Hey Friend,
How is it going this week? It would be odd not to mention the challenges we are facing in today’s world. At a time like this nurturing seeds of joy, kindness, and compassion are not a nice-to-have- they are a necessity.
I know the feelings of overwhelm and stress and I just want to give you the chance to pause for a moment.
Take a deep breath in.
Pause.
And a deep exhale.
I am right here with you, wading through these waters. As the waves come crashing over our heads pushing us down, we swim to the surface; together. As the waves recede and we find ourselves buoyant again, we look up and breathe together. We can weather this. Even in the harshest climates seeds still grow.
And that’s our task. Even in an often far too cruel world, we clear the grounds and grow what is divinely programmed. We tend to our joys. We grow wiser knowing our own personal happiness. We choose compassion. This is a necessity. As we learn to cultivate these seeds, may we be easy on ourselves. May we start now, with a powerful pause.
Sending love-always,
Lauren
We take a powerful pause to begin to cultivate joy, happiness, and compassion towards ourselves. “Until we are able to love and take care of ourselves, we cannot be much help to others.”-Plum Village monk, Sister True Dedication.
Please feel free to share this with friends or loved ones. Tag @”calmpoint_”
“Metacognition is the awareness and understanding of one’s own thought process.” Metta (with two “T’s) in Pali means, loving-kindness. Here we’re practicing “metta-cognition”, or loving awareness and understanding of one’s own thought process. Here are “4 Soul Questions” from Deepak Chopra, as you take time for inward reflection. (Example answer below)
Soul Questions:
Who am I?
What is my deepest desire?
What is my purpose?
What am I grateful for?
As you ask yourself these questions, allow space for answers to arise with the curiosity of, “What wants to be revealed to me?”. Answers will step forward, there’s no need to force or over-analyze. Be soft, open, and inviting to what may arise from within. Of course you can always ask yourself these questions more than once and answers will change. (That’s ok.)
Knowing the answers to these questions help us make fulfilling choices towards a deeper level of happiness, joy, and compassion in our lives. On a personal note, one of my deepest desire is to feel free. From loving awareness of my deepest desire, I’m able to make conscious choices that support this. Like I prioritize my meditation practice because it allows me to flex my freedom muscle. In my deepest desire to feel free, I carve out alone time that I so desperately need. Meeting my deepest desires fuels my happiness and joy. And knowing my own personal happiness and joys, ignites my ability to choose compassion. Now it’s your turn…
Explore what comes up for you in reflection. Here if you need any support.
Inspiration: I recently listened to a talk from a Buddhist monk on the Plum Village app, which is amazing, and was truly inspired by a particular step he mentioned in embracing challenging feelings. It was step 3, “offer yourself relief”. What a beautiful thing to be there for yourself and practice offering relief. Ahhh…right?!
Insight: It feel very much like I’m in on the cusp of bursting changes (some I can not fully see/know) and I’m both excited and yet cautious. A few words that felt called to me this year were, “radical change”. As I’ve sat with it for a few weeks now, it feels like a shift towards leaving the “belly of the whale” (if you’re familiar with the hero/heroine’s journey) and crossing into a new threshold. Excited to share the journey with you here.
Interest: I never thought I’d say this! Recently, there’s something about taking a baking or cooking class that sounds really interesting to me! It’s creative and mindful in a way I haven’t explored before. Send over any recommendations. <3
Connect on social @laurenlee.love and @calmpoint_
See you next week as we explore “reclaiming your wholeness”. You have so much more to be in life than broken…
Cultivating joy, happiness, + compassion.