artist and creatives. So this week, that IS your task. I challenge each of you this week to sit quietly alone in a room (any room) and breathe (properly of course!) for a minimum of fifteen minutes.
SIT SILENT BREATHE BE
I double dog challenge you to do it more than once!! It may be uncomfortable; a few minutes may feel like a lifetime! You may be internally begging the phone to ring or someone to come ask something of you. We need to learn to be present and comfortable in our own skin, with our own selves, in our own silence to bring about our own calm and create the greatness of our gifts.
Be alone with your thoughts, do not be planning your week, the day, making a grocery list, or even be thinking about your next project. You may meditate, concentrate on each breath in and out of your body, think about something beautiful or charming that brings a smile to your face, be grateful. Do not think about what is happening in the time you are being calm in the stillness, just sit, be silent, breathe and be.
“When we cannot bear to be alone, it means we do not properly value the only companion we will have from birth to death – ourselves.” ~Eda LeShan
Peace be with you this week…in your space, in the silence, with just your self! Good luck, have fun, relax and energize!!
JeaneMargherite Meria McMahon Murray Schintgen
(that’s my name, don’t wear it out!)
Check me out in my other realms…..
